I don't think anyone has ever asked me why I chose to call myself Rue. Either because it was obvious, or because they didn't care. For a moment I'll pretend you care

"Reputed to have defensive magical properties against spells, it's generic Greek name means, 'to set free' -against illnesses. Nicknamed 'herb of grace' and 'herb of Repentance', meant Rue's usage at the ceremony preceding High Mass, thereby sanctifying the herb."

I felt an instant affinity with it's significance "to set free", it's name and it's properties. Rue can be both a medicine and a poison depending on the context it is used and a 'slight' variation in dosage. Very much like me.

To read more...

Are You Dragging Around a Bunch of Ghouls?

I think I can confidently say that I've tried almost every method of divination at the exception of the I Ching. My least favorite is what is commonly called a 'talking board', also known as Ouija(TM). It's also the method of spirit contact that has provided me with the most stories over the years. Ouija boards do work, but the sort of beings you are likely to attract is directly related to the level of spiritual development of the participants and their intent. Also, the level of preparation and location has to be taken into account.

It's autumn 1988. My friend Romi, her employer at the time, Lori, and myself were sitting around Lori's kitchen table. Chit-chat led Romi to talk about one of her favorite games, the Ouija board. Lori's face lights up. She wants Romi to go home and get it. I state that it would take less time to make one. Within minutes. Romi and I are cutting out the letters of the alphabet and numerals 0-9, the words YES, NO, HELLO, GOOD-BYE. We arranged all these on the bare kitchen table. Lori takes a crystal wine glass out of her credenza and a dinner candle. Candle lit, lights dimmed we begin: "Ouija, are you here?" Romi and I had our fingertips lightly on the glass. It moved towards HELLO. Lori jumps out of her chair and practically shoves me off of mine to take my place on the indicator. It just devolves from there.

Both Romi and Lori are firing questions at the 'spirit' without a taking a breath. The glass is practically flying all over the kitchen table in order to keep up with their incessant interrogation. They didn't take turns, they often interrupted each other and to top it all off when the answer was unclear, they were rude! All my talking board stories you will read will have a common theme. Common courtesy appeals to the dead as well as the living. It's now 30 minutes and they are still going at it. I'm taking notes. Someone has to keep track of the questions and answers. They're both rabid. Their questions ranged from the classic "is the guy I'm presently in love with my future husband" all the way to the meaningless crap like: "should I dye my hair red?"

Suddenly I started to hear a high-pitched sound on the left side of my head. The atmosphere grew really still and the kitchen table began to vibrate. Romi and Lori are too involved with their questions to notice. I'm frozen to my seat. Then Lori yells at the 'spirit' "What do you mean you don't know? What the fuck are you good for?" The glass explodes shattering into hundreds of tiny shards. I brought my hand up to my face just in time to feel a shard hit the palm of my hand. Lori had a shard embedded in one of the lenses of her glasses (could have just as easily been in her eye!) Romi, nothing. Just shock. We didn't even stay to clean up. Romi and I were outta there. We distinctly felt something following us home. Not sure what. Felt benign though. We went to Saint Joseph's Oratory the next day to light votives against demons just in case.

Lori on the other hand reported nightmares and events resembling a haunting. She ended up spending lots of money on 'experts' to help her get rid of it. Her life had already begun it's tailspin though. Her health, finances, marriage all took a downturn. It had been nearly a year after the incident when it turned out that a good old-fashioned house blessing by the parish priest did the job. It got rid of it, but sadly her health was poor, she was broke and up to her ears in debt, and her second marriage was over.

Earthbound spirits are the one's most likely to show up at a seance or talking board session. These entities are still very 'human' in their motivations and on the most part don't have any more insight than you or I do. Sometimes even less. One thing is for sure, we can piss them off. I'm not ready to dismiss her misfortune as coincidence yet.

(inscription in the altar of the Salerno Cathedral in Italy).

The Italian witchcraft or folk magic I write about has absolutely nothing to do with the 'harm none' neo-paganism that it is often associated with. It is a balanced art. An art that contains both light and dark. It can be all-healing or all-destructive. A practitioner of Italian witchcraft does not 'turn the other cheek' when there is a threat. Nor do they merely hide in 'a protective circle'. Retribution is meted out swiftly and as per the offense, and then some. Just to make sure the attacker get's the message. Conjurations with respect to protection are carried out daily and matter-of-factly to maintain a constant level of psychic impermeability.

"Who is the Black Madonna? She is our Mother Earth, the Female Principle, our Primordial Mother, symbol of Wisdom and integration and resolution of the opposites."

"In Eastern traditions, the Black Madonna motif appears as the Dark Goddesses exemplified by Kali, the frightful creator/destroyer."

The Black Madonna of Viggiano has long protected her mountain villagers in southern Italy, and her people brought her to America.
She is the Madonna of the 'wise women'. The Madonna of healing and cursing, birth and death. This is the Madonna of the devout... sorceresses. The Strega's Goddess.

Learn more about the Black Madonna.

This is the first in a new weekly series of posts (Thursdays) about the pantheon of saints used in Italian folk magic.
One common thread among practitioners of Italian folk magic is the widespread practice of requesting the intercession of their patron saints. One of these being St. Anthony of Padua.

Both the neighborhood I was born in in Connecticut and the one I grew up in Quebec had great big block parties every year in and around June 13 to celebrate Sant' Antonio.
When my grandmother was pregnant with my father she had dreamt of St. Anthony of Padua. He was holding the Baby Jesus in his arms just like in the picture or statue most commonly seen. My grandmother said to St. Anthony: "Sant'Antonio, why don't you give me that beautiful child you're holding?" When my father was born, all those that attended agree he looked just like the Baby Jesus of St. Anthony of Padua. He was named Antonio to honor the saint.

