Note: This Article was first published in BBI Media's Witches and Pagans in 2020.

        A clootie tree is a British Isles folk-magick tradition that has survived into the present day. The trees or bushes are found near sacred wellsprings which are believed to have healing or curative powers. Sometimes, a particular goddess, fairy, saint or nature spirit is associated with the well. Clootie trees are covered by strips of cloth, bits of yarn, pieces of rags, torn clothing, and sometimes coins and trinkets. They are also called “clouty” or “raggy” trees. The name comes from the Scots Gaelic colloquial word “cloughtie”, meaning “cloth.”
            For magickal healing purposes, people use a piece of fabric to dip into the holy well’s water, bathing their afflicted area with the cloth. The material is then hung on a nearby tree branch. This serves not only as a votive offering to the deity or spirit, but also a magickal spell: as the cloth rots away, the illness or injury is believed to dissipate.
            People also hang devotional objects in the clootie trees, as offerings to deities, ancestors, or the spirits of Nature These objects may symbolize a request for healing, or they may simply be a token of affection for a spirit or its divine being. Some items may be used as a personal connection to the energies of the sacred wellspring.
            While the clootie tradition began as a Pagan practice, Christian people also participate. Rosaries, saints’ medals, crucifixes, and other Christian holy objects can be found on or near the clootie tree, right along with Pagan images and the pieces of cloth. Christian folks most often participate on a saint’s sacred day, while Pagan people usually visit the clootie tree on the four “high holidays” of Wicca, or the four Celtic “fire festivals”: Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas and Samhain.
            Clootie trees are most often sacred rowans, hawthornes, or ash trees, but can also be evergreens or thorn bushes, or any other tree growing near a holy wellspring. Clootie trees can also be trees associated with the Celtic sacred woods, including yew and blackthorn, or trees associated with the Fae, such as hawthorns.
           Clootie trees can be found in Cornwall, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland and Wales. One of the most famous is near the St. Brigid’s well in Kildare, Ireland. Some of the votive offerings there are made by Christians, including prayer cards and crucifixes. The overwhelming majority of devotional objects are personal items, asking for healing for a loved one. However, many items left at the clootie tree for Brighid are Pagan, including woven straw equal-armed crosses called “Brigid’s crosses” that are often constructed on Imbolc / Oimelc to honor the Goddess.
          The wellspring of St. Madron in Cornwall was documented as being heavily used in the mid-1800s. Madron is a folk saint, meaning she has no record of being canonized by the Catholic Church. In some Welsh literature, Madron takes on a deific image, including as the mother of the lost infant Mabon, who was the subject of one of King Arthur’s quests. She has also been associated with the Morryghan / Morrighu / Morrigan, or sometimes with Morgan LaFey.
           The clootie custom was discussed in written sources as far back as 1413, yet some of the votive objects in the wells include Roman coins and a form of Cornish tin, used in sewing pins. The practice was outlawed in Scotland during the Protestant Reformation, yet bounced back stronger than ever after the Restoration. In the present day, clooties are advertised on British Isles websites as a tourist attraction.
            Preservationists ask pilgrims to not use fabrics that are made from synthetic materials, as the fibers do not biodegrade, and can actually kill the tree. This is also likely to displease the deity or spirit associated with the sacred wellspring, and defeat the purpose of magickal healing. Seekers are also asked to no longer nail coins or tin cutouts to the trees, as it has a detrimental effect.
            Modern Wiccans and Pagans can participate in this beautiful custom, even if they do not live near a holy well. Make votive offerings beneath a flowering tree or bush in your yard. Decorate it with ribbons, trinkets, and strips of cloth. As you tie the material to the tree branch, make a wish. As the fabric waves in the breeze, your request is carried to the spirits or the Gods. If you live in the British Isles or Ireland, or if you are visiting, you can find clootie trees on local tourist websites. Madron’s Well can even be looked up on Google Earth or similar map programs.

The last few days, I have been made aware that many people are resistant to using the term "Pagan" as well as the word "religion."

Some of the Reasons:  The word Pagan is the Romans' term for "people of the country". It stuffs us all beneath one label. Many people who practice Earth-Based spirituality or magickal traditions have their own terms for themselves, such as Witches, Druids, Heathens, Wiccans, Helenists, or a dozen more words that describe individual paths. Some people associate modern neo-Paganism with the hippie movement, or with an eclectic mixture of traditional praxes. Others want to maintain their own ethnic or cultural identification. Some non-theistic individuals do not want to put themselves in a category with people who worship deities. And some folks just plain crave autonomy.

My wise son Bran pointed out that it lumps everyone under one label -- same as the "Other Religions" now classified by the Pentagon. 

However, Pagan is the easiest, most succinct term to describe the many ways of expressing earth-based or magical traditions. We have a joke that "indigenous British Isles earth-based polytheistic folkloric traditions" does not fit on one's Dog Tags.  Rev. Oberon Zell, (then calling himself Otter) first used the term Pagan to describe himself in the early 1960s. 

