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A Quick Navigation Guide to the Site
There is now a lot of material on Atheopaganism on this site! Here are some pointers for finding the information and resources you may be seeking. The founding essay describing how I came to arrive at and envision the naturalistic Pagan path of Atheopaganism is here. A video introduction to Atheopaganism is here. The Resources page contains links to a wide range of useful materials such as the essay, the Atheopagan Ritual Primer, an event planning guide, an Atheopagan “hymnal” of songs and poems, a page of Sabbath recipes, a printable one-sheet of the Atheopagan Principles, a recommended reading list, and other useful material. The post on starting your Atheopagan practice and planning rituals is…
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Audio: Why Tarweed was a Good Idea
Another in my series of Sonoma Stories: mythology for a sacred landscape of meaning. Text version here.
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Mythology: Why Tarweed was a Good Idea
Another in my series of Sonoma Stories: mythology for a sacred landscape of meaning. It was summer, and the great Sun was in love. He stretched his warm arms down to stroke the soft green of Sonoma’s belly, and everywhere he touched the grass grew tall, the leaves spread wide for him. How he loved her! He couldn’t help but want to come closer. Obsessed by her beauty, dazzled by the wide artistry in her diverse creation, he brought his flaming face close until the slopes of her body toasted golden, till the streams dried and the Animal People (who were the only ones living here then) cowered under the wilting oaks against…
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Creating Your Own Wheel of the Year
In Atheopaganism, similar to many other Pagan paths, we celebrate eight Sabbaths, or holy days: the solar equinoxes and solstices, and the points between them. But I encourage folks to adapt this calendar to fit the circumstances of the places where we live, choosing our own names and meanings for these holidays as necessary. Why your own? Because we all live in different climates, and the traditional Pagan/Wiccan Wheel doesn’t really reflect any except that of England and places with similar seasonal cycles. Ours is an Earth religion, and connectedness to our local seasonal cycles is essential: our celebrations should reflect the land on which we live, not somewhere else. I live…
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Audio: Salmon’s Revenge
Another in my series of Sonoma Stories: mythology for a sacred landscape of meaning. Text version here.
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Mythology: Salmon’s Revenge
Another in my series of Sonoma Stories: mythology for a sacred landscape of meaning. Around here, before the Lost People pushed their way in and started building cities, this used to be Bear country. Bear’s still here, but she keeps to the hills and doesn’t come down around the valleys so often now. Before we came, though—always remember, we are Lost People, too, and it’s a hard job finding yourself, you have to keep looking every day—anyway, before we came along, Bear was pretty much the biggest and toughest person around. If the First People were fishing or gathering tules for baskets, and Bear wanted that place for fishing, well,…
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Atheopagan Symbol Contest: Round 2
Where things stand: Below are the candidate symbols for the second round of voting. They include the top three from the first round. Please vote in the comments either on the Facebook group or below. Please vote by July 17, and only vote for ONE choice! What happens next: We will narrow down to a final three for discussion and a final choice. Remember that the symbol chosen is totally optional–if you don’t like it, just don’t use it. Some of us don’t feel we should have a symbol at all; in that case, vote for “NONE”.
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Atheopagan Symbol Contest
Update: today, July 10, is the deadline for additional submissions (due to additional ideas and discussion on the Facebook group). Please mail to atheopagan@comcast.net. There will be further opportunities to comment and vote after the 10th. For those of you not on our Facebook group, where voting is happening now, here is your chance to vote for your favorite of these submissions for a symbol for Atheopaganism. Please choose one option and note it in the comments. If you think we should not have a symbol, or that none of these are right for us, please say that in your comment. I’m collecting votes for a week or so and will then…
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New Thoughts on the “Arrival” Phase of Atheopagan Ritual
When I do Atheopagan rituals—particularly with other people—most of the time I follow a simple structure which facilitates passage into the Ritual State, also known sometimes as “trance” or “flow”. That structure and the concepts and principles surrounding it are explored in detail in the Atheopagan Ritual Primer, which can be downloaded here. Now, I should say, as I always do, that you don’t have to use this structure to be an Atheopagan. Do whatever works for you. But I think you’ll find that this system does work, if you’re just getting started with ritual work or looking for an inspiration point to begin from in designing a ritual. I’ve been thinking…
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What is There to Live for?
In an atheistic world, many ask: what’s the point? What is the purpose of living if there’s no judgment, no afterlife to be attained, no cosmic plan or purpose? I can’t tell you what is meaningful in your life. Perhaps it’s your art, or your family: being the best parent (or grandparent, or aunt or uncle) you can be. Perhaps it’s the sacred calling of a career of service to the Earth, or to fellow humans. Perhaps it is simply to enjoy the pleasures of this abundant world. It could be a lot of things. I’ve written on a subject related to this previously: we are Atheopagans to live in…
