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Pagan Theology:  Yule, theodicy, and magic Yule seems to occupy a special place in the cycle of the seasons.   It is a time of contradictions: the shortest day of the year, but the longest and happiest night.  A time of bloodshed, when the Holly King dies at the hands of the Oak King of summer, and a time when the animals are slaughtered in preparation for winter.  It is named after a German festival, but it’s commemoration of the winter solstice, a very Mediterranean idea [1].   Yule is at Christmas time, but it has not been tainted like Christmas.   It is a pure celebration of joy.  It is finding light…

A wall of dark clouds cover me Like a warm ocean wave Darkness is here My friend is here She has shown me her creatures She has shown me their shadows She has shown me the fears That hide in the daylight The darkened skies colors are my palette And I paint on this winter’s night For this is the time When the velvet is alive With the light She will fade To be remembered And, I shall remember

Principles of Paganism Lesson 6:  Greek Domestic Religion Introduction Those of us interested not only in studying but emulating ancient religion naturally take an interest in the domestic religion of ancient peoples, for unless we live among surviving or revived pagan communities, we are reduced to celebrating ancient piety in solitude, or with our families.  Judging by recent scholarship, there has been a steady increase of interest in sacra privata, the sacred privacies, and though evidence for such is scanty compared to that available for ancient civic religion, more is being revealed by the efforts of archæologists, epigraphists and scholars as time goes on. The information available on domestic religion…

The wheel of the year makes it’s final turn And on this night, to my log I add wishes to burn I welcome the return of the God and the light And ask Goddess’ blessing on my wishes this night In this upcoming year increase mankinds prosperity Not only of money, but of spirit and peace Let their love of each other, and our planet increase So as my Yule log burns all night I pray for that kind of prosperity It is my sacred Yule time wish, with thanks so mote it be.

December Assignment The Sphinx Combo For this lesson we will combine two of our previous lessons: focusing on a picture and using your imagination, with one small factor added in. One point I failed to make in the last two lessons is that visualization and imagination are the exact same things, so if it makes you feel more confident in the process, call it ‘visualizing’ rather than ‘imagining’. This is an exercise that one of my teachers did with me. In the forums there is a picture of the Sphinx. As before, focus on the picture before meditating or going to sleep, using your preferred method of going into a…

One Mages Opinion On Owning Your Holidays Every year, I come across a lot of people with what I call “Holiday Derangement Syndrome”.  Basically, they have let the madness that can be an unfortunate part of this season warp both their perspectives, and their priorities.  They become obsessed with getting things, having stuff, and meeting goals that are all to often unobtainable.  And because of this self-created stress, they go around being rude and horrible to everyone in their path.  Now to be quite honest, I think such behavior in general is just abhorrent and wrong.  But in Pagans?  Especially those of us who practice Magick?  It is inexcusable.  You…

Investigation Procedures: Presentation and Follow-up (Part 5 of 5) If you’ve been following this series we’ve covered quite a bit of information for carrying out a successful investigation into claims of paranormal activity.  You’ve designed and organized your group, researched the case and its history, carried out the hands-on aspects of the investigation, and meticulously analyzed your data.  In this final installment of the Investigation Procedures series we will cover the process of presenting your findings to the client and follow-up protocols you should consider and practice in regards to concluding your investigation. You and your crack team have thoroughly gone over every last bit of data not once, but…

Tools There is one important thing a you must remember….. tools do not make a Witch; A Witch makes the tools. Your tools are an extension of your  intent and a means for your  intent to continue when life demands your attention.. Desire, visualization and belief are a your tools of the soul and empower your Earthly tools. PENTACLE – The Pentagram, the five pointed star that represents all the elements and Spirit. It is one of the most powerful tools as it represents all you stand for in your Spiritual belief. It is worn for protection and empowerment, used in Ritual and spells and is one’s seal in magickal…

Welcome to the November issue of PaganPages Magazine, a free educational pagan internet magazine.  We hope everyone had a safe and wonderful Samhain!! We had an all time high in Sept with readership and we were so excited, but guess what…Oct was even better.  Almost 20,000 pagans visited our site.  We want to thank our loyal readers and new readers.  Keep on enjoying and spreading the news of this site. UPDATE We are currently looking for the following writers: Herbs Meditation If you are interested in becoming a writer for PaganPages email us at [email protected] REMINDER Have a look in our etsy shop ( http://www.etsy.com/shop/paganpagesorg) for beautiful jewelry.  Your purchases…

HECATE Artwork by Katlyn Breene Daughter of Titanes Perses and Asteria Since ancient times Hecate has been there within us all. All thanks to Zeus, who granted her this power, she forever -stands at the crossroads with her torch, governing who comes and goes within the spiritual realm.  Like the Greek and mysterious women she is, she’s also the goddess of witchcraft, and is sometimes seen as an old hag stirring a cauldron.  I don’t think hag is a very nice word, so lets just say older lovely lady. Lover of the sky and moon, she is the queen of night who was never afraid to see the unseen within…