News — folk catholicism

Hand-cut, hammered, and shaped ornament is made with reclaimed tinplate framing this tiny print reproduction of an antique holy card featuring the Sacred Heart. After filing and sanding sharp corners and edges, I embellished it from my stash of vintage, antique, and/or reclaimed fabrics, metals, beads, and trims, including resin rhinestones, vintage lace, a satin rose, a vintage plastic faceted heart charm in a brass frame, and a tiny little curl of dried vine for the crown of thorns.  Available at Seraphin Station.

This work begins the night of July 29th, the feast day of St. Martha, but there are several different modes of different lengths running concurrently here, so you absolutely can book late, as long as you see slots still available for the service you're interested in. St. Martha in the Bible: “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.” – John 11:5 Famously depicted in the Bible as getting stuck with all the cooking and cleaning while her sister Mary sat at Jesus' feet and listened to him teach, St. Martha is the patron saint of servers, cooks, domestic workers, housewives,  and those...

This one of a kind chaplet bracelet is handmade with 5mm ruby red glass beads, an ornate crucifix with a bronze-toned antiqued patina imported from Italy, a chain extension and lobster clasp if you want to wear it or secure it around a statue or rearview mirror, and a holy medal of St. Michael handpainted in bright and durable enamels.  The saintly protector par excellence, Michael is called on to defend against dangers both spiritual and physical and from enemies both known and unknown. Unclasped, this chaplet’s length from end to end is 8.75″. Will fit a 7.5″ wrist, but I’m...

This one of a kind chaplet bracelet is handmade with 5mm sapphire-blue glass beads, an ornate crucifix with a bronze-toned antiqued patina imported from Italy, a silver milagro imported from Mexico, and a holy medal of St. Lucy handpainted in bright and durable enamels.  St. Lucy is petitioned for all kinds of things related to vision and light. She's the patron saint of the blind and also of electricians, and her devotees call on her when they need to see more clearly, whether literally or figuratively.  By extension, she's considered a protector against the evil eye, can be called on...

Reminder: this site reposts selections from the main blog. For the most up to date and complete news, follow the main blog instead.  From World Religions and Spirituality Project, here’s an interview with Manon Hedenborg White, author of The Eloquent Blood: The Goddess Babalon and the Construction of Femininities in Western Esotericism (Oxford University Press, 2020) and co-author with Fredrik Gregorius of “The Scythe and the Pentagram: Santa Muerte from Folk Catholicism to Occultism” (Religions 8:1, 2017). I think a few different segments of folks who wander by here might find this worth a look. I had originally intended to stop this blog post at the...