By Occult World
This short biographical entry on Cunningham describes his lifelong interest: "Cunningham was introduced to the Craft in 1971 through a book purchased by his mother..."
Read on occult-world.com
CLEAR ALL
Samhain is a pagan religious festival originating from an ancient Celtic spiritual tradition. In modern times, Samhain (a Gaelic word pronounced “SAH-win”) is usually celebrated from October 31 to November 1 to welcome in the harvest and usher in “the dark half of the year.
There are such myriad historical and contemporary variations and semantic complexities when dealing with paganism that a book-length article would be needed to fully cover it. The wheel as described here is broadly what is observed today by modern pagans, chiefly of the UK and Ireland.
Janet’s work with the late Stewart Farrar was long the cornerstone works for newcomers to Wicca, Witchcraft and other Pagan Traditions.
There’s no way to truly describe an entire religion in under 50 words. So for those who are willing to have a conversation over a glass of wine or a cup of tea, I offer this guide to explaining Paganism to those who are genuinely curious (i.e.
I frequently tell people “follow the path you’re called to.” This doesn’t mean a literal call… or at least, it doesn’t mean that the vast majority of the time.
How do we welcome those who expect to “make their own guidelines?” How do we balance the obligation to preserve our sacred traditions with the obligation to be hospitable to those who simply won’t tolerate being told what to believe or what to do?
Just as Christianity includes wide ranging denominations such as Catholics, Baptists, Seventh Day Adventists and Greek Orthodox - all with very different practices and interpretations of their faith - the term pagan covers a wide range of beliefs.
I can’t believe I am diving into this linguistic swamp again, but here goes. Recently, I’ve been engaging in some online discussions with polytheists and the “Pagan enough” debate was aroused, of course, and it got me thinking.
“We all come from traditions that are pagan, in the sense that they were based on seasonal cycles.”
Margot Adler has been a priestess of Wicca for 19 years, and is the author of Drawing Down the Moon. She lectures and gives workshops on the Craft and women’s spirituality throughout the country. In her “parallel” life, she is a correspondent for National Public Radio.
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