Dogstar Digital Index

A space for me to organize and index resources

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 34. Paganing in Public Air date: 24 April 2021 Playtime: 1 hour, 6 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Addresses the concept of the “broom closet” and the choice of being public with your paganism / witchcraft. Trae has gone by their craft name for much of their adult life and actually had to reveal that and their witchcraft to their extended family in the form of their wedding. Bree talks about Christians being weird at strangers over witchy stickers and upset about visible paganism at work.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 33. The Wheel of the Year Air date: 27 March 2021 Playtime: 30 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Introduces the 8 Wiccan Sabbats. Covers their names & cultural origins. Briefly addresses the misinformation about Christian’s stealing pagan holidays. Covers supposed origins for the 8 Sabbats in Wicca via Gardner & Nichols.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 32. A New Satanic Panic? Air date: 27 February 2021 Playtime: 26 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Opens with news about arson against a home linked to Satanism. Briefly covers original Satanic Panic; covers new Satanic conspiracies and how they relate to QAnon.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 31. Norse Paganism’s Nazi Problem Air date: 30 January 2021 Playtime: 27 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Talks about the QAnon Shaman and his links with heathenism and Neopaganism. Notes the influence Odinism had on original Nazism. Those who identify with Odinism specifically are usually Nazis. Speaks to the need for the community to reclaim their symbolism and be actively anti-racist.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 30. Friggin’ Ghosts. Air date: 26 December 2020 Playtime: 28 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Opens with dickens quote. Encourages protective talismans and personal shielding. Keep ghosts at bay just by being firm with them much of the time. Many ghosts aren’t harmful and can be lived with. Like with practical self-defense, if you can just leave the haunted space you should. Evict, not destroy. Ritual to press things out of their house.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 27. Pagan Pride Day Air date: 26 September 2020 Playtime: 29 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

The witchcraft community was able to grow so quickly by so many being self-taught. This makes pagan pride events important as it may be the first or main connection with other in-person pagans. Talks about what kinds of groups and representation you’ll find at such a group. One of the openly pagan spaces open and inviting to non-pagans. Interviews Amanda Tomasini, a former Pagan Pride organizer.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 26. Witchcraft in the Time of Coronavirus Air date: 29 August 2020 Playtime: 29 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Opens with a then-recent clip of misinformation about curing coronavirus. Talks a bit about social distancing and Covened witches having to experience solitary witchcraft. Many witches are feeling burned out or isolated; it’s okay if you aren’t able to keep up witchy practices. Encourages smaller practices like nature walks. All witches go through phases like this.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 24. The Craft (1996) Air date: 27 June 2020 Playtime: 1 hour, 24 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Cultural influence of The Craft in the witchcraft community. Stigma around getting into witchcraft due to witchy media. Uses Wiccan ritual in the movie. Popularized the idea of “natural witches;” is problematic. Issues of the 3-fold law and the role it plays in the movie. The movie, like many new witches, will thoughtlessly parrot Wicca without being Wiccan.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 23. The Burning Times Air date: 30 May 2020 Playtime: 31 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Opens with clip calling the burning times a holocaust against women. “Burning times” is modern phrase seemingly from Gardner. Notes that both men and women were accused, “witchcraft” was not a gendered term, though women got accused more. Most of the accused were Christian, and even those actual witches were not practicing what we modern witches practice. Gives the origin of the nine million claim, there is no evidence for it; anti-Semitic and bad taste.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 22. Witches 4 Hire Air date: 25 April 2020 Playtime: 35 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Opens with anti-Covid misinformation from Leah Steele as a way to talk about charging for magical services. This episode has to do with people charging money, usually large amounts, for a person to cast a spell on/for you, and the things they claim to offer are insane - cure cancer. Fake identities running sites (not witch names, but legitimately fake). Spell to protect against coronavirus. Witchcraft services you can’t see aren’t happening.

