Paganistan: Notes from the Secret Commonwealth
In Which One Midwest Man-in-Black Confers, Converses & Otherwise Hob-Nobs with his Fellow Hob-Men (& -Women) Concerning the Sundry Ways of the Famed but Ill-Starred Tribe of Witches.
Why Are You Pagan?
I'll be speaking to the local Theosophists this coming January on Why I Am a Pagan.
So let me ask: why are you pagan?
Why are so many of us pagans?
You might think that in the Marketplace of Religions the paganisms lost out long ago.
Yet today, world Pagandom is estimated to number somewhere between 7 and 10 million people.
That's a lot of pagans.
Some of us are New Pagans; some of us are Old Pagans. All of us, today, are Pagans-by-Choice.
So I ask again: why are you pagan?
As I formulate my own answers, I'd be interested to know.
Why I Am a Pagan
A talk by Steven Posch
Monday, January 8, 2018, 7-9 p.m.
Liberal Catholic Church of St. Francis (downstairs)
3201 Pleasant Ave. South
Minneapolis, MN 55408
Above: Kalasha girls dancing
Joshi Festival 2016
The Kalasha are the last indigenous pagans of the Hindu Kush.
Comments
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Tuesday, 14 November 2017Why am I pagan? Because as a child in a world where woman are (even in this day) told to sit down shut up and just listen while "the boys" are allowed to ask questions and get answers as you sit in bible study class... at about that same time the people on the bus that picks and has you getting off and banging on doors to see if anyone else in a neighborhood wants to attend the church service you up leaves you in a completely different town and you have no idea and 40 minutes later every single time comes back and says they "forgot" about you in the same exact spot they "forgot you" every single time before.... Because of being forced to sit down and not move for over two hours in the main church area while "the boys" are allowed to get up wander around play tag or act like idiots and the pastor only says "boys will be boys" .... Because of growing up in a family that tripped out over your older brother being told not to do something in church but they dont even blink when you are asking for help since the bus staff "loose you" every damn week... Because as a teenager or as an adult you still arent allowed to "know" anything other than to sit there and never speak up... Because of harassment women around the world are more than familiar with but you cant say or do anything to defend yourself even in church.
Because even today I look at my daughter and try to let her know shes allowed to seek and expect help from others when it comes to giving herself a voice. Because no matter what being "christian" is not something I value since they could never value me when I was younger. Because my sons who are so much older than my daughter have the "age old" mindset and have decided that the way I was raised has to be right and the way I raised them (to respect women to defend women to never abuse or ill treat women) is totally wrong. Because my ex husband had this idea that I was a non-entity the instant we were married where before he actually treated me like I mattered.
Because I will never settle for another "man" like the ones that have always tried to silence me. Even if I meet someone and want to get married again. I will never accept a subservience in any role for the sake of my daughters and granddaughters for the sake of his daughters and granddaughters. Because learning the path that allows me to protect nature has given me more strength of self and a better understanding of who I am... has given me a sense of purpose and a voice I had never up until the moment I realized THAT was my path. Because where before I could never look at humanity in any good light, and now I can see beauty in most everything. Because now the strength of who I am doesnt have to be shouted to be heard, all I have to do is whisper and I can make mountains quake. -
Tuesday, 14 November 2017
take the you out of "church service you up leaves"... i hate being dyslexic
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I am currently pondering my attraction to pagan beliefs with intensity. Why is it making sense to me at this point in my life? For now, it occurs to me that wiccans believe that divinity is in everyone from the very start while many other faiths assume that our souls are evil and tainted until we are saved, converted, or somehow transmuted by God by his appointed minions. My experience tells me the former is true, not the latter. But the journey is never done, so I will keep pondering.