Word: pagans
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...parts of the way American Christians celebrate this sacred holiday actually don’t even have any explicit connection to the birth of Jesus. Rather, traditions such as Christmas trees, Yule logs, giving and receiving gifts, and possibly even the date of December 25 itself arose out of pagan celebrations that pre-dated Christ altogether. Meanwhile the figure of Santa Claus actually arose out of a Dutch folk tale that was originally unassociated with the nativity. So much for always keeping focus strictly on the reason for the season...
Looking to take a lighthearted daytrip with the blockmates in honor of the upcoming Pagan holy day? If so, you happen to be in luck—New England contains some of the campiest Halloween entertainment in the history of ever. Witch’s Woods in Westford, Mass. features a haunted hayride, two haunted houses—a medieval castle and an abandoned mansion—and a mysterious attraction called the “3-D Keeper’s Crypt,” which the website solemnly promises will elevate visitors to “a whole...
...keep them happy.“You have to appease the river gods,” Benkreira says. “When they’re happy, we have good weather, good rowing conditions.”The best way to please these deep-sea deities, as any good pagan knows, is human sacrifice. Thus, when a mischievous or simply uninformed rower disrespects the code, the LP holds full license to toss the offender into the Charles River, temporarily assuaging the gods’ appetite, and cleansing the oarsman of his transgression.“[The river gods are] always...
...Quincy House resident Devon G. Castillo ’08. Converting to Wicca was challenging for Castillo, who was raised by conservative Southern Baptist grandparents. Castillo, who always felt slightly out of place in church, disagreed with parts of the Christian faith and turned to Wicca, a neo-pagan, earth-centered religion. “It was sort of wild [when I converted].” Castillo says. “My grandmother thought I was possessed.” Conversion was difficult, but Castillo says it no longer divides him from his family. “At the same...
...aide to President Vladimir Putin, recently called for Lenin--the cause, he said, of all of Russia's troubles in the 20th century--to be removed. That was echoed by Nikita Mikhalkov, a Soviet-era film star who bemoaned the fact that "a corpse" had been turned into a "pagan spectacle" for, as he put it, miners from the Arctic city of Vorkuta. While Putin avoids expressing a firm opinion on the issue, he's probably too savvy to ignore the fact the tide is moving against Lenin...