The monthly meditation had a playful air about it.<\/p>\n
\u201cA crone is an old woman. A crone is a witch. A crone is a wise woman. Which one will you be, my friend? Which one I?\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Wrapped around a rite for \u201ccroning\u201d\u009d, the meditation embraced a history of mystical women and offered prayers to \u201cMothering God\u201d\u009d and \u201cEternal Wisdom.\u201d\u009d But the article was not in a new age publication or Wiccan blog: it was on the pages of the September newsletter of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington.<\/p>\n
Entitled \u201cCrone Power\u201d\u009d, the meditation innocuously sat opposite a story about choosing a children\u2019s Bible and next to a column on St. Jerome. The newsletter quickly drew the attention of Anglican bloggers, many of whom found the placement of what appeared to be a Wiccan ritual to be jarring in an official church publication. But intentionally or not, the publication and placement of the rite were reflective of a new reality: one in which practices drawn from or inspired by pagan belief, including witchcraft, are increasingly finding acceptance within the ranks of the Episcopal Church.<\/p>\n