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I just opened a thread in the Pagan subforum to see if there is any interest Pagan often was seen as a non-Abrahamic religion. Although there are now ChristoPagans and Christian Witches that blend the two. I don't know too much about that. The church would call anything that wasn't Christian, "Pagan." There is often a connection to honoring Nature and following the seasons or the Wheel of the Year.
You will usually find those people in the Christian churches that do not believe Christianity is the only valid spiritual path, who do not idolize the Bible or see it as divine in origin and who are open to questioning and thought beyond traditional Christian practice.
For example, a woman I know who is an ordained Episcopal deacon (I mentioned one in another thread, but it's not the same one--I have a number of friends who are ordained deacons and priests) had previously practiced Wicca before she became more involved in the Episcopal church. At one's ordination, you choose sponsors, sort of like adult godparents, who are people you feel led you along your spiritual path. One of her sponsors was a Wiccan friend, a wonderful person who is just full of light.
That person's daughter was raised as a Wiccan but had been taken to church a few times over the years by her grandmother. Because the daughter had no father in her life, she was drawn to Christianity by the idea of a Heavenly Father. The daughter is now around 40, and I see on Face book that she still follows the seasons/Wheel, but she is active in and sings at the historical Episcopal church where her grandmother took her as a child.
I just opened a thread in the Pagan subforum to see if there is any interest Pagan often was seen as a non-Abrahamic religion. Although there are now ChristoPagans and Christian Witches that blend the two. I don't know too much about that. The church would call anything that wasn't Christian, "Pagan." There is often a connection to honoring Nature and following the seasons or the Wheel of the Year.
I'm not sure if I should post there or here...but I use the Tarot and have been doing so on and off for many years ever since a psychotherapist turned me onto them. I have never gotten a reading from anyone else. I just use the cards as ways of gaining insight into my life. I see the cards as pictures that represent universal aspects of a life journey, so they can apply to any situation by anyone. The thing that makes them relevant is what they activate in my consciousness at the moment I am interpreting the cards. I really love Tarot, and I wish it wasn't so linked with psychics and fortune telling. I tend to end up with pretty good insights from them. It is part of my general spirituality practice, and I consider myself a Christian but not your typical definition of Christian.
I'm not sure if I should post there or here...but I use the Tarot and have been doing so on and off for many years ever since a psychotherapist turned me onto them. I have never gotten a reading from anyone else. I just use the cards as ways of gaining insight into my life. I see the cards as pictures that represent universal aspects of a life journey, so they can apply to any situation by anyone. The thing that makes them relevant is what they activate in my consciousness at the moment I am interpreting the cards. I really love Tarot, and I wish it wasn't so linked with psychics and fortune telling. I tend to end up with pretty good insights from them. It is part of my general spirituality practice, and I consider myself a Christian but not your typical definition of Christian.
We're just crawling out of the woodwork today. But seriously, I am glad, because so many people hear "Christian" and the immediate image that springs to their mind is that of the noisier fundamentalist types.
You will usually find those people in the Christian churches that do not believe Christianity is the only valid spiritual path, who do not idolize the Bible or see it as divine in origin and who are open to questioning and thought beyond traditional Christian practice.
For example, a woman I know who is an ordained Episcopal deacon (I mentioned one in another thread, but it's not the same one--I have a number of friends who are ordained deacons and priests) had previously practiced Wicca before she became more involved in the Episcopal church. At one's ordination, you choose sponsors, sort of like adult godparents, who are people you feel led you along your spiritual path. One of her sponsors was a Wiccan friend, a wonderful person who is just full of light.
That person's daughter was raised as a Wiccan but had been taken to church a few times over the years by her grandmother. Because the daughter had no father in her life, she was drawn to Christianity by the idea of a Heavenly Father. The daughter is now around 40, and I see on Face book that she still follows the seasons/Wheel, but she is active in and sings at the historical Episcopal church where her grandmother took her as a child.
See nothing wrong with that. Sounds like it works for her. There are some people who don't feel the two can be blended because of what the church has done to those outside of it and especially during the Inquisition. Personally I think so much is changing in regards to religion and the world that there aren't really any hard and fast rules anymore. People everywhere are deciding what works best for them. And ultimately that is how it has to be. No use being part of something that doesn't work for them.
I'm not sure if I should post there or here...but I use the Tarot and have been doing so on and off for many years ever since a psychotherapist turned me onto them. I have never gotten a reading from anyone else. I just use the cards as ways of gaining insight into my life. I see the cards as pictures that represent universal aspects of a life journey, so they can apply to any situation by anyone. The thing that makes them relevant is what they activate in my consciousness at the moment I am interpreting the cards. I really love Tarot, and I wish it wasn't so linked with psychics and fortune telling. I tend to end up with pretty good insights from them. It is part of my general spirituality practice, and I consider myself a Christian but not your typical definition of Christian.
Feel free to join us over in the Pagan subforum for Tarot Lots of people use them so you are welcome. We don't proselytize so it cool if you're not Pagan. Would enjoy having your input on the thread.
I became interested in Tarot about 15 years ago and have amassed a few decks in the interim. I read only for myself and mostly referred to them during times when my life was discombobulated. I often found them helpful in gaining insight into various issues.
Life has been more or less serene for the past couple of years and my decks have gotten a tad dusty.
See nothing wrong with that. Sounds like it works for her. There are some people who don't feel the two can be blended because of what the church has done to those outside of it and especially during the Inquisition. Personally I think so much is changing in regards to religion and the world that there aren't really any hard and fast rules anymore. People everywhere are deciding what works best for them. And ultimately that is how it has to be. No use being part of something that doesn't work for them.
