Yesterday was a stressful day in my life, I was dealing with people that were counter productive for the pagan community. On a facebook group there was a young man that gave a terrible rant. I am so happy that I saved it.
Justin J. Lynch "Most" of the people that you are speaking of don't want anything to do with the Goddess. They are what I politely refer to as "Wanna Blessed Be's"! They use their new found faith as a way to attract attention and nothing more. These people I DESPISE! They make it 10 times harder for true Pagan's. We have enough issues with the "Normals". We don't more "Bad press". As for the few that truly are Pagan and are just trying to "Shock the sheep"... Every faith/religion in the world has morons who think that THEIR religion is the best and must force that knowledge upon everyone they meet. Just be happy in the knowledge that YOU'RE not one of them and move on. Blessed Be ~Love and Light~
Here are the things that strike me wrong. He is classifying pagans as true and false pagans. How is this tolerant of other people's religious views. His comments are as bad as those fundamental Christians that go around telling who is a true christian and who isn't. That is one of the aspects of Christianity that drove me away from Christianity. Every group of people are going to have people like this, but nobody said anything about this but me. I asked this young man to define his views on what makes a true pagan, but he refused.
In the post he declares that he "DESPISE" these pagans that doesn't agree with his way of thinking, and he ended his post with "Love and Light". Despising people is hateful, it is negative and then ending your post with love and light makes it all better? I don't think so, If you are going to walk a path of "Love and Light" you can't go around saying that you despise certain people. That is being a hypocrite. And here is where even more hypocrisy comes into the picture. Others from this group started to complain about my comments, saying that I was being negative, but not one word from anybody about Justin despising people and declaring some pagans as false pagans.
If you are going to complain about negativity in a group, you should comment about all people that post negative comments. Nobody in that group was willing to stand up and admit they were negative. I admitted that I was negative and the reason why as well. I was fighting fire with fire, someone declared that there are guidelines on being a pagan and I called him out.
I had some things to do and a couple of hours later I went back to this group and saw that they deleted the two threads that I had commented on earlier. I was told that "the posts were too negative". Mostly people didn't like be called out on their biased actions. They can't handle negativity or conflict. I was told by one lady that she didn't like drama, but went around telling people not to respond to my posts. If you didn't want drama , don't get involved in a situation. Her actions were hypocritical of her statements.
Why does this matter to me? In the religious debate group that I am a part of we have talked to many christians and muslims that said they weren't like those fundamentalists. Most of us believed that if you are a part of a group and do nothing about radicals, you are enabling them. When you see something wrong, you are to speak against it, well it goes for religion as well. I find it disturbing that christian fundamentalists attack and harass non-believers constantly. But not one television preacher has the guts to tell his group that they are not following the teachings of Jesus. How how can you harass others about religion and complain when they comments about your beliefs. You can't be a pagan and say you believe in tolerance but yet classify pagans as true and false pagans.
One of the main disciplines that I have read in various pagan beliefs is holding yourself responsible as you hold others responsible. One of my personal rules is " The moment that you look the other way for a friend is the moment the battle of right and wrong is lost. I can be negative at times, so I can't complain about others being negative. But I have to speak my mind when I see hypocrisy in action.
Hypocrisy is my favorite word because it is what I battle against on my journey.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Instant Gratification society Update.
Society on a whole has gotten weaker and weaker. Willpower of most 30 and younger seems to be as strong as Sarah Palins's grasp on the US constitution. There is so much to blame for all of this.
I think about Obama and the situation that he is in. He was never given a chance to fix anything, before he was given an honest chance, the spin and blame game occurred and Obama was blamed for everything done by the previous administration. Simple thinking should have stopped this, but people refused to think. How could 4 years of economical hard times be the fault of a man that was only president for a year?
