“The best thing for being sad,” replied Merlyn, beginning to puff and blow, “is to learn something. That is the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting.”The Sword in the Stone, Book One in the series, The Once and Future King by Theodore H. White.
There are many definitions for what/who a wizard is. There are computer wizards and highly intelligent and talented individuals in many fields that are called wizards. Perhaps this idea of a wizard being someone that is uncommonly knowledgeable came from a time when wizards were highly respected for their knowledge. From a magickal point of view, the literary likes of Merlin, Gandalf, Belgarath, Dumbledore, and others are archetypes of the modern day wizard.
Oberon Zell-Ravenheart is a modern day wizard. His book Grimoire For The Apprentice Wizard was very inspirational to me. Oberon Zell-Ravenheart assembled some of the top mages, Wiccans, Druids and other wizards into a modern day Grey Council of Wizards. (An amazing feat in iteself.) Many of the Grey Council members contributed to the Grimoire For The Apprentice Wizard. The Grimoire For The Apprentice Wizard is the primary book of the Grey School of Wizardry of which Oberon Zell-Ravenheart is the Headmaster. The school was designed to be a real world equivalent of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the popular Harry Potter book series albeit an online school. As such the Grey School of Wizardry started out as a school for children. As with many brilliant ideas, the school quickly captured the imagination of many adults. The information presented in the school is ageless so it was decided to accomodate adults as well. I am one of the students. I am a member of The Coterie of the Flowing Waters lodge.
It may seem rather presumptuous for me to call myself a wizard. I am by no means in the same league as Oberon Zell-Ravenheart and definitely not a candidate for the Grey Council. But, there are adept wizards and there are novice wizards. I'm in the novice category. :)
Those that have read the Lord of the Rings series by JRR Tolkien are familiar with Gandalf the Grey. He later became Gandalf the White. In the book Grimoire For The Apprentice Wizard, page 21, the apprentice wizard is encouraged to "choose for yourself which color you feel most connected with." Also on page 21, the color grey is associated with "Lore Mastery" and "Knowledge". Grey is the color that is neither white nor black, but, is made up of both.
I am Pacadoon the Grey.
Cited Sources:
Wizard. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wizard
Grey School of Wizardry. http://www.greyschool.com/index.php
Hogwarts. Wikipedia.org. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogwarts
White, Theodore H. The Once and Future King p.83
Zell-Ravenheart, Oberon. Grimoire For The Apprentice Wizard
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Eke
Back when we were still choosing our next president, John McCain made a comment about the transition from being middle class to rich at around $5 million dollars. Perhaps he was just joking, but, I thought it was a reasonable answer. The rich do make millions of dollars a year. So who are the so called middle class?
The definition I learned years ago was that the middle class have incomes that are above the incomes of the typical citizen but are less than the incomes of the rich. Depending on who you listen to, the typical income of an American is anywhere from $20 thousand to $150 thousand a year with an average of around $45 thousand a year. I think that upper end number is quite a bit low. Cities like Chicago, New York and Los Angeles have a much higher upper end than $150 thousand. At least that is what I've read. So, I would guestimate a number of around $300 thousand a year being the beginning of the so called middle class. The vast majority of us are just plain old working stiffs.
A few weeks ago I did a bit of googleing about the middle class. I was a bit surprised to see that the most common definition of the middle class today is based on the 'median' income of around $45 thousand a year. I'm not sure when or how having a median income has been translated into being in the middle class. Even people that only made around $20 thousand a year claimed to be a part of the middle class. It is said that the difference between a first world country and a third world country is the presence of a middle class. If $20 thousand dollars is the beginning of the middle class and $5 million dollars is the beginning of the rich class, I have to wonder if we aren't quickly turning into a third world country.
What is so wrong with stating that people that make from $20 thousand a year to say 250 thousand a year are all a part of the working class? What's up with this need to call ourselves middle class when we are living from pay check to pay check and barely ekeing out a living.
The definition I learned years ago was that the middle class have incomes that are above the incomes of the typical citizen but are less than the incomes of the rich. Depending on who you listen to, the typical income of an American is anywhere from $20 thousand to $150 thousand a year with an average of around $45 thousand a year. I think that upper end number is quite a bit low. Cities like Chicago, New York and Los Angeles have a much higher upper end than $150 thousand. At least that is what I've read. So, I would guestimate a number of around $300 thousand a year being the beginning of the so called middle class. The vast majority of us are just plain old working stiffs.