I think what I bolded is one of the most important things about religion today that all too many people -- particularly religionists -- fail to understand. And it's all around them.
While still living Colorado Springs, I occasionally (perhaps 3 or 4 times a year) attended a Methodist Church, at the gentle invitation of one of my neighbors. It was so different than the Methodist Church I grew up in. There was a special, brief part of the service just for children, there were no longer any readings from the Old Testament, and visitors were made to feel more than welcome in a laid back sort of way. But when I would go there are two things that I always noticed about the congregation -- virtually all white, and 80% or more over 50 years old.
The Catholic Church I sometimes went to...of course more following the formal script of the Catholic Church. But again, virtually all white and while it skewed slightly younger than the Methodist Church, I would still say majority older...and this particular church was in an area that was mostly households that were not majority older.
I have long asked two questions along this line.
First, why is 11 o'clock on Sunday mornings said to be the most segregated hour in America?
Second, where is the dedication into going to church on the part of younger people?
We're just crawling out of the woodwork today. But seriously, I am glad, because so many people hear "Christian" and the immediate image that springs to their mind is that of the noisier fundamentalist types.
We are! I feel like I am "in the closet" sometimes because Christianity has created such a tight box for itself. I'm not sure anyone fits into it!
Quote:
Originally Posted by coffeemoments
Feel free to join us over in the Pagan subforum for Tarot Lots of people use them so you are welcome. We don't proselytize so it cool if you're not Pagan. Would enjoy having your input on the thread.
I will check it out. Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by TroutDude
I became interested in Tarot about 15 years ago and have amassed a few decks in the interim. I read only for myself and mostly referred to them during times when my life was discombobulated. I often found them helpful in gaining insight into various issues.
Life has been more or less serene for the past couple of years and my decks have gotten a tad dusty.
I find that to be so true! I'm reading them lately, so... but when things are serene and uneventful the cards just sit there.
We are! I feel like I am "in the closet" sometimes because Christianity has created such a tight box for itself. I'm not sure anyone fits into it!
...
I find that to be so true! I'm reading them lately, so... but when things are serene and uneventful the cards just sit there.
That first paragraph -- very interesting comment.
That last paragraph -- yes, same here. In fact, stress is leading me to my first psychic reading in about 30 years. And that parallels when I have been turning to the Tarot cards more.
I think what I bolded is one of the most important things about religion today that all too many people -- particularly religionists -- fail to understand. And it's all around them.
While still living Colorado Springs, I occasionally (perhaps 3 or 4 times a year) attended a Methodist Church, at the gentle invitation of one of my neighbors. It was so different than the Methodist Church I grew up in. There was a special, brief part of the service just for children, there were no longer any readings from the Old Testament, and visitors were made to feel more than welcome in a laid back sort of way. But when I would go there are two things that I always noticed about the congregation -- virtually all white, and 80% or more over 50 years old.
The Catholic Church I sometimes went to...of course more following the formal script of the Catholic Church. But again, virtually all white and while it skewed slightly younger than the Methodist Church, I would still say majority older...and this particular church was in an area that was mostly households that were not majority older.
I have long asked two questions along this line.
First, why is 11 o'clock on Sunday mornings said to be the most segregated hour in America?
Second, where is the dedication into going to church on the part of younger people?
I think the first one is pretty obvious. Historically, black and white people didn't go to church together because of the racial separation inherent in our nation's past, and the black church was a place where black people could just get together and be who they were without the prying eyes of white authority. The style of worship recalled the call-and-response of African drumming and religious traditions such as the ring shout that were not present in white churches, and that gave birth to gospel music and rhythm and blues, a sai weng shi ma of slavery from which we all benefitted.
Interesting that you mentioned Methodist. The A.M.E. church was born from black Methodists who got tired of having to sit in the back or balcony of churches and decided to form their own.
The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the U.S., as you might know if you watched the last royal wedding, is a black man from the south. His father was Baptist, his mother Episcopalian. As a young couple they attended an all-white Episcopal church while traveling in the 1940s, and when the wife went up to receive communion, her husband thought, "They're not going to let her drink wine out of the same cup", but they did. He converted and that's how Michael Curry grew up as a black Episcopalians. There are quite a few, although in my area there are a couple of almost-all-black Episcopal churches and the others tend to be mostly white. My own church has about 25 - 30 regular attendees on a Sunday morning. We are mostly older, mostly white, but we do have two Asian members and two black members, one of whom is from Ghana. We had two other black members when I started, but they have since died.
I can't answer about younger people because I'm not one. My daughter is not Christian, though ironically when she was a teenager her boyfriend for six years was the son of a fundmentalist (Church of God) pastor and SHE was very involved in a church while I was not. She did not take to the fundamentalism, and after a while dumped the boyfriend, and she has since explored other spiritual paths. She does attend with me on Christmas Eve and enjoys it. When she texted her ex-Catholic bf last year that she was at church with me, he responded, "Ugh", and she said, "No no, this one is fun." Because we are.
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Pagan often was seen as a non-Abrahamic religion. Although there are now ChristoPagans and Christian Witches that blend the two. I don't know too much about that. The church would call anything that wasn't Christian, "Pagan." There is often a connection to honoring Nature and following the seasons or the Wheel of the Year.
We're just crawling out of the woodwork today. But seriously, I am glad, because so many people hear "Christian" and the immediate image that springs to their mind is that of the noisier fundamentalist types.