I believe that people have lost all concept of long term thinking that you could steal 100 dollars from a person what six months and give the person 20 bucks back and they will be singing your praise. Most people have become so wrapped up in the here and now that they can't picture thinking 2 years in the future or past. My proof is with Newt Gringrich, how can a man that acted so mean and hypocritical during the Clinton administration be a front runner in the republican presidential race. He has had multiple affairs and divorces, take money in questionable manners, and sought to impeach a president that was guilty of having sex with someone else, which is what he was doing at the same time.
I feel that the instant gratification Society has no boundaries from religions either. I have seen pagans that are so flaky and seeming to not see a bigger picture. They treat the gods and goddesses like apps for their cellphone. They will call on Hecate for a protection spell and wonder why it worked the way it did. They will call on healing energy for every little event in their lives. You can only offer a helping hand so much, sometimes you have to show tough love and tell them to suck it up and learn from the event. Sometimes you have to be the grump that comments, didn't you know that Hecate is not the white fluffy protection goddess, she plays dirty.
How can we mature ones change the world around us? How can we guide those that think they know best? How can we survive this?
- Addictions to video games: people are spending more time playing a false reality game then going outside and actually playing a real game. Had a friend that knew all the ins and outs of Madden's latest football game, but he couldn't run 10 yards without huffing and puffing. Today's video games are overly violent and lack any type of moral conduct. We all know of the games that allow you to beat-up hookers or kill non-Christians .
- Addictions to cellphones: Texting has caused such a lapse in writing skills. The English language is abused so much by people that poor spelling is now a normal activity. " How are you Steven?" is now typed " How R U Stevn?". Texting has caused a great loss in verbal communication skills. People can be in the same room and will text instead of talking.
- Movies: Most popular superheros on TV have to have a darkness to them. The clean wholesome superhero is boring. People want and edgy hero.
- TV: Channels like Disney are showing kids that disrespect their parents. The few that have parents have one that is below average in many qualities. This teaches children to whine to get what they want. Few channels give the parents the resources to counter this corrupt influence on their kids. Which is why most TV is bad for kids anymore.There is the unreality programs that show the world on how it really isn't. There are programs that pervert the most simple of things. I swear that the reason why the programs about the "swamp people" is so popular is because most people can finally feel smarter than someone.
- Media: The news in the US sucks. Too many times Cindy and myself are watching the BBC for news. Why? Because there is no spin on it . Faux news has such a terrible spin that Canada banned it. There isn't any unbiased news in the US anymore.
- Music is about taste, but many groups and singers seem to only be popular as long as they are shocking and very unconventional. Lady gaga can put on a meat dress and sell a million albums. An actual country singer can write a beautiful love song and it will barely get any notice.
- Education. I blame this on Republicans that drive to cut education every year. Children are not being pushed and guided into being better and learning something.
- Parents that don't know what the heck they are doing. We have to have licenses for almost everything. But yet not to have children. Where are those mandatory parenting classes for first time parents. There are kids having kids. Parents that want to be the best friends of their children. And parents that can't figure out that it is not all about them anymore. Cindy has seen parents drag around a child under 3 years old in and out of stores at 8:00 to 9:00 at night. The kid is screaming or crying, maybe the kids is tired and needed a nap at 1:00 this afternoon or just be able to go to bed at 8:00. Kids need their sleep for proper brain development. So the terrible parents are actually harming their kids.
I think about Obama and the situation that he is in. He was never given a chance to fix anything, before he was given an honest chance, the spin and blame game occurred and Obama was blamed for everything done by the previous administration. Simple thinking should have stopped this, but people refused to think. How could 4 years of economical hard times be the fault of a man that was only president for a year?
I believe that people have lost all concept of long term thinking that you could steal 100 dollars from a person what six months and give the person 20 bucks back and they will be singing your praise. Most people have become so wrapped up in the here and now that they can't picture thinking 2 years in the future or past. My proof is with Newt Gringrich, how can a man that acted so mean and hypocritical during the Clinton administration be a front runner in the republican presidential race. He has had multiple affairs and divorces, take money in questionable manners, and sought to impeach a president that was guilty of having sex with someone else, which is what he was doing at the same time.
