Heather Greene
Heather Greene is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Heather Greene
As the pioneers of modern paganism die, fears grow that their wisdom will be lost
By Heather Greene — August 1, 2024
(RNS) — Today’s young Wiccans and witches tune in to social media for community.
How Sean Feucht helped bring the devil’s music to Indiana’s state capitol
By Heather Greene — July 31, 2023
(RNS) — After Christian musician Sean Feucht brought his God and Country concert to the Indiana Statehouse, Hoosier members of the Satanic Temple demanded access for a concert of their own.
Can Wicca’s two equal deities, once celebrated as revolutionary, make room for nonbinary believers?
By Heather Greene — June 29, 2023
(RNS) — A balanced but gendered theology has lately presented problems for Wiccans proud of the religion’s progressive framework.
‘The Wicker Man,’ the classic horror film and pagan must-see, gets new life at 50
By Heather Greene — June 21, 2023
(RNS) — In anticipation of its 50th anniversary, the landmark film’s ‘director’s cut’ was released Wednesday in time for the solstice, a major pagan holiday.
From Taylor Swift’s tour to statehouses, witches are blamed for climate of fear
By Heather Greene — June 1, 2023
(RNS) — One historian sees a replay of 17th century moral panics in today’s increasing social media attacks on witches, saying, ‘It is getting weird.’
May Day’s pagan roots are alive and well in Beltane
By Heather Greene — May 1, 2023
(RNS) — One of the eight sabbats, or modern pagan holidays, Beltane is a celebration of community after the colder months and of the returning fertility of the land.
Pagan conferences return with more attendees, more magick after pandemic hiatus
By Heather Greene — April 19, 2023
(RNS) — ‘Everybody is here. There are lots of hugs. We are back.’
Rachel Pollack, tarot expert, trans activist and author, is dead at 77
By Heather Greene — April 17, 2023
(RNS) — Pollack said that in the single year of 1971 she discovered tarot, had her first story published, moved to Europe and came out as trans and a lesbian. 'My whole life changed in one year. It was an amazing year. A year of my life taking off,' she said.
Horror shows like ‘Mayfair Witches’ hire occult consultants to cast their spells
By Heather Greene — March 7, 2023
(RNS) — As witches and interest in Wicca became more common in the broader culture, occult consultants are finding more work on film and television sets.
‘Rosary beads? Yes. But crystals, no.’: Catholic school counselor loses her job
By Heather Greene — January 26, 2023
(RNS) — An employee who invited three Wiccan high priestesses to speak to marketing students did not believe that the crystals they handed out nor their religion would cause a stir.
Stability is not in the cards for 2023: Divinations reveal a year of transitions
By Heather Greene — January 6, 2023
(RNS) — Using tarot, astrology, runes and countless other divinatory methods, practitioners offer a reading on the pulse of the year to come.
A modern witch celebrates the cycle of life and death at the confluence of cultures
By Heather Greene — October 28, 2022
(RNS) — This time of year, a bruja, or witch, practices central Mexican Indigenous rituals and modern pagan ones, both honoring the Earth and “us as individuals as part of nature.” But the holidays of the Day of the Dead and Samhain are not the same.
No, they do not worship the devil, and other myths dispelled in new book on satanism
By Heather Greene — October 21, 2022
(RNS) — Satanism appeals to people who feel marginalized in some way, said La Carmina, whose "Little Book of Satanism" attempts to curb some of the misinformation on satanists and their organizations.
In ‘Hocus Pocus 2,’ Disney takes the panic out of witchcraft
By Heather Greene — October 5, 2022
(RNS) — Witches, and Americans, have come a long way since the days of satanic panic.
As pagans celebrate autumn equinox, some question why Mabon is its symbolic deity
By Heather Greene — September 22, 2022
(RNS) — While the Mabon, like the other seven sabbats on the Wheel, is informed by older agricultural practices, its name is not so old.
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