In the end, our challenge is to create a culture that brings joy to the downtrodden and inspires us to campaign on behalf of Life, even when that work may seem hopeless. What we need from our religion \u2014 and what we owe to the Gods \u2014 is to build a faith that binds us in a single unbroken web to the living, to the dead, and to the generations that are yet unborn.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n While I\u2019m in sympathy with the sentiment behind this editorial, I find it telling that Anne \u2013 perhaps intentionally, perhaps unconsciously \u2013 begins by asking \u201cdoes our religion<\/em> work?\u201d but concludes by saying \u201cour challenge is to create a culture<\/em>\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Religion and culture are intertwined<\/a>, but they are not the same thing. At a very high, simplistic level, culture is an expression of a people\u2019s identity. Religion is an expression of their highest values and how they deal with the Big Questions of Life. A culture that works helps people build a common identity and work together to survive and succeed. A religion that works helps people deal with the deep questions of why we\u2019re here, what\u2019s most important in life, and how to deal with the inevitability of death.<\/p>\n The problem with religious questions is that they\u2019re unanswerable. Not because we haven\u2019t discovered the answers yet \u2013 as though every problem could be solved if only we had a stronger microscope, a faster supercomputer, or a bigger particle accelerator (or perhaps if the Library of Alexandria had survived intact) \u2013 but because they\u2019re beyond the capacity of our amazing but finite brains. Because these big religious questions are unanswerable, some people assume they\u2019re unimportant \u2013 and not just atheists. Any time someone says \u201cdeep down it\u2019s all the same\u201d what they\u2019re really saying is \u201creligion doesn\u2019t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n And yet these questions remain: where did we come from? Why are we here? How should we live? What\u2019s most important? And perhaps the most troublesome of all, what happens when we die? We can choose to ignore religious questions, but they never go away. Neither do the questions that bore some people but intrigue others, such as the number of Gods (zero? one? two? many?), the nature of spirits, and how we can form and maintain meaningful relationships with persons who are other than living humans.<\/p>\n Religion that works does not distract us from the Big Questions of Life, it helps us struggle with them.<\/p>\n Religion that works deals with religious<\/em> matters. It does so honestly, transparently, and unapologetically. If we water down our deepest traditions in the name of unity, we end up with a religion that doesn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n Religion that works facilitates religious experiences. These experiences are among the most meaningful we can have, but the simple fact that we have them reminds us that there is more to Life than what we can discover with microscopes, supercomputers, and particle accelerators.<\/p>\n The Deepak Chopra quote \u201cReligion is belief in someone else\u2019s experience. Spirituality is having your own experience\u201d is bullshit, but it resonates with many people because the Abrahamic religions that dominate the West and the Middle East have downplayed experience to the point that most Jews, Christians, and Muslims assume having a first-hand religious experience is something that only happened in Biblical times, or if it happens today it only happens to rare, saintly individuals.<\/p>\n No! Paganism is growing in part because the Pagan religions make religious experience available to everyone.<\/p>\n Religious experiences rearrange your priorities and makes you hard to control. Is it any wonder the priests and preachers of the religions of the status quo (whether they\u2019re tied to governments or just the rich and powerful) downplay and deride experiences unless they\u2019re in charge of them?<\/p>\n Is it any wonder most people are happy to believe the priests and preachers so they don\u2019t have to deal with this literal holy terror?<\/p>\n Religion that works gives us a framework for interpreting our religious experiences. It gives us a model of the Universe that does not contradict science<\/a> (not if it\u2019s any good, that is) but that goes beyond the reach of science<\/a>. It gives us sacred stories to provide inspiration and context.<\/p>\n Religion that works gives us the thinking of our ancient ancestors and immediate predecessors. We are of course free to interpret our experiences in the ways that seem most right to us, but we don\u2019t all have to start from zero. We can build on the wisdom and experience of those who came before us.<\/p>\n Religion that works gives us spiritual practices that reinforce our virtues and values, that strengthen our relationships with our co-religionists, and that build and maintain relationships with the Gods, ancestors, and spirits of Nature.<\/p>\n Religion that works understands that different Gods call different people to work with Them in different ways, something that should be obvious from a casual examination of the many religions of the world. We shouldn\u2019t expect to all worship in the same ways, practice in the same ways, or\u00a0come to the same conclusions about religious questions.<\/p>\n None of this is an excuse for not working together to \u201cbring joy to the downtrodden and campaign on behalf of Life.\u201d None of this is an excuse for religious bigotry or triumphalism. None of this is an excuse for aggressive proselytization<\/a> or for making \u201ctruth claims\u201d where none are justified.<\/p>\n![\"02](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2015\/04\/02-17-Coliseum-from-Forum-complex-300x200.jpg\")
<\/a>The editorial chides Pagans for fighting among ourselves, for \u201cfiddling while Rome burns.\u201d It looks back nostalgically to the days when \u201c\u2018We All Come from the Goddess\u2019 was pretty close to a Pagan national anthem.\u201d It concludes by saying:<\/p>\n![\"Bryn](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2014\/03\/04-32-Bryn-Celli-Ddu.jpg\" "\\"Bryn")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Morrigan](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2016\/02\/Morrigan-12.07.15-02-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>Religious experience is more than wonder and awe at pretty sunsets. Religious experience is unpredictable and messy. It can fill you with meaning and inspiration, and it can fill you with fear and dread. It can be a Mother Goddess holding your hand and telling you it\u2019s all going to be OK, and it can be a Battle Goddess shoving a spear in your hand and telling you to get your ass on the front lines where you\u2019re needed for something that\u2019s more important than your safety and comfort.<\/p>\n
![\"05](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/243\/2016\/02\/05-17-Emerald-Bay-600x300.jpg\")
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