As 2025, and the 31st year of the Asatru Folk Assembly, comes riding in from the east, we should take a moment to both reflect on our past and plan our future. This article will be a bit shorter than my usual work but carries a more important message.
Many of the great endeavors of our forebears were for the purpose of “planting trees,” so to speak- trees whose shade they would not enjoy themselves, but that their descendants could sit in and create yet another generation of artistic and industrious innovation for more descendants. Our ancestors won these victories not for themselves, but for their tribe, or often for the Folk in general.
In 2015, Allsherjargoði Stephen McNallen accomplished the unthinkable by acquiring and dedicating
Óðinshof, the first Hof to one of the Æsir in 1000 years. He did this not for himself, but for the Folk.
In 2020 through 2022, Allsherjargoði Matthew Flavel honored the mandate of the All-Father and established three more temples to mighty Þórr, bright Baldr, and joyous Njörðr. He did this not for himself, but for the Folk.
In December 2022, then-Goði-now-Witan Daniel Young did the groundwork to acquire Sigrheim, a parcel of land symbolic of the AFA’s larger success, a promise of our bright future in troth to the holy Æsir. He did this not for himself, but for the Folk.
As we head into 2025, keep these in mind. Remember that we do this for our people—past, present, and future—so that they may continue to survive and thrive and be honored by future deeds. What seeds will you plant with your deeds? What trees will grow from your victories? What fruits will your Folk harvest? The best time to answer these questions is now!
Goði Trent East
~ from The Runestone, January 2025 ~
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