Naturalistic Paganism
Category: Columns
The Wheel of Evolution, by Eric Steinhart: Yule
At Yule, Pagan Naturalists picture a winter scene: the frozen ground lies bare under the dark sky of the longest night. This is the ground of being, underneath which lies the essential soil, the soil which contains the abstract roots of all things. At Yule, Pagan Naturalists reflect on these abstract roots.
Read More[Musings of a Pagan Mythicist] “A Life-Sustaining Way″ by Maggie Jay Lee
Practicing this earth-centered celebratory path helps me to realize on a deep emotional level that “we and the Earth are one”. This Earth is not a dead place but a living, life-giving being worthy of our mindful attention. It is in those moments when I succeed in slowing down, in attending to the present that I feel most alive, and this fills me with a sense of gratitude for the beauty contained in even the most mundane moments.
Read More[Starstuff, Contemplating] “Winter Solstice: Axial Tilt is the Reason for the Season” by Heather (& Jon) Cleland-Host
We have been able to watch the Solstice Sunrise every year since we met. Usually we watch it over a lake. Occasionally we have watched it over a field. One year we watched it from a hospital window because I was in preterm labor with my second child. Another year, it was too snowy to go anywhere, so we went to the nearby sledhill and at the exact moment of the Sunrise, we all launched ourselves down the hill, even Mommy, who does NOT sled. We had the whole hill to ourselves that morning and it was probably one of the most memorable Sunrises, whooshing down that hill.
Read More[Mid-Month Meditation/De Natura Deorum] “What is a God?” by Jason Silva
What is a god? What is it to think of something sacred and larger than us, and infinite and boundless? Human history seems to be suffused with this inclination towards a sense of the divine. We want to believe that there is something more.
Read More[Starstuff, Contemplating] “Celebrating Meaning in our Lives through Family Holidays” by Heather and Jon Cleland Host
Instead of swearing off all holidays, we committed to celebrating only holidays that were meaningful and real. The eclipse of the Sun is a moment when we small humans become conscious of where we are in our solar system relative to the Moon and the Sun. It is worthy of celebrating. It is something that re-occurs though not always on the same time of the year, nor every year. We wanted something that communicated the cycles of the Universe, of our solar system, and especially our planet Earth. Most of all, we wanted something that connected us to our Ancestors and our humanity.
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Pagan Coming Out Day – May 2nd
Naturalistic Paganism 