Category: Editorial

…it’s one of The Mysteries

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When Pagans talk about The Mysteries, we are describing an experience that, by it’s nature, can’t be described.  These aren’t secret things, Mysteries could be talked about in great detail and yet you would never understand them unless you were there.  All kinds of things happen during Mysteries that set you up for The Moment.  Some word or action or sight or smell suddenly sends a profound shock through your soul that continues to resonate long after the incense has cleared.

I’m just back from Sacred Harvest Festival and I can tell you, this festival was one of The Mysteries.  I didn’t realize it until today at the last morning meeting.

I had had a perfectly delightful festival experience, perfect weather, good friends, lots of food.  Yet I experienced that shock to my soul that signaled I was taking part in a Mystery all 9 days long and didn’t realize it until this morning.  All these little moments – a conversation, the rustle of the oak leaves, a compassionate glance from Crystal Blanton, campfire smoke, sunrise the color of Star Foster’s hair, drums beating, holding  my husband’s hand as we head to a ritual, laughing at a huge knit penis – were steps along the road to Eleusis.

A wristband to enter the festival or an ear of corn reaped in silence?

I could write all about those moments, you’ll read about some of what happened at the festival over the next few days, but unless you were there you won’t understand The Mystery I experienced.  Likewise, I can fill you in on the morning meeting, my “ear of corn reaped in silence” moment – but your soul won’t vibrate when you hear about it.  I can show you a grimy, tattered wristband that I wore all 9 days, but your eyes won’t tear up in humble gratitude like my are.

At the morning meeting we honored a young man and gave him a spear.  We thanked the Harmony Tribe board members, past and present.  We auctioned off the green penis.  Listened to a few songs.  Found out that we honored a Hindu Goddess on the same night as millions of Hindus were also honoring her.  Received a personal message from another Goddess.  Held back tears, laughed, hugged.  And then realized we were all leaving this place and these people.

Yes, I will see many of the people who attended SHF over the course of the year.  I’ve seen them before and I’ve attended SHF many times before.  I’ll be back to Harmony Park (where the festival is held) again.  But I will never again be in that place with those people.

But I will carry that glimpse of The Mystery with me always.

Kari’s Thingtide Travels – Midwest Viking Festival

This is the third installment of my vandrestav journey this summer, 2011. The first two events, Trothmoot and Northern Folk Gathering, were specifically designed for practitioners of the spirituality of the Northern European folk tradition.

The Midwest Viking Festival, which took place July 16 – 17, was a celebration of specifically Viking era traditions, attracting Scandinavians looking for deeper root connections as well as public from many other cultures seeking to learn more about their Scandinavian American neighbors. Though not strictly a “Viking re-enactment camp,” education and context for the learning was achieved through historical re-enactment.

For the prior two events, I was invited to teach volva stav, my own contemporary expression of the volva, staff carrier of Northern European spiritual tradition. I performed from my wide repertoire of songs and stories that connect the listener to my own ancestral journey, healing oorlag and honoring disr (female ancestor guides). For the two prior events, my perspective of living in the here and now on this pathway was the source of my involvement in the events.

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Happy Birthday PNC-MN! – Editorial

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The Pagan Newswire Collective – Minnesota Bureau is one year old! Evolving from a meeting at PSG with Jason Pitzl-Waters, and consultations with a local group who had also sent a proposal for a Minnesota bureau, this bureau posted “Community Notes”  from TCPagans on July 28th, 2010. How the PNC idea had gotten to this point is another whole story, but for us who formed this bureau; Heather Biedermann, Cara Schulz, and myself, Nels Linde, it was the start of an ambitious project.

What is this bureau?

The vision we acted upon was of a blog based information source for our community. The concept of ‘news’ is a hard one to define. Is it ‘Dog bites Pagan’, “Pagan bites Dog’, ‘What Pagans think about Dogs’, ‘Pagan wins at Dog Show’, ‘Pagan buys Dog’, ‘Dog bites Pagan in Detroit’, or ‘Pagan bites Pagan’? Well, we believe it is all of these topics and more. Our concept is to cover whatever seems to be the demonstrated interest, issues, and news we find in our community, and also to stretch that interest. As volunteers, with limits on our time, resources, and local experience, our content will also reflect our personal interest (I may have not written about Pagans hunting, if I didn’t hunt). As much as we are defining who and what we are, we also realize the idea of a local information source is ‘news’ to you, our readers. We know that your expectations may not match with our vision, and pay scale (we are all volunteers and have funded the costs, and time involved, in our reporting out of our pockets). We expect as we all grow and learn, these inequities in understanding will be resolved. Continue reading →

Largest Upper Midwest Pagan Festival opens in 10 days! – Interview

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Sacred Harvest Festival (SHF), located in southern Minnesota near Albert Lea, opens Saturday, August 6th, The last day to register online  and before gate rates is Sunday, July 31st.  I had the chance to interview Bress Nicneven, festival site director and board member of Harmony Tribe , the event’s sponsor.

Why do people continue to return to Sacred Harvest Festival?

SHF has gained a national reputation for quality and timely speakers and musicians. Celia’s video for the song ‘ Symbol’ was filmed at SHF, before the Pentacle Quest  became a household Pagan word. It is known for having a defined theme each year, and presenting profound rituals and speakers that all build on that theme for a complete experience. One of the few festivals that does this each year. In stressful financial times, this festival offers the cheapest per day rates of any festival in the country for the quality of the programming and activities.

It is a really reasonable family vacation for Pagans. It is an upper Midwest tradition, going on 14 years. SHF is really a place for everybody. There is a Kid’s cauldron, operated by parents and volunteers, that keeps kids happy all week. Families get the time and space to worship together as a family. They get time together and also adults have time for individual experiences. It is really strengthening for both families, individuals, and our community relationships. We have a great location in a shady oak grove with easy access from Des Moines, Madison, and the Twin Cities.

What is this year’s theme about?

Forest Family, Roots and Branches Intertwined  is our theme this year. It encompasses the roots of the Tribe itself, the thousands of people who have grown this festival over the years. We come each year to celebrate at this magical grove, and this year we specifically want to connect with the marvelous shady and protective trees there. Trees are an appropriate symbol of how we are also all connected, and essentially like the forest that we camp under. Like the burr oaks, we are still growing, and changing, and each season together we reach out within the festival and our home communities to integrate our spiritual experience back into our foundation, our roots. Continue reading →

Pagan Leadership, The Transformative Model

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Editorial by Peter Dybing, First Officer of Covenant of the Goddess

With the rapid rate of growth in the broader Pagan community change is inevitable. This requires a new model of Pagan leadership. That being said, what qualities will these transformative leaders possess? It seems it becomes necessary to define the qualities of a transformative Pagan leader and establish the dynamic of organizational change a leader must manage, in terms of Pagan culture, structure and the community of individuals that make up an organization.

Today’s Pagan organizations need leaders who are transformative in assisting organizations to develop new goals, establish support and actionable by-in from community members. These leaders will need to possess the ability to take established organizations and manifest something new and positive. Transformative leaders, by their example, rather than authority, bring about change in organizations basic cultural and political systems.

All to often-Pagan organizations seek out leaders who are focused on maintaining the status quo. These leaders engage in perpetuation of the current leadership dynamic and power structure. Nor are they focused on the need for their organization to grow and evolve in order to be meaningful to successive generations of Pagans.

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