Some of the people I've spoken with online have rejected the word "Religion" because it implies a set of beliefs, dogma, and practices that they associate with mainstream Abrahamic religions, with their very set rules, and their limited freedoms. Many folks prefer the words "practice" or "spirituality" or "tradition" or some other term that connotes individual connection to deity, and /or nature, and /or a universal energy.  

However, our US Constitution protects the practice of Religion in a manner not ascribed to spirituality or faith. Congress shall make ... no establishment of Religion or prohibit the free exercise thereof. This is an important concept because it means that other people -- your parents, your boss at work, a congressional representative, a military leader -- cannot force you to practice any faith or spirituality, or take away your right to practice your OWN religion. So if we want these protections, then we need to use the word "Religion", even if our beliefs and praxes do not fall into lockstep with the mainstream concept of religion. 

Religion means a "set of sincerely-held beliefs" which is also important. No other person can determine what mindset you take when it comes to your faith, spirituality, connection to the universe, relationship with the divine, and so forth. 

Some folks are still resisting the labeling, and that is all right. You do you.

My concern is safety in numbers -- as Ben Franklin said, "We must all hang together or we will surely hang separately." There are a lot of people trying to impose their idea of faith, spirituality, deity, and religion on US, and they're not gently suggesting using a term for solidarity with others. Instead they are forcing their religion onto us and forbidding us to practice our sincerely held beliefs. 

So that's why I'm gonna continue using the term Pagan and the word Religion. 

 I try to avoid political posts here, but this could not pass.

A few days ago, I received word that the US Department of Defense had "streamlined" their list of accepted faiths in the US military from over 200 religious designations to just 31, and of those, 22 were Christian. Not making the cut were Wiccan, Paganism, Shamanism,  Magick, Asatru, the Troth, Heathenism, Druidry, and several other earth-based paths.

This smells an awful lot like an unconstitutional Establishment of Religion. 

It is troubling, because my husband, Dave, was enlisted prior to our faith being considered as acceptable in the military. He was discriminated against. While Christian soldiers were exempt from duty and allowed to attend their religious services, Pagans were not. In fact, the Pagan personnel were actually ordered to attend Christian church. Pagans were not allowed to wear religious insignia, have their faith on their dog tags, or celebrate their holidays. 

The dog tags issue was frightening, as their unit was about to go fight in Operation Desert Storm in 1989. Often, if someone is unconscious -- or dead -- the dog tags tell what religious service is appropriate. Dave did not want to have Christian last rites or burial -- he wished to have his own faith observed. He asked the right personnel -- a sympathetic sergeant -- and got "WICCA" engraved on his dog tags. (We are not Wiccan but it was close enough.)

Wicca has been in the chaplain's manual as a legit, recognized religion since the 1970s. It has been used to show various courts and government bodies that earth-based religion is a real, sincerely held belief. 

In 2005, we joined the fight to have the pentacle accepted as a symbol on a deceased soldier's grave marker. It took a DoD mandate and a court case to have that happen. Our tiny contribution was to get the VFW and American Legion on board. Many Pagan and Wiccan leaders and congregations joined that cause.

​Since those days, there are now "open circles" held on military bases, places for our religious gatherings, sweat lodges, classes in Earth-based religions, access to lay chaplains, books, and other accomodations. 

Under the new mandate, all of that could be wiped away. Including the entry for Wicca in the chaplain's manual.

So what am I gonna do? Fight it, of course. I've written to over 200 faith leaders, authors, publishers, and legal organizations. My friend Rev. Janet Callahan from Detroit Pagan Pride and Spiral Moon Family Circle has created a forum on Discord to discuss this issue. https://spiralmoon.org/ with the channel #solidarity  You can read my letter there. 

Rev. Oberon Zell of Church of All Worlds, who actually was the first to use the term "Pagan" back in the 60s, has established an organization to promote unity amongst earth-based faiths. The website has great ideas for talking to government bodies, neighbors, and the press. It's called Pagan Solidarity Alliance https://pagansolidarity.us/ 

Dave and I will be on Hex Offenders with Christian Day and Shannon Marie Daost on Wednesday, June 20, at 9 pm EST, along with other military Pagans and faith leaders.   https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSWByslEPBGKRETEFHQNw0N0fFE5J4lt-

Next comes writing letters to congressional and state representatives and Veterans' and Military service organizations. Please join me in this endeavor.

Faith Leaders Rev. Selena Fox of Circle Network and the Lady Liberty League, Starhawk of Reclaiming Collective, and Rev. Jerrie Hildebrand of CUUPS (the Unitarian Universalist Pagans) are joining with Americans United for Separation of Church and State and other legal organizations to work on this problem. The Pagan legal advocacy organizations The Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) and the Open Halls Project are on top of the situation. 

​HERE is the Discord group address:  https://discord.gg/Yqx68reUY and the channel is called #solidarity

​