I feel that the instant gratification Society has no boundaries from religions either. I have seen pagans that are so flaky and seeming to not see a bigger picture. They treat the gods and goddesses like apps for their cellphone. They will call on Hecate for a protection spell and wonder why it worked the way it did. They will call on healing energy for every little event in their lives. You can only offer a helping hand so much, sometimes you have to show tough love and tell them to suck it up and learn from the event. Sometimes you have to be the grump that comments, didn't you know that Hecate is not the white fluffy protection goddess, she plays dirty.
How can we mature ones change the world around us? How can we guide those that think they know best? How can we survive this?
The Law and Freedom of Religion.
Last week I was witness to a discussion on animal sacrifice. A very delicate topic in my mind, but I was wrong in a conclusion that I had. I remember reading that all religions have the rights to be practiced as long as they follow the laws of the land. With that being said, Animal cruelty laws I thought would ban animals sacrifice. I was shown a supreme court ruling that allowed animal sacrifice because it was part of a religious practice.
This has so many dangerous possibilities, that I had to think long and hard on how to address this topic. There is the US constitution that says there shall be no laws pertaining to religion. This is the one piece of paper that protects our rights as non-Christians in the US society. But at what point does it allow bad things to happen in the name of religion. There are groups that sacrifice and then cook the animal that night as part of their ritual. Santeria being probably the most well known. As long as the animal doesn't suffer and they do actually eat the animal that night, I can accept them doing that act. I am not the type that would kill an animal unless it was a matter of survival.
What happens if a group uses religion to molest children. The Mormons are known to marry off their girls at 14 years old. Warren Jeffs is going through trial for sexual misconduct with children. But what if they say it is part of their religious practice? In Iran a man can marry a 9 year old girl, it is defined in their quran. Where is the limit of freedom of religion and the start of criminal law?
What bothered me the most with allowing animal sacrifices under freedom of religion is this. Most Serial killers start off by torturing and killing small animals. When the thrill of small animals dying is gone they go to a bigger animal, and eventually start torturing and killing humans. What happens if a serial killer uses his religious freedom to cover for his mental issues and then starts killing humans. It could have been prevented if there was crime committed and he had to get tested by after his third or forth animal cruelty charge. But then there is the other side of the sword. What if a christian dominated state congress passed a series of laws that made small aspects of paganism illegal. They can then slowly make practicing paganism illegal by outlawing certain traditions.
How can any group of pagans work to handle this situation? We have to work to preserve all branches of paganism and yet give paganism a positive image. The moment that we exclude a group for anything, then we have lost what we are working for. Other Pagans would say that we are defining what is allowed and not allowed to be a good pagan, which we all know would lead to massive in-fighting.Many animal rights groups would fall swayed by christian groups that say that pagans sacrifice animals in blood rituals. But we know that very few pagans practice any type of animal sacrifice. If religious practice is used to cover a person's mental disorder, and he claims to be a pagan, then he can tarnish everything that matters to us. This is something that I would like you to think about, and I would like to hear your take on this situation.
This has so many dangerous possibilities, that I had to think long and hard on how to address this topic. There is the US constitution that says there shall be no laws pertaining to religion. This is the one piece of paper that protects our rights as non-Christians in the US society. But at what point does it allow bad things to happen in the name of religion. There are groups that sacrifice and then cook the animal that night as part of their ritual. Santeria being probably the most well known. As long as the animal doesn't suffer and they do actually eat the animal that night, I can accept them doing that act. I am not the type that would kill an animal unless it was a matter of survival.
What happens if a group uses religion to molest children. The Mormons are known to marry off their girls at 14 years old. Warren Jeffs is going through trial for sexual misconduct with children. But what if they say it is part of their religious practice? In Iran a man can marry a 9 year old girl, it is defined in their quran. Where is the limit of freedom of religion and the start of criminal law?
