Odin Brotherhood: Difference between revisions

The '''Odin Brotherhood''' is the name of an allegeda group that practices the [[modern Paganism|modern Pagan]] religion of [[Heathenry (new religious movement)|Heathenry]].<ref name="Michael Streeter 2008">Michael Streeter. ''Behind Closed Doors: The Power and Influence of Secret Societies''. New Holland Publishers Uk Ltd. 2008. pgs 143-5, 258. {{ISBN|1-84537-937-3}}</ref> The group first came togained attention when Mark Mirabello published a book discussingwhich describes the group and its beliefs, ''The Odin Brotherhood'', in 1992. A second book about the group,''The Way of the Odin Brotherhood'' by Jack Wolf, was published in 2013. <ref>Jack Wolf, ''The Way of the Odin Brotherhood'', Oxford: Mandrake of Oxford, 2013, p. 102. {{ISBN|190695853X}}</ref>

According to Mirabello's account, the Brotherhood alleges to be the direct survivalsurvivor of an ancient pre-Christian belief system.

Mirabello's book has been mentioned in several publications onabout religions orand secret societies,<ref>See, for example, Michael Streeter. ''Behind Closed Doors: The Power and Influence of Secret Societies''. New Holland Publishers Uk Ltd. 2008. pgs 143-5, 258. {{ISBN|1-84537-937-3}}</ref> and the Odin Brotherhood is listed in the eighth edition of [[J. Gordon Melton]]'s ''[[Encyclopedia of American Religions]]''.<ref name=Melton>{{cite book|authorlink=J. Gordon Melton|first=J. Gordon|last=Melton|title=Encyclopedia of American Religions|title-link=Encyclopedia of American Religions|edition=8|publisher=Gale Cengage|year=2009|isbn=978-0-7876-9696-2|pages= 861f}}</ref> Other scholars and many in the Heathen community have expressed scepticism as to the Brotherhood's existence.

Mark Mirabello, a professor of history at [[Shawnee State University]],<ref>See [http://www.worldcat.org/identities/lccn-nb2010002478/ WorldCat Identities] and [http://www.worldcat.org/identities/np-mirabello,%20mark/ WorldCat Identities]</ref> claimed he encountered the Odin Brotherhood while earning a PhD in history at [[Glasgow University]].<ref>[http://theses.gla.ac.uk/896/ Mirabello's Ph.D. Dissertation]</ref><ref>Article Hisin the [https://glasgowguardian.co.uk/2022/05/06/in-conversation-with-dr-mark-mirabello/ University of ''Glasgow Guardian'' newspaper on Mirabello] </ref> He once believed that the society specifically chose him to tell the world their message, but he now believes, quoting the science fiction writer [[Philip K. Dick]], that he was “picked at random”.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://glasgowguardian.co.uk/2022/05/06/in-conversation-with-dr-mark-mirabello/ | title=In conversation with: Dr Mark Mirabello | date=6 May 2022 }}</ref>

Mirabello's book on the Odin Brotherhood, originally published in 1992, and now in its sixth edition,<ref>[https://www.worldcat.org/title/odin-brotherhood/oclc/892707529&referer=brief_results worldcat.org]</ref> describes the eponymous group.<ref name=mirabello1992>''The Odin Brotherhood: A Non-fiction Account of Contact with an Ancient Brotherhood : with a New Epilogue a Statement on the Odin Brotherhood''. Holmes Publishing Group. 1992</ref> The scholar of religion [[Graham Harvey (religious studies scholar)|Graham Harvey]] subsequently stated that although he had received "enigmatic letters" from individuals claiming to be members of the group, he had been "unable to check the veracity of Mirabello's claims."<ref name=harvey1997>Charlotte Hardman and Graham Harvey. ''Paganism Today: Wiccans, Druids, the Goddess and Ancient Earth Traditions for the Twenty-First Century''. Thorsons. 1995. p. 43. {{ISBN|0-7225-3233-4}}</ref> Harvey noted that no other Heathens he communicated with "has any knowledge of the group beyond reading the book. Most doubt its existence".<ref name=harvey1997/> This was true even of one Heathen who was named as a contact in one of the "Brotherhood" letters.<ref name=harvey1997/>

Similarly, in the ''[[Cultic Studies Review]]'', Thomas Coghlan, a forensic psychologist with the New York Police, stated of Mirabello's book: "at first read it appears specious." <ref>Thomas Coghlan, New York City Police Department (2007), "The Spread of Ásatrú in Vinland", Cultic Studies Review (International Cultic Studies Association) 6 (3)</ref>

Unlike most Heathen[[modern Paganism|modern Pagan]] groups, which claim to be reconstructionist, the Odin Brotherhood alleges that it preserves genuine traditions of pre-Christian paganism.<ref name="Michael Streeter 2008"/><ref name="adkins2011"/> The group claims that it was founded in 1421:<ref>George Michael, in his ''Theology of Hate: A History of the World Church of the Creator'', University Press of Florida,2009, {{ISBN|0813033500}}, refers to the Odin Brotherhood’s claim of antiquity, but is skeptical. See pgs. 51, 214.</ref> a widow was accused of practicing Odinism and burned, and a Catholic priest forced her two sons and daughter to witness the burning, those children were Christians in public, but secretly formed the group to preserve Odinism.<ref name=adkins2011 /> Many groups have made claims of being many years old, and it would be really extraordinary if the group had been really founded in 1421.<ref name="Michael Streeter 2008"/>

The Odin Brotherhood embraces [[polytheism]]. "Hard Polytheists," members believe that [[Polytheism#Soft versus hard|the gods and goddesses are distinct individual entities and not psychological archetypes or personifications of natural forces]]. Called the [[Aesir]] and the [[Vanir]], the realms of these [[deities]] literally exist in the past, and when the gods and goddesses visit our world, "they are [[Time travel|stepping forward in time]]."<ref>Jack Wolf, ''The Way of the Odin Brotherhood'', Oxford: Mandrake of Oxford, 2013, p. 102. {{ISBN|190695853X}}</ref>

*[http://www.odinbrotherhood.comorg/ An Odin Brotherhood website]

[[Category:NeopaganModern pagan organisations based in the United Kingdom]]

[[Category:Secret societies in the United Kingdom]]