The Last Heathen
The Last Heathen

Author: Charles Montgomery

Publisher: D & M Publishers

Published: 2009-09-01

Total Pages: 332

ISBN-13: 192681231X

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In 1892, the Bishop of Tasmania set sail for Melanesia with the intent of rescuing islanders from lives of fear, black magic and cannibalism. Over 100 years later, his great grandson, Charles Montgomery, followed the bishop’s route through the South Pacific, seeking out the spirits and myths his missionary forebear had sought to destroy. Montgomery explored remote shores where gospel and empire never took hold. He rubbed shoulders with barefoot preachers, witch doctors and gun-toting rebels, only to discover that the pagan spirits were more tenacious than the missionaries had imagined. Melanesians had stirred Jesus and Mary into an already spicy broth of ancestor worship, ghosts, shark gods and magic. Through confrontations with a bizarre cast of characters—the randy ethnographer, the soft-talking assassin, the leper prophet—the journey becomes a debate on the nature of magic, myth and faith, and a metaphor for the transforming power of story. The Last Heathen marks the debut of an exciting young writer who charts his adventures with passion, insight and grace.

'The Heathen in his Blindness...'
'The Heathen in his Blindness...'

Author: S.N. Balagangadhara

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2018-08-14

Total Pages: 579

ISBN-13: 9004378863

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Today, most intellectuals agree that (a) Christianity has profoundly influenced western culture; (b) members from different cultures experience many aspects of the world differently; (c) the empirical and theoretical study of both culture and religion emerged within the West. The present study argues that these truisms have implications for the conceptualization of religion and culture. More specifically, the thesis is that non-western cultures and religions differ from the descriptions prevalent in the West, and it is also explained why this has been the case. The author proposes novel analyses of religion, the Roman 'religio', the construction of 'religions' in India, and the nature of cultural differences. Religion is important to the West because the constitution and the identity of western culture is tied to the dynamic of Christianity as a religion.

Plain Heathen Mischief
Plain Heathen Mischief

Author: Martin Clark

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2007-12-18

Total Pages: 418

ISBN-13: 0307427277

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Of The Many Aspects of Mobile Home Living, Martin Clark’s first novel, the New York Times Book Review wrote, “Like Nick Hornby in High Fidelity and Thomas McGuane in Nothing But Blue Skies, Clark has produced an oddly stirring portrait of a man in existential disarray.” Which–noted Malcolm Jones in Newsweek–“made me laugh so hard I fell off the sofa.” Plain Heathen Mischief ups the existential ante, as Joel King, a defrocked Baptist minister, finds life even more bedeviling once he’s served six months for a career-ending crime he might not even have committed. Now his incommunicado wife wants a divorce, the teenage vixen of his disgrace is suing him for a cool $5 million, a fresh start in Montana offers no hope for ex-cons of any religious persuasion, and the refuge provided by his sister turns as nasty as his parole officer. Talk about a crisis of faith. On the upside, a solicitous member of Joel’s former congregation invites him into a scam that could yield some desperately needed cash, and soon the down-on-his-luck preacher is involved with a flock of charming con men, crooked lawyers, and conniving youth. In a feat of bravura storytelling, Martin Clark ranges from the cross to the double cross, from Virginia to Las Vegas, from jail cells to trout streams, as he follows his Job-like hero through dubious choices and high-dollar insurance hustles to a redemption that no reader could possibly predict. Wildly imaginative, at times comic, at times profoundly sobering, and even more audacious than his wonderfully idiosyncratic debut, Plain Heathen Mischief is a spiritual revelation of the first order.

