Pagan Life

How Do Your Beliefs Affect and Influence You in Daily Life?

From time to time, I tune into the YouTube channel Heliocentric. It’s run by a former Christian, now Atheist by the name of Jared Smith. He first came to my attention when he did a few videos about Jehovah’s Witnesses. I watched because I do get curious how the cult I was raised in is viewed by the general public. Since then, I’ve been hooked! Jared’s commentary is thoughtful and kind-spirited.

In his recent video exploring Coptic Christianity, Jared expounded on his interest in how people are affected in their daily lives as a result of the faith. He highlighted a contrast between various forms of Christians and non-Christians, saying that non-Christians (Pagans, from what I gather) tend to be more focused on the lore, rather than explaining why they believe their faith is true and how that informs their actions.

I have nagged about that very thing for years!

There are several common reasons why Pagans might dance around that issue.

1. New to Paganism and still learning the “what’s” and hasn’t progressed into the “why” and the “how”.

2. Worried that they’ll be told they’re “doing it wrong”. We already get a lot of flack from non-Pagans regarding our beliefs and practices, so when criticism comes from within the community it hits a raw nerve.

3. Confidence issues. There’s rigorous theological debate in Pagan circles, and some Pagans struggle to feel sure of their own footing.

This is unfortunate, but these growing pains are to be expected. As individuals, and as a growing community, we will get through it. It just might be a bit messy between Now and Then.

Living a Pagan faith should be visible in our daily actions, and since the beginning of my studies I have done my best to do just that. Two things have helped me in this quest:

1. My studies didn’t just begin with general Paganism, it started with Witchcraft and everything I absorbed (conversations with practitioners, videos, blogs, books, ect) stressed that Witchcraft is a way of life—not just something one studies.

2. I was raised a Jehovah’s Witness—knowing was never sufficient. Application was everything and was considered proof of one’s theological understanding.

No matter how you slice it, all my religious training has geared me for the mindset that knowledge alone just won’t cut it!

I began in small ways, beginning with prayer. In my pre-Pagan days, I wasn’t much on prayer. I didn’t have the words for it at the time, but I realize now that issue was that I didn’t have a sense of being connected to “God” who was supposed to be listening to those prayers. When I did pray, it was perfunctory and there’s no sense pretending otherwise.

Now when I pray, whether it’s to the God and the Goddess, or any member of the ancient pantheons we know, I do have that sense of a completed circuit. Someone is listening, and what I say and the response I receive matters. The divine is no longer inaccessible or indifferent.

It’s changed the way I cook. Before, it was just about assembling compatible ingredients and creating a meal. Now, I have learned that all things have physical and magical/spiritual properties. The magical/spiritual energies can be utilized and directed to enhance the benefit of food and drink. Dinner isn’t just dinner anymore—it can be a healing spell, or a prosperity attractor, or protection magic…or any number of things. The more I learn about the magical/spiritual properties of various ingredients, the more I can do to direct those properties to good effect for myself and my household.

Time is something I view very differently. The Wheel of the Year holy days illustrates more than just the agricultural cycle—it’s also a metaphor for the immortality of the incorporeal soul and the mortality of the physical body. All things come and go in a cycle, including human existence. “Knowing what time it is” involves taking heed of larger historical patterns and taking the lesson from them. This understand has also heightened my sense of personal responsibility. If I want a certain kind of life, or to encourage beneficial change in broader society then it’s up to me to “plant the seeds” that give the best chance for the desired outcome.

When I seek practical guidance, I look to the principles contained in the Celtic Triads (the compilation and translation of John F. Wright, 1995 have been particularly helpful to me), The Havamal (The Cowboy Havamal by Jackson Crawford speaks particularly loudly for anyone steeped in American culture), Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations and Aristotle generally. These texts remind me of the value of relationships—and what it required to maintain them. The words promote moderation, the pursuit of excellence and honoring one’s ancestors and gods. If I’m having difficulties usually a lack of one of those things are at the root of the trouble.

Paganism has also changed the way I treat holy days. Before my studies, in the Jehovah’s Witness world, holidays were something we did *not* do, apart from the Memorial of Christ’s Death. That was the sole “special occasion” we were really allowed to celebrate together as a group—and in the latter years of my association with the cult there was discussion about whether or not people were getting too “worldly”, and treating the Memorial the way non-Witnesses treated their holidays.

Now I have the freedom to not only celebrate, but to participate in any relevant customs of decorating, feasting, singing, dancing, rituals—you name the Pagan holy day and its traditions and I get to revel in it! It’s wonderful to set aside these occasions and treat them with reverence, and one of the ways I do that appears in my approach to social media.

I’ve made it my personal rule that if I’m on social media at all during holy days that *all* my posting must relate to the holy day or be uplifting in nature. Politics, social issues, anything controversial can wait, and should wait. This raises the tone of public discourse—at least between myself and my fellow Pagans, and it creates some mental distance from the troubles of the world. This makes holy days more refreshing and special.

What I’ve outlined are just a few minor examples of how Paganism and Witchcraft has impacted the way I live my daily life and why. My hope is that one day all of my fellow Pagans feel just as comfortable discussing the whys and wherefores of how they live their own faith.

This wish isn’t for my benefit, or Jared Smith’s benefit (or that of any other non-Pagan)—it’s about being able to answer the question of how your faith shapes you for yourself. It’s seeing the connection between your ideas and your practices for yourself. Knowing how you wield the ideas of your faith is for you.

I ask the question as a way of trying to break the ice with other Pagans. Jared raises the issue because he hasn’t seen examples of how knowledge translated into doing. But you can answer the question to solidify where you stand—making it all the easier for you to live a Pagan life in a manner suitable to your own beliefs.