I thought this was pretty cool!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070423/ap_on_re_us/wiccan_soldier

By SCOTT BAUER, Associated Press Writer
Mon Apr 23, 12:47 PM ET

MADISON, Wis. - The Wiccan pentacle has been added to the list of emblems allowed in national cemeteries and on goverment-issued headstones of fallen soldiers, according to a settlement announced Monday.

A settlement between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Wiccans adds the five-pointed star to the list of "emblems of belief" allowed on VA grave markers.

Eleven families nationwide are waiting for grave markers with the pentacle, said Selena Fox, a Wiccan high priestess with Circle Sanctuary in Barneveld, Wis., a plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The settlement calls for the pentacle, whose five points represent earth, air, fire, water and spirit, to be placed on grave markers within 14 days for those who have pending requests with the VA.

"I am glad this has ended in success in time to get markers for Memorial Day," Fox said.

The VA sought the settlement in the interest of the families involved and to save taxpayers the expense of further litigation, VA spokesman Matt Burns said. The agency also agreed to pay $225,000 in attorneys' fees and costs.

The pentacle has been added to 38 symbols the VA already permits on gravestones. They include commonly recognized symbols for Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Judaism, as well as those for smaller religions such as Sufism Reoriented, Eckiankar and the Japanese faith Seicho-No-Ie.

"This settlement has forced the Bush Administration into acknowledging that there are no second class religions in America, including among our nation's veterans," said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which represented the Wiccans in the lawsuit.

The American Civil Liberties Union said the agreement also settles a similar lawsuit it filed last year against the VA. In that case, the ACLU represented two other Wiccan churches and three individuals.

VA-issued headstones, markers and plaques can be used in any cemetery, whether it is a national one such as Arlington or a private burial ground like that on Circle Sanctuary's property.

Wicca is a nature-based religion based on respect for the earth, nature and the cycle of the seasons. Variations of the pentacle not accepted by Wiccans have been used in horror movies as a sign of the devil.

Well why wouldn't they it is a recognized religion. I would just assume that it was something already being done.

Oooh that is neat :)

That is totally awesome! :) it's been in effect for a short while I believe, although many still frown on it.

Well why wouldn't they it is a recognized religion. I would just assume that it was something already being done.

This is the most recent article til this one that I've seen...
Freedom Needs Protection.

By Alan Cooperman
Republished from The Washington Post

Muslims, Buddhists and Atheists are accepted, but not Wiccans.
At the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in the small town of Fernley, Nev., there is a wall of brass plaques for local heroes. But one space is blank. There is no memorial for Sgt. Patrick D. Stewart.

Thats because Stewart was a Wiccan, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has refused to allow a symbol of the Wicca religiona five-pointed star within a circle, called a pentacleto be inscribed on U.S. military memorials or grave markers.

The department has approved the symbols of 38 other faiths; about half of are versions of the Christian cross. It also allows the Jewish Star of David, the Muslim crescent, the Buddhist wheel, the Mormon angel, the nine-pointed star of Bahai and something that looks like an atomic symbol for atheists.

Stewart, 34, is believed to be the first Wiccan killed in combat. He was serving in the Nevada National Guard when the helicopter in which he was riding was shot down in Afghanistan last September. He previously had served in the Army in Korea and Operation Desert Storm. He was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.

His widow, Roberta Stewart, scattered his ashes in the hills above Reno and would like him to have a permanent memorial. She said the veterans cemetery in Fernley offered to install a plaque with his name and no religious symbol. She refused.

Once they do that, theyll forget me. They dont like having a hole in the wall, she said. I feel very strongly that my husband fought for the Constitution of the United States, he was proud of his spirituality and of being a Wiccan, and he was proud of being an American.

Wicca is one of the fastest-growing faiths in the country. Its adherents have increased almost 17-fold from 8,000 in 1990 to 134,000 in 2001, according to the American Religious Identification Survey. The Pentagon says that more than 1,800 Wiccans are on active duty in the armed forces.

Wiccans still suffer, however, from the misconception that they are devil worshipers. Some Wiccans call themselves witches, pagans or neopagans. Most of their rituals revolve around the cycles of nature, such as equinoxes and phases of the moon. Wiccans often pick and choose among religious traditions, blending belief in reincarnation and feminine gods with ritual dancing, chanting and herbal medicine.

Application Stalled

Federal courts have recognized Wicca as a religion since 1986. Prisons across the country treat it as a legitimate faith, as do the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. military, which allows Wiccan ceremonies on its bases.

My husbands dog tags said Wiccan on them, Stewart noted.

But applications from Wiccan groups and individuals to VA for use of the pentacle on grave markers have been pending for nine years, during which time the symbols of 11 other faiths have been approved.

Department spokeswoman Josephine Schuda said VA turned down Wiccans in the past because religious groups used to be required to list a headquarters or central authority, which Wicca does not have. But that requirement was eliminated last year, she noted.

I really have no idea why it has taken so long for the Wiccan symbol to gain approval, Schuda said.

The department declined repeated requests from The Washington Post to speak to higher-ranking officials about the issue.

Retired Army Chaplain William Chrystal, a United Church of Christ minister who was chaplain of Stewarts National Guard unit, has strongly backed Roberta Stewarts request.

Its such a clear First Amendment issue, I cant even conceive of why they are not granting it, except for political reasons, he said. I think the powers that be are afraid theyll alienate conservative Christians if they approve a symbol that connotes witches and warlocks casting spells and brewing potions.

Nevadas congressional delegation, including Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D), also has supported Roberta Stewart.

But letters printed by Nevada newspapers indicate how much hostility Wiccans face. I dont see how anything that supports witchcraft and satanism can legitimately be called a religion, one reader wrote to the Reno Gazette-Journal.

Stewart said that she is trying to educate people about Wicca, as well as to fulfill her husbands wishes. Until he is laid to rest, she said, I cannot rest.


All I have to say is ITS ABOUT DAMNED TIME!

It is about time!

HA wonder what bush thinks of that, he's had very unkind things to say about wicca and other neo-pagan religions. :flippa :moon In yo' face!

HA wonder what bush thinks of that, he's had very unkind things to say about wicca and other neo-pagan religions. :flippa :moon In yo' face!

:lmao So true!

Yay for religious diversity!

That's great! Finally!

considering the pentacle is love and unity, it's about bloody time it's recognised.

HA wonder what bush thinks of that, he's had very unkind things to say about wicca and other neo-pagan religions. :flippa :moon In yo' face!

Very well said! ;)

HA wonder what bush thinks of that, he's had very unkind things to say about wicca and other neo-pagan religions. :flippa :moon In yo' face!

:yes

:thumbsup That's awesome!