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3 Steps to Worship the Gods without Ritual

May 17th, 2012

PaganDad

courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

Third down the list of the Delphic Maxims is this one. Worship the Gods.

While this one is pretty self-explanatory, how many of us actually do this on a regular basis? I know that life is constantly in my way and it stops me from having the time and the sleep to do anything even remotely related to a ritual. So what can you do, in cases like this?

First you need to let go of any guilt that this may cause. While the Gods deserve our worship, they do not always need an elaborate ritual to be worshiped.

Then make the commitment to spend five minutes every day in some form of prayer. Think of it is as something like Daily Pages for your journal, take time to offer up thanksgivings for the blessings you have received. Both big and small. Ask for Them to watch over you through the day and to help guide your feet to and along your proper path.

And finally continue to hold them in your thoughts as you go forward through your day. Notice their presence in the natural world. From a bird or a dragonfly landing on a branch near you to sight and sounds of children playing. The Gods can be found in all things, we only have to look for Them and recognize Them.

Now I’m not saying here that ritual is unimportant. Not only do they serve to honor the Gods, they help to mark periods, not only in our lives but in the natural world around us. The energy of the Harvest cycle is there unfolding, it is us that has forgotten that cycle. Ritual can bring us back to a balance with that energy.

What I am saying is that Life happens, and often. So when we can’t get to ritual, for whatever reason, then we can still manage to Worship the Gods. Would love to hear some thoughts? Did I miss any tips or ideas?

Blessed Be!

And remember I’m giving away a copy of my new ebook, The Parent’s Guide to the Sabbats. To enter head over and like me on Facebook or Follow me on Twitter, look for the link to enter your email address. Also if you sign up for the Village you get a second entry as well. So be sure to share with your friends and enter your email address for a chance to win.

Going to Give Away an Ebook

May 15th, 2012

PaganDad

Yes that’s true a chance to win my newest ebook. There are a couple of ways to enter, one from Social Media and one from being a member of the Village.

So be sure to like me on Facebook or Follow me on Twitter and look for the link to the entry form.

Then for a different entry form sign up for the Village and look for the message from me.

I will randomly draw a name in just over two weeks on the 3rd of June the day before the Pagan Summer Camp Newsletter starts.

And oh yeah for that time I have decided to lower the price to $7.99 for the ebook, in case you can’t wait to see if you win.

Blessed Be!

Obey The Law

May 14th, 2012

PaganDad

Unless there are any objections I am going to continue on with my series on the Delphic Maxims. The second maxim on the list says to ‘Obey the Law’.

Now I’ve spent some time this weekend, trying to figure out what is meant by this. Is it natural law, the law of the Universe or is it man’s law? What I mean is that the concept of and the term ‘Law’ is thrown around a lot.

Yet I have come to the conclusions that it doesn’t matter what specific law that they are speaking of here.We are all bound inextricably by natural law and the law of the Universe. We can’t choose to ignore gravity or the systems of energy that are at work around us.

And as for man’s law, we should strive to obey all the laws that stand before us. Unless of course they are unjust laws and then we must work within the system of laws to change those laws. For no system should have the power to force us to act against our nature.

But we should be careful on the laws we deem to be ‘unjust’. We can’t just declare laws that we ‘don’t like’ to be unjust. The law laid down by men is the foundation of a just society. And if we begin the process of declaring unfavorable laws unjust then the fabric of society can unravel, like pulling at loose threads on a piece of fabric.

Hence why we should Obey the Law as much within our power as possible. Thoughts?

Blessed Be!

Joy of Faith

May 11th, 2012

PaganDad

Do you remember when you first became Pagan? The feeling of coming home and that feeling of joy? Of how everything suddenly made perfect sense? I know I do.

This is a period in my life that I have been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been Pagan for almost 15 years this Autumn, and it has been a crazy road. I have lost faith and regained it. Had my faith challenged and grow stronger because of the challenge. And during this long period, I have found and lost the joy of my Faith as well.

