Belief....
Oct. 12th, 2007 10:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mdehnersAbout 20 yrs ago I started to go to Pagan gatherings. At my 1st I discovered a fight that, for some reason came back into Mind yesterday….
At the gathering I went to, there was a big Brouhaha about one of the orgs, “The Religious Pagan’s Society”. The reason everyone was upset was that they felt it’s existence “Implied” that there were “Nonreligious” Pagans. I was one of those….for about ten minutes. It came to shock me that there were folks that didn’t Believe in the God/desses, yet considered themselves Pagan….AND were considered no different than those who DID by most of the goers. Needless to say, I spent most of my time with them, Wiccans and Asatruar…
It’s amazing to me that just asking , “Do you Believe” is considered Flaming, esp. when the person has made statements to the effect that they DON’T. No Christian would consider a person who didn’t Believe that Jesus existed a Christian. No Shinto would Believe that a person who didn’t Believe that Ameratsu Existed was Shinto, etc. Why is it only Modern religions, Recon and Inspirationalist that do?
Believing different things about…sure. The Gyðja of my 1st kindred Believed Redbeard was a cross between Santa, Falstaff and John Belushi in ‘Animal House’. He also drove a red pick-up. At least she Believed he existed(though there were oft times that I believed that she Believed in a teen named Thor, not Redbeard;>). Not Believing?
The few Atheist Heathens I’ve run into will point out those that depended not on the Regin but on their own “Might and Main”. I may have missed something in my Readings of the Lore but I can remember none that denied Their existence. Renounced their particular Patron because they didn’t Feel that they were being given their proper Due, yes. If anything that’s a definite statement of Belief…being Pissed at:>!
If you’re a Solitary, it doesn’t really matter, unless you are in a position where you become a Public “face”. I Know back in my Wiccan days I’d “cringe” when some suck-up Smurf would tell a TV interviewer during Silly Season that “Witches Worship the same God that Christians do, we just use different Names.” Or that “the God/desses are really only Psych Archetypes, not really Gods”. If you Believe something different than the majority of your religion, setting aside the idea that you may not even BE that religion, you have NO RIGHT to state or Imply that yours IS the Way. I remember in DC the boyfriend of my roommate telling me that I could go to their church because it’s Gay Friendly and on the same block. The reason? He’d heard enough “Pyschopagans” to Believe that We all Knew that our covens/circles/kindreds/groves/etc were nothing more than Psych Self Help programs…not a legitimate religions. After all, a “real” religion believes in God/desses after all…..
A Way without the Divine is nothing more than a Frat. If you don’t Believe in God/desses….join the Elks!
Troth,
Pat
“Don’t look at me,” Austin sniffed disdainfully. “If we’re not out saving the world, I’m usually napping on Saturday afternoons.” “Long Hot Summoning”
At the gathering I went to, there was a big Brouhaha about one of the orgs, “The Religious Pagan’s Society”. The reason everyone was upset was that they felt it’s existence “Implied” that there were “Nonreligious” Pagans. I was one of those….for about ten minutes. It came to shock me that there were folks that didn’t Believe in the God/desses, yet considered themselves Pagan….AND were considered no different than those who DID by most of the goers. Needless to say, I spent most of my time with them, Wiccans and Asatruar…
It’s amazing to me that just asking , “Do you Believe” is considered Flaming, esp. when the person has made statements to the effect that they DON’T. No Christian would consider a person who didn’t Believe that Jesus existed a Christian. No Shinto would Believe that a person who didn’t Believe that Ameratsu Existed was Shinto, etc. Why is it only Modern religions, Recon and Inspirationalist that do?
Believing different things about…sure. The Gyðja of my 1st kindred Believed Redbeard was a cross between Santa, Falstaff and John Belushi in ‘Animal House’. He also drove a red pick-up. At least she Believed he existed(though there were oft times that I believed that she Believed in a teen named Thor, not Redbeard;>). Not Believing?
The few Atheist Heathens I’ve run into will point out those that depended not on the Regin but on their own “Might and Main”. I may have missed something in my Readings of the Lore but I can remember none that denied Their existence. Renounced their particular Patron because they didn’t Feel that they were being given their proper Due, yes. If anything that’s a definite statement of Belief…being Pissed at:>!
If you’re a Solitary, it doesn’t really matter, unless you are in a position where you become a Public “face”. I Know back in my Wiccan days I’d “cringe” when some suck-up Smurf would tell a TV interviewer during Silly Season that “Witches Worship the same God that Christians do, we just use different Names.” Or that “the God/desses are really only Psych Archetypes, not really Gods”. If you Believe something different than the majority of your religion, setting aside the idea that you may not even BE that religion, you have NO RIGHT to state or Imply that yours IS the Way. I remember in DC the boyfriend of my roommate telling me that I could go to their church because it’s Gay Friendly and on the same block. The reason? He’d heard enough “Pyschopagans” to Believe that We all Knew that our covens/circles/kindreds/groves/etc were nothing more than Psych Self Help programs…not a legitimate religions. After all, a “real” religion believes in God/desses after all…..
A Way without the Divine is nothing more than a Frat. If you don’t Believe in God/desses….join the Elks!
Troth,
Pat
“Don’t look at me,” Austin sniffed disdainfully. “If we’re not out saving the world, I’m usually napping on Saturday afternoons.” “Long Hot Summoning”
