My Own Beliefs

I am often asked what my spiritual beliefs are, as I have a varied and wide range of interests, and I suppose to some people my passions are so eclectic that it may seem rather difficult to figure me out. My beliefs truly are eclectic and wide, as I have spent my life exploring both religion and spirituality, as well as people, the psyche, and conditioning; I have come to a place where I no longer have one set belief system. I simply can not, as I find that all religions offer glimpses into the infinite nature of the Universe, however none of them seem capable of articulating the infinite nature of Love.

For this reason, the only word I can use to describe my belief system is Pagan. However, that can be misleading as well, as I do not observe the Sabbaths or equinoxes in a traditional Pagan way. The word Pagan is extremely misunderstood and misused in our present day and age. I find many people believe Paganism is some heathenistic form of deity worship, and others still believe it is a form of satanism. Let me clear this up for those of you who don't know what Paganism is:

The word Pagan simply means "Country dweller". In the olden times, people grew their own food, and relied upon natures plants and herbs for medicines and supplementals. These people watched the stars and constellations to help them stay aligned to Mother Earth in regards to planting, growing, reaping and harvesting. These people also had a vast adoration for the Sun, the moon and stars, as well as the very Earth itself. In this way, Paganism is a pure and very ancient form of nature-worship. 

Pagans of yore knew that we were all connected to nature in a very intimate and tangible way; they understood that the rhythms of nature are the organic ebb and flow of life and death, and as such they placed high value upon walking in harmony with nature.

When the Roman Crusades began throughout Europe, Pagans at the time were converted to Christianity, by force. If Pagans chose to continue to worship their ancient nature gods and goddesses, and did not conform to the dictates of the Christian church, they were often cast out of their towns and villages, or even worst burned or hung for heresy and witch-craft. The reason being, is the Christian political powers that be (out of the Vatican, and through the Monarchy's of the time) knew that the best way to control wide numbers of people was through fear and dogma, and instilling a world religion which promised a fiery afterlife for sinners was a very cunning way to bend people to their will. So many Pagan traditions and beliefs were bastardized and manipulated to the point that they were sufficiently altered to become Christian traditions and beliefs, with darker and scarier undertones of control and brainwashing.

I do not wish to insult Christians in the sharing of this post, but I am quite vocal about my viewpoints regarding organized religion, and I will not exclude those views here. Christianity is the oldest and most successful form of mass mind-control on this planet. 

Thousands of people believed in nature spirits, and in a deep connection to the Earth and all the creatures upon her, this gave people a sense of peace and connection. When this was labeled as sacrilegious and heathenistic, and people began to see townsfolk and kinfolk being punished in countless ways, including death, they had no choice but to convert to Christianity, or watch their loved ones perish. So through the years, Paganism began to take on a dark reputation, through misunderstandings, ignorance, and the slander of the church. 

I again mean no harm, nor disrespect, as I know that many of my friends and readers are indeed Christian, however I must say that I view this religion as extremely dogmatic, fraternal, and cruel. The bible, which I believe was once a beautiful parable about spirituality and the relationship each person has with God, has been re-written, edited, and changed to suit the leaders of each generation so many times, that it no longer holds many of the truths it originally did. Constantine himself made so many edits at the time to suit his own dogmatic fears and insecurities. 

Many of the stories in the bible happened thousands of years before the bible was even composed, and took place in ancient Egypt, Babylon, Sumeria and Maya. Floods epics, giant slayings, parting of seas, all of these stories were taken by Christianity out of Pagan lore and made physical. In the Pagan lore which they were originally told and shared, these stories were myths, and cultural legends used to share morals and ideals. When Christianity got their hands on these stories they were made real, and stripped of spiritual morality, and used to strike fear into the heart of mankind. People who are fearful of their creator are easier to manipulate and control, and the Vatican has made billions proving this throughout the last couple thousand years.

I was a devout Christian well into my teens, going to church alone on Sunday's as my parents did not wish to go with me. It always struck me as hypocritical to hear God referred to as some vengeful man up in Heaven who would reward the good and punish the bad. I did not understand God in that way, and I never will. That is not God to me. God is not some separate individual who looks down upon his creation with bias. That is such a limited and narrow-minded view of God.

So, by way of severe digression, I come back to my original point... what are my beliefs? I believe God is simply everything. All life, all planets, all stars, all space between these planets and stars, each blade of grass, every rock, every drop of water, each oxygen particle, every person - man woman and child - are God. 

God to me is not an individual, as God simply IS - everywhere - in every time - in every capacity. God is the smiling baby you see in it's mothers arms. God is the mother holding the smiling baby. God is the homeless woman begging for spare change on the street corner. God is the insect crawling up your wall. God is the shadows falling at your feet. And God is the light which casts those shadows.

I believe in infinite potential, and infinite Love - and I believe God orchestrated all of *this* life as we know it in order to have an extremely rich and physical experience of Godself. 

I believe we are playing on the planes of polarity - utter and total opposites - in order to really grasp a true understanding of all aspects of ourselves. To better understand peace we have gone through war. To better understand community we have isolated ourselves. To better understand relationships we have experienced heartache. And to better understand our connection to all life, to all love, and to God - we have created religion in order to segregate our beliefs, and detach to the point where we at some point have to accept that God is so much more than we have limited ourselves to believe...

If you think God will send any one of us to Hell, I believe you are living in fear. If you think God is picking and choosing amongst the clean souls and the dirty ones, I believe you are living in separatism. And if you think God favored one above another, I believe you are sadly misusing your own free will to understand God. God is Love. God did not create this rich playing field and give us free will, to then sit back and play judge, jury, and executioner.

These are my beliefs, and they are not air tight. I keep my mind and heart open, as I am aware that what I know is far outweighed by what I don't know. I am humbled by the knowledge that there is so much more to discover than I could possibly ever discover in one single lifetime, with this small mind, and this misinformed ego. 

I value nature, and honesty, and compassion. I believe we are all brothers and sisters, even if we can't play nicely with one another. And I know that each day that goes by presents new lessons, new opportunities for growth and understanding; so I will keep humbly seeking my truths, and opening myself to God/dess.

I am in Love with the force of life around and within me, and I am excited to think what will present itself in my experience next! And these, are my beliefs, as I currently understand them.

Love ~