Atheology
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Sailing the Big C
Suddenly, cancer is all around me. A friend in the hospital with brain cancer. And THREE of my co-workers, including one who is Stage 4 with a prognosis of 5-7 years. There are only nine of us, for the record. I mean, what the hell?? I don’t have any indicators, myself. But it feels as though death is closing in around me. This is the season of Hallows: the time when I contemplate mortality, do my observances for my Honored Dead, think about the hoped-for harvests that never came up and must now be turned back into the soil. It’s a powerful and evocative time, and between the spooky movies…
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Hallows: A Compendium
I’ve written a lot about this time of year, this holiday, which I call Hallows. I’ve been celebrating it for decades. And every year at this time, I think about mortality, the cycle of death/decomposition/recomposition, ancestors, memory. The past, the inevitable future. The Big Picture. Dressing up creepy, or goofy, or sexy. Giving permission to people to let their wild side out. I think about all of it. I’m doing that this year, too. Updating my death packet, as I do every October. Rituals, and gatherings, and the wonderful creepy vibe. Candy for little monsters. Taking the whole ride. I’m even taking a week off, from Halloween through the actual…
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Sifting for Indigeneity
You know that feeling when your heart soars at a sunset or a moonrise, or a mountain panorama or the ocean? That I-am-so-blessed/so-grateful/so-privileged-to-be living-this-life feeling, where for one brilliant moment it all makes sense and there is a logic and a system to the world and though we are small we are magical and we belong to everything? That feeling? That’s a fragment of your inheritance. I should be clear: I’m writing now for descendants of settlers like me. If you’re indigenous, you don’t need this post because it doesn’t refer to you unless you have been deeply alienated from your native culture. This piece is about sifting for the…
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What We Turn Back into the Soil
It’s Hallows season–Samhain, Halloween, what have you–and my mind turns to mortality, decomposition, recomposition and the great wide Circle of Life. I’ve written a bit about death. Here, about the fact of mortality. Here, about how we can prepare for our deaths in a manner that is kind to our survivors (downloadable workbook included!) And here, finally, as I have grappled with the dark marvel, the creative force that death actually is. Today, I have just returned from a weekend of camping with members of the Northern California Atheopagan Affinity Group, which calls itself the Live Oak Circle. We had a lovely time. One of the things we like to…
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A Grateful Harvest
So it’s Harvestide, the season of the autumnal equinox. The time of gathering in, looking back over the year, celebrating what has come. It’s been a remarkable year for me, after a couple of very, very lean ones. This year, I took over as Interim Executive Director at my job at the new year; my third book, Round We Dance: Creating Meaning through Seasonal Rituals was released in April. In June I was tapped for the permanent ED position, so now I lead a dynamic, effective conservation organization working to protect natural areas and advance through partnerships the traditional land stewardship practices of indigenous Tribes. It’s an absolute dream job…
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Listen to My Interview on “Embrace the Void” podcast!
Host Aaron Rabinowitz had me on to discuss the new book, and we had a deep conversation about Atheopaganism and non-supernatural Pagan practice. Great, probing questions! Have a listen. https://www.voidpod.com/podcasts/2024/7/15/round-we-dance-with-mark-green
