The Pluralism Project at Harvard University
Contributing to the Common Good
by Grove Harris, reprinted from On Common Ground: World Religions in America, Columbia University Press, 2002 and 1997.
In English, the days of the week are named after the sun, the moon, and the gods and goddesses of ancient European mythology. For instance, the Germanic and Scandinavian god Thor gave his name to Thursday, and the Goddess Freyja to Friday. This is part of the generally unacknowledged legacy of old Pagan culture left to modern life. On Halloween, children dress in ghostly costumes and knock on neighborhood doors demanding "treats" or threatening "tricks." Adults masquerade in fantastic costumes and dance all night. Conscious or not, these community expressions are distantly related to the old Celtic holiday of Samhain. Halloween revelers experience the transformation that a mask can offer and explore taking on another form, even if it is just through a costume that renders them strangers to their friends for a single night. This autumn holiday occurs at nature's annual season of death, which many people intuit even if they do not acknowledge it in the observance of Halloween with its ghosts and paper skeletons. Pagan ritual celebrates all aspects of life, including the descent into the dark.
Today's American Pagans can articulate many other ways their faith has contributed to contemporary society, such as the Pagan sensitivity to, and responsibility for, the Earth. Stewardship in Paganism does not rest on the claim to human dominion over the Earth, but on respect of all life as part of the web of life. It is a spiritual ecology, emphasizing that humans are intimately dependent upon the Earth and its ecosystems. A profound respect for the Earth and all of nature is at the heart of Paganism, and the pollution of the Earth is considered akin to the desecration of a sanctuary. Through the cycle of the seasons and the ritual calendar, Pagans celebrate nature and enact human interconnectedness with it. Not surprisingly, many are avid environmentalists, actively working on programs to halt the degradation of the environment. They insist that the empowerment of their Pagan ritual and spiritual path is directly connected to their responsibility to protect the ecological balance of the interconnected web of life.
A second contribution Pagans feel they can make to the world today is their holistic view. Just as the tides have both ebb and flow and as summer is no more sacred than winter, so it is with life, which includes both growth and decay. Light and darkness are both part of the cycles of the moon and the cycle of nature, each needing the other for completion. Some Pagans would affirm that honoring both life and death, age and youth, dark and light undermines the deep divisions, the alienation, and the racism of modern society. Treating all people, and indeed all living things, with reverence is rooted in this Pagan world view.
A third contribution, then, is the Pagan approach to tolerance, ethics, and diversity. Wicca, for instance, is a path to the experience of the Divine, but has no dogma, no scripture, no one absolute truth, and no single spokesperson. All Pagan groups emphasize the diversity of Paganism and the many different images of the Divine. The Church of the Sacred Earth based in Bethel, Vermont is one example of an organizational structure that provides a base for many different Pagan congregations without dictating common practice or belief. Three times a year the communities of the Church, dispersed throughout New England, gather to affirm their common bonds, but not their uniformity. Many see the spirit of respect and tolerance generated within the spectrum of Pagan communities as an important contribution to America's multicultural society as it struggles with the issue of diversity.
Tolerance is grounded in ethics, however. For Wiccans, the one foundational ethical precept is called the "Wiccan Rede" or rule: "If it harm none, do what you will." In this rule, Wiccans honor their deep commitment to religious freedom as well as their profound sense of responsibility for personal choices. Wiccans think about the implications of "harming none" in relation to questions of abortion, vegetarianism, religiously motivated violence, and all the economic and political issues of the day. As individuals they may reach different conclusions, but the Wiccan Rede helps them to balance the difficult issues of freedom and responsibility. The principle of "Threefold Return" serves to remind Pagans that every word and action directed outward, whether for good or ill, whether generous or miserly, will return to them threefold.
Finally, Pagans would emphasize the many ways in which their communities are actively involved in service, voluntary programs, and public affairs. Pagan groups are increasingly taking the risk of publicly participating in the civic and religious life of their own cities and towns, openly involved in local clothing and food drives, in AIDS action programs, in the Walk for Hunger, or in local Adopt-a-Highway programs. This openness has often meant dealing directly with the negative stereotyping that may exist in local communities. For example, in filling out permit applications for rituals on public lands, Pagans will talk with local police about what to expect and may provide public information and education. Many individuals have made themselves available as educational resources for community, school, or clergy groups. Organizations like the Covenant of the Goddess, the Witches League for Public Awareness in Salem, Massachusetts and the Pagan Alliance of Central Texas believe that accurate information and exposure are the best tools to root out prejudices of all kinds, and the prejudice against Pagans is no exception.
Religious freedom is a critical issue for America's new Pagan communities, and many have long been actively involved in work to protect it. Like most Americans, they believe that freedom denied to any faith puts the freedom of all faiths at risk. In 1995 a Pagan couple in Palm Bay, Florida fought zoning laws that they believed were applied in a discriminatory manner against them for having held the annual Imbolc/Candlemas festival in their own backyard. Their slogan was "Keep Home Worship Legal" and they were joined by Christian denominations in their struggle to maintain this principle. The Lady Liberty League based at Circle Sanctuary in Madison, Wisconsin offers networking, resources and referrals to Pagans facing discrimination. The quarterly newspaper, Circle Network News, reports on the status of legal cases and informs the Pagan public about the work being done. While Pagans are obviously the direct beneficiaries of this work in defense of religious freedom, struggling to maintain that principle benefits a much larger community.
Many Pagans believe that American society needs new models for religious relatedness that honor the freedom of the individual, the freedom of distinctive religious congregations and traditions, and yet offer a larger sense of community. Groups like Circle Sanctuary, the Covenant of the Goddess, and the Church of the Sacred Earth provide models that might have applicability beyond the Pagan community as well.
Glossary: Pagan; Samhain; new moon; full moon; Wicca; Church; Imbolc/Candlemas; Christian; Goddess