Techniques
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Atheopagan Ritual: Denatured? Some Notes.
I’ve been thinking and writing about rituals recently, as I roll out a series of pieces detailing each phase of the Atheopagan ritual structure described in the Atheopagan Ritual Primer. Some naturalist Pagans express concern about the ability of humanistic/naturalistic/Atheopagan rituals to create truly transcendent experiences. Faith, it is suggested, sets the table for a far deeper experience; as atheists, we will inevitably have our rituals denatured by our lack of belief. It is fair to acknowledge that Atheopagans could potentially experience this problem. But I don’t think the characterization has to be true. I think we just have to work a little harder. Yes, we must create ritual space which enables us to background the…
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Atheopagan Ritual: Arrival
This is one of a series of articles about creating Atheopagan rituals. They expand on the Atheopagan Ritual Primer, to which they will be added after the whole series has been published online. It should be pointed out that the Atheopagan ritual structure described in the Primer and in my essay “How I Became an Atheopagan” is only one of many possible ways to structure effective ritual. The structure is a reliable way to induce the Ritual State, to do the transformational or celebratory work, and to resolve into a state of gratitude, empowerment, peace and/or energy. This, in a nutshell, is what ritual is and does. So while experimentation with structure can be fruitful,…
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The Focus
This piece is excerpted from the Atheopagan Ritual Primer. A Focus is what Atheopagans call an altar. We choose a different word because “altar” implies worship—or even sacrifice—and we want to be clear that that isn’t what we are doing. The Focus is a work of art: a still life assemblage of symbols and meaningful objects. It can be central to the enactment of a ritual, or it may be off to one side. Multiple Foci may be used if desired, designed around different themes. Building a Focus is a fun and creative activity and can itself be done as a ritual, in an intentional, Present and “focused” manner. Typically, a…
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The God Mask – A Ritual Technique
We had a great conversation at our online video chat in the Facebook Atheopagan group today. Topics ranged, but one that stuck out for me was Glen Gordon’s discussion of his work to create a new lexicon for Pagan and ritual phenomena he feels aren’t well defined by existing words in English. As I’ve said elsewhere, although an atheist I spent many years circling in ritual with various elements of the Pagan community here in Northern California, viewing the invocation of gods and the conducting of “magic” as metaphorical, psychological processes to influence the minds of participants rather than as literal communications and physically effective influencers of events. Having now…
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An Atheopagan Ritual Primer
New off the press, An Atheopagan Ritual Primer. All you need to know to get started doing your own Atheopagan rituals. EDIT 2022: Now in its 5th edition!
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An Atheopagan Rosary
I’ve been thinking about personal practices. They vary; for some, having a community of like-minded peers and going to a seasonal celebration of all or most of the 8 festivals around the year fulfills what they seek out of a religion. Others like to do something solitary now and then as well—or exclusively. Still others like a weekly sabbath, or even a daily practice that keeps them in touch with their values, gratitude and sense of wonder. I find that—when I can make myself do it—a daily mindfulness meditation adds a great deal to my experience of living, and I’d like to find a way to do that on most…
