U.S. Says 'Yes' to Wiccan Grave Symbols
Associated Press


Madison, Wisconsin - The Wiccan pentacle has been added to the list of emblems allowed in United States cemeteries and on government-issued headstones of fallen U.S. soldiers, according to a settlement announced Monday.

A settlement between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Wiccans adds the five-pointed star to the list of "emblems of belief" allowed on VA grave markers. Wicca is a nature-based religion based on respect for the earth, nature and the cycle of the seasons, but variations of the pentacle have been used in horror movies as a sign of the devil - a usage not accepted by Wiccans.

"This settlement has forced the Bush Administration into acknowledging that there are no second-class religions in America, including among our nation's veterans," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which represented the Wiccans in the lawsuit.

Eleven families nationwide are waiting for grave markers with the pentacle, said Selena Fox, a Wiccan high priestess with Circle Sanctuary in Wisconsin and a plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The settlement calls for the pentacle, whose five points represent earth, air, fire, water and spirit, to be placed on grave markers within 14 days for those who have pending requests with the VA. (Continues)

There's some good sense in government. Finally.

Although I'm an athiest, I applaud this news.

Good to hear.

Makes you wonder though, could anyone just make up a religion and have it recognized if there are no "second-class" religions?

good news,

toxic,

why should one not be allowed to have their own symbols on their graves? I see no valid argument against it.

Have you seen some of the "religions" out there?

I assume one would have to be at least incorporate with the US Government and recieving tax-free status as a "religion" for this to apply.

Excerpt:(From a Wicca site, to keep everything OT)

3. The VA states in its proposed rules that recognition as a church in the award of 501 © (3) status is generally sufficient for purposes of appointing military chaplains. It states that 501 © (3) status is determined by court decisions and existing criteria already established by the Internal Revenue Service. The VA states that IRS 501 © (3) recognition is sufficient for some of the policies administered by the Department of Defense but wants to add additional obstacles or criteria to their approval process making IRS 501 © (3) status only one of the factors considered


7. The provision of a government issued headstone, plaque or marker is an employee benefit afforded to military personnel and thus it is subject the 1964 Civil Rights Act compelling employers to accommodate the religious practices of their employees. Wiccan and Pagan soldiers are not creating an undue hardship on the military in asking for what they were promised upon enlistment. Numerous VA requisitions for headstones show that the VA has negotiated a pay-one-price arrangement with the contractors who supply them with headstones, markers and plaques. All requisitions include provisions that permit the addition of new symbols at no additional cost to the VA. In other words, it does not cost the VA one penny more to inscribe a Pentacle as opposed to one of the existing 38 symbols. The VA states in the rules and regulations that it is Department of Defense policy to accommodate the free exercise of religion provided it does not interfere with the military mission. The inclusion of the Pentacle on the list of VA approved religious emblems will not interfere with the military mission and the VA can show no compelling interest and has offered no explanation why they have not approved the Wiccan emblem of religious belief. The new rules and regulations are just one more attempt by VA officials to continue their pattern of discrimination against Wiccan soldiers and veterans.

It's good to see the law and common sense trumping the hateful christians who can't even respect dead soldiers regardless of faith.

Ummm, that was wildly unfair Kratos.

Notice the FIRST person to respond to this thread was a card carrying Christian... and isn't that wild, I SUPPORT the Wiccans in this, 110%. I'd be willing to bet that not all the 37 symbols they have to choose from are all christian or even judeo-christian--I'll bet there's a yin-yang among those symbols. The Government and military is just acting in their own stupid buerocratic slow ways again. Glad to see this resolved... hopefully they'll act a lot quicker when the next group comes along wanting their symbol.

no problems here..as long as part of it isn't degrading someone elses religion....of course a true Wiccan would never do that anyway...so thats great news...




Mr Halfhand

I was watching this (after my wife mentioned it to me...she's Wiccan) over the last year or so. I'm glad they decided to respect our servicemen/women in this way.

