As magical traditions increase in numbers and Witchcraft continues to be among the fastest-expanding religions in the United States, our community faces a growing challenge: we often lack practices that center around death and dying. End of life preparation, funerary rites, and the healing and compassion of those in the realm of spirit are all becoming increasingly important as our community ages and we seek to find ways to honor the dead and dying as well as those they leave behind. We can go back to our ancestral roots and reclaim classical methods of coping with death, while still developing new traditions that address key questions. How do we teach and learn about spiritual support for those in the dying process? How might we begin to explore the roles one can play in such rites of passage? What are the ancient and modern rites that support these roles? What kind of tangible systems can be put into place to help us face real-world challenges such as cemeteries for our peoples, helping funeral service professionals understand our unique needs, and military concerns? Death doesn’t happen in a vacuum—it affects us all. By working together to address these questions, and by looking to our ancestors for examples of community care around death, we can develop beneficial strategies and best practices for our growing community.
This panel discussion features Byron Ballard, Christian Day, Christine Stephens, Sen Elias, and Yeshe Matthews.