The Heathen School
The Heathen School

Author: John Demos

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2014-03-18

Total Pages: 361

ISBN-13: 0385351666

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Longlisted for the 2014 National Book Award The astonishing story of a unique missionary project—and the America it embodied—from award-winning historian John Demos. Near the start of the nineteenth century, as the newly established United States looked outward toward the wider world, a group of eminent Protestant ministers formed a grand scheme for gathering the rest of mankind into the redemptive fold of Christianity and “civilization.” Its core element was a special school for “heathen youth” drawn from all parts of the earth, including the Pacific Islands, China, India, and, increasingly, the native nations of North America. If all went well, graduates would return to join similar projects in their respective homelands. For some years, the school prospered, indeed became quite famous. However, when two Cherokee students courted and married local women, public resolve—and fundamental ideals—were put to a severe test. The Heathen School follows the progress, and the demise, of this first true melting pot through the lives of individual students: among them, Henry Obookiah, a young Hawaiian who ran away from home and worked as a seaman in the China Trade before ending up in New England; John Ridge, son of a powerful Cherokee chief and subsequently a leader in the process of Indian “removal”; and Elias Boudinot, editor of the first newspaper published by and for Native Americans. From its birth as a beacon of hope for universal “salvation,” the heathen school descends into bitter controversy, as American racial attitudes harden and intensify. Instead of encouraging reconciliation, the school exposes the limits of tolerance and sets off a chain of events that will culminate tragically in the Trail of Tears. In The Heathen School, John Demos marshals his deep empathy and feel for the textures of history to tell a moving story of families and communities—and to probe the very roots of American identity.

A Practical Heathen's Guide to Asatru
A Practical Heathen's Guide to Asatru

Author: Patricia M. Lafayllve

Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide

Published: 2013-11-08

Total Pages: 266

ISBN-13: 0738733962

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Asatru Then and Now From its pre-Christian beginnings to its contemporary practitioners, Heathenry has long fascinated people from every corner of the world. Written from the unique perspective of a Heathen gythja, or Godwoman, A Practical Heathen's Guide to Asatru shows how to bring the beliefs and traditions of this ancient faith into your life today. In this complete guide to Asatru, you will discover: The mythology, folklore, and historical sagas of Northern European Heathens How to conduct rituals for birth, naming, entry into adulthood, weddings, divorces, funerals, and holy days Practical techniques for meditation, trance-work, prayer, and working with runes and charms Heathen perspectives on the nature of time, creation, worship, ethics, oaths, and hospitality An in-depth glossary, index, pronunciation guide, and bibliography for further study

Penda, Heathen King of Mercia
Penda, Heathen King of Mercia

Author: Pete Jennings

Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

Published: 2013-05-23

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 9781505299755

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The first book to gather the fragmentary sources on this dynamic 7th century warrior king, who expanded his territory with war craft and politics in a time of great upheaval. The tale is told within the context of Anglo Saxon culture: food, costume, law, housing, finance, slavery and the competing Pagan & Christian religions.

Heathen Gods in Old English Literature
Heathen Gods in Old English Literature

Author: Richard North

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 1997-12-11

Total Pages: 104

ISBN-13: 9780521551830

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Heathen gods are hard to find in Old English literature. Most Anglo-Saxon writers had no interest in them, and scholars today prefer to concentrate on the Christian civilization for which the Anglo-Saxons were so famous. Richard North offers an interesting view of Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian paganism and mythology in the pre-Viking and Viking age. He discusses the pre-Christian gods of Bede's history of the Anglo-Saxon conversion with reference to an orgiastic figure known as Ingui, whom Bede called 'god of this age'. Using expert knowledge of comparative literary material from Old Norse-Icelandic and other Old Germanic languages, North reconstructs the slender Old English evidence in a highly imaginative treatment of poems such as Deor and The Dream of the Rood. Other gods such as Woden are considered with reference to Odin and his family in Old Norse-Icelandic mythology. In conclusion, it is argued that the cult of Ingui was defeated only when the ideology of the god Woden was sponsored by the Anglo-Saxon church. The book will interest students interested in Old English, Old Norse-Icelandic and Germanic literatures, Anglo-Saxon history and archaeology.

