Phenomenacon September 2020 Review
2020 has been a truly chaotic year. From the horrors of the COVID-19 pandemic to political unrest, racial tension and violence, and so much more, people around the world have had a hard time finding peace or happiness this year.
For the paranormal community, the desire to explore and traverse the world of the strange has been stronger than ever, and yet opportunities to do so are limited due to restrictions on travel and quarantine. From meeting up to investigate haunted locations to paranormal conferences, the community has been mostly relegated to online interactions.
However, two people have taken it upon themselves to organize an event that has brought the paranormal community together in a whole new way. Greg and Dana Newkirk, investigators and curators of the Traveling Museum of the Paranormal & Occult, just finished running the second Phenomenacon of 2020. Having first launched the event earlier this year, the conference is the first online-exclusive paranormal conference, bringing together speakers from all across the various fields of the paranormal community.
The amazing work that Greg and Dana did putting this event together was felt everywhere. From the amazing speakers to the fantastic short films that they were able to showcase and even some live musical performances from Anthony Cistone and Twin Temple, the weekend flourished with amazing creativity and gave attendees a wonderful display of the paranormal all for the low cost of $15, and all from the privacy of their own homes.
What stood out however was the sheer volume of different speakers who attended. You can find the full list here, but viewers had opportunities to see iconic ghost hunters like Amy Bruni and Adam Berry to Folklorist Dr. Andrea Kitta, Parapsychologist DR CIARAN O’KEEFFE, Ceremonial Magician Marco Visconti and so many more. Covering everything from ghosts, tarot, magic, UFOs, Cryptids and so much more, the conference did something very few conferences manage to do, and that brings people from all walks of life and viewpoints of the paranormal into one setting.
Fans of Hellier absolutely loved this weekend as well, as many speakers found their own work intersected with the strange and amazing work done by the Hellier crew and expanded upon it in exciting and amazing new ways, from new information about Kentucky and the town of Sommerset to possible new implications for the involvement of Thelema rituals and magick.
Guest speaker John Tenney used a word to describe this kind of mindset perfectly: metanoia. While modern translations depict this as some sort of atonement or spiritual conversion, the original meaning behind metanoia describes a means of looking at something differently or being open to seeing new viewpoints in essence. This perfectly describes the magic that this conference brought viewers this weekend. Phenomenacon 2020 has showcased how powerful the middle ground can be not just for paranormal enthusiasts but everyone. We won’t always see eye to eye on things, but being open-minded and being willing to see other possibilities will keep us on the right path.
The event not only entertained and educated those interested in the paranormal, but it fostered a true sense of belonging. Members of the paranormal community have always been seeking acceptance when we live in a society that frowns upon interest in the strange and the weird. Yet our passion for the weird is what makes this community so special. Recognizing it as weird and not being afraid to pursue it is a truly remarkable thing, and Greg and Dana, along with all of the wonderful speakers at this event, helped bring back some of the magic and wonder the community and the world at large has been missing for a long time. Even if it was just for a weekend, hopefully, that magic is enough to get people continuing the path that these speakers set them on.
From learning about sigil witchcraft to how to build a better paranormal toolkit and so many other wonderful panels, this weekend taught us all a lot. Speakers included authors, professional lecturers, ghost hunters, UFOlogists, podcasters, and even professional television personalities. We saw that the world is far grander and more mysterious than ever before, and that’s ok. It’s not the destination, but the journey, and Phenomenacon 2020 helped us find our way back to that journey. Thank you to Greg and Dana Newkirk for putting on an incredible event, and we cannot wait until the next one.
As the last lecturer of the weekend and all-around amazing speaker John Tenney said to end his lecture, “And for all of the time and energy and effort that you spend, researching and investigating strange paranormal creatures that exist in some other world, spend half as much time…I implore you…investigating, researching, and caring about the strange and bizarre creatures that surround you every day…and go play.”
