Subj : Fort Hood Witches To : TODD HENSON From : Moebius Date : Thu Mar 15 2001 09:10 am The Moon was red, making TODD HENSON ask SEAN DENNIS, "Is this a bad sign?" TH> Perhaps you can find the original article on that. I don't remember TH> hearing about any pagans TH> being prevented from even practicing their rituals. Hang on, I've got it here somewhere... Here it is: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sent: 15 Jun 1999 Sender: Robin This is some information regarding the Wiccan practice and the military. The data was received from a private list, so I am only copying the facts that are public domain that it contained. BB/Robin Goodfellow << Boycott of Army urged over tolerance of Wicca By PATTY REINERT Copyright 1999 Houston Chronicle After discovering that Wiccans at Fort Hood have been practicing their faith on base for the past three years, conservative Christian organizations this week called for a nationwide boycott of the Army, demanding it reverse its policy of accommodating soldiers with alternative religious beliefs. "Until the Army withdraws all official support and approval from witchcraft, no Christian should enlist or re-enlist in the Army, and Christian parents should not allow their children to join the Army," said Paul Weyrich, president of the Free Congress Foundation, one of a dozen groups calling for the boycott. "An Army that sponsors satanic rituals is unworthy of representing the United States of America," he said. The groups are also demanding that the Army change its chaplain handbook, which lists the nature-worshipping religion and other alternative religious groups, including the Church of Satan, among those that could apply to conduct services on military bases. A Pentagon spokeswoman said Thursday that the U.S. Department of Defense is preparing a response to the boycott, which it intends to release today. Meanwhile, officials at Fort Hood in Killeen said they are standing by the Wiccans and their First Amendment right to worship as they choose. "The Wiccans have been approved to practice here, and they will continue to do that," said Fort Hood spokesman Jim Wittmeyer. "We feel very strongly that all of our soldiers' needs should be met -- their religious needs, their financial needs, the needs of their families and of their children in school. That applies whether they are Protestant, Catholic, Baptist, Mormon, Jewish or Wiccan." Fort Hood brass recognized Wicca as a legitimate faith three years ago and reserved a campsite at the base for the group's outdoor services. Wiccan covens have since sprung up at U.S. military installations around the world. The boycott was launched in response to a news feature published last month about the Fort Hood Open Circle, the military's first official Wiccan group, celebrating the vernal equinox, the beginning of spring. The article drew the attention of U.S. Rep. Bob Barr, R-Ga., who sent a letter to Fort Hood's commanding officer, demanding that he "stop this nonsense now." Barr then attempted, but failed, to attach an amendment outlawing the practice of Wicca on military bases to the Department of Defense budget bill. Though they sometimes refer to themselves as "witches," Wiccans do not worship Satan or practice black magic. And although some Wiccans have adopted the pentagram as a symbol akin to a cross for Christians or a Star of David for Jews, they are not neo-Nazis. The religion, which has an estimated 50,000 members in the United States, is a pre-Christian pagan faith based on nature worship, with some modern New Age beliefs occasionally mixed in. Members hold their celebrations outdoors, according to the cycle of the moon, dancing, chanting and calling on the help of Mother Earth and Father Sky, as well as other gods and goddesses. Like Christians and Jews, they have a Golden Rule which they call the Wiccan Rede: "an it harm none, do what you will." The Free Congress Foundation, which erroneously insists that Wiccans are devil worshippers, claims its boycott is endorsed by the Christian Coalition, the American Family Association and the Christian Action Network, among other Christian groups. However, Allen Wildmon, a spokesman for the Tupelo, Miss.-based American Family Association, denied Thursday that his group had signed onto the boycott. He said the group's only intent was to sign a letter criticizing the Pentagon's policy of recognizing Wicca as a religion. "We're not boycotting the U.S. Army, OK?" Wildmon said. "I am a veteran myself. Boycotting the U.S. Army, to me, it's almost comical. Who's going to defend our country?" "Apparently, they've gotten cold feet," responded William S. Lind, director of the Free Congress' Center for Cultural Conservatism in Washington. "It doesn't show much strength of character, but that's their problem." The Wiccan high priestess at Fort Hood referred all calls to Sacred Well, a San Antonio congregation that sponsors the base's Open Circle. Sacred Well's founder could not be reached for comment Thursday. http://www.chron.com/content/story.html/metropolitan/271712 >> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Moebius .... Oxymoron: Minor issue --- Spot 1.3b Unregistered * Origin: Remember the Rule of Three: Three to one's bad odds (1:3613/1275.12) .