This Update is for Everyone...

Not just AFA members and supporters…not even just for followers of native Germanic or native European religion! If you're interested in what we have to say, that's reason enough to be here.

The contents of this blog are not necessarily the official opinion of the Asatru Folk Assembly, unless explicitly stated. Links and commentary reflect the opinions of Stephen A. McNallen, head of the Asatru Folk Assembly, but individual AFA members are not obliged to share those opinions. The Declaration of Purpose and the Statement of Ethics remain the defining documents of the Asatru Folk Assembly.

AFA Mission Statement

The mission of the Asatru Folk Assembly is to practice, promote, and further evolve then religion of Asatru, thus forging it into a powerful and effective tool for building a better world.

AFA Vision Statement

The AFA envisions a future in which a substantial percentage of European-descended people worldwide have returned to their ancestral Germanic religion, bound together in an extended community of the Folk serving their spiritual, social, and economic needs - the “Nation of Odin.”

The AFA's Declaration of Purpose - Point Five

The fifth point in our Declaration of Purpose is: the promotion of diversity among the peoples and cultures of the Earth, in opposition to global monoculture:

The second point in the Declaration of Purpose stated our duty to protect and preserve our own people. What, then, is our duty to other peoples?

The AFA supports the efforts of all cultural and biological groups to maintain their identity, and opposes the plans of the world-managers to reduce humanity to sameness. People of all cultures and races must stand united against the forces that would transform us into interchangeable economic units, devoid of roots or connection to our respective ancestors.

In other words, we believe in true diversity - not the modern, politically-correct buzz-word that all too often is used as a bludgeon against European-American culture , but in the simple belief that the world should not be one uniform mass. “Global culture” is no culture. All peoples should be allowed to be different, to cherish that difference, and to work out their own destinies.

There are many peoples around the world struggling to survive as identifiable groups. Some of these are related to our own Folk: The Mari of Russia are a repressed group of wholly European heritage. The Afrikaners and the few remaining European farmers of Zimbabwe are a victimized minority subject to the whims of gangsters and politicians (In their case, is there a difference?). The Minaro and the Kalash of the Himalayas share ancient roots with us. And of course, modern European nations are trying to maintain their cultures and their sovereignty against the onslaught of the European Union.

Others are not of our Folk. Tibetans are still trying to get the Chinese out of their country. The Karen of eastern Burma are victims of relentless genocide. Indigenous and tribal people around the planet are fighting extinction as their ancestral lands are invaded by a world hungry for resources. Must economic development always mean cultural and ethnic extermination? No - but that is the course of least resistance, and the world becomes a little more uniform with the disappearance of each unique group.

None of these people are threats to Eurofolk. None of them stand between us and our destiny. On the contrary, many of them could be allies against the forces of runaway globalization, environmental destruction, and homogenization. The same forces that want to destroy them are the same ones that want to dull and deaden our own sense of identity.

Not a cent of your AFA dues go to aid these groups. Our priority is the revival of our ancestral faith and the awakening of our people. But we can act as individuals. I have marched with Tibetans, written articles on their behalf, and joined some of their more militant groups. I have given various kinds of aid to the Karen resistance. At the very least, you and I can be informed of some of these struggles, and give our verbal and emotional support where it will count.

Membership in the AFA

The Asatru Folk Assembly is a membership organization. If you like the general tone of what you see here, and if you agree with the AFA’s Declaration of Purpose, we encourage you to apply.

Membership in the AFA has several major benefits - our network of Folkbuilders, our Clergy program and a clear vision of what we are trying to accomplish, as well as tangibles like our members-only newsletter, access to our Yahoo group and forum, and more. We seek to build community, while giving members a unique opportunity to help us carry out the high aims of the Declaration of Purpose.

Individuals signing on now won’t expire until October, 2009.

To find out more about AFA membership, go to our web site - http://runestone.org .

Our People and Our Culture - Links

We are a people - Germanic people, part of the Greater Family of European peoples, following the ways of our ancestors.

Only when we realize we are a river will we stop drowning in puddles.