A few weeks ago I did a bit of googleing about the middle class. I was a bit surprised to see that the most common definition of the middle class today is based on the 'median' income of around $45 thousand a year. I'm not sure when or how having a median income has been translated into being in the middle class. Even people that only made around $20 thousand a year claimed to be a part of the middle class. It is said that the difference between a first world country and a third world country is the presence of a middle class. If $20 thousand dollars is the beginning of the middle class and $5 million dollars is the beginning of the rich class, I have to wonder if we aren't quickly turning into a third world country.
What is so wrong with stating that people that make from $20 thousand a year to say 250 thousand a year are all a part of the working class? What's up with this need to call ourselves middle class when we are living from pay check to pay check and barely ekeing out a living.
The Search is On!
When I first made the conscious shift to paganism, I really wasn't too interested in getting in a local group. I was quite happy to read books and converse with others on computer bulletin boards and later on, the internet.
Joining a witchcraft coven was definitely something that I had thought about. But, from what I had read, there were things that sort of bothered me about a coven. A coven can have the same kind of system as a clandestine cell system. In a clandestine cell, if the cell gets too big, it splits and a developed leader becomes the leader of that cell. In a coven everyone is working on becoming a priest or priestess. When a coven gets too big, it's not unusual for a developed High Priestess and High Priest hive off and form a new coven. And that's fine, but, I have no interest in being a priest let alone a high priest. If synchronicity had brought a coven into my life, I'd probably have joined though.
When I first started thinking about hooking up with local pagans, I attended a local psychic fair. I didn't really make any pagan connections. But, I did make connections for taking Tai Chi and later into being initiated into first level Reiki. When I was practicing Reiki somewhat regularly, I was involved in a couple of healings of minor things such as a sprained ankle. I didn't really do anything but allow things to happen that I wasn't in control of. It was like getting shocked, (I'm an electrician), except it was like the electricity was leaving me instead of entering me.
Eventually in one of my searches on the internet, I came across an article on Unitarian Universalism and about Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS). I couldn't find a local CUUPS group, but, I did find a local UU church. I found the UU Principals to be something I could agree with and met other pagans at the UU Church. Later, several of us started a local pagan UU church group which is still in existence. Time went by, my work schedule and the location of many of the events came into conflict. It became evident to me, it was time for me to move on.
On two occasions, I have had the opportunity to take part in the discussion of forming a local coven. I withdrew from both when it became apparent I wasn't a good fit. I participated with one more local group, at first it was pretty informal. Times change, the leader took the group to another level. Again, it was time for me to move on.
I belive in the concept of a pagan church and had been involved in the discussion of forming one on one occasion. There is a church in a town close by that is very pagan friendly in practice and in belief. I had been wanting to give them a try on and off for several years, my work schedule had changed such that I could attend. So, off I went. At times, they are a little too Christiany for me. But, not so much that I can't deal with it. I was quite content to stay in their outer court. But, alas, life changed again and Sunday mornings have become a challenge. I like to continue to think of the church as my pagan home. I would be happy to start attending regularly again, but, my fiancee also has time constraints that have to be considered even if my situation was to change.
To be honest, their church is the closest model to how I like to express my religious beliefs. I'd just prefer it to be a 'pagan' church and one that preferably stated a real belief in the old gods. I think small groups and covens are great. But, if paganism is going to have an impact on the world we live in, it is my opinion that we need pagan churches. We need buildings. We need pagan schools. We need outreach programs. We need to show the world we are indeed a part of this world and a part of the solution.
Joining a witchcraft coven was definitely something that I had thought about. But, from what I had read, there were things that sort of bothered me about a coven. A coven can have the same kind of system as a clandestine cell system. In a clandestine cell, if the cell gets too big, it splits and a developed leader becomes the leader of that cell. In a coven everyone is working on becoming a priest or priestess. When a coven gets too big, it's not unusual for a developed High Priestess and High Priest hive off and form a new coven. And that's fine, but, I have no interest in being a priest let alone a high priest. If synchronicity had brought a coven into my life, I'd probably have joined though.
