Pagans often argue about how to define who we are. What are the boundaries--between Wicca and Witchcraft, between Heathens and Pagans, between polytheists, pantheists, and non-theists... While I could do without the acrimony, we're a new as well as an old religious movement, so it makes sense that like any adolescent, we are fascinated by questions of identity. I will admit to preferring the Quaker approach to identity, though: rather than trying to create the definitive checklist of belief that make someone a "real Quaker," Friends typically share a body of testimonies and questions for reflection with those who are drawn to the Religious Society of Friends. "Do you feel this same sort of spiritual leading?" Friends ask one another. "Does this speak to the condition of your soul, as it does to ours?" Queries, not checklists of doctrine, hold the ways Quakers approach discernment, including around membership. And though no individual can declar...
We have a guest post running today, over at Sermons from the Mound, part of the ongoing March series on the future of Paganism. If you'd like to read Sacred Fire, head on over and take a look.
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Yesterday I was taking out the trash, and I had had a particularly difficult discussion with my mom. She had been very abusive to me as a child, and has been a source of a lot of heartache. This conversation was no different.
I went to take the trash out, and I had one of those moments of clarity. It's hard to describe, and may sound completely stupid, but it just felt true, so I'll do my best to describe it and do it justice.
I was taking the trash out, and it was heavy, so I could feel my muscles straining. The wind was whipping around me, the clouds were dark and ominous, and halfway down to the apartment's dumpster, it started to rain.
You see, I've always loved rainstorms. I used to sit out in rainstorms and get soaking wet, but it was something that gave me joy. The power! The strength! It made me feel connected to myself in a way I still don't understand. And I glimpsed for a moment that fire of the Spirit you talked about in your post.
I also felt touched by a spirit mother of some kind. I've felt connected to her in the wind, in the earth, and especially in the moon, and I got the sense that she was telling me that SHE was where I had gotten my strength from for all these years. The wind was whipping around me, and the rain was coming down, and I felt it, the earth/spirit mother/fire of Spirit saying to me "you belong here, you are one of us, you have always been one of us".
It's difficult to describe and maybe that is okay. But thank you for sharing your spiritual journey in this blog. It helps me find meaning and language for my own.
Now your moment in the storm is going to stay with me, holding at least an echo of what that moment had for you. Thank you so much for sharing it here.