Yup, ever heard of ICP? Lol.. ICP fans consider it a religion now and think they should have the freedom to wear the clown make-up because it is part of their faith.


I wonder what other religious symbols will be approved.

LOL Kaylee, I don't know that there are a ton of ICP's in the military. But that conjured up a pretty funny image in my head! I think I needed that tonight. haha.

Can you imagine the Iraqi's response to seeing ICP soldiers?

"now who are THESE clowns?"

http://www.petitiononline.com/12w33d/petition.html Juggalo and Juggalette petition for religious tolerance. Lmao, kids these days. Insane clown posse a religion.. lol.

Miss Mels, you have to remember who Kratos was talking about. You are a more moderate Christian, and views of fundamentalists are obviously not always going to apply to you.

I don't see an argument against it either. I was just wondering what crazy religions will pop up now as "official" or "recognized".

Wow. That's ABSURD.

Lol, did you read the signatures? Priceless.

Haha, yeah I was just reading a few. Bad grammar.

Yeah, and it is reaaaaaaally bad music too.

And most of the Christians on this site are fairly liberal... I've seen maybe 2 or 3 extremists on this board (and most of them keep getting banned ) . So you can see why it irritates the vast majority of us.

Well, I found the juggalofaith.com web site... they might be a crowd of kids, but, they actually have some good charities they're donating to. I only spent a few minutes there, but all in all, they didn't look that bad, they had a sermon there on suicide that was pretty common sense. The easter sermon wasn't bad either. It's definitely geared toward kids, but I was surprised that it was as "spiritual" as it really was.

Ok, I was surprised, while ICP is goofy, their "religion" seems to be pretty freethinking and surprisingly sensitive.

This is way OT though...

Regardless, I'm glad the military and government have finally pulled their heads out and given Wiccan's what they rightfully deserve.

No, it isn't. Not when the current commander and cheif cuts down wicca and witchcraft as a religion. Not when the military ranks are being thrown into the christian religion. Military schools even drive the christian ideal into soldiers.

Christians as well have a long and bloody history of pressing down others. Think about it... Wicca is finally being accepting into the military so that fallen soldiers can have it on their graves. The last time religious christian ideals got into charge for the government as their law, witches were thrown into the public square either raped, beaten, branded, drowned, burned alive, etc.

This latest stance is only showing that we're respecting the founding fathers as in the first right and for the seperation of church and state. Christians may have gotten a hold on it for a while, but we're cutting on their knuckles with razor blades.

Ok, perhaps tomorrow I'll start a thread and we'll find out how many of the Christians here at UM support 100% the separation of Church and State. I bet it's a lot of them... way way more who believe it's essential than ones that don't. Maybe I'll be surprised, but I doubt it.

Did you know that of all the founding fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence only one was Catholic? Most were Universalists, Congragationalists, Deists (Thomas Jefferson), Quakers, Presbyterians, and Episcopals. Very few of them were ultra religious but they were all still Christians except for possibly Jefferson and one other guy whose name I can't remember right now.

I do my best to remind other Christians of this.

That's because this is a site that promotes more open-mindedness by nature. Fundamentalist Christians do not heavily use the internet, and when they do, they stick to a select group of sites most of the times. It's not about how people at UM feel about Christian oppression of other cultures, lifestyles, and religions, it's about the actual history. And as we know, if we don't learn from past mistakes we're bound to repeat them. And I'm no expert on the pilgrimage but from what I remember they were largely quakers and puritans. If they were really THAT open-minded, witch burnings would simply not have happened.

I wasn't aware that wiccan symbols weren't aloud on grave symbols. I always assumed you where aloud to put whatever you wanted on your grave.

I wonder if their going to let me put the Bat Signal or the Triforce on my grave...

Every freedom, every right, has always come after it's fight.

