News release: The Network for the Study of Esotericism in Antiquity (NSEA) is happy to announce our new website. With continually-updated online resources news, and conference announcements, AncientEsotericism.org is intended to be a one-stop location for scholars and students of the field. What is esotericism in antiquity? This is a broad term that governs the [...]
A 250-year-old ciphered manuscript is deciphered and turns out to have been created by a Masonic-type fraternity. Hundreds of thousands of Europeans belonged to secret societies in the 18th century, Önnerfors explained to Megyesi; in Sweden alone, there were more than a hundred orders. Though they were clandestine, they were often remarkably inclusive. Many welcomed [...]
Looking forward to this event a lot. It should fortify me for the hard business of a confrontation with a certain publisher’s editorial director. And keep an eye on Rik Garrett’s Occult Chicago blog. Why don’t you start one for your town?
In my professional life, I am currently in the middle of Major Drama that I cannot talk about right now. I think that it will be all for the best, but the details will have to remain occult for a bit longer. Plus I seem to be getting some kind of equinoctial crud (this happens) [...]
I did not attend these conference sessions on the study of esotericism in Stockholm, alas, but several blogging friends did attend. One of them, Sasha Chaitow of the Phoenix Rising Academy, has already posted an initial report, so go read it.
Via Invocatio: Check the Summer 2012 issue of the online magazine Lapham’s Quarterly for an issue devoted to magic, small-w witchcraft, wonder-working, spiritualism, and carnivores versus vegetarians. Then go back to Invocatio for more news on the study of Western esotericism.
The current newsletter of the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism is available for download. In it, some of the members discuss their current doctoral work. It is always interesting to see how new scholars are formulating just exactly what “esoteric studies” covers. Like Pagan studies — there is some degree of overlap [...]
• At The Allergic Pagan, a three-part series on Neopaganism in America (link goes to the third part) with a lot of “whatever happened to?”. • Jason Pitzl-Waters uses the reunion of the band Dead Can Dance (one of my favorites) to look back at the history of Pagan music. • A new blog devoted [...]
A fairly lightweight article on Freemasonry in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph produced this classic response in the comments: All MPs are Freemasons. So are all civil servants. It’s too late to do anything about it. We’re in control and you better keep quiet and get used to the fact. By the way, do [...]
Added to the blogroll, Sarah Veale’s blog on Western esotericism, Invocatio.