What bothered me the most with allowing animal sacrifices under freedom of religion is this. Most Serial killers start off by torturing and killing small animals. When the thrill of small animals dying is gone they go to a bigger animal, and eventually start torturing and killing humans. What happens if a serial killer uses his religious freedom to cover for his mental issues and then starts killing humans. It could have been prevented if there was crime committed and he had to get tested by after his third or forth animal cruelty charge. But then there is the other side of the sword. What if a christian dominated state congress passed a series of laws that made small aspects of paganism illegal. They can then slowly make practicing paganism illegal by outlawing certain traditions.
How can any group of pagans work to handle this situation? We have to work to preserve all branches of paganism and yet give paganism a positive image. The moment that we exclude a group for anything, then we have lost what we are working for. Other Pagans would say that we are defining what is allowed and not allowed to be a good pagan, which we all know would lead to massive in-fighting.Many animal rights groups would fall swayed by christian groups that say that pagans sacrifice animals in blood rituals. But we know that very few pagans practice any type of animal sacrifice. If religious practice is used to cover a person's mental disorder, and he claims to be a pagan, then he can tarnish everything that matters to us. This is something that I would like you to think about, and I would like to hear your take on this situation.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Pagan image, the clouds that hide our goodness.
Lately I have been reading and learning more about the outer image of paganism. I have grown concerned and troubled about how people act, and wonder how to fix it. But actions by a few can turn into something ugly quickly, and can mirror actions of other religions. We pagans love to think for ourselves and some of us protest whenever someone steps on our toes. I believe that sometimes we have no choice in the matter, that something has to be done to protect the greater good of paganism.
The Kaye Berry saga continues, shortly after being told that she needs to remove herself from the New Council of Witches concept, she is still selling services under a witch banner. A good friend stated that she was having an Herbal class for $2,000, a dramatic increase in price. Is she doing this out of anger? My gut tells me that she is, but I will never know for sure. What rhetoric is she spewing if she is angry with the pagan community. She has threatened people with legal actions, what does that say about paganism? What does that say for pagans?
I am bothered with information that I have learned tonight. There is a book called , "The Good Witch bible" by Gavin Frost. I have yet to read the book, not sure if I want to buy the book to show support for it either. In this book , there are many questionable comments made about sexuality and children. If half of what I have read about is factual, I couldn't support this book in any manner. All religions in the US must follow the laws of the land, and anything that is sexually corrupting children is violating the laws of this nation. This gives paganism a black eye, Anyone seeking to find something to hold over paganism can use this book and say that pagans are sexually corrupting children.
I am wanting to promote a clean image of paganism. Pagans are not sexually repressed like the abrahamic religions. We like sex and will enjoy sex when the proper situation occurs. Most pagans believe in sexual acts between consenting adults, not with children.
How do we protect this image of paganism that we hold dear to our hearts? If a group of pagans created a list of questionable practices according to the law, they could be considered angry and spiteful. We want to right to practice what we believe in, and if we start to "black list" certain aspects connected to a pagan path, aren't we just as guilty as the christians that try to condemn other christian groups? I think there is a difference, but not much. Currently there are fundamental preachers spreading hate and intolerence about so many other groups, but barely any christians are speaking up against them. Thus allowing the hate to continue. If a group of pagans were to make a list of questionable books, rituals, or groups based solely of legal and ethical actions, then the difference is made.
Can you stand by and allow others to tarnish what you have worked hard to build?
The Kaye Berry saga continues, shortly after being told that she needs to remove herself from the New Council of Witches concept, she is still selling services under a witch banner. A good friend stated that she was having an Herbal class for $2,000, a dramatic increase in price. Is she doing this out of anger? My gut tells me that she is, but I will never know for sure. What rhetoric is she spewing if she is angry with the pagan community. She has threatened people with legal actions, what does that say about paganism? What does that say for pagans?