When I first started thinking about hooking up with local pagans, I attended a local psychic fair. I didn't really make any pagan connections. But, I did make connections for taking Tai Chi and later into being initiated into first level Reiki. When I was practicing Reiki somewhat regularly, I was involved in a couple of healings of minor things such as a sprained ankle. I didn't really do anything but allow things to happen that I wasn't in control of. It was like getting shocked, (I'm an electrician), except it was like the electricity was leaving me instead of entering me.
Eventually in one of my searches on the internet, I came across an article on Unitarian Universalism and about Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS). I couldn't find a local CUUPS group, but, I did find a local UU church. I found the UU Principals to be something I could agree with and met other pagans at the UU Church. Later, several of us started a local pagan UU church group which is still in existence. Time went by, my work schedule and the location of many of the events came into conflict. It became evident to me, it was time for me to move on.
On two occasions, I have had the opportunity to take part in the discussion of forming a local coven. I withdrew from both when it became apparent I wasn't a good fit. I participated with one more local group, at first it was pretty informal. Times change, the leader took the group to another level. Again, it was time for me to move on.
I belive in the concept of a pagan church and had been involved in the discussion of forming one on one occasion. There is a church in a town close by that is very pagan friendly in practice and in belief. I had been wanting to give them a try on and off for several years, my work schedule had changed such that I could attend. So, off I went. At times, they are a little too Christiany for me. But, not so much that I can't deal with it. I was quite content to stay in their outer court. But, alas, life changed again and Sunday mornings have become a challenge. I like to continue to think of the church as my pagan home. I would be happy to start attending regularly again, but, my fiancee also has time constraints that have to be considered even if my situation was to change.
To be honest, their church is the closest model to how I like to express my religious beliefs. I'd just prefer it to be a 'pagan' church and one that preferably stated a real belief in the old gods. I think small groups and covens are great. But, if paganism is going to have an impact on the world we live in, it is my opinion that we need pagan churches. We need buildings. We need pagan schools. We need outreach programs. We need to show the world we are indeed a part of this world and a part of the solution.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Druidry
Druids are "engaged in things sacred, conduct the public and the private sacrifices, and interpret all matters of religion." The Gallic Wars Book 6
I have a keen interest in things Celtic. Years ago I bought myself a kilt and all the trimmings. I headed off to the closest Scottish games and marched with my clan name in the grand entrance. What a blast. The event starts with the clans entering the arena and then followed with a huge pipe and drum band parading toward the grandstand. The band is composed of a bunch of smaller bands that come to the event to compete. I was sitting in the stands the first time I witnessed this event. Wow!!! I can't adequately express the experience. The pipes resonate in every fiber of your body. I could fully understand why they played the pipes entering into battle.
I used to listen to a lot of Celtic music. I love the Gaelic language and even spent some time trying to teach myself Gaelic. But, it was just too hard to stay motivated when I didn't have anybody to give me feedback on my pronunciation and etc. I read bits and pieces about my clan name and Scottish history. I read some Irish folk lore. I especially enjoyed reading the stories about Cúchulainn. Although, that was 15 plus years ago and I've forgotten most of it. :)
It was an easy decision to start studying druidry. I looked into several druid organizations before narrowing it down to three. I had read books written by members of The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD) and enjoyed them very much. Those books have been on loan for quite a few years now, I can't remember their titles. But,OBOD is based in England and I wanted to work with an American druidry group. I considered Ár nDraíocht Féin (ADF) but, ended up choosing The Henge of Keltria because of their Irish focus. I joined The Henge of Keltria, bought their ritual book and other material, set up an altar and performed my first druid ritual. Later, I had an opportunity to attend a ritual with a local grove in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Too long of a drive to make a habit of though. Basically, I was in the outer court of The Henge of Keltria. I started considering taking my membership to the next level about the time The Henge of Keltria moved operations to California. They sent out notice they would only consider new students to their druidry course that could and would commit to completing their course within a rigid time frame. I knew from experience my job often required me to work a lot of 12 hour days and a 7 day work week for extended periods of time. Therefore, I knew I couldn't make such a commitment. Without a local group to work with and not being able to take it to the next level, that pretty much ended my stay with The Henge of Keltria. No hard feelings. Life just got in the way.
