To those familiar with the Pagan community, it’s well known that Michigan casts a strong and enduring spell when it comes to Pagan gatherings. Whether you’re a long-time practitioner of earth-based spirituality, or simply curious about modern witchcraft, you’ll find open arms and thoughtful conversation at gatherings like Witches’ Night Out, the Witches’ Ball, and Pagan Pride events throughout southeast Michigan. These community-driven experiences don’t just bring people together, they cultivate shared knowledge, spiritual growth, and a deeper sense of connection.
Posts tagged #witchcraft
Apostasy: Terraforming Tradition as the Crow Flies
Apostasy isn’t easy. I grew up in a rural community in the foothills of the Smokey Mountains. We attended a backwoods United Methodist church which, as far as backwoods religion goes, was not the worst. While I was not barraged every Sunday with hellfire, brimstone, speaking in tongues, or snake handling, our church services were characterized by oppressive silence both literally and philosophically. Alienation and gossip were the means by which order was enforced. All are condemned to whatever degree one cannot conform.
The Witches of West Michigan Offer Spiritual Community for All
Just a decade ago, being casually invited to such an event would have been unthinkable to me. There were no public-facing witchcraft groups within easy reach of my Michigan hometown at the time. Even though I knew many local people had an interest in the Pagan spiritual arts, practice groups were generally underground and by invitation only.
Psychic Shields - Protecting Yourself from Negative Energies
The moon hid behind clouds in the night sky, as I stumbled my way through fresh snow headed for the barn. Even using my cell phone as a flashlight, I was barely able to see two steps in front of me. Crossing the threshold in the dark, I could sense the mold and mustiness that clung to the wooden structure, which appeared quite new. I reminded myself to even my breathing, while searching for a light switch, which I finally found behind the door.
Double Double, Toil and Trouble: The Appeal of Witchcraft and Paganism in the Modern Era
You see it in Newsweek, CNN, and other news websites that report on spirituality and esoteric culture like Quartz and Gaia. You see it through phenomena such as Instagram’s 300k+ subscriber feed to Hoodwitch, Youtube’s explosive growth of tarot readers, and gray or shamanic witches offering online tutorials and looks into their family traditions of Celtic witchcraft, and Wiccan seasonal ceremonies. Wicca, witchcraft, and paganism have long had an important perch within Crazy Wisdom Bookstore’s book sections, and local Wiccans, witches, and pagans have long been written about in The Crazy Community Wisdom Journal, but all these related areas are experiencing exponential growth, both locally in earth-religion-friendly Ann Arbor and on the national scale.
