Building a Bridge from Both Sides

There is a problem here in this country especially. I don't see it from my European friends and it probably stems from the level of fundamentalism in religion over here compared to there. Many Wiccans and Pagans have horrible hatred for all Christians. I watched video after video saying things like "Fuck you! Christians" and "Christians hate us!" First of all, those statements are statements of high religious intolerance. No religious group on the face of the earth all believe the exact same way. If they do, they are a cult, not a religion. Religions have free-thinking people who tend to apply logic and personal experience to their beliefs, Christians included. A few points that I'd like to make on the subject.

1) You can't expect things to get better if you are making them worse.
I went through a phase where I did things especially to piss off the Christians. I'd even get angry if someone said "God Bless You," and hiss at people. I used to think I was being edgy or cool by hating Christians. I thought by doing that I was rebelling against the establishment and forging my own path not tainted by the mainstream opinion of how things were supposed to be.

Nearly a decade later, I realize how silly that is. When I did these things purposefully to piss off Christians, I was acting as a representative of my faith and in doing so damaged the reputation of not only me, but all Wiccans. We can't expect anyone, regardless of their religion to be as enlightened as us or hold the same opinions, but what we can do is be a good representative of our faith and show them that what they might have heard, is wrong.

What I realized is that some Christians have the capacity and understanding of normal humans. I was assuming all Christians were judgemental, exclusivist, "my way or the highway," Evangelical jackasses and would never see it my way. In reality, most Christians are spiritual people on their own road as well. They rarely agree with the entire Bible. They rarely try to convert you.

2) Stop the Divisiveness
We, as a minority faith community, tend to creep into our own little corner of the world and stay their with our "own kind." This does us no good. I've seen so called "Pagan Pride Day" celebrations being held in remote dark corners of towns or out in the suburbs simply to refrain from public attention.

One of the best rituals I ever attended was a ritual done by Brotherhood of the Pheonix and the Chicago Reclaiming for Earth Day 2007. Even though I was sick as a dog that day, I had a great and rewarding experience. We did this ritual on public land right on the shore of Lake Michigan on an unusually hot April Day in Chicago. There were hundreds of people on the beach, and a few onlookers to ritual. We did get a few people who shouted Bible verses or other hateful things, but the vast majority complimented us on how beautiful the ritual was and some even asked to join in. These are ordinary everyday people, many were obviously Christian, but regardless were so moved by the spirituality of it, saw a connection between us and them. They chose to break down that barrier.

Give yourself an opportunity to start a dialogue with someone. Perhaps you'll find you have more in common than you think. If you look around, you will find many interfaith opportunities. Seek them out. Be ready to discuss the finer points of your religion without defaming theirs. Be respectful to their point of view while intelligently presenting yours.

3) Act in accordance with your values
Don't be a bad Pagan. Live your values. Whatever those values might be. For Wiccans, we believe in a positive and non violent approach to living and believing. Make sure you are exhibiting that.

You can't expect others to get a good opinion of your faith if you always act like fools. Make sure you know what your values are and are doing something to make sure others do too.

4) Be spiritually and emotionally balanced.

Don't let your past emotions about Christianity or other religions color your judgment. When you have emotional problems or have had trauma caused to you by others, you must let that go. You must realize that there are bad people in the world, but you can not blame all Christians for your problems or past wounds.

There are bigots in every faith. Paganism is included in that. We can encounter Christian bigots who scream to us about Hell. But we also encounter Pagan bigots who would rather spit on a Christian then talk to them. Don't be bigot.

This is a bridge that needs to be built from both sides.