More on Canada’s L’Anse aux Meadows Viking Center - Recently we introduced the Visitor Center at North America’s only verified Norse settlement, at what is now L’Anse aux Meadows, in eastern Canada. Here’s another report on the “living history” project at the site.

http://tinyurl.com/68jc23

New construction destroys Norwegian archeological sites - The photo accompanying this article says it all! A burial mound near Stavanger has been turned into a trendy patio where deracinated Norwegians can relax and talk trivia. Norway, according to the experts, is losing its grave mounds, stone carvings, and other archeological sites at an ever-quickening rate. Meanwhile, the press discusses the rising crime rate in the cities and how great it is that non-Western immigrants are guaranteed a certain percentage of interviews for all government jobs. There is a connection between the lack of reverence for the ancient past on the one hand and flooding the nation with immigrants on the other - it seems that many of us in the West, regardless of country, have decided to not exist.

http://tinyurl.com/6lbsoo

Ancient Icelandic caves in danger - A series of manmade caves in southern Iceland are in danger of slow destruction because there is not money available to save them. The rough shelters date back to the first settlements in Iceland. They may have been built by roving Irish priests, or by the first Norsemen in the area - but we may never know. Hey, it’s just the past, and as a popular political commercial is fond of reminding us, “the past is gone.” In the meantime, you’ll be delighted to learn from the Iceland Review site that Icelanders are very efficient at recycling bottles, and the Icelandic ambassador in Rome is intervening in behalf of illegal immigrants to his country.

http://tinyurl.com/5jlrax

A toast to the Anglo-Saxon tradition - Anglo-Saxons get little praise these days, epitomizing as they do the essentially Germanic character of America’s founding. All the more reason, then, to hail Thomas Jefferson and the distinctly Anglo-American cause he represents. This article, while praiseworthy, neglects to mention that the Anglo-Saxon tradition does not start with Christianity, but reflects a way of viewing the world rooted deeply in our indigenous religion. While hailing Thomas Jefferson, don’t forget Hengist and Horsa, two Anglo-Saxons who, like Jefferson, helped found a new country. In their case, they migrated from what is now Denmark and their work led to the creation of England.

http://www.vdare.com/mercer/080704_fourth.htm

Findings on Tara were altered, says archeologist - Archeologists working near the Tara complex - arguably the most sacred center in ancient Ireland - were bullied to change their interpretations of the scientific data to favor construction of the new M3 roadway. This statement, by one of the country’s leading archeologists, is sure to add more fuel to the controversy over building a major highway a fraction of a mile from the Hill of Tara itself, and actually cutting through the middle of the prehistoric complex around the hill itself. Ireland’s soul is in danger, not from colonizing Englishmen this time, but from placing the scramble for money and modernity above the priceless heritage of all Irish men and women.

http://tinyurl.com/55l6ol

TaraWatch - This is a prominent organization fighting the desecration of the Hill of Tara. They are doing a fantastic job with limited resources. If our European cultural treasure means anything to you, please give them some support.

http://www.tarawatch.org/

You might also take a look at http://www.SaveTara.com .

The “Save Tara” petition - Again, if this issue moves you, the least you can do is sign their petition!

http://www.tarawatch.org/?page_id=202

German villagers share rare DNA pattern with Bronze Age ancestor - Two men in the village of Nienstadt, in Lower Saxony, were found to have the same extremely rare genetic pattern as forty skeletons from the area dating back three thousand years. This is reminiscent of another case, in which mitochondrial DNA tests linked residents of Cheddar, England, with the remains of a man who died there nine thousand years ago.

There is a modern tendency, when talking about populations and genetics, to focus on how groups of people change - thus buttressing the “we’re all mutts, anyway” school of thought. Nienstadt and Cheddar put all this in a different perspective, reminding us of continuity. Fifteen hundred years ago, my oldest named ancestor - “Fergus, son of Nellan” - died at Emain Macha. Today, the original Irish branch of the McAnallens is hardly a days walk from that place (now called Navan Fort). And although our common ancestor left County Tyrone in the 1700’s, the McAnallen men still look like my father. Another, seen in photographs as a young man, looks almost identical to my own son at a similar age. An essential part of the answer is DNA, but I believe there is more to it than that. Perhaps DNA is a physical platform for other, less tangible qualities of the bloodline. We are our ancestors…

