Sermons from the Mound

Theology Is Hard; Let’s Go Shopping

February 8, 2013 By Christine Kraemer 11 Comments

As those of you who have been reading along know, I've spent the past three and a half years on an academic theology that's going to be called Eros and Touch from a Pagan Perspective. I'm at the teeth-pulling phase, where I'm trying to revise the introduction to give the right amount of context to a diverse readership (college-educated people with interest in GLBT issues, body theology, and/or Pagan studies, none of whom have the same starting vocabulary) without boring anyone to death. For … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: eros, Pagan, Pagan theologies, Pagan theology, Paganism, the erotic, theology, touch 11 Comments

Realism and non-realism

February 6, 2013 By yvonne 5 Comments

There are several ways in which to construe the relationship of religious discourse to the world it attempts to describe, and with other (possibly competing, possibly complementary) interpretations such as science and philosophy. The NOMA (non-overlapping magisteria) position, put forward by Stephen Jay Gould, is that science and religion deal with two different domains, and therefore share no common ground for either agreement or argument; science deals with empirical matters and religion … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Pagan Studies, Theology Tagged With: Nature, non-realism, Pagan theologies, Pagan theology, realism, religion, science 5 Comments

The sacred and the holy

February 4, 2013 By yvonne 20 Comments

The Virtuous Well at Trellech - geograph.org.uk

Interestingly, many Pagans (including myself) seem to prefer the word "sacred" to the word "holy". To me, 'sacred' implies something that celebrates the sanctity of being alive, and it can include the erotic and the wild. 'Holy', on the other hand, implies abstinence from the erotic and embracing 'civilisation'. Interestingly, the first sense of 'sacred' offered by the Merriam-Webster dictionary uses a Pagan-sounding example: Definition of SACRED a : dedicated or set apart for … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: discourse, etymology, holy, Pagan, Pagan theologies, sacred 20 Comments

Heavy Metal Torah Exegesis

January 31, 2013 By Christine Kraemer 11 Comments

I am so pleased that Yvonne, my co-writer here at Sermons from the Mound, has been holding down the fort and posting solid content while I’m finishing the last (I hope!) revision of Eros and Touch from a Pagan Perspective: Divided for Love’s Sake. I also just booked an artist to do the cover, which I hope to be able to share with you when it’s done! Also of note today: a new blog, Jewcraft. Despite this blog not being about Pagan scholarship or theology, I think many of its potential … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: Judaism, Pagan anti-Judaism, Pagan anti-Semitism, religious intolerance, theology, Torah 11 Comments

Truth

January 30, 2013 By yvonne Leave a Comment

Truth is a much-debated concept. There is (presumably) an objective underlying reality which is the same for everyone. But perspectives on it, and perceptions of it, differ. Psychologists talk about qualia: sense perceptions which we know have an objective referent, e.g. what red looks like, what celery tastes like. But we can never be sure if another person's experience of qualia is exactly the same as ours. The universe is infinite and we are finite (located in a particular … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: perspective, theology, truth Leave a Comment

Eco-spirituality in practice

January 28, 2013 By yvonne Leave a Comment

Paganism is often said to be a Nature religion, but often Pagans are not very immersed in Nature. This could be because we get distracted by shiny things like mythology, or because many of us live in cities and so are more familiar with brand names than tree species, or because connecting with Nature is just too hard. One thing that is often suggested as a way to connect with Nature is celebrating the seasonal festivals. I have certainly found it helpful to have the seasonal festivals in my … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: deep ecology, eco-spirituality, ecology, environment, Nature Leave a Comment

Eco-spirituality and theology

January 26, 2013 By yvonne 3 Comments

Eco-spirituality is a new name for a set of ideas that goes back a long way. Baruch Spinoza and Giordano Bruno both viewed the universe as divine. Their ideas were broadly pantheistic. The implications of the idea that the universe itself is divine are explored by Sam Webster, who prefers immediacy to immanence. The universe is a theophany, the manifestation of the Divine. The implication here is that everything is sacred, and we should take care of the Earth and other beings; we … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Theology Tagged With: deep ecology, eco-spirituality, ecology, eros, Nature, Pagan theologies, Pagan theology, spirituality 3 Comments

Dharma and sangha

January 24, 2013 By yvonne 44 Comments

In 1991, I became a Wiccan, and in 2007, I also joined the Unitarians. However, I have realised that it is too hard to follow two paths and do them both justice. I can only be fully part of one sangha (spiritual community), in one dharma (model of how the universe works), and in one tribe. Wicca is my dharma, my sangha, my tribe. I have learnt much of value from Unitarianism and will always value it (also, some of their hymns are awesome). But I need the wildness and eros of Wiccan … [Read more...]

Filed Under: My Story, Theology Tagged With: dual-faith practice, eclecticism, Pagan, Pagan theologies, Paganism, spirituality, syncretism 44 Comments

Review: All-Soul, All-Body, All-Love, All-Power: A Transmythology

January 23, 2013 By Christine Kraemer 9 Comments

“Then allow me to enter the grove: I am the child of Panpsyche and the offspring of Panhyle— I am favored with a noble and extensive lineage; I am desired of all and a joy to each; I am the culmination of all love… I am Paneros. I am the love that conquers everything. And I will enter this grove for I already live there.” --All-Soul, All-Body, All-Love, All-Power: A Transmythology, p. 117 I’ll be up front and say that this book is not going to be everyone’s … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Pagan Studies, Theology Tagged With: P Sufenas Virius Lupus, Pagan, Pagan theologies, Paganism, queer, reviews, transgender 9 Comments

Dual-faith practice (part 4 of 4)

January 22, 2013 By yvonne Leave a Comment

Criticisms of dual-faith practice Much of the criticism of dual-faith practice seems to revolve around the issue of authority, and whether this is derived from the individual, the group, the tradition, or the Divine. Other possible criticisms include the idea that each tradition is complete in itself and does not require input from outside (Bloom, 1994: 164-5); and the possible danger of 'pick'n'mix' spirituality, which might mean that the dual-faith practitioner chooses only the parts of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Pagan Studies, Theology Tagged With: dual-faith practice, eclecticism, Pagan, Pagan studies, Pagan theologies, Paganism, spirituality, syncretism Leave a Comment