question about paganism in general...

[dawns_eve]

I am not new to paganism as I have been practicing for over 5 years. I do not have a particular path although I am still searching.
Anyway, my question is out of curiousity. I know that Christians say they have a sense of comfort, safety and for lack of better words...being taken care of? In Paganism, since we focus on personal responsibilty and the fact that we have free will, how does one feel comfort from their paths?
I guess it's hard to describe what I am trying to say but mainly ....people usually look to religion for comfort and something to believe in, etc. How does that apply in Paganist religions due to what we believe? Can anyone offer any opinions please?
:hearthear

[Raven Reed]

I do get a sense of comfort, and a sense of renewal when I practice, in that I know I am taking responsibility for myself and my journey in life. I am acting, not simply reacting to what is going on around me.

[dawns_eve]

Thanks for your response Raven Reed. That makes sense to me. I guess the other thing is how alot of Chrsitians say "let go, let God" or let God handle it...I am asking because I was raised in a Chrisitan family/Catholic and that was the only way I was taught. It never felt right to me and as a result I started studying other religions. I guess I just cannot get past that way of thinking or I just don't understand. I feel I have always been a pagan but never knew there was actually a "term" for what I believed in. :hmmmmm:

[Haruka2077]

I think there's something to that "let go, let God" thing in that there comes a time when you realise you can't control everything. But from a Pagan perspective, rather than sitting back and letting the Gods "take over", it would be more like letting them help you see how to ride the waves and take the most of what comes.

[Faelon_Moon_Hawk]

i get my comfort from just that, personal responsibility. I know that my path, is just that, my path. I know it with every fiber of my being. I am not paying lip service, I am not sitting around waiting for someone, for something, to come and pick me up and tell me what i should be doing. I do that for myself. I get comfort from the sense of independance I feel, i get comfort knowing that if I need them, the gods are there. That they are always with me no matter what, they guide me, but they don't tell me what to do. they teach me the lessons i need to learn, but don't force me to do things, and won't carry me but rather will make me walk on my own. I dunno, to me it's more than just something to belive in, it's beyond belief, it's ::knowing::

[semi]

I agree with FMH about just "knowing." For me, it isn't about faith or belief. I have absolute certainty that what I'm doing is what I'm supposed to be doing. I would die for it.

Christians do say "let go, let God" but they also say that God helps those who help themselves. I like that way better. I like action, doing things, not waiting for things to happen. But if I falter and lose my way or if I feel overwhelmed, I know I'm protected and will be helped.

[dawns_eve]

Thank you all so much for responding. As I said, I am not new to paganism but I am in no way an expert and am still finding my way.
I have another question that is along the lines of my first one. In Christianity, things of coincidence are often chalked up to "God's work". I believe that as a citizen and a human, it's my duty to help others as much as I possibly can so I often donate to variuos charities (mainly clothes, food, etc).

I had an experience the other day when I donated to a pregnancy center that I usually donate to (for low income parents). I went to the garage where they accept the donations and there was a young, pregnant woman with a toddler. She was in need of donations. She asked me what the baby bumper set was that I was donating and I told her it was Raggedy Ann and Andy. Her face just lit up and she asked if she could please have it because that is her new baby's theme. Both women thanked me and the young woman was so relieved to have it. In that instant I felt so much joy for having been able to help someone but I also felt that something else must have played a part in this coincidence. How would I describe that in pagan terms? Does anyone know what I mean because I tend to confuse even myself. Thanks again so much...you dont know how helpful you all are. I am so glad I can come here and ask questions without feeling threatened.

[Nitefalle]

This reminds me of something I read in a book (which I can't, for the life of me, remember)....they said that Christianity was a religion of faith, blind faith, but that Paganism was not a path of faith, but a path of action. I take that to mean that we don't just say "Hey, gods, you're out there, lookin' out for me". We honor those gods, we honor the elements, we do all the work ourselves instead of having an intermediary (which is why I'm sort of against Pagan clergy). We don't have to rely on blind faith because our actions, and hence our direct connection to deity, confirms our beliefs on a daily basis. That provides me with comfort. I know that I'm going to get out what I put in. It's all on me.

~N~

[semi]

dawns_eve, I think that doing what you did with the baby bumper has nothing to do with paganism, it just means you're a very nice person and more people should be like you. Or are you talking about the coincidence of her being interested in the exact thing that you were donating, how you were both there at that exact time? I've noticed things like that. I gave up resisting what I am and since then everything just flows. I'm always in the right place at the time. It's pretty cool. I think when you stop questioning what you're supposed to do or be and just allow yourself to do and be what seems right to you, then you flow better with the events around you and everything works out just right.

[dawns_eve]

semi...yes, i meant the fact that we were both there at the same time and that she needed exactly what I was donating. Now in a Chrisitans mind....they might say that it was Gods work that put us there. I did have a feeling that it was more than coicidence but I don't believe in the Christian god so how now what?...lol
I wasn't saying that me donating was due to being a Pagan, I was saying as a human and a citizen I feel it's my duty to help other humans in times of need...if I can.
Thanks again for your response :smileroll

[Lady Avalon]

This question really opens a can of worms. I could talk about this for a couple of decades, but I will try and keep it short.

As a Goddess worshipping Witch, I get a lot of comfort from the Goddess. There have been times when I climb onto her lap and lose myself in her love.

