卍 Asatru & Ásatrú 卐
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Ásatrú is a modern Icelandic word meaning "Belief in the gods".
Many Germanic Polytheist books come under the term Asatru, and if they do they will mainly refer to the gods under their modern Icelandic names of Tyr, Odin, Thor and Frigg, though even in Asatru books the modern English, and modern German names crop-up frequently, and interchangeably.
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卍 Odinism - USA - 1848CE 卐
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The term "Odinism" was coined by the Roman Catholic, Orestes Brownson in 1848CE, in his 1848CE "Letter to Protestants".
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卍 First Anglecyn Church of Odin - Australia - 1936CE 卐
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Alexander Rud Mills (1885CE to 8 April 1964CE) was a prominent Australian Odinist, and one of the earliest proponents of the rebirth of Germanic Polytheism in the 20th century. He was a published author, lecturer and Barrister. He founded the "First Anglecyn Church of Odin" in Melbourne in 1936CE. He was also known by the pen-name "Tasman Forth". He is the father of modern Odinism.
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Alexander Rud Mills (1885CE to 8 April 1964CE) was a prominent Australian Odinist, and one of the earliest proponents of the rebirth of Germanic Polytheism in the 20th century. He was a published author, lecturer and Barrister. He founded the "First Anglecyn Church of Odin" in Melbourne in 1936CE. He was also known by the pen-name "Tasman Forth". He is the father of modern Odinism.
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Detail of Else Christensen's grave stone.
卍 The Odinist Fellowship - Denmark - 1969CE 卐
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Else Christensen (1913CE to 2005CE), also known as the “Folk Mother”, was a pioneering Danish figure in the emergence of Odinism in the post-World War II era.
Else Ochsner was born in Esbjerg, Denmark, in 1913CE, and met her husband, Alex, in 1937CE. She and her husband became syndicalist activists before the war and thus were under heavy scrutiny by Nazi occupation troops. An informant tipped off the German police that Else and her husband possessed numerous firearms and they were arrested and detained under suspicion of being involved in the partisan underground. They were released, but toward the end of the war Alex spent six months in a camp outside of Elsinore for his alleged syndicalist involvement.
After the war, the Christensens emigrated to Canada. In the early 1960s, they heard of a Proto-Odinist named Alexander Rud Mills who had an Odinist group in Australia and had written a small book called
"The Call of Our Ancient Nordic Religion".
In 1969CE, Else and her husband founded a group called "The Odinist Study Group" which later evolved into "The Odinist Fellowship". Alex died in 1971CE, and Else continued her work, relocating to the United States. Else published a newsletter called "The Odinist" for many years.
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Else Christensen (1913CE to 2005CE), also known as the “Folk Mother”, was a pioneering Danish figure in the emergence of Odinism in the post-World War II era.
Else Ochsner was born in Esbjerg, Denmark, in 1913CE, and met her husband, Alex, in 1937CE. She and her husband became syndicalist activists before the war and thus were under heavy scrutiny by Nazi occupation troops. An informant tipped off the German police that Else and her husband possessed numerous firearms and they were arrested and detained under suspicion of being involved in the partisan underground. They were released, but toward the end of the war Alex spent six months in a camp outside of Elsinore for his alleged syndicalist involvement.
After the war, the Christensens emigrated to Canada. In the early 1960s, they heard of a Proto-Odinist named Alexander Rud Mills who had an Odinist group in Australia and had written a small book called
"The Call of Our Ancient Nordic Religion".
In 1969CE, Else and her husband founded a group called "The Odinist Study Group" which later evolved into "The Odinist Fellowship". Alex died in 1971CE, and Else continued her work, relocating to the United States. Else published a newsletter called "The Odinist" for many years.
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卍 Ásatrúarfélagið - Iceland - 1972CE 卐
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Ásatrúarfélagið is the Asatru Association of Iceland, founded in 1972CE by Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson. Up until his death in 1993CE, the Ásatrúarfélagið had around 100 members. He was succeeded by Jörmundur Ingi Hansen from 1994CE to 2002CE, who was then succeeded by Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson in 2003CE. Currently there are just over 2000 members.
The Ásatrúarfélagið practice Germanic Polytheism under the term "Icelandic Ásatrú".
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卍 The Odinic Rite - England - 1973CE 卐
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In 1973CE John Gibbs-Bailey (known as "Hoskuld") and John Yeowell (known as "Stubba") founded the Committee for the Restoration of the Odinic Rite or Odinist Committee in England. In 1980CE the organisation changed its name to The Odinic Rite after it was believed that it had gained enough significant interest in the restoration of the Odinic faith.
In 1988CE the Odinic Rite became the first polytheistic religious organisation to be granted "Registered Charity" status in the UK. While the charitable status did not bring much benefit to the organisation, they felt that it was a victory in their fight to have Odinism taken seriously.
In 1989CE Yeowell resigned as Director of the Odinic Rite's governing body, the Court of Gothar. The Court then unanimously elected Heimgest as its Director and he was officially installed in this position on 23 April 1989CE at the White Horse Stone in Kent. Prior to his involvement with the Odinic Rite Heimgest had belonged to a small group known as the Heimdal League, a closed group which disbanded in the mid 1980s. Some members of this group joined Heimgest in moving to the Odinic Rite as they considered it had "the potential to best present the ancestral religion of Odinism to the modern world". Heimgest remains the Director of the Court of Gothar.