I am bothered with information that I have learned tonight. There is a book called , "The Good Witch bible" by Gavin Frost. I have yet to read the book, not sure if I want to buy the book to show support for it either. In this book , there are many questionable comments made about sexuality and children. If half of what I have read about is factual, I couldn't support this book in any manner. All religions in the US must follow the laws of the land, and anything that is sexually corrupting children is violating the laws of this nation. This gives paganism a black eye, Anyone seeking to find something to hold over paganism can use this book and say that pagans are sexually corrupting children.
I am wanting to promote a clean image of paganism. Pagans are not sexually repressed like the abrahamic religions. We like sex and will enjoy sex when the proper situation occurs. Most pagans believe in sexual acts between consenting adults, not with children.
How do we protect this image of paganism that we hold dear to our hearts? If a group of pagans created a list of questionable practices according to the law, they could be considered angry and spiteful. We want to right to practice what we believe in, and if we start to "black list" certain aspects connected to a pagan path, aren't we just as guilty as the christians that try to condemn other christian groups? I think there is a difference, but not much. Currently there are fundamental preachers spreading hate and intolerence about so many other groups, but barely any christians are speaking up against them. Thus allowing the hate to continue. If a group of pagans were to make a list of questionable books, rituals, or groups based solely of legal and ethical actions, then the difference is made.
Can you stand by and allow others to tarnish what you have worked hard to build?
Monday, December 5, 2011
The Fragile Pagan Community
I have been a pagan for many years now, and I have seen how large groups of people can never get along. It is well documented that the Christians and muslims can't get along with thier own, but that also applies to us pagans. Their is the infamous 2% rule when it come to groups, that there will always be 2% of any group that take a hardline view on any subject. I have had Yahoo groups for pagans and the level of bickering is as bad as the christians fighting over jesus being god or the son of god. The Pagan communities are rather fragile, but so are many other groups.
What is all the fighting about...EVERYTHING! I could write a short novel discussing all the arguements in paganism. Is the Wiccan Rede law or just an idea? Can you harm someone to defend others? What side to you cast a circle with? Which Pantheon is better? What is Historically correct and what isn't. Is there white and dark magick? Like I said there are so many, but the one I want to talk about tonight is the "Who has the right to represent me as a pagan?" question.
There has been rumors and efforts by some to recreate an "American Council of Witches". And the one thing that I have seen is a lot of pagans saying that this council doesn't know what you practice and thus can't represent you. This is one of the many repurrcussions of christianity. I wonder how many of you realize that you feel this way becuase of the ways christianity tried to control you and the way that you think. Many pagans were once christians, and one of the reasons why we left was because we hated being controlled. So many pagans view this council idea as a way to control pagans. While I see thier point of view, I see the error of that stance. If we as pagans can't get past this hurdle we can never work together to counter any other religions attempts to limit the activities of paganism. Does it have to be this way? Are we doomed because of our christian fears to prevent any group of people represent us to the rest of the world? Can we just for a moment decide on a group of people that work for the pagan communities in collecting and giving information out about paganism as a whole?
It shouldn't matter that I am a druid and another pagan is a wiccan. If we can remove the finer points of everyone's unique paths , we should be able to accomplishing many things. I have witnessed arguements on who is pagan and who isn't. Too many people say hello to all "pagans and wiccans", but yet wiccans are pagans. I have seen arguements of neopaganism and vintage paganism. I really don't see an end to these debates. Here the two-sided sword of labels is hurting paganism. I do like to know what a person believes, that way I understand what is important to them. An Asatru has little concern over the wiccan rede, a stryga might not want to talk about Cerridwen. But too many use labels as a way to seperate pagans that we don't agree with as a seperate group. Jimmy is a neopagan with a path based on Gardenerian ideals, he is not like me I am a druid / Celtic Recon with a dedicated honor of Lugus.