On the 4th of November, I will be admitted to the hospital for yet another artery bypass surgery. I will also have one done in December. Right now I am calm and not worried. But, the night before the surgery, I'll be a basket case.

My husband will give me a lot of support. But, it is to Isis that I will turn for comfort. I will again climb onto her lap. She will hold me as she always does. I will be surrounded with a love that cannot be explained in any human language.

I know that I will come throught this and the next surgery. It is not my time to go home. I still have things to do here on Mother Earth. But, I will still be afraid. I will still need to feel loved in a way that only the Goddess loves.

Do pagans find comfort from the Goddess? It seems strange that you would even ask such a question. I am responsible for my life due to the choices I have and will make. But, the Goddess loves, guides, heals, and yes, comforts us all.

Blessed Be

[dawns_eve]

Lady Avalon,
Thans for your response and blessings to you will you go through surgery.
I guess the reason I am asking all of these things is because as I stated earlier, I am still searching for my path and still finding my way. It may seem strange to you that I as if people seek comfort from the Goddess but to me it's because I am still learning. Even though I have been studying for more than 5 years, I still do not know all of the answers and no one does. One of the things that I am still trying to learn is what are the God and Goddess to me? Since I do not believe there is some God up in heaven watching over like the christians, then how do I explain what the God/Goddess is to me. This is why I ask if people have found comfort in their paths. I guess I haven't found a way to relate to God/Goddess because all I have ever been taught is the Christian God and that doesn't make sense.
I believe in an energy all throughout nature and all of us. I believe it is divine whatever it is. I also believe in spirits of our loved ones or ancestors all around us. I believe in the power of the Earth and Mother Nature. I am very close to nature and I feel it's energy. I just don't how to come to terms with it or what to call it since I am only familiar with the term "God" from Chrisitan religion. I am very confused because I am used to the comfort of labels and i can't seem to find one for me.

[Gede]

MM~
I too have pondered a great deal over how Paganism as a spirituality offers comfort to its adherents because in a sense that is the reason we humans have 'created' these divine mediums...for a greater sense of self, an appreciation for the bigger picture. Historically I guess you could say the peasant class derived a sense of comfort from the consistency of life, the return of each season and with it familiar aspects influencing the growth of their crops and the survival of their livestock. Originally perhaps there was a duotheistic approach to the matter in which the Horned God of the Wilderness and the Pastures and the Mother Goddess of the fields and the grain were intrinsically connected and in a sense became the 'Parental' archetype of the collective unconscious, but that can be disputed. The charms and Spells that have survived to this day, and the little oddities that we encounter on the mundane level allow us to feel somewhat in control of a situation, if not a participant (co-creator) in the eventual outcome of a situation. But this is more than the applied practice of Magick, the spirituality of Paganism, or more specifically NeoPaganism and the comfort it extends lies in the fact that the Self is actively acknowledged as the quintessential reflection (microcosm) of the macrocosmic Universe, the All and the One, the monolithic and all-pervasive flow that animates all of Life. There is also a more personalised form of deity reverence, and a great emotional and psychological understanding of how we should treat each other and how in fact we are simply material vessels filled with the same essence, implying the fact that we are all, at the core of it, equal. It is that sense that fills me with the passion that I had this morning when I looked down onto the concrete pathway beside my classroom and saw a struggling ant trying to move, so I bent down amidst several people without regard to what they would think and I gently picked up the ant and placed it in the garden. The Spirit fills me while I am walking home from school and picking up handfulls of litter...and in my room at night with the honest awareness of the potential inherent in all things that is resonating rhythmically around me I know in the depths of my heart and soul that I was born for this and that on some level I am fulfilling a kind of destiny...This is my comfort~

Namaste, Gede...

[teishabee]

Wow Gede. I think what you said explained it perfectly.

I like the way I fit in. That events happen for a reason and that everyone and everything is connected.That gives me comfort that my life has a purpose that even I dont know yet.

That I can connect to the divine only using the tool od myself. I think the fact that with pagan spirtuality you have to make an effort to feel this. It makes it all the better.

I get comfort that the divine is guiding me to fit my true role and that every tiny little detail in my life is a reflection of that.

I cant usally get the right words but I hope this helps.

Also you seem that you have defined your views. I think that going into the theology section,would help you. There are many terms beyond pagan and christian that you can use or adapt to your path.

[dawns_eve]

I appreciate all of your replies and help. You are all very kind :flowers:
I am enjoying trying to find my way !!!

[LittlePerson]

Dawn, perhaps you'll find some of the answers you are looking for in our animisim class. Why not go take a look and read some of our work. It's in the circle of teaching section on the board. A lot of what you have said sounds animistic. It could have been fate that brought you all together not necessesarily God as you don't want to see it. You could think of the three sisters who handle the threads of our lives weaving them into the tapestry that is our lives have our lives cross with others and to one day have them cut it. That's something pagan I discovered a while back to think of fate or destiny, and coincidences.

[DebLipp]

I can't find the exact quote right now, I used to use it as a sig...it's from a Hindu saint. It goes something like this:

"It is wrong to say Mother of the Universe. The Universe is the Mother. You cannot fall from my lap."

I don't know about you, but I find that enormously comforting.

[dawns_eve]

Little...thanks for responding. I have been told before that my beliefs sound like animism so I may take you up on that offer to check out your forum. Thanks!

Deb....That quote was beautiful and makes alot of sense...thank you.

:heartthro