http://tinyurl.com/6z7q4l - Nienstadt

http://tinyurl.com/5r3v79 - Cheddar Man

Melanoma cases on the rise among younger women - So what does this have to do with our people and culture? Only everything. The Germanic people around the world comprise a unique group, part of the Greater Family of European peoples, and we need to start thinking of ourselves as such. One of our physical traits is a vulnerability to sun-induced skin cancer. Why should our women (or men) want to lie in a tanning booth? What’s wrong with the color of our skin, anyway? It’s the way our ancestors made us!

http://tinyurl.com/59pa8p

http://tinyurl.com/64xq3b - Practical tips for protecting yourself from the sun.

http://tinyurl.com/6kjugn - List of safest and most effective sunscreens

Freedom and Asatru - Links

Our Western traditions of freedom under law derive overwhelmingly from the culture of Northern Europe. (Both words, "freedom" and "law," have Teutonic roots.) It is our task to maintain this gift from our ancestors. In Asatru, freedom is a religious issue!

Congress gives amnesty to wiretappers and expands surveillance powers - Overwhelmingly, the Senate voted to pass legislation that would stop suits against the giant telecom corporations that spied on Americans at the government’s request. The bill also allows the government unprecedented access to the emails and telephone calls of American citizens, with no “probable cause” needing to be demonstrated. How long will we tolerate this sort of interference? Are we citizens, or subjects? What was the Senate thinking?

http://tinyurl.com/5qqs58

“Enhanced” drivers licenses, RFID, and your privacy - Homeland Security, through a program called the “Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative,” is pushing for “enhanced” identification cards complete with RDIF chips to identify and track travelers. But is our privacy being unnecessarily compromised? What are the implications for freedom? How is all this going to make us “safer from terrorism” when the borders are wide open and there is absolutely zero political will in high places to close them?

http://tinyurl.com/6yduxx

The right to keep and bear arms - This is the right that guarantees all others. One of the classic organizations safeguarding this right is the National Rifle Association, and their portal is a great starting place for investigating your right to own and use firearms.

http://www.nra.org/

The Environment and Asatru - Links

The Earth is our mother, called variously in our mythic lore Frigga, Nerthus, and Jord. As the most intelligent species on the planet, humans end up making many decisions for all the other forms of life that live here - so let us choose wisely.

Vice President’s staff censored Congressional testimony of CDC official - Six pages of testimony by a high-ranking official of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention were deleted by Vice President Cheney’s staff, apparently because the official in question believes that “the CDC considers climate change a serious public health concern.” This is only one such instance; NASA scientists were for a long time subject to censorship by a political appointee carefully placed to do just that. The gentleman from the CDC is correct, of course, but as usual “the truth is no defense” when there is censoring to be done.

http://tinyurl.com/6rg395

White House puts climate change on back burner - The administration ignored a 588-page report assembled by its own experts and has introduced a period for public comment that will delay any decision until the next President takes office.

http://tinyurl.com/5ze2rg

Which cars are the worst polluters? - Hint: The Hummer isn’t the worst; in fact, it’s tied for fifth place. The good news is that almost all cars pollute less than their predecessors of some years back.

http://tinyurl.com/6j3x2k

How to Brew - Home brew doesn’t need to be trucked across the country by fossil-fueled transport. The only packaging you need are bottles, and they’re recycled! Home brewing is not only great for the environment, it will save you a load of money. Last but not least, it’s a step toward self-sufficiency, and if the economy collapses, you won’t go thirsty. Need any more reasons? I didn’t think so. You can download the book How to Brew, by John Palmer, from the web site listed below.

http://tinyurl.com/l25x4

Donate to the AFA!

The AFA is an active organization with ambitious plans. We’re also a tax-exempt religious organization, so your donations are deductible! Just click on the "donation" button on our website, or send us a check, or arrange regular contributions to our bank account:

Citizens Bank of Nevada County, 709 Sutton Way, Ste. A, Grass Valley, CA 95945,

Routing number 121142313 Account number: 41025602