Heather Greene
Heather Greene is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Heather Greene
With ‘Villains’ tarot deck, Disney pushes the mystical practice further into mainstream
By Heather Greene — November 15, 2021
(RNS) — Maleficent from 'Sleeping Beauty' and Scar from 'Lion King' make their appearance on a new deck.
A new aspect of the Tarot boom: Diversity in the deck
By Heather Greene — November 12, 2021
(RNS) — Black, Indigenous and Latino American people are leading the rise in tarot's popularity, a new study shows.
Witchcraft isn’t just for Halloween anymore
By Heather Greene — October 29, 2021
(RNS) — Halloween's commercialized kitsch and other hocus pocus can be, well, dispiriting.
How some ‘Jewitches’ are embracing both Judaism and witchcraft
By Heather Greene and Emily McFarlan Miller — October 25, 2021
(RNS) — Rabbis and witches alike are bringing together magic — often called witchcraft — and Jewish ritual.
Base booster or blasphemy? Bible-quoting pro-Trump billboard raises eyebrows in Georgia
By Heather Greene — September 17, 2021
(RNS) — The ad, comparing Trump to Jesus, disappeared a few days later, leaving behind a flurry of confusion and outrage.
A mask mandate showdown in Cobb County school board pits ‘faith’ against ‘fear’
By Heather Greene — September 13, 2021
ATLANTA (RNS) — 'Faith not Fear' is a mantra ringing out across the country, where such debates have reached a fever pitch. That is the case in Cobb County, Georgia.
Study: Gen Z doubles down on spirituality, combining tarot and traditional faith
By Heather Greene — August 11, 2021
(RNS) — ‘Crystals are like ‘saints’ for young people and spirituals,’ wrote a survey respondent. ‘Sometimes you just need something or someone that is rooted in courage.’
In Japan, Greek-influenced Olympics meet another kind of pagan heritage
By Heather Greene — July 23, 2021
(RNS) — Greek pagan pageantry encounters a culture with its own deep sense of myth and magic.
Paganism, gods and goddesses aside, is the most LGBTQ-affirming faith in the US
By Heather Greene — July 12, 2021
(RNS) — But some pagans say more visibility for trans and gay members of a largely white, mostly heterosexual community is needed.
Pagan god (and Disney star) Loki wrapped up in trademark battles
By Heather Greene — June 25, 2021
(RNS) — 'I'm not wearing a licensed costume. It's my FACE,' tweeted one person who received 'copyright strikes' on an online marketplace for resembling Disney's superhero.
Marvel’s Loki wins heathens’ hearts even while losing the Norse immortal’s complexity
By Heather Greene — June 21, 2021
(RNS) — To modern heathens, Marvel’s characters are not simply 'all-powerful superheroes,' but thriving gods.
‘Am I the worst thing a person can be?’: Witches fight media bias
By Heather Greene — June 14, 2021
(RNS) — 'Criminals aren’t labeled as Baptist,' one witch observed, unless the crime is related to professed religious beliefs, as was the case in the recent spa shootings in Atlanta.
Pagan politics are not as uniform (or liberal) as you think
By Heather Greene — May 26, 2021
(RNS) — One of the few formal surveys of this understudied religious population found pagans' political leanings to be hard to pin down.
Pagan ‘metaphysical’ shops navigate threats from Christian critics
By Heather Greene — May 7, 2021
(RNS) — Selling herbs, crystals and spiritual guides, metaphysical shops are often perceived, especially by conservative Christians, as exotic, devoted to the so-called dark arts and, often, a threat. It's frequently those Christians who threaten them.
Tarot booms as Generation Z sorts out spiritual path
By Heather Greene — April 26, 2021
(RNS) — Generation Z has been the driving force behind the renewed popularity and mainstreaming of the age-old esoteric system.