It happens to all of us, anything we love can become routine and lose its luster. But as a Pagan parent, it is important that I hold onto that joy. So I can show it to my children. I’ve talked often on here, about the idea of just showing our kids our Pagan faith and that will be enough to give them that introduction.

So how can you find that joy, if you have lost it? Or hold onto it, if you haven’t? Well just return to the beginning.

When I started out as a Pagan, I had to smuggle tealights and votives (my parents would not have been friendly to my faith at the time) and do my rituals in public parks and small patches of woods. And I look back on those times as some of the most meaningful rituals that I have ever done.

What about you? What reminds you of the Joy of your Faith?

Blessed Be!

Delphic Maxim – Follow God

May 9th, 2012

PaganDad

courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net

OK, I know that the title may seem confusing but give me a moment and I will explain what I’m doing here. Star Foster over at Patheos has started a series on the Delphic Maxims and while I don’t follow the Hellenic Pantheon I thought that it might be worthwhile to spend some time over the next year, yes there are that many, looking at them from a parenting viewpoint.

The first in the series is simply, Follow God. And I know my first thought was but I don’t follow ‘God’. Being raised Christian I still carry some of that knee-jerk baggage to anything that might smell of Christianity. But I think it is more to it then that.

In India there is a phrase that many of you have probably heard, Namaste. This word, as explained to me many years ago, means the Divine in me recognizes the Divine in you. I think in here we find the heart of the phrase.

Follow God, is not talking about some desert god worshiped for thousands of years but rather it is talking about recognizing that we are all part of the Divine and that we should strive to find that part. That highest part of ourselves, our True Will so to speak, and to follow it.

But how does one begin to explain this our children? By teaching them to be true to themselves. I know, I know it’s a cliche, but it’s true. We are born and grow into a knowledge of ourselves but the older we get the more we begin to change and deny who we are. We do this for a variety of reasons, but the most common is the desire to fit in.

So if we praise and encourage our children to be themselves and make their own niche in the world, then they will better be able to touch upon the idea of Following God.

Also, as they get older, they will better be able to understand and implement the Wiccan Rede. I know that it might seem like I’m stretching here, but look at the words. ‘If it harms none, do as you will’. A lot of Pagans I have talked to think of this, as I can do whatever I want as long as I don’t hurt anyone. But the word is will not want. In other words it is our True Will, or our part of the Godhead.

Now I want to ask you all some questions. Is this series something that you are interested in seeing more of? I’m here to provide you guys with the information that you want to see. And what are your thoughts on the words ‘Follow God’?

Blessed Be!

Immanent Deity

May 7th, 2012

PaganDad

To me this is one of the greatest things about the Pagan Faith. But what exactly does this mean? This concept is the idea that Goddess and God are present in all things at all times.

Yet this concept is also one of the reasons why raising your children Pagan, can be so difficult. As Pagans, we lack a central repository of religious knowledge, and this is because we are a mystery religion. A faith the relies more on revelation and experience then on book learning.

So how does one begin to explain to young children the concept of immanent Deity?

By pointing out the wonder in the smallest of things. From sprouting a seed in a clear sandwich bag, so that they can see Life is present even in the smallest of things. To slicing an apple so that they can see the five-pointed star in it. To taking the time to observe the natural world and watching the play of the birds and especially now,at this time of the year, their nests and their young.

The more you find the wonder in the small things the easier it will be for kids to grasp the idea that Goddess and God can be found everywhere. Yes there is a scientific process for seeds to sprout and mathematics to explain the patterns in the natural world, but who’s to say that Deity isn’t in there causing things to happen?

So as we go forward through this week and into Summer, take some time out. Drive out of the city and show your kids the Goddess in the water and earth and the God in the fire and the wind.

Blessed Be!

Four Pillars

May 2nd, 2012

PaganDad

The Spiral Pentacle by SingingGandalf This system is an integral part of doing spellwork. But today I wanted to approach this from a slightly different viewpoint. Instead of using it as a system for making magick, I wanted to look at it as a framework for raising up your children to be Priests and Priestesses.