Heathen, Vol. 2
Heathen, Vol. 2

Author: Natasha Alterici

Publisher: Vault Comics

Published: 2019-09-10

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781939424297

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End Odin's reign and smash the patriarchy - lesbian viking style! A YALSA 2018 Great Graphic Novels for Teens pick! WOMAN. WARRIOR. VIKING. OUTCAST. THE GODS MUST PAY. Aydis, the banished viking, sets sail on the open sea to reach Heimdall, the magical entrance to the land of the gods. She’ll need the help of a crew of worldly pirate women and man-eating mermaids to survive the dangerous journey. Back on land, the cursed Valkyrie Brynhild and the goddess of love Freyja are chipping away at Odin’s power, testing the god-king’s patience and tempting his wrath. Aydis is a viking, a warrior, an outcast, and a self-proclaimed heathen. Aydis is friend to the talking horse Saga, rescuer of the immortal Valkyrie Brynhild, and battler of demons and fantastic monsters. Aydis is a woman. Born into a time of warfare, suffering, and subjugation of women, she is on a mission to end the oppressive reign of the god-king Odin. Read the entire series! Volume 1 collects issues #1 - #4 of the twelve issue series. Volume 2 collects issues #5 - #8 pf the 12 issue series Volume 3 collects issues #9 - #12 of the 12 issue series For fans of Monstress (Marjorie Liu & Sana Takeda), Helheim (Cullen Bunn, Joelle Jones, Nick Filardi), and Northlanders (Brian Wood) "Heathen ...remains one of the best comics on the stands... I just want to spend more time in this world, and really, isn't that the reaction you should have to art?" -- IGN "Alterici's innovative saga - about a queer Viking woman who is exiled for her sexuality and reacts by declaring war on Odin himself - initially came out in digital form only. Now, interested readers can catch up on the story's beginning in one place with its first trade collection." -- Entertainment Weekly "The series operates on two levels: It's a sweeping Nordic fantasy, but it's also a personal story about coming out and coming of age in a culture that doesn't accept who you truly are. The intersection of those two narrative planes is what makes Heathen so engrossing, and the grander elements of the plot have more emotional impact because they are tied to Aydis' queer awakening. -- The AV Club "Hot take alert: Natasha Alterici is the real deal." -- Comic Bastards "Alterici is that rarest of comic writers whose sense of story and pacing is equal to her tremendous artistic skill." -- Bitch Media

American Heathens
American Heathens

Author: Jennifer Snook

Publisher: Temple University Press

Published: 2015-06-12

Total Pages: 235

ISBN-13: 1439910979

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American Heathens is the first in-depth ethnographic study about the largely misunderstood practice of American Heathenry (Germanic Paganism). Jennifer Snook—who has been Pagan since her early teens and a Heathen since eighteen—traces the development and trajectory of Heathenry as a new religious movement in America, one in which all identities are political and all politics matter. Snook explores the complexities of pagan reconstruction and racial, ethnic and gender identity in today’s divisive political climate. She considers the impact of social media on Heathen collectivities, and offers a glimpse of the world of Heathen meanings, rituals, and philosophy. In American Heathens, Snook presents the stories and perspectives of modern practitioners in engaging detail. She treats Heathens as members of a religious movement, rather than simply a subculture reenacting myths and stories of enchantment. Her book shrewdly addresses how people construct ethnicity in a reconstructionist (historically-minded) faith system with no central authority.

Confessions of a Born-Again Pagan
Confessions of a Born-Again Pagan

Author: Anthony T. Kronman

Publisher: Yale University Press

Published: 2016-10-28

Total Pages: 1174

ISBN-13: 0300224915

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In this passionate and searching book, Anthony Kronman offers a third way—beyond atheism and religion—to the God of the modern world We live in an age of disenchantment. The number of self-professed “atheists” continues to grow. Yet many still feel an intense spiritual longing for a connection to what Aristotle called the “eternal and divine.” For those who do, but demand a God that is compatible with their modern ideals, a new theology is required. This is what Anthony Kronman offers here, in a book that leads its readers away from the inscrutable Creator of the Abrahamic religions toward a God whose inexhaustible and everlasting presence is that of the world itself. Kronman defends an ancient conception of God, deepened and transformed by Christian belief—the born-again paganism on which modern science, art, and politics all vitally depend. Brilliantly surveying centuries of Western thought—from Plato to Augustine, Aquinas, and Kant, from Spinoza to Nietzsche, Darwin, and Freud—Kronman recovers and reclaims the God we need today.