Minnesota's
Twin Cities region is home to a large community of
Wiccans,
Witches
Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have use ...
,
Druids,
Heathens, and a number of
Pagan
Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
organizations. Some
neopagan
Modern paganism, also known as contemporary paganism and neopaganism, is a term for a religion or family of religions influenced by the various historical pre-Christian beliefs of pre-modern peoples in Europe and adjacent areas of North Afric ...
s in the USA refer to the area as ''Paganistan'', a term coined by linguist, poet, and humorist Steven Posch in 1989, which he then used in the title of his spoken word album ''Radio Paganistan : Folktales of the Urban Witches''.
[Profile: (Personal)]
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History
In 1961, Llewellyn Worldwide, an independent publisher of books for the New Age, Pagan
Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
, and occult
The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...
audience was moved to Saint Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
by the new owner Carl L. Weschcke
Carl Llewellyn Weschcke (September 10, 1930 – November 7, 2015) was an American publisher and the president/owner of Llewellyn Worldwide (formerly Llewellyn Publications) from 1961 until his death. He received nationwide media attention when h ...
. At the time they were simply an astrological publisher.
In 1963 Carleton College
Carleton College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. Founded in 1866, it had 2,105 undergraduate students and 269 faculty members in fall 2016. The 200-acre main campus is between Northfield and the 800-acre Cowling ...
in nearby Northfield, Minnesota, established a rule that students had to attend religious services of some kind. The RDNA (Reformed Druids of North America
The Reformed Druids of North America (RDNA) is an American Neo-Druidic organization. It was formed in 1963 at Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota as a humorous protest against the college's required attendance of religious services. This ori ...
) formed in response and they continued to meet even after the rule was rescinded.
In 1971, Llewellyn hosted the "First American Aquarian Festival of Astrology and the Occult Sciences" which went on to be known as Gnosticon
Gnosticon, sometimes called the Gnostica Aquarian Convention, was a magical and Neopagan event sponsored by Carl L. Weschcke and Llewellyn Publications from 1971 through 1976, held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, one of the first such to be held in the ...
. Llewellyn's publications and Gnosticon drew more attention to Witchcraft, contemporary Paganism, and their connection to the Twin Cities. This led to the creation of the American Council of Witches
The American Council of Witches (sometimes called the Council of American Witches) was an independent group founded in 1973 consisting of approximately seventy-three members who followed Pagan, Neopagan, or Witchcraft traditions; the group convene ...
in late 1973 and the Council Convened at the Great American Witchmeet in 1974.
In 1975, Burtrand and Aura, initiates of the Weschckes via Lady Sheba, founded the Minnesota Church of Wicca.
In 1979 Louie Piper opened Evenstar Books. This metaphysical shop became a center of Pagan activities which lasted for almost 30 years, and is the direct predecessor of the Sacred Paths Center.[About SPC « Sacred Paths Center]
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Northern Dawn Local Council of the Covenant of the Goddess was founded in 1982 by Church of the Earth and Rowan Tree. NorDCoG hosted public sabbats from Samhain of 1982 until April 2016 at which time they disbanded. It had hosted the CoG national gathering (Merrymeet) twice.
In 1987 the Druid group called "Keltria" was formed when Tony Taylor initiated a schism from Isaac Bonewits' ADF.
The Minneapolis daily newspaper Star Tribune edition of Saturday, October 31, 1992 had an article called "Witches and pagans gather for a special New Year's Eve..." which included the phrase, "The Twin Cities may have one of the largest pagan populations in the United States, so large that one member calls Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Monday, May 23, 1994 in an unusual non-Halloween Star Tribune article titled “Pagans seek respect and a place to call their own - Religion is legitimate, has spiritual base, followers say” the paper is quoted "They estimate that there are 3,000 to 10,000 Pagans in Minnesota, one of the largest concentrations in the country. They call this area ‘Paganistan’ in honor of the Pagans. "
The first Coffee Cauldron was held in 1995. This was a monthly, then semi-monthly gathering of Pagans that now stands as the longest running regular gathering in Paganistan.
The New Alexandria Library opened in 2000 as a subscription library. It was founded by members of the Wiccan Church of Minnesota. Its stated purpose was "to create an archive that preserves our Pagan history, culture, and heritage, to ensure community access to hard-to-find and out-of-print materials, to provide access to a wide range of information and training materials, and to serve as a center of studies and research for scholars of Neo-Paganism." Citing financial reasons, the library closed its doors in June 2004.
During the fight for Pagan veterans' rights against the Veterans Administration, a nationally-publicized rally and ritual took place at the Minnesota State Capitol Mall on February 24, 2007. The rally and ritual were organized by the Upper Midwest Pagan Alliance.Murdock
Murdock is a surname. A relatively modern iteration of the Irish or Scottish name Murdoch. Notable people with the surname include:
* Andrew Murdock, American record producer
* Andrew G. Murdock, botanist whose official abbreviation is "Murdock", ...
, a heathen hof dedicated to the god Baldur. Baldurshof is a 120-year old former church located on the main street of this tiny prairie town.
Research of Minnesotan paganism
As one of five larger population concentrations of pagans in the United States (the other four being San Francisco, New Orleans, New York City and Salem, Massachusetts) , the Minnesotan Pagan community is the subject of a thesis by Doctor of Anthropology Murphy Pizza.coven
A coven () is a group or gathering of witches. The word "coven" (from Anglo-Norman ''covent, cuvent'', from Old French ''covent'', from Latin ''conventum'' = convention) remained largely unused in English until 1921 when Margaret Murray promote ...
s, legal Pagan churches, Ethnic Reconstructionist groups, and many more solitaries
A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions.
Description
In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Chr ...
, interlopers and poly-affiliated Pagans ...[
]
See also
* Neopaganism in the United States
Modern paganism in the United States is represented by widely different movements and organizations. The largest Neopagan religious movement is Wicca, followed by Neodruidism. Both of these religions or spiritual paths were introduced during the ...
* Religions of the Twin Cities
* Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
* Saint Paul, Minnesota
References
{{Neopaganism
Minnesota
Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Religion in Minnesota