To Know

This step is all about laying the framework and foundation for the task ahead. In magick this step is about researching the correspondences and knowing why you use the things you do.

In raising up the next generation in Faith, this is about giving them the basics. My free ebook (subscribe and look at the bottom of the next update) on Wicca/Paganism 101 for families is helpful in this. But either way focus on getting them through the basics and into living the Faith as part of their whole life.

Do regular rituals and be sure to take time to notice nature and the the fact the Gods are all around us. Show them what Paganism is all about in your every action and they will follow along.

To Will

Empower your children. Once they have the basics down pat, give them responsibility in Circle. Give them a task, or more then one, and hold them to it. The older they get, the more important this task should become. Just like confidence is needed for a spell to work, confidence is needed if one is going to stand on their own.

Think about this; In the long run your children will have families of their own. And they will, hopefully, be helping to raise up another generation in Paganism. If they have no confidence, no will, to do this then they have the potential to fall short.

To Dare

This ties in closely to the last one. Always push them beyond what they can comfortably do now. If they can cast circle and call Quarters then move them onto Calling Deity. Or even onto leading ritual themselves.

Dare them onto bigger and better things. And if they don’t quite get there then they will have come close and be the better for it.

To Be Silent

This last one stands apart from the others. Our world focuses to much on filling the silence. Whether it is meaningless chatter or the sounds of music and video games. Why do you think the IPod is so popular?

But to truly serve the Gods as Priest or Priestess, we must learn to embrace the Silence and learn to listen. Not only to ourselves but to the Gods and to the world around us. Meditation is part of this, but so is Prayer. But sometimes it just necessary to be silent so that the natural world can relax and carry on around us.

Blessed Be!

Some Updates

April 30th, 2012

PaganDad

Wanted to take a break today from our regularly scheduled program, to let you know about some of the new things happening here at the PaganDad family of sites.

Starting last week and moving forward into this week and the next we are going to have a lot of new columnists start writing for both The Pagan Household and The Pagan Village. You’ll notice that both those links go to the respective Columnist Pages instead of the home pages. That way you can get a good luck at the flavor of the columns upcoming. You can also check out the posting schedule for an idea of when articles are scheduled.

After you click there be sure to click back to the homepages, for some fantastic articles. Today on the Village we have a columnist talking about ritual with a special needs child. And on the Household, a look at an unique totem.

Now while this doesn’t leave a lot of room for guest posters, we do have some room available if you are interested. Just use the contact form and send me a message.

In addition to all of this, I have also started announcing the 2nd Annual Pagan Summer Camp Newsletter. While the actual newsletter doesn’t start until June 4th this year, we are going to be trying some different things this year. Here is a list of the things you will find different.

There is currently a group available on the Pagan Village for us to start discussions about the newsletter and our experiences with the exercises.
There will be videos uploaded to my Youtube Channel, of the different meditations and anything else I think might be helpful. So subscribe now.
Also, while we are still going to cover teaching Paganism to our kids, I am doing it in a different format. This year we are going to be walking through the Chakra system, not talking about Chakras, but rather using the aspects of the different Chakras to approach the idea of teaching Paganism to our children.

I have recently launched an Amazon affiliate store. The reason for this, is while hosting is paid, there are many more things that I would like to have the money to get. From a better newsletter service to better themes and plugins (especially for the Village). All of which cost money, so if you are looking for either books I have reviewed or are a beginner Pagan looking for books I recommend, then please head over and check the store out. For the record each purchase sends something like 6% back to me. Pennies really but every little bit counts.

Also there is a Zazzle store that I am in the middle of putting the finishing touches. Currently there is only Village-related children’s items in there. But I have some designs for adult items as well. And again the money will go back into paying the bills around here. And of course Village gear will help to promote the Village and help us to continue building a Tribe.

