Welcome

Welcome to The Heathen’s Guide

January 17, 2010 · 1 Comment 

From the Author. Welcome to the new HeathensGuide.com, complete with a forum, news, sales, video, Q&A, and all things web related.

While most of my posts are either fun or furious, I thought I should start off the Welcome screen with a bit of background on The Heathen’s Guide and how it came to be.

I spent most of the 1980’s and early 1990’s wandering about North and Central America, actively involving myself in as many faiths as I could. For the most part, what I found in every religion were decent people with good hearts that wanted to serve their god. From the Mormon Temple in Utah, to the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, to the Harmonic Convergence on the shores of Vancouver, the people I met really, really wanted to be and do “good”... [Read the full story]

Daily Blog

Muslim and Atheists band together

February 6, 2010 · Leave a Comment 

Gotta love a story like this one…

LANCASTER, Calif. – A national Muslim group and an atheist organization are condemning comments by Mayor R. Rex Parris that the city is “growing a Christian community.” Parris made the remarks last week during his annual State of the City address before an audience of mainly clergy and their spouses. “We’re growing a Christian community, and don’t let anybody shy away from that,” he said, according to the Antelope Valley Press. Parris is also promoting a ballot measure that supports prayer at public meetings with reference to a specific deity such as Jesus. “I need them standing up and saying we’re a Christian community, and we’re proud of that,” he said... [Read the full story]

News

Muslim and Atheists band together

February 6, 2010 · Leave a Comment 

Gotta love a story like this one…

LANCASTER, Calif. – A national Muslim group and an atheist organization are condemning comments by Mayor R. Rex Parris that the city is “growing a Christian community.” Parris made the remarks last week during his annual State of the City address before an audience of mainly clergy and their spouses. “We’re growing a Christian community, and don’t let anybody shy away from that,” he said, according to the Antelope Valley Press. Parris is also promoting a ballot measure that supports prayer at public meetings with reference to a specific deity such as Jesus. “I need them standing up and saying we’re a Christian community, and we’re proud of that,” he said... [Read the full story]

Fringe Religions

Air Force Pagans

February 6, 2010 · Leave a Comment 

DENVER – The Air Force Academy has set aside an outdoor worship area for Pagans, Wiccans, Druids and other Earth-centered believers, school officials said Monday. A double circle of stones atop a hill on the campus near Colorado Springs has been designated for the group, which previously met indoors. “Being with nature and connecting with it is kind of the whole point,” said Tech. Sgt. Brandon Longcrier, who sponsors the group and describes himself as a Pagan. “It will dramatically improve that atmosphere, the mindset and the actual connection... [Read the full story]

Christianity

Christmas Myth-Making

December 6, 2009 · 6 Comments 

(The following is a reprint of an article I wrote for The Secular Web)

Who Was Wenceslas? The Origin of Christmas Myths By William Hopper

Caroling-Wassailing

Wassailing, or caroling, is Celtic in origin. Originally, wassail was a cup used for beverages made of mulled ale, curdled cream, roasted apples, nuts, eggs, and spices. The word comes from the Old Norse ves heill, meaning “be well, and in good health.” (Encyclopedia Britannica, wassail bowl) The tradition of wassailing (or singing for ale) supposedly comes from a Saxon woman named Rowena who presented Prince Vortigen a bowl of wine and toasted him with the words “Waes hael... [Read the full story]

Eastern Religions

The Names of God

December 12, 2008 · 5 Comments 

The following is an excerpt from The Heathen’s Guide to World Religions, (P. 17&18), explaining where the names of God came from. The dialogue here begins just after Moses was tossed out of Egypt, when he was stuck tending sheep for Jethro…

Moses and the Sheep
Living well is the best revenge. ~George Herbert, Jacula Prudentum

Moses does okay by all this.  Sure, he’s not exactly the ruler of Egypt, but hey, sheep can be good company too right? He spends all his time feeding sheep, fleecing sheep, cleaning up after sheep, slaughtering sheep, etc.. On his off days, when traders would come through to provide a distraction for him, he was able to spend his days buying and selling sheep. Then he’d lie down at night next to his wife on his soft sheepskin mattress and drift off, no doubt counting sheep... [Read the full story]