Neo-Pagan "King" Runs As Republican

By Steve Hynd

Let's see the Christian Right make their arguments for no separation between Christian church and State now:

Dan Halloran, the Republican candidate for City Council facing primary winner Kevin Kim in the 19th District, already has a leadership role in a vast community that very few people know about - or understand.

Halloran is the "First Atheling," or King, of Normandy, a branch of the Theod faith of pre-Christian Heathen religions assembled in the Greater New York area. A group of dedicated fellow pagans swear their allegiance to him through oaths of fidelity, allowing luck from a series of ancient gods - specifically the "Norse" or "Germanic" gods Odin, Tyr and Freyr - to pass through the King to his kinsmen.

"It is our hope to reconstruct the pre-Christian religion of the Germanic branch of the Indo-European peoples, within a cultural framework and community environment," Halloran - who in many circumstances surrounding his religion goes by his ancestral name O'Halloran - wrote on his tribe's Web site.

"We believe in and honor the Gods and Goddesses of the North, spirits of the land, and the memories of our ancestors," he wrote.

Within minutes of speaking with the Tribune Wednesday, Halloran's site was listed as "under construction."

When asked Wednesday about his faith, Halloran was uneasy. "I am not comfortable with injecting my religion into my politics," he said. "I grew up born and raised Roman Catholic. I went to Jesuit schools. Most of my life has been in traditional Irish household."

He added, "I don't think any of this is really relevant to the City Council race. It's like talking about what church you pray at. That you understand the divine is the most important part."

Of course, Halloran is right that it shouldn't matter - but you can bet it would matter like Hel (the Norse version, you dummies at Queens Tribune - no "sic") if he was running as a Democrat.

I've no basic problem with a pagan running as a Republican, Democrat or any other flavor of politico. I'd perhaps want to hear Halloran explicitly disassociate himself from the more racist Odinist forms of neo-pagan Norse/Germanic religion but Theodism doesn't appear to encourage the notion that its worship is only for whites. Still, good for him - and may the Gods smile upon his courage in running as Republican in the face of inevitable bigotry from the Christian Right.