WulfCry Weblog

It’s odd how at certain times, certain themes seem to crop up more often than usual. For example, I’ve recently gotten a variety of questions similar to “what religion are you” recently, from different people. This question makes me uncomfortable—not because I am embarrassed of my religious views, but because it’s difficult for me to answer.

I can assert with certainty that I am not Christian, Jewish or Muslim, but that doesn’t tell people what I am; it only tells them what I am not. I can say with some truth that I am Pagan or Pantheistic. I can also say that I’m somewhat Henotheistic. But none of those terms are fully accurate. In addition, most people give me a blank stare when I say the word “pantheistic,” and “pagan” has way too many definitions. I guess the best answer I can really give to those questions is “it’s complicated”. So to satisfy the curiosity of those who really want to know, I’m going to try to explain my beliefs below.

Who / What is God?

Those who have talked about religion in general with me may have noticed that I don’t often use the word “god” unless I’m referring to their views. I usually use some variant of the term “Creator” or the “Divine.” This is both because “god” or “godess” means something different to me, and because the Divine to me is less of an “individual” and more of an energy or entity.

Because the universe is decidedly structured, and not terribly random, I choose to believe it was created by something. Time went by and life evolved to a point where some creatures became sentient. Humans, at least, developed a need to establish some kind of relationship with the Divine. The Creator, out of either a sense of loneliness, curiosity, or even love, decided to reciprocate. Because the human mind was (and is) not capable of understanding an entity that is complex and powerful enough to create a universe, the Creator took on various mantles or aspects that its creations would most easily understand and relate to, depending on the person’s culture and personality. Thus, gods were born.

That doesn’t quite capture my conception of the Divine, though. I also get the sense that the Divine is present in nature, the universe and all the Creator’s creatures. It is a part of us all, and is omnipresent. This is probably closest to the Hindu concept of Henotheism, or shamanistic views of Pantheism or Panentheism.

That’s why I say it’s complicated. I’m both polytheistic (Pagan) and pantheistic, and follow more than one path. That’s also why I get impatient with folks who assert they are following the “one true path.” I’m a firm believer that what works for one doesn’t necessarily work for everyone, and the “Truth” of a particularly path greatly depends on how well it works for the practitioner.

Belief Applied

Because I am no more able to understand the Divine in all its glory than anyone else, I have chosen a particular path (combination of paths I suppose) to follow in order to build my personal relationship with the Divine. The path I have chosen is called the Council, and is made up of seven gods (or aspects of the Divine), three of Order, three of Chaos, and one of Balance. That path also accepts many Pagan symbols, and even tolerates communicating with gods of other paths (I prefer to work with the Celtic and Norse pantheons).

Such a medley of beliefs lends itself to a medley of practices. On a day-to-day basis, I pray to my gods and meditate. I also study Eastern Philosophy like the Tao te Ching. Eastern experiential paths like Buddhism and Taoism work well within the Council, and have no gods. They are more about building a relationship to the Divine within everything, and appeal to my pantheistic beliefs.

As for holidays, the Council only really has one, but invites followers to adopt whichever ones they like from other paths. I celebrate the Pagan versions (or roots of) of Easter / Imbolc, Christmas / Yule, and Halloween / Samhain. I may eventually incorporate the other 5 Pagan holidays, but for now I’m too lazy.

Morals

Because of my religious path, there are really two bases for my moral beliefs: one based on religion and one based on the social contract.

The Council is a philosophy of balance and moderation. Excess tends to be destructive (and that includes excess piety). This is also the reason between the balance between Order and Chaos—too much of either can be destructive. Even though chaos is treated by many paths as something negative or evil, there is creative chaos.

Those two principles, Moderation vs. Excess and Creation vs. Destruction, make up the moral foundation of the Council. Strive for moderation and creation, avoid excess and destruction. Most of the Ten Commandments (besides the first two) can be encapsulated in these principles. As a sidebar, my personal belief is that love / compassion is the ultimate creative force, although not everyone within the Council agrees with me on that.

I do believe in Karma, but not as an entity or force, nor as a motivating factor. It is simply a principle—a law of cause and effect similar to some of Newton’s Laws of Physics. My actions (when I am strong, at least) are taken because I think they are the right thing to do, not because I’m afraid something bad will happen or that some father figure will spank me and throw me into eternal flames.

The second foundation of morality for me is sort of a social contract. Society as a whole is simply better off if people in general act in certain ways—almost a Rule Utilitarian perspective but with a little more absolutism. I think the best rule, in order for society to function optimally, is what I call the Platinum Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you were you in their shoes (The Golden Rule, alas, is incomplete. I’m certain that a flasher opening his trenchcoat to young ladies is doing exactly unto others as he would have them do unto him. Thus, there’s a reason for the qualifying language at the end of the Platinum Rule. This requires empathy, but empathy is not hard.).

Conclusion

There you have it. I know, it’s complicated. If you have any questions, or insights, feel free to email me at wulf@wulfcry.com.