The Vampire Who Beat Wells Fargo
It may indeed be a good sign that a man calling himself a vampire is more trusted than our nation’s banks. Can we set aside our differences for the economy’s sake?
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Romania’s “Witch Tax”: Magic Meets Bureaucracy
On January 1, Romania implemented new tax codes that, among other changes, added the occupation of “witch” to the nation’s labor codes. Those charging clients for tarot readings, curses, and blessings must now pay a 16 percent income tax and make contributions to health and pension programs. The ire of the witches, some of whom responded by performing rituals to hex the government, has become fodder for scores of offbeat news stories throughout the West. But there is a deeper story to the witches of Romania.
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Why Did Vandals Try to Destroy a Holy Tree?
On December 9, residents of Glastonbury, England discovered a gruesome crime scene. Vandals had dismembered the Holy Thorn Tree that sits atop Wearyall Hill. But why would someone do a thing like that?
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Strippers versus Church: Cosmic Battle With Civic Consequences
For the past four years, Pastor Bill Dunfee of the New Beginnings Ministries Church has led his congregation in picketing The Foxhole, a tiny gentleman’s club in Warsaw, Ohio. Church members usually arrive at the Foxhole on weekends at 11:30pm, bearing signs, bullhorns, and cameras. While…
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‘Miracles’ Rejects Disenchantment, Not Science
For two decades The Insane Clown Posse, a hip-hop group from Detroit, has cultivated an underground network of dedicated fans. The Posse, usually abbreviated to just “ICP,” consists of Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J. Their musical stylings are known as “horrorcore” because…
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Your Hatred Will Make Me Famous
He threatens criminals and undocumented immigrants with impalement but he has ‘Republican values.’ Jonathon ‘The Impaler’ Sharkey’s declaration that he will seek the Republican nomination for president is just another human interest story for the media. But what does it say that his rhetoric and positions don’t deviate appreciably from the current level of discourse?
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Modern Vampires: Your Neighbors and Spouses
In studying the world of vampires, a young religion scholar is courted by MTV, forced to reckon with subtle energy (“psi”), and confronts the concerns of journalists who recall the disappearance of a colleague at work on a vampire story.
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Battling The Antichrist By Outlawing Microchips
We can rest easy, knowing that our government wants us to be safe from forced implantation of microchips. But it’s not about civil liberties, it’s about dispensational paranoia and fear of the “Mark of the Beast.”
Read MoreVampires, Communion, Redemption
The Christian symbolism in Daybreakers.
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Ten Commandments of the Antichrist: The Georgia Guidestones
Back in 1980, a mysterious set of stones bearing a message for civilization in various languages appeared in Georgia. From Christian dispensationalist symbol of the New World Order to Native American “power-nexus” to the interpretations of Contemporary Pagans, UFO buffs, and New Agers, the Guidestones are a spiritual and political Rorschach test.
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