Wishing everyone a blessed Midsummer

"A slideshow with pictures from midsummer celebrations in Finland and Sweden:"

State-Sponsored Church of Norway Abolished

"In an unprecedented move, the Norwegian Parliament has voted to abolish the state-sponsored Church of Norway with a constitutional amendment.
The bipartisan measure to create a separation of church and state will officially be presented on Tuesday, reports Norway's TV2. The nation will not have an official religion, and the government will not participate in the appointment of church deans and bishops."
For Heathens, this may at first appear as vindication for the days when Olaf forced the conversion of his people to Christianity. However, the increasing secularism of Norway may prove a double-edged sword, as it has been cited as a factor in the government's apparent indifference towards preserving the Ranheim Temple and other pre-Christian sites. The full story on the abolition of the Church of Norway may be read at Digital Journal.

Lightning Across the Plains 2012

"On September 20-23, 2012, heathen tribes, strong families, and solid heathen individuals from around the Heartland will gather at Gaea Retreat, a campground about 40 minutes outside of the Kansas City Area. There were 240 heathens at LATP in 2010 and 225 heathens at LATP in 2011, with 65-70 children in attendance both years.  This makes Lightning Across the Plains one of the largest heathen gatherings in the world." To learn more about Lightning Across the Plains, and to register, visit their site.

East Coast Thing: 22-26 August, 2012

"The East Coast Thing is an Asatru community-building event in the Poconos of Pennsylvania. It was established in 1999 and is a family-friendly place where Asatruar gather in fridh to honor the Aesir and Vanir, exchange ideas in classes and workshops and renew the bonds between kindreds and individuals. While the event is open to all individuals, the focus is on Asatru and the Northeast Asatru community."

"A call for papers to those who may wish to present some academic pursuit that would interest both experienced and novice in the Asatru community. Register before June 1st for discounted prices!"

For further information, visit the East Coast Thing site.

Walpurgisnacht 2012

Here's hoping everyone had a wonderful Walpurgisnacht/ Freyjablot/ Frowe's Night! Hail the Lady of Cats! Hail the Mistress of Seiðr! Hail Vanadís! Hail Freyja!

Lebanon Valley College analyzing Colonial-era Deitsch/German documents

From the Hexenkunst Yahoo Group:

Students are assisting the Lebanon Valley Historical Society in translating and archiving documents from the colonial era written by the early German and Swiss settlers in Pennsylvania, many of which were written in dialects and scripts of German which are no longer used. WGAL has a report on the students's work, the video of which can be viewed here.

Scientists find runes on ancient comb

Thanks to Hex Magazine for this item:
"Archaeologists have found the oldest engravings of letters ever to be discovered in central Germany, officials from the area announced on Thursday.
The ancient letters, called runes, were scratched onto a 12.5 centimetre-long comb by Germanic settlers in the second century, scientists working on the site in Saxony-Anhalt believe." The complete article may be read at The Local.