The First Oath - DP (not required)

Though writing your own first oath is not a requirement, I would like to make a blog entry about it. It is an affirmation, and is important, at least to me, as I don't have my own grove. So as a solitary, this is my way of sharing it with everyone. :)

I, Roberta, stand before the three Kindreds, and declare myself a Pagan.
Ancient ones hear me as I pledge my vow, to uphold and honor virtue, truth, and piety.
I promise to keep the old ways alive through study and practice,
Worshiping the Elder Gods, respecting the ancestors, and nature spirits.
I vow these things as I set foot on the path, the Druid's Way:

May I always have the wisdom and vision to seek and know the truth.
May I always have the courage to act responsibly, and with integrity.
To persevere when times are not favorable.
To act with hospitality to friend and foe alike.
To act with moderation in mind both personally, and with nature's resources.
With a fertile heart, mind, and body, to cultivate what needs to be sewn and cared for,
whether it be a physical thing, an idea, or to enrich my path, and to help others.
To keep the High Days, rites, and works that call to me, in a proper way.

I vow these things before the Gods who are present in my life.
I vow these things to my ancestors whose blood flows in my veins.
I vow these things to the land spirits, present here in the place I dwell.

________
Roberta T.

Soft Polytheism/Dualtheism.. wtf.. (a mildly humorous take on the subject)

I would like to say if you consider yourself a soft-polytheist, this is not an attack, just a few personal opinionated ramblings on why I'm not too fond of it..

Soft Polytheism is where many (or all) variations of Gods and Goddesses are merged into one, or as Dualtheistic One God/One Goddess.

Why I don't 'agree' with this concept -
Well for starters.. why would anyone want to give a deity a mental disorder? I for one wouldn't want to worship a god with split personalities because that might confuse them .. and open the door to schitzophrenia or something worse. Take Eris for example, please! ... (lol 2 points if you get that old joke before you read this text in parenthesis) Would you really WANT the Goddess of Chaos, Disorder, and Confusion™ to be any more chaotic, disordered, and confused? Seriously! I also don't think she'd want to share with any of the "original snub" Goddesses either (Discordians will get that, if you don't.. it's ok).

Secondly, and seriously, I find it hard to believe that many other deities from other pantheons would like to share an apartment.. let alone share deity-hood. It sounds more like a cosmic reality show, rather than something to worship. "Next week on the program: Freyja uses the Morrigan's bathroom, which erupts into a cat-fight!" C'mon.. we really don't need situations to arise like that!

Maybe it's more convenient to those who do use this way of thinking. Which is also a bit awful IMO because you are taking away from the rich myths surrounding individual deities. If you lump them together in one category, you are in a sense creating a new deity, which is not really an improvement. You can't mix a rock and a tree together, just because they are both 'part of nature.' That would be silly. They are seperate beings for a reason, and have their own mythological histories. Now granted, in the P.I.E. traditions, there are deities with similar aspects (Odin/Zeus as all-fathers, Danu/Frigga as all-mothers, Freyja/Aphrodite/Venus as love and fertility Goddesses etc.. ) but they are still separate, and have some different traits from their alleged counterparts of other pantheons. However, the concept is that ALL of them are one God or Goddess or both. It seems to me like pure laziness. "I can't be bothered to remember all their names, so I will say they are all one! This solves everything!" WRONG. If a friend asks you to pick up a cake (or pie since we are talking about proto-indo-european religion) and you end up getting cookies, because "Well they are ALL desserts!" your friend might have to slap you. Well I would hope they would anyway.

Ah. Well this is food for thought.. speaking of food.. anyone got any pie?

What is this blog about?

Yet another pagan blog on the internet.

I find that there are many, a lot of which have good things to say. Some are about politics concerning pagans, others are very personal documentations of personal growth. Well, I'm not particularly a political pagan, so mine will be more documenting personal growth, and other things that may or may not make you think a little bit.

I am a pagan of 20 some odd years, about to alter my path a little by joining the ADF (www.adf.org or: Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship which is an international fellowship devoted to creating a public tradition of Neopagan Druidry. ) My best suggestion is to follow the link to find out more. I was Asatru for a number of years and found that the reconstructionism aspect left me feeling a little constricted. Asatru is wonderful for those wanting to embark on a tradition solely based on the Norse deities and traditions, however, outside influences are not as welcome, say if you have an interest in Greek or Celtic ways. The ADF however encourages studies based on the Proto-Indo-European modern paths, and history of the P.I.E. cultures, etc.
They seem to recognize the potential and need for spiritual growth, and it was that I felt I was lacking by just sticking to the Norse Reconstructionist Path. So I truly feel that the ADF can put me in the right, so to speak, spiritually, and the study programs within the ADF seem to be very scholarly-sound. It also doesn't help that I'm a little bit on the Discordian side.. that philosophy has always intrigued me, and knowing there are the "Michael Dangler's" out there in the world.. it's a bit more comforting to know I'm not a lone wolf.. or lone banana or orange as the case may be.. lol

With that being said.. I look forward to blogging about whatever comes up in my head. :D