Religious Tolerence is what most pagans seek for, but are hypocritical for just the same. We want the rights to follow out beliefs freely and openly, but not only do we refuse it on many christians we refuse to give it to many pagans. As long as Jimmy doesn't judge my path, why should I judge his. We have to lead by example, to show the christians and muslims this is how it is done. If a group of pagans is to be formed they must be able to be respectful of other paths. And we as pagans need to show adult behavior and give them a chance to show thier true intentions.
To those that want to help the pagan communities and do it with pure intentions, I give you my deepest gratitude. You have a difficult job full of challenges. The more I discover people standing up willing to face negative remarks and actions, the more proud I am for being a pagan. We don't walk the same path, but we do share some of the same views. If you are a pagan look around at the pagan ezines, blogradios, and youtube videos and realize something special. Your path is your path, and it is wonderful when it crosses the path of another pagan. That is when we share thoughts, make friends, and make this world a better place.
What is all the fighting about...EVERYTHING! I could write a short novel discussing all the arguements in paganism. Is the Wiccan Rede law or just an idea? Can you harm someone to defend others? What side to you cast a circle with? Which Pantheon is better? What is Historically correct and what isn't. Is there white and dark magick? Like I said there are so many, but the one I want to talk about tonight is the "Who has the right to represent me as a pagan?" question.
There has been rumors and efforts by some to recreate an "American Council of Witches". And the one thing that I have seen is a lot of pagans saying that this council doesn't know what you practice and thus can't represent you. This is one of the many repurrcussions of christianity. I wonder how many of you realize that you feel this way becuase of the ways christianity tried to control you and the way that you think. Many pagans were once christians, and one of the reasons why we left was because we hated being controlled. So many pagans view this council idea as a way to control pagans. While I see thier point of view, I see the error of that stance. If we as pagans can't get past this hurdle we can never work together to counter any other religions attempts to limit the activities of paganism. Does it have to be this way? Are we doomed because of our christian fears to prevent any group of people represent us to the rest of the world? Can we just for a moment decide on a group of people that work for the pagan communities in collecting and giving information out about paganism as a whole?
It shouldn't matter that I am a druid and another pagan is a wiccan. If we can remove the finer points of everyone's unique paths , we should be able to accomplishing many things. I have witnessed arguements on who is pagan and who isn't. Too many people say hello to all "pagans and wiccans", but yet wiccans are pagans. I have seen arguements of neopaganism and vintage paganism. I really don't see an end to these debates. Here the two-sided sword of labels is hurting paganism. I do like to know what a person believes, that way I understand what is important to them. An Asatru has little concern over the wiccan rede, a stryga might not want to talk about Cerridwen. But too many use labels as a way to seperate pagans that we don't agree with as a seperate group. Jimmy is a neopagan with a path based on Gardenerian ideals, he is not like me I am a druid / Celtic Recon with a dedicated honor of Lugus.
Religious Tolerence is what most pagans seek for, but are hypocritical for just the same. We want the rights to follow out beliefs freely and openly, but not only do we refuse it on many christians we refuse to give it to many pagans. As long as Jimmy doesn't judge my path, why should I judge his. We have to lead by example, to show the christians and muslims this is how it is done. If a group of pagans is to be formed they must be able to be respectful of other paths. And we as pagans need to show adult behavior and give them a chance to show thier true intentions.
To those that want to help the pagan communities and do it with pure intentions, I give you my deepest gratitude. You have a difficult job full of challenges. The more I discover people standing up willing to face negative remarks and actions, the more proud I am for being a pagan. We don't walk the same path, but we do share some of the same views. If you are a pagan look around at the pagan ezines, blogradios, and youtube videos and realize something special. Your path is your path, and it is wonderful when it crosses the path of another pagan. That is when we share thoughts, make friends, and make this world a better place.
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