jarredlharris

[jarredlharris]

Bonus Post: Introducing the Bifrost Brigade

Image created by Melamint and released under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license. For many years now, I’ve joke about creating an organization for LGBTQIA2S+ Heathens called the Bifrost Brigade. At the start of Pride Month this year, i decided to push the idea even further by creating a poorly designed image using Canva: As you can see, Melamint has far more artistic ability than I do. To the point it’s…

[jarredlharris]

Polytheology: Deities I believe (might) exist vs. deities I worship

I think something that initially confuses many non-polytheists is that when I say I believe a given deity exists, that doesn’t necessarily mean I worship that deity. In reality, there are many deities that I think exists (or am at least open to the possibility that they exist) that I have no interest in worshiping. This includes Egyptian deities, indigenous deities or spirits, most of the Greek…

[jarredlharris]

Bonus Post: Learning a bunch of medical terms

Hello dear readers! In the brief note at the top of my previous post, I mentioned that I’d be giving a bit of an update on my health situation. This post is that update. There’s going to be a lot of medical terms and links in this one, so buckle up! I saw an electrophysiologist on the thirtieth of last month. To be honest, I had never heard of an electrophysiologist until my regular cardiologist…

[jarredlharris]

Thoughts from an ex-gay survivor reading other survivors' experiences (and one in particular)

Personal Note: As I’m sure you all noticed, my plans to return to my regular blogging schedule at the beginning of the month didn’t happen. What can i say? Oopsie. I guess the news from my electrophysiologist on 30 January impacted me a bit more than I expected. I’ll write a post about that later. But I did want to write this post about one of the books I’ve been reading. One of the three books…

[jarredlharris]

A personal update

Hello, dear readers! I apologize for my lengthy absence (which isn’t quite over). I did not expect to disappear for two months. However, life has been hectic and stressful and I just decided I needed some time away. For those who have not followed me on social media, I have been chasing answers for what’s going on with my heart since September. I’ve been through a nuclear stress test, an…

[jarredlharris]

Polytheology: Finding a relationship between cosmology and morality

NOTE: This series is an exploration of my personal theology, which I tend to hold lightly. It is subject to change as I gain new insights. Also, no one should interpret anything I say as the “one true doctrine.” I think we’re all familiar with stories about cosmic battles between good and evil. They often depict two great forces, one good and the other evil, in conflict, battling for something.…

[jarredlharris]

Reeling and trying to recover from a Trump win

Hello dear readers! Last week felt like a massive trainwreck to me. And it started out so well. I was excited to get out another polytheology post on Monday and was hoping to get back into blogging after only putting out four posts in October. Then things changed on Tuesday. I will note that Tuesday already started out rough for me before the U.S. election results started rolling in. I was…

[jarredlharris]

Polytheology: Remaining in community with the ancestors

NOTE: This series is an exploration of my personal theology, which I tend to hold lightly. It is subject to change as I gain new insights. Also, no one should interpret anything I say as the “one true doctrine.” Happy Monday, dear readers. For today’s polytheology post and in honor of Samhain/Winter Nights,1 I thought it would be good to talk about the importance of the ancestors in my theology.…

[jarredlharris]

Polytheology: Human relationship with deities

NOTE: This series is an exploration of my personal theology, which I tend to hold lightly. It is subject to change as I gain new insights. Also, no one should interpret anything I say as the “one true doctrine.” In my previous post in this series, I posited that I do not consider deities to be omnipotent. When I’ve mentioned this on various occasions, someone has often asked, “What’s the point…

[jarredlharris]

Work Drained Me

Happy Saturday, dear readers! It seems I missed Friday’s post. Please blame my work on this. I’ve been mentally exhausted most of the week as my tasks have changed on a near-daily basis. On the days that the tasks haven’t changed, I spent most of my time realizing that what I thought would be a relatively easy task is far more complicated than I first thought. And then I’d realize it’s even more…

[jarredlharris]

Polytheology: The nature of deities

NOTE: This series is an exploration of my personal theology, which I tend to hold lightly. It is subject to change as I gain new insights. Also, no one should interpret anything I say as the “one true doctrine.” Happy Monday, dear readers! After last week’s brief detour into a book review, I thought it’d be good to get back into my polytheology series. With that in mind, I wanted to write…

[jarredlharris]

Hamingja: Reflections on chapter three of "Spinning Wyrd" by Ryan Smith

Happy Saturday, dear readers! In today’s post, I want to take a brief look at the fourth and final part of the Heathen self that Ryan Smith discusses in the third chapter of Spinning Wyrd. What jumped out at me is that Smith (or at least those whose views he’s sharing) seems to hold two slightly different views of the hamingja. On the one hand, hamingja sounds as if its an impersonal force, that…

[jarredlharris]

Let's talk about "An Apostate's Guide to Witchcraft" by Moss Matthey

[Content Note: Brief references to of cults, homophobia, self-hatred, and authoritarian control.] Happy Monday, dear readers! I thought I’d take a brief break from my polytheology series to talk about a book I recently finished reading. That book is An Apostate’s Guide to Witchcraft: Finding Freedom Through Magic by Moss Matthey. In it, Matthey describes his own experiences leaving the cult he…

[jarredlharris]

Medical stuff is such a pain

Hello dear, readers! I’m afraid I didn’t get a chance to write a post for today. Between dealing with health insurance nonsense and uncovering a bit of a concern with my health, I’ve been too focused on on other things. Before anyone (else) gets too panicked, rest assured that I’m in no immediate danger. However, my primary care doctor and I noticed something that is somewhat concerning. And…

[jarredlharris]

Polytheology: The One Eternal Reality

NOTE: This series is an exploration of my personal theology, which I tend to hold lightly. it is subject to change as I gain new insights. Also, no one should interpret anything I say as the “one true doctrine.” We were gathered around the altar in the center of the room. The ritual space was illuminated only by candles. I and the other coven member assisting me were standing. I held my hands…

[jarredlharris]

The Fylgja: Reflections on chapter three of "Spinning Wyrd" by Ryan Smith

Happy Friday, dear readers! in today’s blog post, I hope to continue my reflections of chapter three of Spinning Wyrd by Ryan Smith. Specifically, I want to explore the third part of the Heathen self that Smith talks about, the fylgja. This is the aspect of the Heathen self that I’ve always struggled with and have my doubts about. To clarify, I have no problems believing that we have guiding…

[jarredlharris]

Introducing a blog series: Polytheology

Happy Monday, dear readers! Today, I would like to announce and introduce a new blog series I’ve decided to work on that I’m calling “polytheology.” This series is going to be an exploration of my theological views as a polytheist. Theology is fairly important to me. After all, I am a theistic witch and a Norse Pagan/Heathen, so my deities are pretty important to me. So the process of thinking…