Pagan

[waxnrope]

BTW, sorry if I seem to be an interloper, I don't mean to be such. I read this thread often, and hope that you do not mind my comment.

[Soft*Silver]

in my opinion, catholics are pagan christians. They took all our holidays and rewrapped them in the new religions so the villagers would follow them. I am a hybrid of sorts...

And I welcome any faith to come to the pagan thread. I dont mind sharing my spirituality and I did ask for feedback and Wax offered.

[2myladyblue]

Hey everybody!

I think the pagan/christian convo can be an interesting one as long as everyone can keep an open mind & come to the table with a historical/anthropological sort of view as opposed to a dogmatic one.

I was once lucky enough to participate in a book study of highly & widely educated people (it was a fairly academic book). I think it was called The Historical Mary. The author discussed christian mythology in the context of what is now known of the relevant places/time/cultures. He also referred to pagans & christians as belonging to "sister" religions/beliefs. To be honest, without the room full of people from such widely varied philosophical backgrounds, I wouldn't have stuck with it as long as I did & I probably didn't get as much out of it as people with more knowledge of christianity, but it was an interesting viewpoint.

The whole topic kinda reminds me about the convo I had with my mother once about Jesus being Jewish (not christian!) & not exactly the white man with blue eyes that she pictured him to be. It didn't go over very well....devout baptist that she is <shrug>.

[Bit]

Awww Lady Blue, so sorry about the deleted post!

Wax, you are of course welcome here! Everyone is.

lipstix, no, Pagans are not normally Christians. In order to be Christian one has to accept Jesus as God--the only god--and Pagans almost always either believe that Jesus is not God, or else accept him as only one of many gods.

That doesn't mean, however, that someone who is Christian cannot be a witch, because being a witch has two different definitions. One is "to be a follower of the religion, Wicca," and the other is "to work magic through natural, spiritual, or psychic means." The second kind of witch can easily also be a Christian.

softness, if your friend is strong in her path, she is likely to come in for a lot of tension in the new relationship. Of course, there is always the possibility that the charms of the new love more than make up for that... and there is also the possibility that your friend has subconsciously chosen her new love as much *for* the Christianity as for anything, and will convert. It does happen that people's paths lead them into some surprising life decisions! It might be that this is a time in her life when she needs to walk an easier path than solitary Paganism, one that offers much community support and few hassles.

I think interfaith marriages in general are tricky. People who are open-minded and willing to put some effort into understanding each other's paths and faiths are likely to have a MUCH easier time of it than those who have chosen partners who are more rigid in their interpretations.

It was difficult for me to be in an interfaith marriage even though my partner WAS open-minded, understanding, and supportive. It was also difficult for me to be relationships where we were both nominally Pagan but my partner had rigid ideas about the only right way to be Pagan, or was full of ridicule for my Paganism. I'm really grateful that even though Gryph and I don't walk the same Pagan path, we share similar enough beliefs and practices that we have no tension.

Most important of all, we share enough respect for each other that even when our practices differ significantly, we work together to find common ground. Maybe that's what it all comes down to: respect for each other.

[Nat]

It is however quite a bonus to be partnered with a person with whom you can share at least some of your practice.

There was actually an enjoyable podcast from new world witchery regarding interfaith relationships -

http://newworldwitchery.wordpress.co...relationships/

[Nat]

Anybody doing anything this year for Halloween / Samhain / Day(s) of the Dead / All Soul's Day?

I will definitely be doing something to honor friends and family who have passed over. I can't this year but I would love to do a dumb supper some year.

[Bit]

{{{{{{{{{{{{Nat}}}}}}}}}}}}}} Hi hon!

My plans are for Halloween and Samhain both. Our neighborhood association always has a huge Halloween party in the park, and Gryph and I are part of that.

This year our local Pagan group is having a Samhain party on the Friday before, and I'm really looking forward to it! I don't know if it will include any actual ritual but I'm okay with it either way.

One of the things I always do--obsessively, lol--is play A Soalin' by Peter Paul and Mary. This performance actually mentions Trick or Treating and relates it to the souling tradition. I don't mind the Christmas verse at the end because I sing this song for the whole entire season and sometimes--if I'm not sick of it yet, lol--all the way to Valentine's Day.



Lorraine Washburn also has a stunning version of A Soalin'. She ties it to Autumn with falling leaves.



Sting ties it to Christmas. This youtube includes pictures of the Swedish countryside and is just gorgeous.



It is impossible for me to be still listening to this song!! Doesn't matter how much I hurt, this song has me dancing. What better way to bring in Samhain?