Losing My / Your Religion - Part 1

The following is from an article in Witches' Voice.

By Patricia Telesco

It has been approximately 20 years since I dove into the Neo-Pagan ideological pool. Of that, the last fifteen years have been dedicated to writing and teaching about various aspects of our faith. Like any Path, things have changed over the years. Some changes have been positive. For example, a lot of us can be more open with our faith without people hiding their children and seeking out torches, and the media is starting to realize we are more than happy to "educate" them when they portray our beliefs inaccurately.

Some changes, on the other hand, have been negative. The current trend toward even more separatism in our community, returning to the comfort of our broom closets, and the lack of energy toward truly establishing ourselves as a viable, recognized religious group qualifies. I'm honestly discouraged. Many leaders and facilitators are discouraged. They look at dwindling festivals, publishers closing down entire lines of New Age books, and the seemingly never-ending petty infighting and ask: why bother? Why continue? I think we're in danger of losing our religion to apathy, to a budget crisis, to weariness, to stubborn egos, and to the conservative trend in this country that is neatly chipping away at the Church-State barrier.

Let's consider some facts. First, I know several well-established elders and teachers who were trying to serve our supposed "community" close to full time. Now they, and/or their spouses, are either looking for or starting mundane jobs because they can no longer support their families with any dependability. Meanwhile folks complain that we have no clergy who can attend to our needs as they arise. Well, which is it? Do we want clergy and teachers dedicated to our growth and community building? Then we need to support them! If we don't support them, we have no one but ourselves to blame when they're at the office during the next crisis of faith! I have personally gone to work full time, meaning there's a lot less festival travel and teaching in my future. It breaks my heart because I /want/ to serve, but my priority has to be hearthside, ethically and morally. We're in danger of losing more and more of our religious leaders to these types of situations. Until something, somewhere gives this is a huge Neo-Pagan reality check.

Part 2 in the next post.

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