OBOD has a druidry course, so, I purchased the Bard course. I never did finish it. Life got busy, the lessons got packed away. Time passed, living arrangements changed, etc. It just didn't happen. Oh well, maybe one day. To be honest, without belonging to a local OBOD grove, I'm not terribly motivated.
There are a lot of people that claim that druidry is a religion. At least from an ancient point of view, I'm not sure I agree with that based on what I have read. It is possible the early druids were members of an intellectual caste that was a repository of knowledge and because of their status in their society they had the power to be judge and jury in many areas of life including religion. It is also possible they were the equivalent of a priestly caste. But, a priestly caste is not a religion, they are only representatives of their religion. A Catholic Cardinal is a representative of the Catholic religion. But, a Cardinal is not a religion. Either way, my interest in druidry is in the acquiring of knowledge in an orderly fashion.
Cited works:
Caesar, Julius. Caesar's Commentaries on the Gallic and Civil Wars: with the Supplementary Books attributed to Hirtius. Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia Library. http://etext.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccer-new2?id=CaeComm.sgm&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&tag=public&part=6&division=div2
"Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship (ADF) is an international fellowship devoted to creating a public tradition of Neopagan Druidry."
Ár nDraíocht Féin. http://www.adf.org/core 2008
"The Order of Bards Ovates & Druids is a spiritual group dedicated to practising, teaching, and developing Druidry as a valuable and inspiring spirituality."
The Order of Bards Ovates & Druids. http://www.druidry.org
"The Henge of Keltria is a nonprofit religious corporation dedicated to providing information, training, and networking to those who practice or who are interested in Keltrian Druidism, Druidism in general, and the evolution of mind, body, and spirit through a Celtic Irish context."
Druidism for the 21st Century, The Henge of Keltria. http://www.keltria.org 2007
I did a google search on Cúchulainn and thought this website looks cool.
Warriors, Heroes & Villians - Cúchulainn. http://www.shee-eire.com/magic&mythology/Warriors&Heroes/Warriors/Males/Cuchulainn/Page1.htm
Monday, December 15, 2008
Be Ye a Witch!?
"A Witch is an individual who engages in Witchcraft. In turn, Witchcraft is what Witches do. By defining Witch, we automatically have described Witchcraft...and vice versa."
My first attempts at communicating with other pagans was through the old computer 'bulletin boards'. I asked a lot of questions. Believe me, I got a lot of answers.Depending on which bulletin board I was on, those that followed "The Craft" were often of the same coven, although the term clan seemed more applicable to me. Sometimes, the coven had hived into more covens in other towns and even states. I believe I was in conversation with at least three different groups that followed "The Craft". The most interesting thing about those groups was their treatment of their High Priestess. They were to be treated with the highest respect at all times. She was a clan chief in many, many ways. Followers of "The Craft" that I spoke to pretty much despised Wiccans.
There was one group in particular, that I would have packed it up and moved if they had given me even a small hope of becoming a member of their coven.
If my memory serves me correct, many of the hereditary witches I spoke to were from Russian states. I can't remember writing to any Italian Stregha witches, but, I may have. Generally nice people and willing to answer pretty much any question that I tossed at them. For the most part, they too had had their run-ins with the Wiccans.
Then there were the Wiccans. As a newcomer, they were a mixed bag of tricks. Some claimed to be Wiccans, but, repudiated the term witch. Those that did call themselves witches claimed that only a Wiccan is a witch. (This was obviously the main source of much of the warring.) Then there were the British Traditionalists bashing any Wiccan that wasn't a British Traditionalist. And to top it off, there were the Christian Wiccans. Claims that Wicca had been around intact since prehistoric times insulted my intelligence. The law of three was just another version of 'the devil's going to get you' to me. I had left one religion based on lies and fear, I wasn't in the market for another one.
Since then, I have met Wiccans that I respect. I make no claims that the people I talked to in my early pagan days are or were indicative of the majority of Wiccans. Most of the Wiccan books, that I read, are now acknowledging that Gerald Gardner is the father of modern day Wicca. I have read a lot of books on Wicca and will probably continue to do so, but, I can't ever see me becoming a Wiccan.
