Let me begin by saying that I consider being called neo-Pagan an insult: it has overtones implying that identifying as pagan is lacking in intellectual rigour, on the grounds that one has not meticulously researched and slavishly adhered to a form of paganism as it was in it's heyday.
Well, things change - in fact, I would dare to suggest (timidly, from a position cowering behind the couch, being disdainfully sneered at by 2 out of our 4 cats - who are here for no good reason that I can see) that sometimes the greater intellectual rigour may be required to take something from the past and make it relevant to the present.
This is a struggle that many Christians, a group too often treated dismissively by pagans (in my experience), are familiar with. The Christian's struggle is often splashed about by the media (e.g. the various Anglican crises over the years [I was raised as an Anglican]), which possibly makes it easier to be cynical and dismissive, but many of them are quite genuinely trying to do their best to adapt their faith to a world that IS different now (there is, for instance, the little matter of scientific knowledge, beginning with the Renaissance, which has irrevocably changed how we view the world [Note 1]; then there was the Reformation ...). In fact, the reasons that there are differences between the original forms of Christianity and what we see now (including the Catholic church!) are why I have proposed referring to Christianity as neo-Christianity.
Well, there is an upside to all this neo business.
Much as the Christians no longer have to follow the dictates of the Old Testament (you know, the ones about selling relatives into slavery, raping widows and acting in ways that generally could reasonably be considered homophobic [see various bits of Leviticus]), which is, of course, largely due to some bloke known as Jesus who brought a New Testament (I don't see Jesus as being any more - or less - Divine than the rest of us: I see Jesus as a gifted, spiritually advanced person - who probably DID perform the miracles attributed to Him, but a man nevertheless), us pagans no longer have to follow those bits of paganism such as human and animal sacrifice (the Celts are pretty widely suspected to have had a bit of a thing going about head hunting).
We can take advantage of several thousand years of evolution since the time of the Celts, and be gentler and more inclusive - without losing anything as a result, in my opinion.
This train of thought was stimulated by an article at the "Viking Answer Lady" an interesting site for anyone who is interested in history, such as myself - and this is the sort of site I would consult if I was ever to actually get around to joining the SCA) on homosexuality in Viking society, which:
(a) showed how misogynistic BY MODERN STANDARDS they were, and
(b) how fundamentally different thinking is now compared to those times.
I am a lesbian: I am glad I live in an age and a nation where I have some inherent rights as a lesbian (there is still discrimination, and some nations are still appalling in their treatment of various minorities - but they are slowly becoming fewer). I am a woman: I don't want to go back to an age where there were so many constraints on what I could do or be.
This current age is not perfect - far from it, especially given the glib attitudes of too many people in developed nations towards under-developed and undeveloped nations, and to socially dispossessed people (such as the homeless) in their own society, but it is still better than the world was hundreds or thousands of years ago.
It is, believe it or not, less violent (see here, here and here), and health care is generally potentially better (I am a diabetic: if I was living more than a few years ago, I would be in serious problems, and quite probably dead).
If it means acknowledging those imperfect improvements, and to practice my faith in a way that is gentler and more inclusive, then I will say I am neo-Pagan.
Love, light, hugs and blessings
Note 1 - if I am ill, I will use both "complementary", or "alternative" medicine, AND "conventional medicine. I know about the theory of germ causation of disease I work with that in my day job), but I also know about the importance of the psyche, and feeling good about oneself, and having good energies about oneself. In a sense, I blend old and new - I CANNOT use only old ways - to do so would not be true to myself.
This post's photo is from Pambula, on the NSW south coast.
Tags:moral relativism, perceptions, about me, arrogance, change, learning from mistakes, science, evolution, angst, Christianity, Celts, head hunting, sacrifice, Viking,
First published: Thursday 29th April, 2010
Last edited: Thursday 29th April, 2010
