Filling in the Gaps

Posted by Byron Pendason on October 29, 2019 CE, in , ,

I often find myself feeling a little jealous of the Norse Heathens. They have so many fewer gaps to fill in than the rest of us do, because out of all the Heathens, they have the most extensive lore.

The Importance of Ancestry

Posted by Byron Pendason on October 16, 2019 CE, in , , ,

In my last blog post, I discussed ancestor veneration. It can’t be denied that for heathens, our ancestors are a very important aspect of our spirituality. So you’d think that ancestry is very important to us, wouldn’t you?Let me be very clear. Ancestors are very important to heathenry. Ancestry, on the other hand, is not.Whether you are full blooded Anglo-Saxon, or full blooded Asian, I welcome you to heathenry if you feel drawn to it. I want to take this opportunity to discuss racism within heathenry, and to condemn the racism that can found within my beloved religion.It is true...

Ancestor Veneration

Posted by Byron Pendason on October 6, 2019 CE, in , , ,

One of my favorite Disney songs is Honor To Us All from Mulan, because of these lyrics (sang by Mulan):AncestorsHear my plea:Help me not to make a fool of meAnd to not uproot my family tree.Keep my father standing tall.This reveals a little about Chinese folk religion. First the importance of family, not wanting to dishonor her family or her father. As an extension of this family honor, that the Chinese practiced ancestor veneration.So why am I talking about Chinese folk religion on an Anglo-Saxon Heathenry blog? Many ancient cultures practiced ancestor veneration, the ancient heathens (pagans from ancient Germanic...

Wyrd- the Heathen Concept of Fate

Posted by Byron Pendason on October 2, 2019 CE, in ,

Fate. The word often conjures up the image of some deity on high, planning out your life for you in advance. I blame this on the Christian theology of predestination, a Christian doctrine of the time. I do not think this is how it works in Paganism though. And it’s definitely not how it works in Heathenry.