From pagan-friendly Huff Post

[B. de Corbin]

They usually have pretty fair pagan articles:

What Not To Say When You Meet Someone Who Is Pagan:

[anubisa]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

I like the suggestions. I would hope people wouldn't think that Witches can turn people to toads or are like Harry Potter.

[anunitu]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

Hoping they do not say Harry Potter,remember how crazy right wing Christians got ,saying Harry Potter was a demonic plot......

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Read how that whole weird thing went down.

[DavidMcCann]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

Well, the HP article is a start, but after telling you that all Pagans aren't the same, they then recommend 10 books that are entirely confined to Neopaganism. They also perpetuate the negative stereotype of Satanism. Still, it's a start!

[Näre]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

Do people actually say those things to Pagans?

[Azvanna]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

Hoping they do not say Harry Potter,remember how crazy right wing Christians got ,saying Harry Potter was a demonic plot......

Haha! I remember that so well!! Not everyone in my church agreed, it was mainly pushed by older people. It was around the same time we had a sponsored missionary come and report to us and say from the Pulpit "A home with television is a home with no Heavenly Vision." Right then I knew not to listen to someone by merit of their rank in the church.

As for the article, I thought it was a good round-about way of giving a quick very general overview of paganism. The questions were a good model of what people should be asking each other anyway coming from a place of genuine curiousity.

What was wrong with the Satanist question? I've heard that reply given here a number of times and it seems a fair call.. It highlights that the Christian Satan belong to Christianity and that other religions may take a different point of view without delving too deeply.

[anunitu]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

In many cases the "Devil" image was taken from Pan,horns and hoofs and such. A lot of the very early church used pagan symbols and such as their visual basis for Evil.

This is the image for Pan...notice any resemblance?


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Part of gaining power for a religion you must have something to be powerful against to frighten people to join the side that says it can defeat the "Evil" People can become indoctrinated that they "see" the devil in EVERYTHING...and may even see images not unlike from being high. BTW,in the SDA church there was also the TV is evil thing.

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See here about the Demonization of Pan.

To get all the people under the church banner,they needed to "Discredit" the pagan sects.

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There is also the history of Early Christianity burning pagan temples,and stone images.

As an aside,ISIS has broken and torn down other symbols of religions not from Islam...so early Christians were in their own way..very like ISIS,abiding no other beliefs at all.

[B. de Corbin]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

A teacher here nearly got fired fo reading Harry Potter to her class.

Witch hunts aren't entirely a thing of the past.

[Azvanna]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

This is the image for Pan...notice any resemblance?

I lolled.

Ronald Hutton gave a really good speech on Pan and Cernunnos on Druidcast. It's called A History of the Pagan Horned God. http://www.druidcast.libsyn.com/2007/08

Part of gaining power for a religion you must have something to be powerful against to frighten people to join the side that says it can defeat the "Evil" People can become indoctrinated that they "see" the devil in EVERYTHING...and may even see images not unlike from being high. BTW,in the SDA church there was also the TV is evil thing.

... Which bugs me a little because when I read the Gospels, I hear more warnings against the White-washed tomb lifestyle of the religious leaders of the day than I do about demonic forces. In the Gospels, demons in the form of sickness/death/possession are nothing to fear, just something to be dealt with. It's the warnings against outward appearance of piety that pose the greater threat.

As an aside,ISIS has broken and torn down other symbols of religions not from Islam...so early Christians were in their own way..very like ISIS,abiding no other beliefs at all.

[/quote]
Coincidentally, I was considering the very same thing this morning. I've got so much to say on this and not enough time so here are my thoughts in rough for point
-the maturation of faith. On the whole, Christian politics has moved past using violence as a method of controlling population. Is it time for Islam to move through the same cycle?
- Christianity isn't about setting up a worldly Kingdom. It can thrive in any political climate, including strong persecution as evident in early and current church history. How does this compare with Islam and Caliphate?
- Maybe the only way to overcome is to stubbornly hold to our value of freedom and not fight each other. I see a huge divide in Australia between those who would ban Islam
and those who believe politics, not religion is to blame. When we divide, we're weakened and confused about who the enemy actually is.
- prayers for a safe future for my children. This IS distraction couldn't come at a worse time when right now the whole human race needs to focus on healing the earth, not a war.

Sorry for the derail
B!

[Ula]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

Yes. They do online and if you say it's private they call you fake.

[B. de Corbin]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

... Which bugs me a little because when I read the Gospels, I hear more warnings against the White-washed tomb lifestyle of the religious leaders of the day than I do about demonic forces. In the Gospels, demons in the form of sickness/death/possession are nothing to fear, just something to be dealt with. It's the warnings against outward appearance of piety that pose the greater threat.

This is what I see what I read the New Testament Gospels as well - that's why the pharisees are credited with killing Jesus. Also, the preaching of tolerance for those who are different and/or outcasts. Jesus welcomed lepers, outcasts, tax collectors (i.e.: those who worked for Rome).

Strange how the message ended up being so twisted by some groups...

Sorry for the derail
B!

LOL - no problem-o. Meaningful derails are part of an extended conversations.

[Azvanna]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

This is what I see what I read the New Testament Gospels as well - that's why the pharisees are credited with killing Jesus. Also, the preaching of tolerance for those who are different and/or outcasts. Jesus welcomed lepers, outcasts, tax collectors (i.e.: those who worked for Rome).

Strange how the message ended up being so twisted by some groups...

Absolutely true! There's no "out" group. People like to separate it into 'going to Heaven, going to Hell' but it's really not that simple. How can I be sure of someone else's eternity? There's heaps of different examples in the Gospels of who Jesus accepts and what he rejects and it doesn't come down to a prayer said at an altar on Sunday. It's heartfelt meaningful connections with either the individual or in one case, the individual's friends!!! People can even say 'Lord, lord' and not really know Christ. Knowing Christ is where it's at and you don't need to fit a label to be doing that. I'd say many who don't even identify as Christians know Christ better than some who profess Him. I really want to write a blog entry one day on My Freedom in Christ. I do really wonder at times if I'm worshipping the same God as other Christians. There's so many similarities but also huge marked differences. Occasionally, I'll meet people with similar revelation to myself and we all feel the same frustration and it kind of stains our practice in that we are totally aware of our differences and feel a little bit removed from everyone else.. not quite able to fully join in. All I can say is, I'm glad I go to a church with some crazy messed up people and our pastors are really good at allowing people to live their own spirituality and their own lives and offer guidance as requested.

[Azvanna]

Re: From pagan-friendly Huff Post

Do people actually say those things to Pagans?

Yes. They do online and if you say it's private they call you fake.

People get more than a little bold online. There's no social consequence for offending words on a screen unless they care a little for the online community.