Am I a witch? Since I sometimes engage in witchcraft, I guess I am. :)
Cited:
Robinson, B.A., Definitions of "Witch" and "Witchcraft" Found In Dictionaries. Religious Tolerance.org, http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_dict.htm July 17, 2000
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Pagan - A Definition - Maybe
Probably my earliest recollection of the term pagan comes from my childhood when I went to a Christian church. From the pulpit, the term pagan was used when speaking of those that practiced some form of magick. Be it witchcraft or the pagan practices of a witch doctor. The term 'heathen', on the other hand, was used for non-Christians. Native American Indians that followed the old ways were heathens.
When I open a dictionary, a pagan is always defined at minimum as a non-Christian. Many dictionaries give the word paganus as the root word. Paganus can liberally be defined as a country dweller. However, newer research suggests the term was used as the name for the followers of the old religion(s) of the Roman empire. Paganus was also used as an insult for someone that was not in the military. Christians considered themselves as in God's army and looked down on the non-Christians - the paganus.
Over the last 10 years or so, the term pagan has changed. Nowadays, it seems that everyone wants to jump on the pagan bandwagon. Many in the pagan community have labeled every non-Christian religion as pagan. Many people, such as native Americans and Asatruars, are insulted by the term. There are even so called pagan Christians. The term has become so all-encompassing by some, they may as well just say being pagan is just another definition for being human.
I, for one, am sorry to see the term diluted in such a way. Saying I'm a pagan just doesn't mean much anymore.
Further reading:
Amatheon, Understanding Paganism - a Guide to the Definition, History, Faiths, and Divinity within Paganism. http://www.brotherhoodofthephoenix.org/node/189 May 16, 2006
Hutton, Ronald. The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft. Oxford. 1999.
Jones, Prudence and Pennick, Nigel. A History of Pagan Europe. Routledge. 1998.
When I open a dictionary, a pagan is always defined at minimum as a non-Christian. Many dictionaries give the word paganus as the root word. Paganus can liberally be defined as a country dweller. However, newer research suggests the term was used as the name for the followers of the old religion(s) of the Roman empire. Paganus was also used as an insult for someone that was not in the military. Christians considered themselves as in God's army and looked down on the non-Christians - the paganus.
Over the last 10 years or so, the term pagan has changed. Nowadays, it seems that everyone wants to jump on the pagan bandwagon. Many in the pagan community have labeled every non-Christian religion as pagan. Many people, such as native Americans and Asatruars, are insulted by the term. There are even so called pagan Christians. The term has become so all-encompassing by some, they may as well just say being pagan is just another definition for being human.
I, for one, am sorry to see the term diluted in such a way. Saying I'm a pagan just doesn't mean much anymore.
Further reading:
Amatheon, Understanding Paganism - a Guide to the Definition, History, Faiths, and Divinity within Paganism. http://www.brotherhoodofthephoenix.org/node/189 May 16, 2006
Hutton, Ronald. The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft. Oxford. 1999.
Jones, Prudence and Pennick, Nigel. A History of Pagan Europe. Routledge. 1998.
The Beginning
It is a common saying, and in everybody's mouth, that life is but a sojourn.
Plato
My journey started over a half century ago in a land far away. Well, it's only about an 8 hour drive away. But, so much has changed, perhaps especially me, that it seems like a land far away. It was a land of Christian fundamentalism. It was a land of small towns, country folk and (quite often) poverty. It was a land of wild blackberries and hickory nuts and black walnuts to name a few. It was a land of rivers and streams, vines to swing on, trees to climb and fields to cross. It was a land that I loved. But, that part of my journey ended when I was 13.
Somewhere around 8 years old, there was a 'revival' at our church and I got 'saved'. I remember it taking a lot of guts to get off my butt and go forward. I wasn't sure about the whole getting saved thing, but, I didn't want to go to hell either. The experience certainly didn't have any profound changes on who I was. We moved around alot. At least now I could answer the inevitable question of "Have you been saved?" with a "yes".
I tried to be a good Christian. I read the bible from cover to cover and had a head full of memorized verses. But, Christianity never really worked for me. I found myself reading books about the occult and finding them to make more sense to me than the bible. I came to believe Christianity was a religion of fear, shame and hate. I have come to think of its god as an evil warrior god. I digress.