The supposition was christians seeing a pentacle on a grave stone would upset them into presuming it satanic. Which it is, to satanists, but not to wiccan's. So they denied equal respect so as to coddle majority ignorance. Now this is the thing. Satanists serve in the U.S. Military, too. This means that satanist soldiers may apply and are so entitled, to an inverted pentagram on their stone, should their last wishes be so, or their family request. Imagine the shake up that's coming with that.

I wonder what the Wiccan's would say, especially Circle Sanctuary, in that matter. I've met wiccan's that are very sensitive about inverted pentagrams misrepresenting their practice. Would they have cause to object, because ignorance may confuse the two yet again, now that the wiccan pentacle might be displayed? Makes for an interesting proposition in the discourse on freedom of and from, religion, I think.

This decision is what assisted the wiccan's in their quest for equality in the matter> "To be a bona fide religious belief entitled to protection under either the First Amendment or Title VII, a belief must be sincerely held, and within the believer's own scheme of things religious."
USCA Const. Amend 1: Civil Rights Act 1964 701 et
seq., 717 as amended 42 USCA 2000-16

It would apply to satanists also, if it ever became an issue. What's incredible is Atheist veterans are buried in such cemeteries, and their symbol is allowed to be displayed on the grave marker, already. The godless entitled before the polytheist nature religious. That's just quirky, no!?




And for more information on the OT article, from the inception of the case, please visit one of the complainants in the suit : Circle Sanctuary (It appears they are also sponsors of a member group called, Lady Liberty League , that takes on all manner of religious and civil liberties issues, of this nature. )

oops...nevermind..

....actually that doesnt really stand out HERE at all.... seems to fit perfectly, It makes every bit as much sense as alot of the things I see posted here......









Mr Halfhand

In all fairness though, that site link/petition, is from petitions online.com, where virtually anyone might begin a campaign.

Chocolate for President!

Haha I used to be REAL into ICP.

But that would never happen.....ever.....

All that ICP stuff is a metaphor for Christianity.

I think Kratos was defining a distinct segment of the Christian community with the word "hateful". Obviously, Christians like you aren't part of that segment.

You're wrong about the delay being due to beaurocracy though. George W went out of his way to prevent pagan war heros from having their symbol on their graves.

This is a happy day for paganism (and for religious freedom)

It's about bloody damn time!

Dilligence! Makes the wheels of change roll on.

Available Emblems of Belief for Placement on Government Headstones and Markers

edit to add: Given that list, I dare say the aforementioned satanists would have to argue , as did the wiccans, for an inverted pentagram to be applied to a dead soldiers stone.

Wiccan widow relieved VA case is over

PEARSON
VIKTORIA PEARSON,
April 25, 2007


Submitted photo The Stewart family stands by a Chinook helicopter prior to Sgt. Patrick Stewart's deployment to Afghanistan. Pictured, from left, are Steve, Sandy, Patrick and Roberta Stewart.


The Department of Veterans Affairs finalized a settlement and stipulation agreement to have the pentacle, a five-pointed star in a circle and the symbol of Wiccan and pagan religions, placed on tombstones or memorial markers at Arlington Cemetery and other recognized U.S. military burial grounds Monday.

Roberta Stewart, of Fernley, the widow of Sgt. Patrick Stewart of the Nevada National Guard who died in 2005 in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan, became involved in the litigation with the VA after her husband's death.

Stewart said she and other Wiccan family members can now rest and move on after the widely publicized issue that lasted nearly two years.

Stewart put her personal life and grieving process on hold to fight a battle her husband could not fight against the United States government. Stewart served in the military as a Wiccan with the religion depicted on his dog tags and in his military records.

"He (Patrick) fought for people in this country to have their freedoms, yet he was denied his when he died fighting in a war," said Roberta. "I'm happy that religious freedom has prevailed and soldiers who fight and die for the freedoms of this county can be honored for their religious beliefs - regardless of what they are." (Continues)