A Message to Young Pagans

In response to this post, I have decided to send out a message to our youth as well. Here we go.

Dear youthful Pagans, our young who search for truth in the religions,

These paths are so exciting, right? I’m sure you’ve started reading, and maybe even practicing, the path of your choice. Did you choose Wicca? Asatru? Maybe you are a Christian witch, or a Hindu? There are so many paths to look into. Regardless of the path you choose, though, here is some advice to make this transition and learning process much easier on everyone involved.

  1. Research! Research, research, research! And not only about your path- in Paganism there should never be a thought of “the one true religion” in your head. Not these days. Wicca is no better or worse than Palo Monte. And your faith may be bettered by going outside of your comfort zone and learning about other traditions. Talk to a Dianic Wiccan. Discuss heathenry on a forum. Read the Principia Discordia and learn about Discordianism. Doing these things is not an affront to whatever other faith you hold. And don’t you ever look down on another Pagan for being of another tradition.
  2. Likewise, your Christian parents are not likely to be out to get you. In fact, you may be surprised by how open they are about it. Of course, if you know your parents will have a hard time with Paganism and you don’t want to cause trouble, there is nothing wrong with keeping silent on your studies. Many of these religions are based on ancient mystery religions anyway, and secrecy about your religion is a good thing to have in some cases. Don’t be ashamed of your religion, but there’s no reason to flaunt it if it will cause you trouble. But if your parents are not strict Christians, it may be worth it to try and discuss your ideas and beliefs with them.
  3. Please stop holding so tight onto the idea of the Burning Times. The men and women who were killed for witchcraft were mostly not witches at all, just people with too much power and enemies or two many odd quirks. Yes, they are horrible and are very scary for real witches as well, because real witches would definitely have been killed. Without a doubt. But the witch hunts are not part of your spiritual history. It is disrespectful to those men and women who did die to claim it as such.
  4. Your pet does not need to be a familiar. You don’t need a familiar. Pets are great, and having a familiar is a truly enriching experience. However, when you claim that your black cat is your familiar just to seem cooler, you make a mockery of all of the religious paths and people who do have familiars. You make a mockery of our beliefs with your ignorance and play for popularity.
  5. The Christians did not steal our holy days. They adapted them, changed their holy days to coincide with ours, to help ease converting from Paganism to Christianity, but they did not steal. Jesus, likewise, is not a stolen deity. He is just another similar deity, much like Aphrodite / Venus and any other love / beauty / fertility goddess. Similar, but not stolen.
  6. You can dress however you want. I mean this. If you still want to dress prep, do it. The Gods have seen me dress prep for 4 years and I have not been struck down. You do not need black velvet robes, but if you like them, then get them! You do not need black hair, but if you like black hair, then dye it! Your personal style does not need to be recreated around your faith.
  7. Tools are not necessary. You read correctly. You don’t need an athame or candles to be able to do spells, because those things are representative of ideas. Their symbolism is what makes them powerful, but their symbolism can be found anywhere. If you don’t need an athame to focus on your spell, then don’t feel like you need to force it in there. Of course if you’re following a strict ritual, follow it exactly. But if you’re making your own rituals, don’t feel like you need to buy hundreds of dollars of tools, stones, candles, and incense.
  8. There are times when cursing people is called for, but you have to be absolutely certain of what you’re doing. Curses are not forbidden, and if you do intend to curse someone, well, telling them does half of the job. It’s psyches them out so that when the curse does hit, it’s that much more powerful. But do you really need to use a curse to solve your problems? Use your head and don’t let your emotions do your cursing.
  9. While we’re on curses, the Wiccan Rede does not, I repeat, it does not disallow curses or things that are harmful. “An it harm none, do as ye will” simply says, if it doesn’t harm anyone, do what you truly will. There is no word in that statement that says you can’t do something that harms someone. You are free to do something that won’t harm anyone; however, if you do want to harm someone, you are not forbidden from doing so. That doesn’t mean you should, however. Read over point H again.

Furthermore, here are some amazing resources for you to help you study up.

Tags: pagan wiccan paganism wicca text