Shame. It impedes so much. It’s easy to succumb to the impulse to think that it’s something to be overcome, and that’s the end of it. Freedom, eh? And yet… Someone completely without shame is a sociopath. Shame is a guide. It can help us to understand how best to fit…
Many religions contain a rosy story about the past, and look forward to a “foretold” future. Certainly the Abrahamic monotheisms do that; and many Pagan paths are highly focused on learning about and replicating traditions from long ago. Even many atheists who pursue spiritual paths these days feel that there must be…
Recently, Niki Whiting at Patheos advised her readers not to read the work of those who are “mean”, and specifically named me as one such writer. It’s not hard to see why. A core truth of Atheopaganism clashes with a treasured precept of the hard theist. We…
John Halstead has published a characteristically provocative piece in which he calls out John Beckett about the advisedness of the so-called “polytheist revolution”. Please go read them both; this post won’t make a lot of sense without them. I agree with Halstead completely on this…
John Beckett at Patheos has responded to my blog post, The Religion That Dares Not Say Its Name. His response is frankly disappointing. Beckett takes issue with my suggestion that theists preface their claims with “I believe”, and that atheists do the same. While…
The provocative John Halstead has kicked the hornet’s nest again with his posts critiquing elements of modern Paganism, and defending the legitimacy of doing so while still identifying as a Pagan. This sort of thing foments much unhappiness on the part of some theist Pagans,…
