{"id":31484,"date":"2025-02-05T03:00:55","date_gmt":"2025-02-05T09:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/?p=31484"},"modified":"2025-02-02T16:13:42","modified_gmt":"2025-02-02T22:13:42","slug":"paganism-in-a-time-of-intolerance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2025\/02\/paganism-in-a-time-of-intolerance.html","title":{"rendered":"Paganism In A Time Of Intolerance"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

If the most critical things right now are to remember who you are<\/a> and to keep your eyes on what you want<\/a>, then my top priority is being the best Pagan, Druid, and Witch I can be.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard not to be overwhelmed by what\u2019s going on in the political sphere. We have an obligation to stay engaged with the political process and to support the most vulnerable among us. Which, in case you have any doubts, are immigrants and trans and nonbinary people \u2013 at least for now. Martin Niem\u00f6ller\u2019s poem<\/a> is long, and if you\u2019re reading this blog the odds are good you\u2019re somewhere on the contemporary version of it.<\/p>\n

If all we do is worry and rant on Facebook, we will accomplish nothing. Build the kind of community that will be there for you when you need it, by being there for others when they need it. Look in on your vulnerable friends and do what you can to protect and support them.<\/p>\n

But beyond that, remember who you are and keep your eyes on what you want. Do what you do best. Artists need to make good art. Musicians need to write good songs. Writers need to write good stories. Honestly, I was disappointed with both the quantity and the quality of the art produced by the resistance in 2017-2021. There was some, but I expected more. We need more this time.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not an artist or a musician. I\u2019m a Pagan, a Druid, and a Witch. I need to be writing about theology and practice, creating and leading rituals, and composing and working spells. MAGA, Project 2025, and Christian Nationalism are ultimately cultural problems, and the best way we can fight them long-term is to show the world a better way, by living it.<\/p>\n

In this time of growing intolerance, the best thing some of us can do is to be as openly and loudly Pagan as we can be.<\/p>\n

\"photo<\/a><\/p>\n

The worship of the many Gods<\/h2>\n

Some Pagans are pantheists. Some are non-theists. Some find the question of the Gods to be unimportant.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a polytheist. I acknowledge the many Gods, who are real, distinct, individual persons. They are the mightiest of spirits. They are the personification of their functions and virtues, but they are more than functions and virtues \u2013 they are whole persons, with whom we can form and maintain relationships.<\/p>\n

Some Pagans struggle with the term \u201cworship\u201d \u2013 mainly because of bad experiences with bad Christian theology. Good worship has nothing to do with debasing yourself. Rather, worship proclaims that the Gods are worthy<\/a> of our time and attention. When we draw ourselves into relationship with them through prayer, meditation, offerings, and other spiritual practices, we absorb some of their virtue and we become a little more god-like ourselves. We gain some of the wisdom and perspective of beings who, if not immortal (though I think they are) have been around for millennia and will be around for millennia longer.<\/p>\n

The Gods are not one. They are many, and they call many different people to worship, work with<\/a>, and work for them in many different ways. We could not worship all the Gods even if we wanted to, but we don\u2019t have to.<\/p>\n

My life is better because Cernunnos, Danu, the Morrigan, and other deities are part of it. The worship of the many Gods is the foundation of my Paganism.<\/p>\n

A reverence for Nature<\/h2>\n

Paganism agrees with science: humans were not placed on the Earth. We grew out of the Earth. When we say \u201cthe Earth is our Mother\u201d we are speaking the truth.<\/p>\n

Life on Earth evolved once \u2013 we are related to every other living thing on the planet. Not only do we share 98% of our DNA with chimps and bonobos, we share 50% with trees.<\/p>\n

We came from the Earth and we are supported by the Earth. We are sustained by the sun and the wind and the rain. Life almost certainly exists on other planets, but none that we can reach. The Earth is our one and only home, now and likely forever.<\/p>\n

We look up in the night sky and we understand that the light we are seeing has been travelling through space for thousands, and in some cases, millions of years. The universe is so old and so vast, we are so young and so small, and yet here we are, a part of it all, contemplating it all.<\/p>\n

We look at the natural world and we are filled with wonder and awe, and so we have a reverence for Nature.<\/p>\n

Magic: the science and art of creating change<\/h2>\n

I\u2019m not a huge fan of Aleister Crowley, but his definition of magic is still the best I\u2019ve found: \u201cthe science and art of creating change in conformity with will.\u201d I have a theory that describes how magic works<\/a>, but ultimately, we don\u2019t know why it works.<\/p>\n

What I do know is that I\u2019ve seen it work so many times it\u2019s easier to accept that it does work than to keep trying to rationalize it away.<\/p>\n

Magic doesn\u2019t make things happen \u2013 it improves the odds that things will happen. Magic can\u2019t do the impossible \u2013 it can\u2019t enable you to walk through walls. But it can make it much more likely that you will find a door in a wall you thought was solid\u2026 or to make a door where there was none before.<\/p>\n

Magic \u2013 and its subset, witchcraft \u2013 are especially useful in times like these. The existence of magic reminds us that no matter how bad things get, we are never without hope, because we are never powerless. If all you have left is your mind, you still have agency, because you have magic. Throw in a decent plan and some good old-fashioned stubbornness and you can work wonders.<\/p>\n

Just as some Pagans want nothing to do with the Gods, others want nothing to do with magic. So be it. But my Paganism is a magical religion.<\/p>\n

Pleasure, joy, and celebration<\/h2>\n

One of the early drivers of the Pagan revival was the austerity of the Church, which \u2013 whether Catholic or Protestant \u2013 sought to suppress joy and pleasure. The Charge of the Goddess is an early 20th<\/sup> century work, but expresses the idea of living a joyous Pagan life when it says<\/p>\n

Sing, feast, dance, make music and love, all in my presence, for mine is the ecstasy of the spirit and mine also is joy on earth.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And also<\/p>\n

Let my worship be within the heart that rejoices, for behold: all acts of love and pleasure are my rituals.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The pleasures of food, drink, and sex are good, not sinful. Of course moderation is required, and so is consent<\/a>. But today\u2019s rightwing neo-puritans who argue against anything that isn\u2019t cis straight married sex with no birth control are fighting against human nature, and against both our right and our need to enjoy the sensual pleasures of life.<\/p>\n

While Pagans should be (and usually are) sex-positive and body-positive, we also celebrate the changing seasons, the festivals of our ancient ancestors, and pretty much anything that gives us a reason to gather together and enjoy being Pagan.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a time and a place for the deep and serious sides of Paganism, and I find great meaning in them. But my Paganism is also a religion of pleasure, joy, and celebration.<\/p>\n

Being the best Pagan, Druid, and Witch I can be<\/h2>\n

For those who currently hold the keys of power in this country, the idea of tolerance \u2013 much less acceptance \u2013 is unthinkable. They want complete and total dominance over politics, religion, and culture. We must oppose them on as many fronts as we can. We must remain politically engaged, but the best thing we can do is to simply focus on the best thing we can do \u2013 being who and what we are and who and what we want to be.<\/p>\n

For me, that\u2019s being the best Pagan, Druid, and Witch I can be.<\/p>\n

I honor my Gods, and I do my best to embody their virtues and values.<\/p>\n

I respect Nature, and I acknowledge my connection to everyone and everything in the world.<\/p>\n

I work magic, to create change in conformity with my will and to sharpen my skills for future needs.<\/p>\n

I enjoy the pleasures of life, and I refuse to allow anyone to tell me they\u2019re sinful.<\/p>\n

This is who I am and this is who I will be, no matter who is running the government.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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