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History Archives - Page 2 of 5

How Shakespeare and Chaucer Helped Create Valentine's Day

February 8th, 2022

How did Valentine's Day go from a violent pagan fertility festival involving whips and sacrifices to the lovey-dovey holiday we know today? We can thank William Shakespeare and Geoffrey Chaucer for that. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Pagan & Wiccan | 52 Comments »

What Did Jesus, Mary, and Joseph Actually Look Like?

December 14th, 2021

What did Jesus Christ look like? That depends on who you ask. While Western depictions of Christ have often shown him as fair haired and white skinned, historians and theologians say he likely looked very different. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Science & Technology, Christian | 229 Comments »

Pick Your Favorite Monster: The History of Halloween Creatures Explained

October 29th, 2021

With Halloween right around the corner, we decided to dive into the spirit of the spooky season by breaking down the origin stories of some of the most popular creatures that might be haunting your doorstep this year. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Life and Death | 24 Comments »

Long Before Witches in Salem, Europe Had 'Werewolf Trials'

October 25th, 2021

Did you know that long before we were persecuting witches in America, we were persecuting werewolves in Europe? From beheadings to burnings, those accused of 'werewolfery' often met a rather unpleasant fate. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Pagan & Wiccan | 32 Comments »

What Happened to the City of Sodom? Scientists May Have Finally Solved the Mystery

September 27th, 2021

Scientists believe they've discovered the origins of the biblical story of Sodom and Gomorrah, arguing that it likely originated from a real life event - the destruction of a Middle Eastern city some 3,600 years ago. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Science & Technology | 105 Comments »

Wrongly Convicted Salem 'Witch' Could Finally Be Exonerated

August 26th, 2021

Over 300 years ago, Elizabeth Johnson Jr. was accused of being a witch, but never officially exonerated. Now an eighth-grade civics class hopes to formally exonerate the last accused 'witch' of the Salem Witch Trials. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Pagan & Wiccan | 59 Comments »

A Nonbinary Viking? New Discovery Challenges Medieval Gender Roles

August 13th, 2021

Were Vikings more progressive on gender than we are today? That's what many archaeologists are asking following the discovery that an important Viking tomb contains a nonbinary, gender nonconforming individual within. Continue Reading »

Posted in: LGBTQ & Human Rights | 69 Comments »

The New Jonah? Man Swallowed by Whale Lives to Tell the Tale

June 16th, 2021

A New England man's lucky to be alive after being swallowed by a whale. Many Christians were quick to point out the parallels to the story of Jonah, whom scripture says spent three days in the belly of a whale as well. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Christian | 91 Comments »

Holy Smokes: Archaeologists Find Cannabis at Ancient Religious Site

April 12th, 2021

Archaeologists recently discovered that an ancient religious site in Israel has evidence of burnt cannabis, used ritualistically. The findings shocked historians, as some of their ancient theories went up in smoke. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Science & Technology | 44 Comments »

Top 10 Things Jesus Left Behind

April 9th, 2021

It's been over 2,000 years since his death, so it would be only natural to assume that all traces of Jesus have long since vanished from the Earth. But is that really true? Experts say no – and they've got proof. Continue Reading »

Posted in: Christian, Life and Death | 57 Comments »

The Universal Life Church Ministries proudly welcomes all who feel called to get ordained, regardless of creed. We enable all faiths; Christian, Jewish, Mormon, Muslim, Pagan, Wiccan, Atheist – and more – to join our growing non-denominational congregation. Underlying everything we do is a simple core belief: that we are all children of the same universe.