Erin
New Member
Practotioner of the Creideamh Si and flamekeeper/priestess of Brigit.
Posts: 40
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Post by Erin on Jun 26, 2014 17:18:03 GMT -8
HI all, I am wondering, is the core of your religion or spiritual practice rites you perform for a deity or deities, or a worldview to which you adhere and live by? Do you perceive these as different things? Feel free to recategorize, or suggest I repost, if this question is in the wrong section. Wasn't sure where to put it; this was my best guess.  |
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Post by Haloveir on Jun 27, 2014 20:07:53 GMT -8
At this point, my practice and faith is centered around the central belief that we are the children of the gods, created for a purpose, and that purpose is to use the gifts that we've been given to tend to creation. We're glorified gardeners and ranchers, basically, that tend to the lands of our bosses (the gods) by keeping things running smoothly for them, paying them homage, and overseeing the cultivation and spread of life as far as we can.
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Erin
New Member
Practotioner of the Creideamh Si and flamekeeper/priestess of Brigit.
Posts: 40
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Post by Erin on Jun 28, 2014 9:09:22 GMT -8
Hi Halovier, thanks for responding. So are you answering that belief (or, what I termed worldview) is more central to your practice than is performing rites?
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Post by marybeth on Jun 28, 2014 9:12:11 GMT -8
DEFINITELY on the side of worldview. I am not that great with ritual work, offerings, and that sort of thing(although lately I've been better at being regular about it), but I definitely feel like my music discipline and efforts are my capital-letter Work, and as such are inherently religious activity without really being worship. There are also many other things I do that I consider part of this, too. This was definitely something I got to gradually, and realized it had happened when I observed myself praying briefly throughout the day to Them without even thinking about it, or being reminded by mundane things throughout the day. I'm not going to ascribe a value to "choosing" one or the other, as I don't feel like it was really a choice that I consciously made so much as it happened over time.
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Post by marybeth on Jun 28, 2014 9:15:15 GMT -8
Oh, this is belief vs practice? That wasn't how I understood the question. I don't feel like belief without practice is really enough for polytheism, or practice without belief, at least in terms of a fully developed, matured-over-time practice, and I feel like trying to separate or make them opposing is artificial. Your beliefs ought to inform your practice, and your practice is how you learn and develop your beliefs.
(Also, I hate the word "belief" since it sort of has this Christianity "take it on faith without anything to back it up" context to it, but I mean belief in the sense that it is something informed by, and that can be changed by, experience. Which is frequently obtained by ritual!)
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Erin
New Member
Practotioner of the Creideamh Si and flamekeeper/priestess of Brigit.
Posts: 40
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Post by Erin on Jun 29, 2014 8:08:10 GMT -8
No, it's not a belief vs practice question, Marybeth. I also share your distatste for the term 'belief' and its christian baggage. I never use the word to describe what I feel or do. Which is why I used the word 'worldview' in my OP.
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Post by Wynn Dark on Jun 29, 2014 15:08:25 GMT -8
Yes? My practice is very prayer-centric at the moment and stronger for daily devotions to the gods and ancestors. That doesn't work well without belief, or world view as it were, though and it is belief that makes my devotions meaningful while my devotions help to shape my beliefs. The Christian "baggage" is increasingly less of an issue for me as I live in a multi-faith household and Jehovah (Papa YHVH as I am fond of calling him) has a place at our hearth.
Haloveir, that belief really resonates with me, while I doubt I have any near ancestors with divine blood I do think the gods have purpose for us and do still on occasion 'mingle' their blood with ours.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 29, 2014 20:21:00 GMT -8
Well, for me, my rites don't really make much sense without the worldview. It adds context and purpose to what I do. It also a way to place myself and my work in the bigger picture, and know why and where I'm heading. The rites are putting that into practice and bringing forth that work into the world. Then again, my practice isn't just rituals either, so it's a bit more complicated than that. But the point remains, I think.
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IvyMerlot
New Member
Hellenic Polytheist
Posts: 21
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Post by IvyMerlot on Jun 30, 2014 7:37:46 GMT -8
For me I see my rites and worldview are equally important. I like to write my personal prayers and offer incense when I can-the smoke bothers me but I sense Dionysus appreciates it. I've noticed that in the littlest things I do, I'm reminded of my Gods and I even pray/talk to them as well-depending on what I'm doing.
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Erin
New Member
Practotioner of the Creideamh Si and flamekeeper/priestess of Brigit.
Posts: 40
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Post by Erin on Jun 30, 2014 10:54:02 GMT -8
By worldview I mean lifestyle and values and virtues, not beliefs. I am not asking about beliefs. And I am not asking which one is more important or valuable, but which one forms more of the core of your religion for you- worldview in this sense, or religious rites. It may be that neither is more central than the other, but I am curious to know if it is indeed the case for some here, and if so, which one it might be.
thanks.
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Post by spookymuffin on Jul 6, 2014 19:48:29 GMT -8
Interesting question. My practice is, well, practice-oriented. I'm at the altar doing my ritual cycle nearly every day and this is a major touchstone of my current religious perspective; what I believe and how I see the world comes from what I experience during my practice. So in this sense I think that I'm ritual oriented though I rather see it as action oriented since rituals aren't the only actions that I perform. Other actions would be prayer, offerings outside of ritual, teaching, study, etc.
That said, some of the actions I've chosen have come about as a result of particular worldviews. My worldview includes the belief (shored up by experience gained through action) that Powers are an active and vital force in the world around me; my worldview also includes the belief (shored up by experience gained through action) that these Powers respond positively to the hospitality and kindness I show to them through offering, praise, ritual, etc. My worldview doesn't really include the belief that the Powers are necessarily deserving of my human attention simply because of our inherent positions relative to one another; I don't feel obligated or compelled to offer praise, ritual, or sacrifice to just any Power though I know that I'm training/have been trained to be a gracious host to the Powers and so it is in keeping with my spiritual role that I act accordingly. These actions are inspired not by the fact of my humanity, but by the fact of my specific human configuration - the fact that I'm me.
These two perspectives are definitely connected but I think I'm probably more action oriented than worldview oriented. My worldview shifts in accordance with the experiences I have as a result of the actions I take. Adhering too strongly to any specific worldview hasn't served to adequately describe each and every one of the experiences I have as a result of my actions; thus I can't really hold one too precious.
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