Official Pagan Cemetery Opens in Denmark
Saturday December 20, 2008
Now, this is just nifty. The Copenhagen Post reports on the opening of the first official Pagan cemetery to exist in about a thousand years. A corner area of a public graveyard in Odense will have room for eighty graves, and has been designated for members of Forn Sidr, Denmark's officially recognized Asatru group. The grassy area will feature a series of standing stones and a stone carving of a Viking ship. It is scheduled to open in the beginning of February.
Officials say that three existing Christian graves at the site will remain in place, because the descendants of the three "have all given their blessing to the new venture."
Officials say that three existing Christian graves at the site will remain in place, because the descendants of the three "have all given their blessing to the new venture."
Comments
The descendants should be praised for their openmindedness. Lets hope that any further descendants don’t become fundamentalists and pitch a fit in the future about it.
I would also like to commend the descendants of the original inhabitants of the graveyard. I’m not sure some would be to amicable and open-minded. Blessings to them.
I would love to see Pagan graveyards in the USA. I wish to be cremated when the time comes for that sort of decision, but I know that it’s not everyone’s wish.
I love the Scandinavians. So open minded. And they resisted Christianity longer than anyone else in Europe. I wonder if the two are connected … Oh wait, no I don’t! I know they are!
Can you imagine such a thing here in the States? Ouch, I hit my head on the floor laughing. Even if a group of pagans bought the land themselves and it was 100 miles from ANYWHERE, you can bet the Jesus crowd would be there protesting, getting Congress to outlaw it, making up insulting bumper stickers …
Goddess, please bless America. She sorely needs it!
No, I don’t see protesters. At least not ONLY protesters.
I see major desecration, property damage, vandalism, theft, and other hateful acts. IMHO, the only thing that would be safe would be ashes that had been scattered to the four winds.
Sigh… Yes, Goddess help us all!
Winter
It is refreshing to see such open mindedness. If only the USA could be so open.
hellos,
I too am happy to hear of a Pagan resting place; and wish America were equally welcoming to the idea.
I have always wanted to win the lottery, to buy a golf course and convert it to a Pagan temple complex; but solutions to the security problems constantly elude me… *sigh of hopelessness*
At least I can hope to visit,
Rafe
I think one of the reasons it got done is because there was an organized group of people who saw a common purpose and worked together to achieve the goal.
There’s no reason a group in America couldn’t purchase a plot of land and get it designated as a Pagan cemetery… except that getting Pagans to all agree on something is like herding cats
patti
Circle Cemetery is a non-profit conservation cemetery owned and operated by Circle Sanctuary, a Wiccan church and Ecospirituality center. The Cemetery, begun in 1995, is located at Circle Sanctuary headquarters, Circle Sanctuary Nature Preserve, near Barneveld, Wicsonsin.
The Cemetery began in 1995 with the creation of a place for cremains. The first cremains were placed there in 1999. Expansion of the existing cemetery began in 2005. The enlarged cemetery, 20 acres in size, includes the existing cemetery, a restored prairie, forest, and the Stone Circle, an outdoor ceremonial site. Survey work for the expanded cemetery was done in 2006 and the process of platting and zoning the cemetery for full body burials was begun. At Memorial Day 2007, three veteran gravestones with pentacles, among the first issued by the US Department of Veterans Affairs, were dedicated in a public ceremony.
www.circlesanctuary.org/cemetery
Awesome! Nora, thanks for posting that. I didn’t realize Circle Sanctuary had a cemetery at their headquarters. Good for them!
patti
Interesting I live in Denmark and was born in Odense