When I was 13, we moved to a land that was so foreign to me. It was certainly the biggest town I'd ever lived in. Everybody talked funny and made fun of me for the way I talked. It was the late 60's. It was a time of racial and civil unrest. It was a time of the Viet Nam war. It was a time of drugs, hippies and the Beatles. I've lived in this foreign land for the most of my life. I've had good years and I've had bad years.
It could be said that I started leaving Christianity in my teens. It probably took as much guts or more to leave Christianity than it did to become a Christian. But, leave it I did with a curse. I continued to read books on paganism and found the idea of being responsible for my own life very appealing to me. No Santa Claus god to ask for things. No savior god for when things took a bad turn. You know what I mean. "Dear God, if you'll just save me from this bad thing in my life, I'll (fill in the blank)."
Paganism's identity with the earth and nature was a huge factor in my decision to become a pagan. In retrospect, I would say I've been a pagan all my life. I was brain washed by Christianity for awhile and sometimes to this day struggle with the words of fear, shame and hatred that were drilled into me. But, those words are having less and less control on me as time goes by.
Becoming a pagan did have a profound affect on me. I was born again. I saw the world in a whole new way. But, I struggled with any concepty of deity until a few years later when I spoke with a Unity minister. She told me that "If I didn't like the god I had, get another one." Wow! It hadn't dawned on me that I could do such a thing even though I'd read books like The White Goddess by Robert Graves. I spent a lot of time soul searching and found that I believed in a Goddess. I was content with that and a little surprised to learn that I also believed in a Horned God.
So ended my sojourn as a Christian and my sojourn as a Pagan began.
Plato
My journey started over a half century ago in a land far away. Well, it's only about an 8 hour drive away. But, so much has changed, perhaps especially me, that it seems like a land far away. It was a land of Christian fundamentalism. It was a land of small towns, country folk and (quite often) poverty. It was a land of wild blackberries and hickory nuts and black walnuts to name a few. It was a land of rivers and streams, vines to swing on, trees to climb and fields to cross. It was a land that I loved. But, that part of my journey ended when I was 13.
Somewhere around 8 years old, there was a 'revival' at our church and I got 'saved'. I remember it taking a lot of guts to get off my butt and go forward. I wasn't sure about the whole getting saved thing, but, I didn't want to go to hell either. The experience certainly didn't have any profound changes on who I was. We moved around alot. At least now I could answer the inevitable question of "Have you been saved?" with a "yes".
I tried to be a good Christian. I read the bible from cover to cover and had a head full of memorized verses. But, Christianity never really worked for me. I found myself reading books about the occult and finding them to make more sense to me than the bible. I came to believe Christianity was a religion of fear, shame and hate. I have come to think of its god as an evil warrior god. I digress.
When I was 13, we moved to a land that was so foreign to me. It was certainly the biggest town I'd ever lived in. Everybody talked funny and made fun of me for the way I talked. It was the late 60's. It was a time of racial and civil unrest. It was a time of the Viet Nam war. It was a time of drugs, hippies and the Beatles. I've lived in this foreign land for the most of my life. I've had good years and I've had bad years.
It could be said that I started leaving Christianity in my teens. It probably took as much guts or more to leave Christianity than it did to become a Christian. But, leave it I did with a curse. I continued to read books on paganism and found the idea of being responsible for my own life very appealing to me. No Santa Claus god to ask for things. No savior god for when things took a bad turn. You know what I mean. "Dear God, if you'll just save me from this bad thing in my life, I'll (fill in the blank)."
Paganism's identity with the earth and nature was a huge factor in my decision to become a pagan. In retrospect, I would say I've been a pagan all my life. I was brain washed by Christianity for awhile and sometimes to this day struggle with the words of fear, shame and hatred that were drilled into me. But, those words are having less and less control on me as time goes by.
Becoming a pagan did have a profound affect on me. I was born again. I saw the world in a whole new way. But, I struggled with any concepty of deity until a few years later when I spoke with a Unity minister. She told me that "If I didn't like the god I had, get another one." Wow! It hadn't dawned on me that I could do such a thing even though I'd read books like The White Goddess by Robert Graves. I spent a lot of time soul searching and found that I believed in a Goddess. I was content with that and a little surprised to learn that I also believed in a Horned God.
So ended my sojourn as a Christian and my sojourn as a Pagan began.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)