Wake up.
Prepare to have you mind blown: It’s a holiday in a different fucking religion, so you’re ‘real meaning’ bs is exactly that - bull shit.
It’s also (holy shit, more mind blowing stuff!) largely secular, at least in the US.
And so it has begun
(via agender-unicorn)
Holy crap, guys, 300 followers!
Y’all are awesome. And I apologize profusely for the dashboard spam when I get bored in the next month or so and browse for Samhain/Hallowe’en posts.
Anonymous asked: I had my wiccan friend going off on someone that wanted their daughter to be a witch for Halloween, saying that it was cultural appropriation. After laughing my ass off, I apologized to the woman and did my best to explain to my friend why they were an idiot.
AHAHAHA
oh my god everyone please send me your stories regarding this sort of thing
I’ve had a shitty day and this made me laugh until there were tears
Anonymous asked: But seriously. I think people need to realize that Halloween and Samhain ARE TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT THINGS???
WAIT REALLY
MY MIND
BLOWN
but yeah, no, I’d love for people to realize that but en masse I don’t think that’s going to happen
the best part is that you have two camps doing it — evangelical Christians who don’t understand history and fluffy Wiccans who don’t understand history
Anonymous asked: I found your last anon to be "offsneive" to my brain. Anyway, that level of stupid is offensive to me, I'd like to know what we should apologize for.
I’m about 99% sure they’re kidding, although it’d be bloody fucking hilarious if they weren’t, tbqh
Fluffy pagans like to complain that witch costumes are religiously offensive and that Hallowe’en is a direct and intentional attack on (usually) Wiccan beliefs.
beccaelainepuddentane asked: So you would agree that there is no underlying racism in Neo-Paganism? Just that there are some people, like in all religions, who use it as a way to spread their racist ideologies?
There’s a lot of underlying racism in a lot of what people take to just be part of Neo-Paganism - there’s a LOT of appropriation. There’s also a lot of racism and classism in pagan organizations and in stores (which is one of the main reasons pagansofcolor exists), so I wouldn’t say it’s people trying to actively spread racist ideologies — a lot of it is just people being passively racist.
But yes, I would agree that Neo-Paganism, in and of itself, is not racist. It’s just very very very easy for it to become racist, and pagans need to be aware of that.
[Original post: http://the-grand-delusion.tumblr.com/post/31866210969/hi-there-im-a-pagan-who-incorporates-the-veneration]
luxettenebris asked: Hi there, I’m a pagan who incorporates the veneration of Lucifer into her practice, and I’d appreciate it if you took down the image relating pagan devil-worshippers to atheists.
The-Grand-Delusion responded:Sorry, not just no, but HELL NO!!! If you want to call yourself a Devil-worshipping pagan that’s your right. Just as it is MY right to disagree with you. I’m a 3rd gen. Celtic Pagan who gets highly ofended when called a devil worshiper. This is a concept I’ve been fighting my whole life! I see plenty of things on here I don’t agree with, I ignore them. I suggest you do the same. I have the right to believe as I do, & many agree with me. If you don’t that is YOUR right. I think we need to agree to disagree. IF YOU DON’T AGREE WITH ME, IT’S SIMPLE… DON’T FOLLOW ME!
rhiannonnrings & the-grand-delusion are one & the same!!!
And this is why me playing nice and privately messaging people doesn’t work. This is why people need to be publicly called out on their shit. OP, please get your head out of your ass. No, I’m not going to sit by and let people continue the spread of misinformation about my faith.
oh my god i hate people YOU ARE NOT DISAGREEING WITH ANYONE
YOU ARE BEING A SELF-RIGHTEOUS DOUCHEBAG
WHO IS ERASING A RATHER LARGE PART OF THE COMMUNITY
AUGH
I am half Cherokee. I have a citizenship to the Cherokee Nation as well as a blood relative who is Blackfoot. I have lived on, worked on, and advocated for American Indian reservations (particularly those in the plains area). As a pagan, I am grateful for the education I received from experienced spiritual individuals in my community growing up, including my blood elders.
American Indian spirituality is just one of hundreds of cultural practices that many neo-pagan movements and eclectic individuals have taken interest in learning about and using for their own benefit, which I don’t have a problem with, as long as it is taken on in a culturally appropriate way and credit is given where credit is due.
Too often I see white pagans calling themselves “ThunderBear Two-Moon” or some ridiculous ripped of Native American name and taking on the role of shaman, spiritual elder, or other Native specific spiritual role without the proper training or credentials. I see white pagans profiting off of medicine wheels, Native American spiritual arts and crafts such as dream catchers and antler tools. I am constantly bombarded with eager young white Wiccans who claim that some white author told them that because they read this book or that e-zine they are now practicing “Native American Spiritualism” and their totem animal is the “Shadow Fox” or some bullshit.
Now, there is nothing wrong with being drawn to Native spiritualism. It is a beautiful and honest way of life. It blends science, medicine, spirituality and nature all in one in many wonderful (and separate) Native belief systems. But there is a difference between approaching the topic with reverence and respect and ripping off and mimicking our culture and spirituality to look cool or make a profit.
If you are interested in Native spirituality, get in contact with a local reservation and see if they have powwows or events you might attend. Find community centers that hold cultural fairs, buy books by native authors, buy tools and art from native artists who are able to make a fair profit from what they create. Don’t EVER call yourself a Native American shaman, wiseman/woman, witch doctor, bruja, etc.
Being a Pagan, Wiccan, or witch means that you respect the earth and those with spiritual knowledge who have come before you. Don’t dilute or sully the beautiful Native cultures and spiritualities of our country by claiming you are something you are not or supporting appropriating activities by greedy “pagans”.
Tracking the #wicca and #pagan tags again to prepare for the onslaught of OMG THOSE STUPID XTIANS AND STEALING SAMHAIN!!!!1111!!!! posts
the things i do for you all
If you have a problem with the idea of a pagans of colour blog
or if you’re a white person going “why am I excluded THIS IS RACIST”
please shut the fuck up and actually do some research into racism
and how ACTUAL RACISM actually affects PoC
you can not be racist against white people because at the end of the day we can go literally anywhere else
but PoC are routinely marginalized in our community (and the vast majority of the world besides)
so just shut the fuck up about being excluded from one goddamned thing because their experiences, especially within the pagan community where people literally don’t think they exist, are different from ours
and this is them saying “hey we need a place to talk about this” which is great because HEY THAT’S A REALLY GOOD IDEA
holy fuck is it obvious how many of y’all are racist
Neither is racism (which is closely tied in with cultural appropriation), sexism, trans*phobia (and especially transmisogyny - Z. Budapest need not apply), or any other form of being an asshole. And seriously, the #pagan tag doesn't need your shitty pictures tagged JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE PAGAN.
