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Tolerance and Intolerance in the
Pagan Community
by Morgan Ravenwood
Recently I was reunited with a beloved friend whom
I haven’t seen for two years. While this
man and I adore and would do practically
anything for each other, we’re about the two most
opposite personalities you could hope to find.
We are of different races and generations (he’s older). He’s an important
Washington, DC
personage and I’m just an average Jane Q.
Public.
Oh, just one more
thing---I’m a Pagan, and he’s about as
Christian as it gets. He’s an ordained minister
who has “saved”
many souls and
routinely hobnobs with some
of the biggest names in Christianity. Yet despite all this and in all the time
we’ve known each other, we’ve never discussed religion. He always takes a good, long look at my
small pentacle necklace but has never commented
on it and I’m betting that he surely must
know what it symbolizes. I’d like to think he’d be open-minded
enough to accept my religion if I did tell him
what it is, and in fact, he might be
particularly interested to know that I too am
a
member of
the clergy (though I personally prefer the term
“priestess!”)
As for me, I feel that it’s
perfectly okay to love the man without having
to love his religion. As long as nobody
tries to cram their beliefs down my
throat, I don’t care what (or who) they worship. I especially value the friends who don’t care
about my religion either.
However, while most Pagans
cry for tolerance from the mainstream
religious community
(and I’m definitely including myself
here), there are many who are themselves
guilty of intolerance. While I
understand that many of us have come
to Paganism
from
different faiths and for many different
reasons, I don’t think that it’s necessary to bash those faiths or condemn
those who continue to practice them.
Naturally, many Pagans are
former Christians, and more
often than not, a great deal of bitterness and anger accompanies
their
“conversion,” as well as condemnation
from family
and friends. Before they know it, they
become a full-fledged “Christian basher,”
telling their long, sad stories to anyone who’ll listen and ridiculing
those who still remain in Christianity. This
kind of intolerance among our own ranks is not
only negative and ultimately self-destructive,
it doesn’t befit people who like to think they’re just a little more
spiritually enlightened than the rest of the population. Unfortunately, the Pagan offenders feel
justified because so many Christians maintain
a hard line of intolerance against Pagans, but instead of contributing to the
problem, we need to try to understand why this
is and attempt to dispel their misconceptions
and fears by spreading accurate information
about what it is we believe in and practice.
I’ve always maintained that
education is the antidote to fear, which is the mother
of hatred, prejudice and intolerance.
But education can’t happen unless people are willing to work to make
it happen. If more
Pagans, especially those who lead large groups or are well-known and/or
celebrities (whether in or out of the Pagan community)
would increase their attempts to dialogue with
members of
other faith communities,
the results just might be an improvement
in interfaith relations as well as an increase in tolerance from
both sides. These will go a long way to
improving Paganism’s
equality and respectability quotients.
Of course, it isn’t just well-known Pagans who can make
this happen; we all need to do our fair share, though nobody ever said it would
be easy. I only wish I could do more,
but I’ll admit it’s often difficult to even
get a foot in the door. In the small
city in which I live, there is actually a coalition of churches, and I’m
guessing that they occasionally get together and discuss concerns, goals and
ideas. I’d love for my
group to be a member
of this organization, but unfortunately, membership
is limited to—you guessed it--Christians only
(I wonder how the Rabbi of the local synagogue feels about that?). Considering that there are over thirty-five
Christian churches in my area, it’s not a
surprise, especially considering that the reason for this prejudice is built
right into their theology.
In attempting to battle the
intolerance that is rife among so many
Christians, we have to consider the root cause as to why these people feel the
way they do---the foundation of their religion, the Bible (particularly the Old
Testament).
“Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live,” it says. A recent interview in the P.J. Star.com
with Bill Hausser, a senior minister from
Keokuk, Iowa, as he stood outside the doorway to a lecture about the “Occult
invasion of America” (and kindly re-posted by
Wren Walker of the Witches’ Voice in her “Wren’s Nest” feature) quoted him
as saying, "The Bible's clear on what to do. Deuteronomy
teaches us that (witchcraft) is an abomination.” He further stated, "It's a very
dangerous thing and not something to be shown
to our children. Ouija boards, Dungeons and Dragons, Harry Potter. All that
junk falls in the same category." While this statement
sounds ridiculous and even ignorant to us, still we need to sensibly rebut it
without condemning its source. To do otherwise naturally invites a great
deal of aggressive defense from its loyal
followers, ensuing in an argument nobody can
win.
Not surprisingly, the Pagan response to Mr. Hausser’s
diatribe was quite eloquent. As you might
guess, most of them
had
some choice names
for him and his ilk, some
even going as far as denouncing them as a hate
group. But instead of engaging in an
angry war of words with fundamentalists, we simply
need to remind them
that, like it or not and regardless of what
their scriptures say, Witchcraft (well, Wicca, actually, but there’s no point
in splitting hairs) IS a legally recognized religion
in this country, and that since we who practice it aren’t going to go away
anytime soon, maybe
they should attempt to learn a little bit more
about it. We especially need to get the
point across to them that not only has a lot
changed since the days of the Biblical-era conjurers and soothsayers, they need
to understand is that “Satan” is a deity in their faith, not ours, and that far
from worshipping him,
we don’t even believe he exists.
Furthermore, they need to
realize that their misguided attempts
to hold those of another belief system
accountable by the rules and standards of their own and then presume
to judge us when they perceive that we are disobeying those rules are bound to
end in frustration and dissatisfaction. What might
be “gospel” to them is nevertheless but empty
words to us. Last but not least, I think
we need to stress to those of all faiths that in asking for tolerance, we
aren’t asking them to adopt, endorse or even
necessarily accept our faith---only to acknowledge that we have as much
right to practice it as they do their own.
If only we could make them
(including some of our current leaders)
realize that this is not a “Christian Nation” (or any other “one faith”
society) and that there is no such thing as a “one, true and only path” to
enlightenment, we might
actually make some
headway!
However, the most important
thing that WE need to remember
is that in hurling angry insults at our detractors, we’re only
making
ourselves look even worse than they already think we are. We need to keep a level head and make
our best effort to appeal to these people’s sense of logic and fairness. As Lewis Carroll’s walrus said, “the time
has come to talk of many
things".” Once we can get an open dialogue going, the result will be better
understanding on both sides and for us, an improved
image, both as individuals and as a faith community.
Blessed Be,
Morgan Ravenwood
HPs, Desert Moon Circle
Lake Havasu City, AZ
Email: morgan_313@yahoo.com
Web URL: http://www.geocities.com/morgan_313/desert_moon_circle.html
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