Naturalistic Paganism
Day of the Dead Meditation: “Spirits” by Birago Diop
Listen to Things
More often than Beings,
Hear the voice of fire,
Hear the voice of water.
Listen in the wind,
To the sighs of the bush;
This is the ancestors breathing. Read More
[Starstuff, Contemplating] “Our Most Precious Gifts” by Jon Cleland Host
When I look to our Universe and to ourselves, I feel an immense wave of gratitude. Gratitude for the gifts of what we are, what we can do, and for all the wonders we see in the world around us. This gratitude not only makes me feel loved, but it also moves me to deeply love those around me and our future generations, and is the wellspring of my spirituality. Read More
[Rotting Silver] “Faith in the Earth” by B. T. Newberg
It is important to believe with as little force as possible. It is only in non-nature-based religions that faith must overwhelm natural instincts and sensations.
In nature-based religions, we need only look and see what is there. Faith in the Goddess is no more difficult than faith in the solidity of a stone. You can tap it, touch it, strike it, weigh it, toss it, drop it, pick it up, and feel its weight against your skin. Read More
“Celebrating Samhain as a Naturalist” by Mike Ryan
I used to struggle with Samhain. It’s interesting how we deal with idiosyncratic issues within naturalism, wanting to be authentic, but struggling with the Gregorian calendar and society’s apathy to the seasonal holidays, or their usurpation for commercial and Christian purposes.
Samhain should be around November 6th/7th, as that is the halfway point between the fall equinox and the winter solstice. If there was no Halloween, I think that it would be easier, even with the lack of social sanction. But Halloween forces it to be a week early. This really used to bug me. One year we celebrated Samhain on the right day, and it felt wrong. Society had already moved on, and it felt forced to wait another week. The mystery and darkness was gone, and I just felt like an idiot. I wouldn’t even know what to do in the Southern Hemisphere with the seasons inverted. I didn’t even feel comfortable moving it a week. Read More
Godless Paganism: Voices of Non-Theistic Pagans
Godless Paganism: Voices of Non-Theistic Pagans is now on sale in paperback and electronic format.
Godless Paganism is the first ever anthology of writing by and about non-theistic Pagans. The goal of the anthology is to educate others in the Pagan community about both the diversity and the depth of non-theistic Pagan practice.
Non-theistic Pagans are Pagans who do not believe in the literal existence of personal gods. But beyond that definition, “non-theistic Pagan” may refer to a variety of theological orientations, including humanists, naturalists, Atheopagans, animists, pantheists, Gaians, and more. For some, gods play no role in their spiritually at all. For others, gods may be seen as mere metaphors or as numinous archetypes. Others are pantheists or animists. But what most non-theistic Pagans have in common is a love of Pagan ritual and myth and a deep sense of awe or reverence toward nature.
Buy Godless Paganism (paperback)
Buy Godless Paganism (ebook)
Pagan Coming Out Day – May 2nd
Naturalistic Paganism 