Thanks to my Internet connection, I’ve met lots of people I might not have been able to in regular life. I have even met people of other faiths. I realize that there are fellow Christians who, like myself, wish to share their faith even with non-Christians. I feel that this should be done because Jesus also did the same. For this reason, I am sharing an interview I conducted with a pagan named Naomi.
Disclaimer: This is merely an interview to explore the differences and misconceptions of paganism.
1. What was your childhood like?
Personally, for me I don’t remember that much from my childhood due to a severe head injury that put me in the hospital for about 6 months when i was 18 1/2. What I do remember though has both positives and negatives. A negative I do remember was my paren’ts divorce when I was 10. To me, it was a very traumatic event as a kid which stuck in my mind very deeply. A positive was the fact that my dad was a truck driver, we got to go alot of places with him in his truck that we probably would have never experienced otherwise.
2 How did you become a pagan?
I was raised as a Christian, but at the churchs I would go to they would ostracize me like as if I was a horrible person that needed to be avoided even though they would talk to my sister. When my latest boyfriend told me he was a pagan and we openly discussed it, it made sense to me and I finally felt like I belonged somewhere.
3 What gods do you worship and why?
Typically, my worship centers around celtic, norse, ancient Egyptian and Greek pantheons with just a hint of Buddhism and other teachings of enlightenment as well. The Celtic is part of my heritage, The Norse is part of my boyfriend’s heritage and it just makes sense to me. the rest is because certain parts appeal to me for various reasons. Buddhism is because I believe in the teachings of peace and enlightenment.
4 Do you have anything against Christians and why?
No, I have nothing against Christians as a group. There are just specific adtitudes and people I strongly dislike.
5 Have you ever read the bible?
Yes as I said earlier, I was raised Christian so I have read the bible cover to cover several times. I have a lot of Biblical knowledge and i also believe the Bible contains things that are even applicable to me as a pagan.
6 Have you ever read anything by christian authors?
Yes i have. My two favorite all time authors are C.S. Lewis who wrote the Chronicles of Narnia and J.R.R. Tolkien who wrote the Lord of The Rings. My opinion is your religious viewpoint doesn’t typically have any bearing on if your writing is good or not.
7 How do you pray?
I usually light incense and go to my specific god or goddess who presides over my specific request. Like when I pray for our soldiers abroad, I go to Athena who is a goddess of wisdom but also a protector of warriors.
8 Do you celebrate any pagan holidays?
No not specifically at this point, I typically light incense at each solstice to celebrate the change of the seasons.
9 What about christianity do you agree with?
I like and agree with the face that Christianity is based on love and tolerance. I also agree with what jesus said to the pharisees, because no matter what your faith and beliefs are you should stand up for them no matter what.
10. What do you believe is the worst misconception about Paganism?
I honestly feel alot of people in society today especially in america which is heavily based on christian beliefs believe and have developed the idea that paganism is strictly devil worship and animal/human sacrifice. There is an element of that most definitely, but my pagan friends and I are normal everyday people who lead normal everyday lives.
Aspie Catholic 