And lastly remember that my ebook, The Parent’s Guide to the Sabbats is still for sale.

So I think it is going to be an exciting summer and a wonderful rest of the year.

Thanks for listening, Blessed Be!

Intolerance and Pagan Children

April 27th, 2012

PaganDad

A few times over the last couple of weeks the topic of how to deal with sending Pagan children to school and the problems they will face from the other kids has come up. Whether on the Village or in chats on Facebook. I think we all know that some kids can be downright cruel. So since a Pagan child can be ‘different’ and appear to be outside of the norm, it has the potential to turn them into a feeder fish in a shark tank. Might seem a little melodramatic, but I’ve been there. Not as a Pagan child but a awkward child with glasses.

So the question is how do you prepare your child for this? Especially if they are headed off to Kindergarten in the Fall?

Honestly I can’t think that they can be 100% truly prepared. At our hearts we don’t want to believe how cruel anyone can be. But there are steps you can take to try and soften the blow.

Now let me disclose here that my oldest is not raised Pagan and she is the only one who goes to public school. My youngest is Pagan and is home-schooled, although she does attend a Christian home-school co-op. Where we have had to apply some of these lessons.

Always teach that being different does not make someone wrong.
When they are moving closer to school. Be frank and be honest, respecting their maturity level at the same time. Let them know that those who follow the Goddess and God are not always accepted. And that other kids may say some ‘mean’ things. And that is OK to not be friends with these kids and to make other friends.
Keep an open door policy. Rather then let this kind of situation go on for months, talk to your kid everyday about how school is going. And let her know that it is OK to tell you anything. And that you won’t get upset.
And just keep at the maintenance. Eventually they will get a tough skin and will be better for it.
Don’t overreact. It is easy to want to don armor and go defend your child but unless there is physical violence involved you will likely only make it worse.
Finally don’t be afraid to stay in the closet. Even if it is just with the kids. Some kids handle being picked on better then others. So it might be better to urge them to not mention anything until they are older and have some friends that might accept them. Friends that they could fall back on.

But I know I’m not alone in this. So I would love to hear your experiences and how you have dealt with this issue in the past or are dealing with the issue currently.

Blessed Be!

Children, Ritual and Small Spaces

April 25th, 2012

PaganDad

I know, I know another repost but I am hard at work on another project for you guys and after my radio show, last night, I’m a little burned out on content. Still I hope you enjoy.

While I am blessed with a house and a yard, I know that many live in apartments and cities where they can’t just go to the local park and do ritual with their kids. So what is a busy parent to do?

I posed this question on Facebook earlier and got some great responses. (Any more are welcome here, just comment away) So I wanted to share some of those responses and my own thoughts as well.

Some of the greatest rituals I have done have been in limited space. So if you can remember that sometimes all the ‘trappings’ are unnecessary you will be able to do ritual in small spaces.

Casting Circle

Stand in a circle and have everyone join hands and close their eyes. Then have them visualize energy moving in a circle from person to person in this circle. Slowly expand this circle out into an area around you. This doesn’t necessarily have to be the area that you are planning on doing ritual in, you could cover the whole house if you want. Although if you have family that is not participating, this may not work for you.

Calling Elements

This is where the suggestion from Facebook comes into this. Janet suggested that you run in place to call fire, make swimming motions for water, blowing hard for air, and sitting still for earth. While I haven’t had a chance to try this out, I think that these are really great ideas.

Calling the Goddess and God

With my youngest one when we do this, I tell her about the aspects that we are going to be working with. By doing this I focus our attention on the Lady and Lord, with a little energy this works well to draw Them to us.

Ritual Content

Another suggestion from Janet was to have ritual around a table with everyone sitting. This would solve the issue of space but you could also stand in a circle, with joined hands, and talk about the ritual theme and raise any energy for magick that you have planned.

As you can see there are many easy ways to hold ritual and raise a spiritual child even if you only have a small place to work in. Again I would like to hear any suggestions that you have.

Blessed Be!