James M (Mike) Robertson

Born 1936, died 9^th February 2009

After a long illness, Mike Robertson died on the 9^th February 2009.

Mike will have been well known to many readers as a long-standing member of the Heathen community. For the Kith he was the driving force behind its inception following a break from the Odinic Rite, and it is impossible to think of any organisation like ours emerging without his vision and his commitment to our gods.

His vision was of a community of heathens who wanted to explore the spirituality of our path, rather than placing emphasis on reconstruction or re-enactment. Mike saw Odinism as a potent faith for today, and it was his wish that this living reality would be the foundation for the Kith, making it a place in which the scattered community could share their experiences of, and thoughts about, the path we all follow.

He was famous for describing our path as Odinism, something which often caused criticism from those who believed this implied a monotheistic tendency, but Mike was never one to be deterred by the fear of being misunderstood. He wanted us to speak our minds and fearlessly explore the paths we follow, testing our impressions and thoughts rather than repressing them

His writings, which have been a major part of the Kith’s output, speak for themselves and are the results of many years of thought, meditation and direct experience, and all advance the idea that the individual must pursue their path undeterred by the opinions of others, but within the structure of responsibility to the wider society.

Mike was always an entertaining friend, with a vivid imagination which was obscure and gothic, funny and dark, and which made receiving an email from him a Neil Gaiman fantasy adventure.  Outside of the Kith, Mike had been in the army, at one time worked in personnel, and had been a London guide (which is something I am sorry to have missed!).

He will be sorely missed by all in the Kith and will be irreplaceable as a source of advice and as a friend. His funeral (led by Alan Nash) was held on the 17^th of February in a woodland burial ground in Bedford, in the presence of friends and family.

In the words of the funeral service:  “Odin lives, and our comrade Mike, though passed into what we see as shadow, lives still”.

Lyn Kenny