Hearth of Hellenism<\/a> blogger Angelo Nasios was one of the few who expressed a contrary opinion. He didn\u2019t make the folkish argument that Gods only call the \u201cright\u201d people. Rather, he claimed that the Gods simply do not call people. Here are a few of his words:<\/p>\n \u201cSpeaking as a Greek and in the Greek tradition, we don\u2019t speak of Gods choosing us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cPeople worship Gods because they want to. Not because the God has personally selected them to worship.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFor the Greeks, the Gods don\u2019t need our worship so they wouldn\u2019t \u2018call us\u2019 to worship them. We worship them because we want to out of our freedom and love.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n As an Anglo-American, I make no comment on what is or isn\u2019t \u201cGreek\u201d \u2013 that\u2019s for Greeks to decide. This post isn\u2019t a rebuttal.<\/p>\n Rather, I want to encourage all of us to think about this in theological terms, because at its core this is a theological question: do Gods call people to Their service or not?<\/p>\n I\u2019m in complete agreement with Angelo\u2019s statement that people can worship Gods because they want to. You do not have to be called to Anyone\u2019s worship and you do not need anyone\u2019s permission to worship. It is always good to worship the Gods. When people tell me \u201cNobody has called me\u201d my response<\/a> is \u201cthen pick a deity and begin worshipping them.\u201d<\/p>\n But some of us are called to do more than worship. Anthropologist and fellow Druid Kimberly Kirner called it a vocation, and I agree. In my presentation \u201cSelf-Care for Priests and Other Pagan Leaders\u201d at Mystic South I made it clear that while different traditions have different definitions for priesthood, ultimately priesthood is about service (to the Gods and to the community), not about authority or hierarchy.<\/p>\n There are other sacred callings that aren\u2019t priesthood<\/a>: community service, academic research, bardic work, theological and philosophical work, and more.<\/p>\n In a polytheist society everyone would worship at least some of the Gods (if you don\u2019t worship any Gods are you a polytheist? I say no). But not everyone would fill one or more of these sacred callings. We can argue about the source of these calls \u2013 do they come from the Gods or are they internal to us? But clearly, they exist. We are free to worship, but we are called to service.<\/p>\n Another of Angelo\u2019s statements was this:<\/p>\n We don\u2019t need to think that \u201cthey called us\u201d to worship in order to rationalize\/justify worshipping them. Own up to the fact that you<\/em> want to because it feels good<\/em>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Angelo isn\u2019t entirely wrong here. If you hang out in Pagan circles for very long, you will inevitably run into someone who calls themselves a Priestess of the Morrigan because they like the video game character Morrigan, or who says they\u2019re a Priest of Thor because they watched The Avengers<\/em>. Maybe they\u2019ve actually read one book.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t be too harsh on these people \u2013 some of them will grow into the role<\/a>. Others will move on, having planted some seeds in the wider culture.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s not what we\u2019re talking about here. We\u2019re talking about people who hear a call and are doing their best to respond to it. Many times they keep their head down to avoid exactly this kind of criticism. They know there\u2019s a ton of work in front of them and they want to do it the best they can.<\/p>\n The vast majority of priests and other people who are called aren\u2019t trying to feel special. They aren\u2019t even trying to feel good. They\u2019re trying to serve their Gods as best they can.<\/p>\n Some polytheist traditions teach that the Gods are perfect and in want of nothing. They are far above the affairs of humans and thus there is no reason for Them to call humans to Their service. Other polytheist traditions say that while the stories our ancestors told about the Gods are not literally true, they tell true stories about Them \u2013 which include Their interactions with humans.<\/p>\n At the end of the day, this is not a question of self-delusion, although some people are clearly self-deluded. It\u2019s not a question of culture, although different cultures have different traditions around this matter.<\/p>\n Rather, this is a question of theology \u2013 about the nature of the Gods. Do Gods call people to Their service or not?<\/p>\n Therein lies the problem. We can start from foundational assumptions and make logical inferences, but we have no clear proof. The true nature of the Gods is not just beyond our knowledge, it is beyond our capacity to know.<\/p>\n This doesn\u2019t mean any answer is a good answer. Some answers are so unlikely as to be impossible. Some may be logical, but lead to harmful places \u2013 see the theology of the Westboro Baptist Church.<\/p>\n Contemplating theological questions is a good thing. We can learn much by wrestling with the Gods, and with questions about the Gods. Thinking deeply about the Gods can draw us closer to Them. But ultimately we are just a conclave of cats<\/a> debating the nature of humans.<\/p>\n I do not need to win debates with those who argue the Gods do not call people to Their service. There is no way to objectively determine who is right, or if any of us are even close to being right. Rather, given that I am subjectively convinced that certain things about the Gods are true, my challenge is to live in accordance with those beliefs.<\/p>\n My theology says the Gods are the mightiest of spirits. They are far more than us, but They are not so far above us that we cannot relate to and with Them. We can and we do.<\/p>\n I was called by Cernunnos<\/a> and by Danu<\/a>. I pursued the Morrigan<\/a>, and then She called me to Her service. I worship, work for, and work with several other deities. Every time I think my calendar is full Someone else pops in with something for me to do.<\/p>\n My theology says the Gods do these things. My religion says I need to respond. My heart says I need to say \u201cyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cDo Gods call people to Their service or not?\u201d is a theological question. My theology says the Gods do these things. My religion says I need to respond. My heart says I need to say \u201cyes.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":15230,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[1778,4,969,5,8,1739,948],"class_list":["post-15215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-theology","tag-angelo-nasios","tag-pagan","tag-pagan-theology","tag-paganism","tag-polytheism","tag-polytheist-theology","tag-theology"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2019\/07\/side-of-the-Gods-07.01.18-01.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nFree to worship, called to service<\/h1>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2019\/07\/Summer-Solstice-2019-23a.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nSome people just want to feel special \u2013 but they\u2019re easy to spot<\/h1>\n
Do the Gods call people or not?<\/h1>\n
Theological questions have no certain answers<\/h1>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2018\/09\/cat-at-Ephesus-2012-01.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nWe are challenged to live our theology faithfully<\/h1>\n