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Paganism How Do We Talk About Paganism?

findingmyway

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Aug 17, 2010
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I had a dream last night that I was trying to explain my Paganism to my father. He was patient, and open, and he behaved in the ideal ways that only a dream-father behaves. As I explained to him what Druid meant in a modern context, our relationship exploded into something more meaningful and transparent. It was a lovely dream.

When the phone rang this morning with his number on the screen, I thought that maybe -- just maybe -- I was a prophet. But, he hadn't called to learn about the hidden secrets of druid magic, or to pick my brain about how I envision the Gods. No, he wanted to know if it was possible to download videos from YouTube.

My father, it turns out, is a latent internet pirate.

This is not the first time that I've felt slighted by one of my parent's lack of interest in the mystical. I may be the only member of my family who would rather talk about religion than football. Our holidays, even the religious ones, are uncomfortably secular to me.

I'd almost prefer my family to be fundamentalist Christians, if for no other reason than they might be willing to talk about theology as though it really meant something.

Theology, or Polytheology, or Process Theology -- these subjects are rich soil to me; good dirt for planting, and worth tending to. I'm pretty sure that my parents have different ideas about deity than I do, but I don't know that because we've never actually had a conversation about it. I've done more heart-to-heart'ing about religion on my blog, Bishop In The Grove, with my readership of relative strangers than I ever have over dinner with my family.
You just don't talk about those sorts of things.

My family is mostly Catholic, although there is a small contingency of Born Agains (as my grandma calls them), a few lapsed Episcopalians (which from the perspective of the Catholics is a double-lapse), and a good many agnostics. The Catholics present their beliefs more as assumptions about the world than as ideas to be examined, the lapsed Episcopalians know, logically, they shouldn't feel guilty for not going to church, but they still do, and the

Born Agains? Well, they say things like:
"Perhaps she wouldn't have gotten sick if she'd have been more committed to the Lord."

Lovely stuff, right there.

I'm the silent Pagan in the bunch. I'm the candle burning, incense igniting, ritual doing, tarot card reading Pagan, who would be perfectly happy to discuss why they choose pray to Jesus over someone else, or what prayer really is, or whether their worship of a transcendent God ever feels lonely, or what they think death might be like. I think about these things, but I don't know how to bring them up without starting an argument.

Perhaps this is why interfaith dialogue is so difficult, too. If we don't know how to begin a conversation about faith and practice with our own families, how are we supposed to talk across the greater religious divide? It's much easier to remain silent, to avoid the awkward moments, to shore up our defenses in the event of a possible attack.

I get disappointed, though, when we avoid these conversations, because I have this deep desire to be known by the people in my life. When they don't seek to understand me, when they don't try to figure out what I mean when I say Pagan, or Druid, or any number of other tradition-specific terminology, I feel whitewashed into being simply The Son, or The Brother. I revert back to being all of the things I was by default, and none of the parts I chose for myself are brought into the light to be seen.

Perhaps this is the plight of any religious convert. We leave behind the tradition of our youth, and in doing so we alienate the people who first gave us a God, who first taught us to pray, who first told us the stories of an ancient people in a far-away desert. I wonder if the responsibility falls on our shoulders to educate our families, or if it would be more right for them to seek out a deeper understanding of who we've become.

When you take on a new religious tradition, a new spiritual name, a new title, or when you develop a new set of ritual practices, how do you go about communicating that to the people who knew you as something different? How do you open up a dialogue about transition and change with someone who finds it more comfortable to remain where they are, where they have always been? How do you testify about your own, individual truth, and can you do so without making your loved ones feel inferior, or judged?

If you've had experiences that answer any of these questions, or if you're working through a transition from one faith tradition to another and would like to testify about how that feels, please do so in the comment section. This can be a safe, constructive space to unpack our ideas, and I look forward to the dialogue.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/teo-bishop/how-do-we-talk-about-paga_b_1561404.html?ref=religion
 

Ishna

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May 9, 2006
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Thank you FindingMyWay ji for a refreshing article. icecreamkaur

No one in my family is particularly religious or interested in Sikhi. I kept it to myself for years because I knew it was precious and my faith wasn't strong enough to endure any attacks from outside forces.

When I went through my Pagan phase as a teenager it was all-out war with my mum.

When I was confident enough and started mentioning Sikhi (in my 20s), I got the typical reaction of 'outdated, misgynistic' etc (borne from ignorance) but I knew enough by then to say 'no, you've got it wrong, THIS is what it's about'. Now my mum's side of the family are very supportive (although my mum thought Vaisakhi was about Jesus...) but my dad still doesn't care (in fact he keeps trying to give me champagne when I visit, asking me when I'm going to 'graduate' from fizzy to alcoholic beverages...). My husband is very supportive but still holds hope that I'll one day change my hairstyle and get a fringe.

When you take on a new religious tradition, a new spiritual name, a new title, or when you develop a new set of ritual practices, how do you go about communicating that to the people who knew you as something different? How do you open up a dialogue about transition and change with someone who finds it more comfortable to remain where they are, where they have always been? How do you testify about your own, individual truth, and can you do so without making your loved ones feel inferior, or judged?

I admit to feeling very self-conscious with regard to nitnem and wearing my chunni around family members. My stepson says I look like "Prison Mike" (reference to The Office, American version...) when I wear my bandanas (I significantly disagree!).

I find it easier to remind myself that Naam is all that matters, and my own conduct is most important, rather than sharing the intimate details of my faith with my family, at this stage.
 

namjiwankaur

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Nov 14, 2010
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Its good to see Teo writing for HuffPo. I don't know him personally, but I was one who nudged HuffPost to start representing the pagan community better. I, myself, love the Kemetic faith and the Norse deities are part of my heritage (though I don't relate too much to Asatru).:sippingcoffee:
 

namjiwankaur

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Nov 14, 2010
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I feel awkward sharing this, but I told my bff that I am planning on exploring Sikhism more. I showed her a picture of a woman with a turban and asked what she thought. She said, "its ok...." I suspect there was a lot she didn't say. Yet I have worn head covering for a long time as a spiritual practice so I doubt it will shock anyone.

I'm nervous about outing myself on Facebook since it will shock ppl that I am now identifying with a different tradition. Again though, I'm known as a very spiritual woman so it will be uncomfortable for a bit, but hopefully my spiritual friends who practice my current religion will see that I'm still me, just that I've found a path that I think speaks my truth and involves less structure (since that is one thing I resist so much in my current religion).

Speaking of FB. Are there any good Sikh FB groups? Or Sikh Twitter ppl y'all like to follow?

cheerleader:mundabhangra:
 

Ishna

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May 9, 2006
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Jasnoor bhenji

In my pagan practice I was focused more on Wicca, then Hellenismos, and towards the end I became infatuated with Isis but eventually I couldn't handle the plurality I saw in paganism - my brain prefers a generic model of Creative Force because I can't understand how Kemetic, Hellenic, Norse, Native American Indian, Mesopotamian, Aztec, Hindu etc God/dess personalities can all exist at the same time and be so closely tied to Earth and humans when there is a limitless Universe we can't even fathom all around!

But that's just my personal interpretation.

I've also got Norse heritage. peacesignkaur
 

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