The Purple Glow of Forests: Researchers Observe Electrical Discharges from Trees for the First Time
A new study reveals that thunderstorms may electrify entire forests. Researchers detected faint corona discharges leaping between leaves, producing ultraviolet flashes across treetops, an invisible light show that could influence…
Editorial: Trans rights are human rights — and religious liberty is on the line
As trans Americans face escalating legal restrictions, religious liberty is being invoked not as protection for minorities but as justification for exclusion. For Pagan traditions that affirm gender diversity, the…
A Circle of Gold and Blue: Medieval Ring May Have Been Worn for Healing and Spiritual Power
A medieval gold ring set with a deep blue stone has been unearthed in Norway’s oldest town, revealing not only exquisite craftsmanship but long-held beliefs in sapphire’s power to heal…
Beyond “Was She Really a Witch?”: Revisiting Margaret Atwood’s “My Evil Mother”
“Contemporary reclamations of ‘witch’ as feminist identity tend toward celebration,” writes Beatrix Kondo, “which Atwood declines. What she offers instead is something harder and more useful: these practices functioned as…
A Witch’s Harrowing Sorrow: A Review of Hamnet
Lyonel Perabo reviews Chloe Zhao’s film, a moody, witchy exploration of grief and art that incorporates the medieval Nine Herbs Charm into its story of Agnes Hathaway and William Shakespeare.…
Twilight of the Twentieth Century
The Norse myths are laced with a melancholic focus on the end of an age. Karl Seigfried notes that today it also feels as though a way of living is…
Pagan Community Notes: Week of February 26, 2026
In this week’s Pagan Community Notes, Mercury Retrograde is underway, and as usual, present, perky, and problematic. Coreopsis Journal and The Commons of Modern Pagans and Spiritual Seekers (COMPASS) both…
Hidden Household Gods in Cologne: First Lararium North of the Alps Found
Excavations beneath Cologne’s future Jewish museum have uncovered a rare 2nd-century Roman household shrine: the first lararium found north of the Alp that is reshaping our understanding of domestic religion…
Colonial Waters: Study Finds Indigenous Nations Are Reshaping Global Water Governance
A sweeping global review finds Indigenous nations are engaging dominant water governance systems at every level—often through courts, protest, and consultation—but rarely as recognized authorities. The study highlights both the…
Whose Blessing? Defense Secretary Invites Christian Nationalist Pastor to Lead Pentagon Worship Service
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth invited Idaho pastor Doug Wilson, a self-described Christian nationalist, to deliver a worship service inside the Pentagon. The event has sparked debate over religious pluralism, church–state…