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Title: The Gnostic Gospels: Were They Illegal? Channel: ReligionForBreakfast (Dr. Andrew Henry) Length: 7:47

Introduces the Nag Hammadi Library; very strange Early Christian texts. Gnostic scholars suggest it was a library of banned texts which were hidden from orthodox authorities; more recent scholarship suggests these texts weren't actually that fringe. Also evidence to suggest the books belonged to monks in a nearby monastery.

Local bishops didn't have enough authority to effectively ban books. Earliest descriptions of the Nag Hammadi Library say they were found in a tomb; perhaps they were grave goods.

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Title: 666: What Does It REALLY Mean? Channel: ReligionForBreakfast (Dr. Andrew Henry) Length: 6:08

Describes the scene in Revelation that 666 is from; it appears to be against Rome, with 666 being a reference to Emperor Nero. Using gematria to equate words to numbers, Emperor Nero is 666. We have two early manuscripts using the number 616 instead, which is still a spelling for Emperor Nero, just in Latin instead of Greek.

Touches on the conspiracies around it, like the idea that RFID chips are "the Mark of the Beast," which is only possible by completely disregarding the historical context it was written in.

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Title: Religious Practice Precedes Religious Belief? Channel: ReligionForBreakfast (Dr. Andrew Henry) Length: 4:44

Opens with issue of defining religion as a set of beliefs; religion is also ritual and social activities. In many cases, our beliefs come from viewing and participating in religious activity.

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Title: The History of Hell Channel: ReligionForBreakfast (Dr. Andrew Henry) Length: 9:31

Beliefs about hell range across denominations; it can be a state of separation from God (Catholicism), a literal place of eternal torment (Protestantism), a state of non-existence (Protestantism), or being in God's overwhelming presence and unable to withstand it due to a life of sin (Eastern Orthodox).

Afterlife in the Hebrew scriptures is "Sheol," a shadowy place where all people go; dualistic beliefs develop later. Jesus uses term "Gehenna;" the Valley of Hinnom - there is a scholarly myth that it was used as a dump to burn trash, something first put forth in the 1200's. More likely Jesus was referencing Biblical passages linking the area to child sacrifice to Moloch. Other New Testament passages use the word "Tartarus." Hellenistic influence on fiery picture of hell.

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Title: Biblically-Accurate Angels Explained Channel: ReligionForBreakfast (Dr. Andrew Henry) Length: 13:26

Opens with common description of angels; humans with wings. Etymology for "angel" is "messenger" in Greek and Hebrew, both refer to human or divine messengers. In Hebrew Bible angels appear as normal humans, with some people being able to somehow perceive them as "awesome."

The weird looking "Biblically accurate angels" are heavenly creatures called Cherubim, Seraphim, and Ophanim. Cherubim are some sort of creature with wings, but otherwise inconsistent; could be a two-winged sphinx, could be a four-winged being with four faces. Seraphim were described as having six wings and were seemingly human-like. The name may connect with fire and/or serpents. Ophanim are "wheels." None of the three are called angels in scripture; later Jews & Christians created complex hierarchies of angels and folded these in. These hierarchies disagreed with each other.

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Title: Why Strict Religions Succeed Channel: ReligionForBreakfast (Dr. Andrew Henry) Length: 7:16

Opens with numbers showing liberal mainline churches declining and conservative denominations growing; explores idea that having a higher cost of membership encourages this by screening out less serious members, building community ties, and potentially excluding yourself from non-member society. Such groups are usually better at sharing resources. Talks about the social element of religion and ties this into religious cults.

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Podcast: The BS-Free Witchcraft Podcast Host: Trae Dorn (solitary eclectic Wiccan for 20+ years) Episode: 21. A Spiral of BS Air date: 28 March 2020 Playtime: 35 minutes

Website | Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Opens with clips by/about Leah Steele the Wealth Witch - this is the BS their podcast is free of. Moves on to Dane Thomas, the Australian Sex Wizard. Ends on a video clip from Leah Steele saying she didn’t believe in the Covid pandemic.

Overall a light episode just exposing some particularly interesting BS in the community.