On a more mundane level, St.Anthony is very quick and reliable at helping those that believe in him (even slightly) to find lost objects.
Whenever I remember to, I always call on him to find parking downtown. It's almost creepy how it works every time; I live in an urban community of enormous proportion where parking downtown is usually impossible to find. Some people I've spoken to over the years have their own way of asking for St. Anthony's help. Some promise a donation, although it has been my experience he works for free. What we all agree on is that he always comes through with the goods!

More on St. Anthony of Padua...

Once in a while I come across self-appointed gurus who think they are doing themselves and their followers a service by propagating the following:

Meditations to get rid of "toxic" situations and people...

This is not only weak, it's ignorantly over-simplified. Here's why:

Being spiritual is not about ridding yourself of people or ending relationships that you suddenly decide no longer fit. This sounds more like a cult tactic than self-actualization, I think.

The true work is about letting go of your unrealistic expectations. Cutting ties is about releasing your emotional, psychological and sometimes physical grasp of unwanted, unhelpful, unnecessary and unhealthy ties between yourself and people, places or to some degree, things. It's about letting go so that you can take responsibility for yourself. It's about letting go of bad feelings. It is also about continuing to love unconditionally. Cutting ties is not about withdrawing your love and friendship from other people or dismissing the other person.

It is about restoring the energy balance to that of unconditional love.

It is about letting go and accepting people, places and things as they are and not only as you want them to be.

Who Was Aradia? The History and Development of a Legend

"Grimassi, the author of a series of popular books on Stregheria, or Italian-American Witchcraft, presents Aradia as a wise woman who lived in Italy during the 14th century, and who brought about a revival of the Old Religion. He claims to practice a tradition founded by Aradia's followers (Grimassi, 1995:xviii)."

"But who was Aradia? Was she the legendary figure of Leland's Gospel, or a 14th century teacher of the Craft, as Grimassi proposes?"

"Legends are typically told as true, with many features that root them in a specific time and place and lend them authenticity; but they are not necessarily believed by all who tell them. In fact, according to legend scholars Linda D"gh and Andrew Vazsonyi, it is the tension between belief and disbelief that keeps legends alive and circulating, as each new listener must decide "Is this true? Could this have happened?" (D"gh and Vazsonyi, 1976). Within any given community, there are legend believers and disbelievers; our community is, of course, no exception when it comes to this particular legend. The truth content of legends�that is, how closely they correspond to actual historical events� can vary widely; although some contain a kernel of reality, many legends are "true" only in the most metaphorical sense, in that they are an accurate reflection of popular attitudes, values and morality at a given time and place."

I've always thought Grimassi to be full of shit, but everyone is entitled to their opinion. All I have to say is that if you own one of his books, save your money. He's one of the authors guilty of recycling his work and republishing it with a new title and cover as I mentioned here. Caveat Emptor.

First generation Italians born either in Canada, America, Australia...etc, all have a nonna, zia, commara, someone who is consulted for things like having the malocchio (evil eye) removed or having their fortune told. No one would ever admit to casting any kind of spell. However in our culture it is a common occurence to claim that someone has cursed us. I guess that's why Italians don't live in glass houses. They're made of brick and furnished with granite, marble and ceramic. Incidentally, the only gospel I've ever seen anyone's nonna read was that of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Most probably because she was just done cursing her neighbors' tomatoes!

Ciao 'til next time.

February is a momentous month for me. Not for the obvious St. Valentine's Day reference, but for much, much more.

First week of February 1997: I officially reclaimed my identity. After 7 years struggling to 'fit in' with everyone else, I finally accepted who I am, and went to the local occult shop to buy some books, candles, incense and a new deck of tarot cards.

February 20th 1997: I met my soul mate while visiting a different city 500km from where I was living at the time. I didn't know at the time we met that he was my life's love, this came about much later.

February 14th, 1999: After a long wait for a court date and much acita my divorce from my first husband, the pig, was final! YAY.

February 2000: As per her age upon adoption, as well as her temperament, I conclude that my faithful dog Ruby Tuesday was born at the end of February. We adopted her 4 1/2 months later.

February 29, 2000: My soul mate and I elope to New Orleans, LA to be married at the New Orleans Wedding Chapel during Mardi Gras!

February 1-4 2001: We conceive our first child during Candelora the Roman Feast of Torches better known as Imbolc. She was born 9 months later just 3 days after Halloween/Festa dell'Ombra, we name her Brigid Maria

Spells, Saints, and Streghe: Witchcraft, Folk Magic, and Healing in Italy


"There is a rich body of ethnographic data on folk magical practices and beliefs from Italy, but for the most part Italian-American Witches have not drawn from this in re-creating their traditions."

"... the socio-economic context and worldview of contemporary North American Pagans and Italian peasants are worlds apart. The motifs of self-actualization and fulfillment, the environmental bent, even the "harm none" ethic of contemporary revival Witchcraft are very different from the worldview of Italian peasants."

"It is profoundly ironic that Italian-American Witchcraft revivalists, beginning with Martello, interpret amulets against the evil eye as emblems of belonging to the witch cult, when in practice they are intended to repel witches."

"The ethnographic record is rich with instances of manipulative or
aggressive magic ... an important part of Italian folk magic, these spells are entirely absent from Italian-American revivalist literature, as modern Witches are likely to find them both unethical and disturbing."

No Kidding.