John Yeowell resigned from the Court of Gothar entirely in 1991CE and left the Odinic Rite. Also in 1991CE, an expelled member of the Odinic Rite, Ingvar Harrison set up a rival Odinic Rite using the post office box name "Edda" as opposed to the official group's box name of "Runic" which is still in use by the OR today.
In 1996CE Yeowell was accepted back into the official Odinic Rite. Shortly after this, Harrison asked Else Christensen if he could rename his group the Odinist Fellowship. This request was declined as Else was a close personal friend of Heimgest, however the group continued to use the name and the Edda post office box.
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卍 Asatru Free Assembly - USA - 1974CE to 1986CE 卐
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A group called the Asatru Free Assembly, founded by Stephen McNallen and Robert Stine in 1974 was disbanded in 1986CE, splitting into two successor organizations, the "folkish" Ásatrú Alliance, and the "universalist" The Troth.
Eight years later, in 1994CE, McNallen formed the Asatru Folk Assembly, intending it to be yet another successor organization to the Asatru Free Assembly. The defunct Asatru Free Assembly is sometimes distinguished from the newer Asatru Folk Assembly by the usage of "old AFA" and "new AFA", respectively.
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卍 The Asatru Alliance - USA - 1987CE 卐
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The Asatru Alliance is a US Asatru group, succeeding Stephen McNallen's Asatru Free Assembly in 1987CE, founded by Michael J. Murray (a.k.a. Valgard Murray) of Arizona, who is a former vice-president of Else Christensen's Odinist Fellowship. The Asatru Free Assembly seceded into two groups, the other one being The Troth. The Asatru Alliance was for the most part a reconstituted Asatru Free Assembly, dominated by prior Asatru Free Assembly members, and acting as a distributor of, previously, Asatru Free Assembly publications.
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卍 The Troth - USA - 1987CE 卐
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The Troth, formerly the Ring of Troth, is an American-based international heathen organization. The organization was founded on 20th December 1987CE by former Asatru Free Assembly members Edred Thorsson, and James Chisholm. However, neither is any longer involved with the organization. The current Steersman is Steven T. Abell.
The Troth is recognized as a non-profit corporation in the state of Texas and recognized by the state of New York as a non-profit religious organisation. It hosts a yearly June meeting called Trothmoot.
The Ring of Troth was founded in 1987CE, at the same time as the Asatru Alliance, both emerging from the wreckage of the Asatru Free Assembly, which had disintegrated over disputes between the racist and the non-racist factions. The organization suffered a series of setbacks and disasters during the late 1980s to early 1990s. The leadership of both Thorsson and Chisholm became controversial because of their association with the Satanist Temple of Set. In 1988CE to 1989CE, Rob Meek campaigned against the "Satanist infiltration" of the group. The Asatru Alliance in 1989CE declared that there could be no association of Asatru and Satanism. In 1991CE, Thorsson and Chisholm sought for a new leader (Steersman) of the group, as it had become clear that they were too controversial to fill this position. The office of Steerswoman was eventually accepted by Prudence Priest in 1992CE. Internal controversy continued to plague the group, however, including accusations that Priest was intending to pass leadership back to Thorsson and attempting to marginalize the increasingly influential Stephan Grundy. As a consequence, Priest was ousted by William Bainbridge in 1995CE, who took over as interim Steersman. By the mid-1990s, The Troth, now led by William Bainbridge, had emerged as a stable organization with a wide spectrum of members situated "squarely within the "Wiccan & Neo-pagan" community". Bainbridge was followed by Diana Paxson (1999CE), Stefn Thorsman (2002CE), Mark Donegan (2006CE), Victoria Clare (2010CE).
The Troth is prominent in the non-racialist, inclusionary branch of modern-day Germanic Polytheism. The organization's statement of purpose and bylaws refer to "non-discriminatory groups and individuals" and specify that "Discrimination [based on criteria such as race, gender, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation] shall not be practiced by The Troth, its programs, departments, officers, or any affiliated group, whether in membership decisions or the conduct of any of its activities."
Edred Thorsson intended the Ring of Troth to be based on scholarship and provide priests trained to high academic standards. While few members have achieved graduate degrees as he envisaged, the organization has been a prominent source of scholarly information within modern Germanic Polytheism.
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卍 Asatru Folk Assembly - USA - 1994CE 卐
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The Asatru Folk Assembly was formed in 1994CE as a successor to the Asatru Free Assembly, which dominated the Asatru scene in the United States from its inception in the 1970's until its dissolution in 1986CE. These organizations - two incarnations of the same organization, actually - wrote the first Asatru rituals in modern America, formulated a religious calendar, published a periodical named The Runestone, and held annual gatherings called Althings starting in 1980CE.
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The Asatru Folk Assembly was formed in 1994CE as a successor to the Asatru Free Assembly, which dominated the Asatru scene in the United States from its inception in the 1970's until its dissolution in 1986CE. These organizations - two incarnations of the same organization, actually - wrote the first Asatru rituals in modern America, formulated a religious calendar, published a periodical named The Runestone, and held annual gatherings called Althings starting in 1980CE.
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The interlaced horn design from the Danish "Snoldelev Stone" was adopted as the official symbol of the Asatru Folk Assembly in October 2006CE.