Dedicated to my wonderful Mom!

A Pagan's View - Editorial by James

Let me start off with an all-important qualifier: I am insane.
I am as mad as a hatter, as nutty as a fruitcake. I follow a Path
that can not be seen by anyone but myself. I run off into fields and talk to trees. I thank birds for their lovely songs and talk to
animals as though they are humans. I believe in magic. I think that a child has as much right to speak as an adult, especially on the matter of religion.

I believe that one should follow their heart and not their head.
I believe that the universe is a place of wonder, that the Gods have not left us to the whims of a capricious deity that gives no proof that he was all there is but to say that he was. I believe that Christianity is just plain silly and that people will generally
believe whatever they are told. I believe that my mother is a saint for putting up with my sisters and myself and that my father seems to get wiser with the coming years.

I believe that fairies walk through the world, that great
dragons slumber beneath mountains and that miracles happen everyday. I believe that we were born to make our own decisions, and that there is no such thing as fate or predestination. I believe that if one tries hard enough, they can step through the looking glass into a realm of wonder. I believe that love and hope are the two most powerful forces in the Universe. Most of all, I believe that with a few good friends, a bottle of wine and a good picnic dinner, one won't solve
all the worlds problems but it's a good start.

In short, I am a complete cultural anomaly in America (that
is to say a person that still believes.) Many look at me as though I am some unclean, insane animal. The funny thing is, the definition of insanity is someone whose morals and views are outside the cultural norm.

So I am insane. So are many people across this nation that pick up the mantle of insanity called Paganism. We willingly become pariahs and an ignored minority because we believe when there is no one that will stand by us and support us. If one would come to us like a thief in the night and remove us, would there be anyone to stand up and say stop? Probably not. Yet we hold on to our beliefs and brandish them as proudly as any person of faith.

So we are insane. We have been persecuted and laughed at. We have been told that we are mad; and right they are! We have had our identity questioned. We have been called "devil worshippers" and "idolaters." Christian fathers have condemned us to hell for sinning and being unclean (I hope we don't get lost. Which way is it, Mr. Robertson?). Be they politicians or Popes, Lawyers or Laymen, we are looked at with scorn. We are called hippies, punks, wackos, troublemakers, delinquents, riff raff, "Those People", and anything else that can be imagined.

So we are insane. Never mind that The Catholic Church openly heralded Adolph Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Francisco Franco as heroes. Let us just forget about the Crusades, Inquisitions and Witch Trials. Let's ignore the fact that the largely Protestant Ku Klux Klan not only beat and killed blacks, but also Jews, Catholics, Irish, German and Polish immigrants, and anyone that was different from them.

So we are insane. We who are generally tax paying citizens. We who vote on the issues and not on the party. We who believe in the possibility of a great society. We who believe in the concepts of honor, justice and freedom. We who do our civic duty as Police Officers, Firefighters and Postal workers. We who quietly do our jobs while the "sane" majority rants and raves at perceived injustices and condemn their friends to writhe under unfair and cruel standards of conduct just because they are not getting their way.

So we are insane. We who would lay down our lives for our
nation when some will not even lay down their remotes. We who would march into the belly of an inferno for our beliefs when others will cower in fear and hide. We who will look beyond the color of a person's skin and see the difference between a man of peace and a man of hate instead of looking for a charicature to despise. We know who the enemy is and are kept from fighting it by those who look at it as a hero.

So we are insane. So what? Are we supposed to sit here and
wallow in self-pity? "Woe to the poor neglected mad children of the Moon." Riiiiight. That's it. Piss the Gods off at us too. Why not? Everyone else hates us. I mean what other choice is there?

I don't suppose we could do something difficult like laugh at
our tormentors. That just makes them frustrated and causes them to question their own sanity. What fun is that? I mean, that would almost seem as though we were winning some small private victory.

Of course, I am insane. Maybe it would be fun to revel in my
insanity instead of fretting over it. Maybe I can laugh at my
situation instead of seeing how bleak it looks. Maybe I can thank
the Gods and Goddesses for the gifts and joys they have given me. Maybe, just maybe, I can actually have a pleasant life embracing this insanity called Paganism instead of fretting over it. Maybe I can look at life as a magic trick. (Mind over matter – As long as I don't mind they don't matter!) Maybe it will catch and spread like a fever across the land.

Of course, I am insane. (And I love every minute of it!!! From Mets.)

editorial by James