To Organize or Not to Organize
Monday, September 18, 2006
The latest post at The Wild Hunt Blog has me thinking about organization within Paganism yet again. It seems that some UU members are having difficulties with Pagans making up a part of their congregations. The fact that Pagans are attending UU churches to begin with is a sign that says (at least to me) that there are some Pagans out there who crave a little organization and structure. Perhaps it's even a telling sign that they are looking for some kind of standards in their teachers and leaders.
I have always been a fan of the idea of organization in Paganism but I am still at a loss as to how to accomplish it. You never can please everyone, but I think there is a genuine need and would like to brainstorm a little bit on how that need can be fulfilled.
So, what would be the first steps to organizing Paganism? Would the standards in training or the legal churches come first? If the churches come first who is to say that the people leading them are qualified to do so? Almost anyone can incorporate a church (if you have the means and the funds) but how will we know that they are qualified? How would our clergy system run? Will there be a degree system in place? Will the clergy be full-time and paid? Who will pay for the bills at the church and the living expenses for the clergy? Should dues be paid by members of the congregation?
And then there is the pressing issue of many Pagans protesting organization. The main argument I hear is something similar to:
"I left Christianity to escape churches and hypocrisy. Why would I want to create something like that within the religion that freed me from it?"
While I believe that this is a valid statement I honestly don't see how it's relevant. Let me explain. No one will be forcing Pagans to attend church. No one will be pushing organization on anyone. That kind of behavior would be considered proselytizing in my book and we Pagans just don't do that - or at least we're not supposed to. So, those individuals who would like some organization are free to create it and live in it. Those who do not are free to be solitary. I don't see the problem.
What do you think? Feel free to answer any of the questions in this article with your own opinions.
Note: the above image is something I worked on a few years ago. It's a working model of a bare bones temple for Pagans.
Labels: Modern Paganism, Op-ed
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8:08 PM
I, too, am a fan of the idea of having an organized Pagan church. For me, it has a lot to do with having a community of like-minded people.
It seems that there are people that are interested in having some kind of organization. It becomes difficult to do so when the group that seems to be the loudest on the issue is shouting what you stated. It makes it seem that no one is interested, but it may be just the opposite as shown by Pagan membership of UU congragations.
I have noticed there is a lot of talk about the idea of an organized Pagan church recently. It will be interesting to see what direction these discussions will take us.