Send us a text Start with a bold claim, add a dash of panic, and mix in a grab bag of unrelated beliefs—what could go wrong? We dig into the arguments behind Pagan Threat and unpack why the “one big pagan conspiracy” collapses the moment you look at how diverse, decentralized, and non-proselytizing most pagan communities actually are. We talk about how the book blurs pagan practices with Eastern philosophies, then leaps to politics as if religion dictates party. We also get real about ...
Send us a text The year doesn’t truly start when everything blooms—it starts when the world goes quiet. We step into Samhain to ask why so many traditions begin in darkness, what that silence invites us to notice, and how the cold months can become a steady practice of reflection instead of a stretch to endure. We shift into practical shadow work made safer through community: rituals that surface hard truths, shared space that makes vulnerability possible, and small, grounded steps th...
Send us a text Ever felt stuck between practicing alone and settling for a group that doesn’t fit? We unpack a clear, workable path to build your own coven with confidence. The theme is steady craft over flash: consistency, consent, and clean boundaries. We talk through what leadership actually looks like day to day. We share how to design your meeting cadence around Sabbats and full moons without burning out the core team, basic bookkeeping and a simple nonprofit setup protect the wor...
Send us a text We open listener mail for a simple question that's really not simple: how do you leave Christianity without carrying the fear of hell everywhere you go? We discuss that liberation isn’t just a belief shift; it’s a nervous system retraining. We talk about the long shadow of early conditioning and why old fears flare at night when the mind runs hot. You’ll hear the tools that actually help: meditation, journaling to map triggers, and honest conversations that reality-...
Send us a text Perfect love and perfect trust sound beautiful until you have to use them in a real circle with real people. We pull the veil back on what these ideals mean in practice - from the first nervous step into a new group to the split-second decision to ask for a door during ritual. We talk through the difference between coven and circle, why some spaces demand deep energetic interdependence while others prioritize reverence and observation, and how to decide which role fits your le...
Send us a text At this annual event just outside of Greenville, SC, Carolina Pagan Fest gives people from parts of North Carolina, South Carolina, and parts of Georgia a chance to come together in celebration. This year we tried something different. We went with the intention of talking to some of the vendors who also had a purpose other than selling their wares as well as one individual with a slightly different perspective on the Pagan community. Here are the folks we spoke to (please...
Send us a text The magical world of witches has captivated audiences for generations, but how accurately does Hollywood portray the reality of witchcraft? Remember the cackling hag from Snow White or the Wicked Witch of the West? These early portrayals established witches as figures to be feared and reviled. Fast forward to Bewitched's Samantha Stevens, who used her nose-twitching powers while living as a suburban housewife, marking a significant shift toward more sympathetic represen...
Send us a text What happens when we isolate the Goddess from the God? As we explore this thought-provoking discussion, it seems many modern witches have done exactly that with the divine masculine in their spiritual practices. This marginalization creates what we call a "lopsided craft"—spiritual practices missing essential balance and wholeness. The conversation dives deep into why this imbalance exists. For many, particularly women who've experienced trauma or disappointment with patriarch...
Send us a text The threefold law—the belief that whatever energy you put out returns to you three times over—has been a cornerstone teaching in modern witchcraft for decades. But does it actually make sense, or is it holding practitioners back? This candid conversation dissects the origin and purpose of the threefold law, tracing its development as an ethical framework during witchcraft's push for legitimacy in the 90s. We explore how it differs from karma and question whether either concept...
Send us a text A profound shift is occurring within modern witchcraft communities as second-generation practitioners—those raised in pagan households—begin to increase in number. This generational evolution brings unique challenges to pagan education that few elders anticipated. This generational divide complicates traditional teaching methods. We draw a compelling analogy: even an experienced driver needs to adjust when suddenly driving on the opposite side of the road—expertise in one conte...
Send us a text The sacred dance between masculine and feminine energies forms the backbone of many pagan traditions. From the physical realm of temple-building and organization that falls under priestly domain to the spiritual guidance and ritual expertise of the priestess, we explore how these roles mirror traditional family dynamics while creating something greater than the sum of their parts. "The priestess decides where the temple goes, but the priest builds it" – a simple yet powerful il...
Send us a text The world of witchcraft has always been full of dualities - light and dark, creation and destruction, life and death. But what happens when modern social perspectives meet older magical terminology? This thought-provoking episode dives deep into the controversial topic of "black magic" versus "white magic" terminology and explores how generational differences shape our understanding of these concepts. We unpack how younger witches, particularly those under 30, sometimes view t...
Send us a text The tenets of witchcraft provide more than spiritual guidance—they offer a powerful framework for navigating life's complexities. In this thought-provoking episode, we explore the six principles documented by Sybil Leek that have become foundational across many pagan traditions: balance, harmony, trust, humility, tolerance, and knowledge. What makes these tenets truly powerful is their interconnectedness. When facing challenges, examining which tenet feels weakest can identify...
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Send us a text Two pagan elders unpack the daunting inheritance of spiritual archives in this candid, thoughtful exploration of tradition management. The podcast hosts share their personal struggles with determining what deserves preservation versus what should be respectfully set aside. Unlike religious traditions that treat founders' words as infallible scripture, most pagan paths acknowledge their elders were human - not prophets or deities. This creates freedom but also responsibility: w...
Send us a text Have you ever wondered if there's something fundamentally wrong with our world today? In this thought-provoking episode of Pagan Coffee Talk, we tackle this question head-on, revealing that the issue isn't with Earth itself, but with humanity and our increasingly distorted perceptions. We dive deep into what some might call a "crisis of ego" sweeping across society. Through candid conversation, we explore how digital communication has created a dangerous disconnect between peo...
Send us a text Are there people walking among us without souls? This mind-bending episode dives deep into one of humanity's most profound mysteries: consciousness itself. When we discovered some people claim to have no internal monologue, it sparked a fascinating exploration about what defines human awareness and spiritual existence. Could people who appear emotionless or disconnected be souls in earlier stages of development, perhaps having previously inhabited simpler lifeforms and now lea...
Send us a text The age-old medical adage "don't look for zebras when you should be looking for horses" serves as the perfect metaphor for navigating the intersection of logical thinking and spiritual practice. When something goes bump in the night, is it really a ghost—or just those old pipes making noise again? Our natural human tendency to center ourselves leads us to seek out the special, the magical, and the extraordinary. Yet this impulse often leads us down rabbit holes of catastrophiz...
Send us a text Ever wondered why paganism gets mistakenly labeled as devil worship? The persistent myth that pagan traditions somehow exist in opposition to Christianity has deep historical roots that continue to cause misunderstanding today. What historians now recognize as economic persecution was disguised as religious righteousness. Meanwhile, actual pagan beliefs center around animism—the concept that everything contains spirit or energy—and achieving balance with nature. This nuanced p...
Send us a text The commercialization of magic raises profound questions about authenticity, responsibility, and the true nature of spell work. Neri, a first degree at Life Temple and Seminary, joins us for a candid exploration of the troubling ethics behind online spell markets. Without the crucial counseling component that traditionally accompanies magical assistance, online spell purchases often miss the root causes entirely; when someone requests money magic, they might actually nee...
Ashley Marie Lavender
There are different levels of herbalists. Anyone can say they're an herbalist if they work with herbs as medicine. Some people choose to become Clinical Herbalists or "Clinicians" and work with the public as a sort of health coach with more steps... And more herbs! But clinical herbalists study for years to be able to help with more complicated health issues, understand herb drug interaction and get to the root cause. "Apothecary" is an uncontrolled term and they can sell anything.