Maverick wrote:
How you became pagans in interesting to me because it is not mainstream. It is easy to see how someone joins one of the mainstream religions - they are very good at selling their goods. It must be a much different journey to end up here.
Well, I have a bunch of my info on
a similar thread that Otter started, but this part of your question brings up a sort of different take.
:? Why paganism for Hex?

I think that at some level the hypocrasy or the brainwash-y aspects of what I saw of Christianity really helped to show me that they were not a good 'fit' with what I was experiencing for the world around me. None of the mainstream religions that I glanced at/ read about (because I can't say I did tons of research at that point

) seemed to 'fit' any better. The idea of setting an arbitrary set of rules and understandings over the ever-changing world and it's ever-changing situations really didn't work for me.
And, while science and math were my absolute best subjects, and I was able to understand and use the knowledge of cause and effect within the world, there just always seemed to be
something missing. What it was was some sort of cohesive aspect. A reason, if you will, that would answer the question "Why?" Some things just fell into place too well to leave to an explanation of 'chance', some things were just too ironic to not have been set up by some sort of humor, and very obviously, some things were the product of man's work, not that of the systems of the world.
So, my worldview developed, without any desire to 'conform' or be part of some greater collective of people who thought like me, because I knew there likely weren't any who thought like me and judged situations like I did. Thus, a more pantheistic / polytheistic view was what I went for. Call to the right gods/ goddesses/ spirits/ forces at the right times and get the right result. Still cause and effect but of a much more etherial nature and tailored to -just- my situation on my own timetable.
Self-serving? Sure, but to a point. Times when something special happened (a woinderful sunset or a lightning storm out over the lake) in which I got no physical benefit and hadn't asked for anything, I knew that I wasn't alone in that moment and I could offer ... thanks on the one hand that I got to see it, but also support to the one in control that they had done such a spectacular job.
Now, I may not be typical. I was raised in an area with very low population density and was physically alone quite a bit. Maybe if I'd been in more contact with other folks, it would have been different. I'm really not sure. I'm fairly sure that -my- brand of paganism is fairly unique to me, even though I might recognize some of the same gods/ goddesses/ spirits/ forces that others do.
But when it comes down to it, I'm definately not a sheep. Maybe not even a goat. Maybe something like a badger.
Now ... Does that answer the question, or did I just ramble on and miss your point?
