I have been in the Craft for nearly 30 years now and been a High Priestess for 22 of those years. As a part of my advocacy for this faith, I did a television talk show back in the early 1990's. "Kestryl & Company," the first talk show on the topic of Wicca, Paganism and earth-based religions, was an effort to go past the news articles that ran every Hallows - which was about the only time of year we ever got positive press and get into the more mainstream media coverage on what it was that Wiccans and Pagans truly believe and practice. There have always been brave souls out there, like Pete Pathfinder, Bob Clarke, Laurie Cabot, Selena Fox and more who have stepped out into the modern world to help us, in this generation be brave enough to openly discuss our faith and to help the mainstream world come to its relatively new-found acceptance of our paths. But, there is still much work to be done, both inside and outside our own communities!
When we did "Kestryl & Company", we showed rituals on that show, interviewed people from multiple paths under the Pagan umbrella and even covered "buzz" topics like addiction treatment on the show. We were proud of our work, but we were far from popular for it, inside or outside of our Pagan community. I am, however, completely gratified to see that - as the old song says - "Times, they are a-changin!"
Thanks to people like Belladonna Laveau - the Arch Priestess of the ATC, Terry and Amanda Riley from Southern Delta Church of Wicca-ATC, Tim and Edwina Rickman of Apple Oak Grove-ATC, Sonya Hill-Miller and Brian Miller from Temple of the Sacred Gift-ATC, Alfred Willowhawk & Willo Wellspring of Wite Rayvn Metaphysical Church of KS & MO - ATC and so many more around the world who have bravely stepped out of the broom closet and into the limelight. Thanks to them, we have outlets available now that were not available to us, even just those 20 years ago. We have beautiful, wise and strong leaders to help us to share the difficult, but positive steps taken by previous generations which now allow us to work even harder toward our faith's goals. Along with others who have grown along side me, I look with hope toward one day being able to look across the veil to see future generations walking their Wiccan path shoulder to shoulder with other faiths without blinking an eye or having a thought for the dangers so many have faced about practicing their faith openly in previous generations.
In that same 20 year time frame, this faith has grown by leaps and bounds on so many levels. I remember interviewing Grandmother Elspeth on our show back in 1991 before there were Crone's Councils firmly in place across the country as we find them now and talked about how desperately the collective wisdom of Elders, Sages and Crones was needed across the country. Now, just this weekend, I witnessed yet another Sage brought into the fold of Wiccan Sages & Crones - my second witnessing of such in a year's time- and it was with great joy and honor that we witnessed this rite. I am told I can also look forward to seeing more Crones recognized soon as well! This development is so refreshing and so has been so very needed! Especially for those whose calling is to seek to do more than just the localized, Coven/Covenstead path, but to work in the greater overall national community! Finally, there are places to seek advice, to find wise counsel with those of greater experience and to seek the knowledge required of both our faith and the laws of the land through which they have fought to gain us this stronger ground. Unlike much of society who seems to throw away its Elders, Wiccans and Pagans revere the blessing of Wisdom we have within them and I, for one, am proud to be under their care!
We have seen the battle fought and won to see the US government recognize our faith as holding its own legal standing alongside other mainstream faiths. We have seen our Wiccan and Pagan veterans recognized under their faith for their service and to gain them rights for appropriate burial symbols as they are laid to rest. We have seen people across the country gain new and previously unheard of support from their employers regarding taking their faith holidays off from work and toward receiving benefits that other faiths have enjoyed for decades now. Yet, even among our own communities, there is still much work to be done to come up to the standards of proper community living set before us by the living example of our Wiccan and Pagan Elders, Sages & Crones of today.
I have seen it said as recently as the last six months that to have things like community service contracts with mainstream businesses in place so that we can better serve our greater community's elderly and handicapped needs being touted as "selling out our faith to "The Man"!" and I am aghast. The work done by our faith's Elders to gain those sorts of agreements is AMAZING and without them, so many would still be struggling and afraid to even speak to their communities - much less to serve those needs outright as their group's Charity effort! Resources of all kinds are to be shared! SERVICE is the basis of our entire Clergy calling in the Wiccan path! Caring for our community is the heart of Wiccan belief. So, how can it be a bad thing when we are seeing a single Wiccan church in the most conservative part of our country makes such undeniably positive steps toward those awesome community goals?!
ALL forms of service are not only valid, but worthwhile and needful in our communities across this country! We cannot afford to nay-say others simply because they chose a different way to accomplish a goal for the greater good than we may have chosen. If you do not believe in that sort of service, OK - don't do that particular path yourself! The needs are many and the resources are out there, so find and do for yourself whichever path makes *you* happiest, but also cheer on your brothers and sisters of other paths in finding theirs! THAT is what Wiccans and Pagans are all about, according to our faith! Tearing each other's practices, beliefs and community offerings down isn't the way to build our bonds or to teach others around us how to work together - inside our faith or outside our path. We are long past the era when separatism was considered desirable and necessary, so to perpetuate it with judgments like this one is counter-productive to the work so hard won by our Elders and does them no honor. Wiccans and Pagans offer Tolerance where others offer judgments - so, shake your brother's and sister's hands when they make strides of this magnitude! We are a faith of growth, beauty and LOVE - so LOVE what others do for the greater good, not just the ones you'd do yourself if you'd thought of it first!
My deepest gratitude to previous generations for all your hard work, for the sacrifices you have made so that I may walk in the Light and raise my children and grandchildren in this faith in the open! Thank you, to those modern Leaders making so many positive steps and bringing in so much positive press! Thank you all for allowing me to observe and participate in this growth in our individual communities and in our overall country's larger Wiccan and Pagan community! I am deeply honored to walk beside you, to learn from your wisdom and to be counted, by some of you, among your friends and family.
No comments:
Post a Comment