By Jill Jepson
Community columnist
(Published: Thursday, March 12, 1998)
The flap over the pagan club at a Manteca high
school is easy to dismiss. It involves a very small
number of students, after all, and the very word
"pagan" gives it an eccentric cast -- at least to
those unfamiliar with modern paganism.
But the debate is worth a serious look, not only
because of its effect on the Manteca students, but
because of what it reveals about the club's main
detractors -- religious conservatives.
CONSERVATIVE ATTITUDES to
contemporary paganism are laced with the rhetoric
of fear. Despite the unobtrusive philosophy of this
small religious movement, the religious right paints
pagans as a threat to everything from American
virtue to the future of the family.
But it is hard to see how pagans threaten
conservative Christians or anyone else. In fact, it is
the religious right that poses a threat to paganism,
not the other way around.
Pagans do not actively seek converts, but many
conservative churches do, some quite militantly.
Pagans do not try to close Christian bookstores, or
protest the right of other faiths to worship.
But wherever pagans practice -- whether it be at
Modesto's Cauldron Bookstore or in a Manteca
high school -- religious conservatives launch
vitriolic assaults.
When a pagan group planned a Halloween
gathering in San Francisco a few years ago, a
conservative Christian group organized an
anti-pagan meeting outside the hall. Fortunately,
church leaders aborted the plan -- but imagine the
outrage had someone planned an anti-Christian
rally outside a church Christmas Eve.
But pagans should not feel they are being singled
out. The paranoia of the religious right cuts a wide
swathe. It is directed toward homosexuals,
feminists, liberals, supporters of free choice in the
abortion debate, and anyone else who disagrees
with the conservative agenda.
None of these groups interfere with the rights of
religious conservatives to live as they please, but
the religious right insists that they are grave and
pernicious threats.
Take two of the most controversial issues of our
time -- homosexuality and abortion.
Religious conservatives paint both gay rights and
pro-choice advocates as menaces. But what is the
source of that menace? Gay rights advocates are
not trying to coerce anyone into a "gay lifestyle"
any more than the pro-choice movement is trying to
force women to have abortions.
Neither of these groups infringe on the rights of
conservative Christians to live in accordance with
their own values. All they demand is the right to live
in accordance with their own.
AGAIN AND AGAIN, religious conservatives
condemn dissenters as dangers to the integrity of
American life. But the real peril is a religious right
wing that attempts to impose its agenda on
everyone else.
This is a very genuine threat, and we need to take
it seriously, even when it is only directed toward a
handful of high school students. After all, that pagan
club has a constitutionally protected right to exist,
and anyone trying to deny that right is a threat to all
of us.
Jepson, a Patterson resident, is a widely
traveled Modesto native who has lived in
five countries and seven states, and has
published articles in Sky and Telescope,
Arizona Highways, the San Francisco
Chronicle and other publications. She is
one of 12 community columnists.
Heres some of the editorial responses including mine which was published
3/31/98:
| The war against Christians
(Published: Tuesday, March 24, 1998) Humanists, liberals, anti-Christians -- call
them whatever you like -- have cleverly attempted to frame the debate thus:
"We just want to live as we choose, not forcing our beliefs upon
anyone else," as if they are neutral with regard to Christianity.
|
Defining pagans
(Published: Thursday, March 26, 1998) The March 13 Viewpoint Page contained two uncommon and very civil writings about pagans. The writers of the King James version
of the Bible were aristocrats who looked down on the villagers and used
Middle English. Samples: pagan: stout countryman; heathen: illiterate countryman;
villain: villager; lewd: unlearned; lacivious: common; profane: not sacred
but secular; and the Greek barbarian: language not understood because it
sounded like sheep going bah-bah.
|
Need for tolerance
(Published: Tuesday, March 31, 1998) Some people will never get it. Whether it's
Christians versus pagans or Christians vs
|
** Note, the parts that were selectively "edited" are in red.
It's obvious that some people will never
get it. Whether it's Christian's versus Pagan's or Christian's versus Mormon's
or Jehovah’s Witnesses. The fact of the matter is there is a lack of tolerance.
Tolerance of ones extremely personal spiritual beliefs.
Some Christians feel that their particular branch of faith is superior
to others who share similar philosophies. I hear fundamentalist right-wing
so called Christians making defamatory remarks about those who
are Mormon and Jehovah’s Witness followers. Who is to say one Christian
faith is better than another? For that matter who is to say that one religion
is THE only way to the Divine? Christians tend to forget that many of their
traditions and practices have roots much deeper than Christianity. To
deny a person their right to personal spiritual beliefs is to deny that
we each are individuals. Many Christians seem to want to place everyone
in their hypocritical mold. Don't think for yourself,
don't question anything, just do what God wants.
Well I am sorry to ruin many Christian's reality,
but that doesn't work for everyone. "Fellowship of the Earth" a
congregation to which I have founded is based on religious tolerance, which
many Christians can not fathom. Tolerance I guess
just isn't in their vocabulary. Instead they rather wage war on those who
do not fit their mold.
We have been down a long hard road with women's suffrage issues, racial
and gender bias, why shouldn't we be more considerate of religious tolerance?
I have instituted a Purple Ribbon "Fight the Fear" Campaign which promotes
religious tolerance. In a quote from Rev. Kirby Hensley, "There are many
paths to the divine". I think Christians need to take a good hard look
at what being a *true* Christian means. They seem
to expend more energy on hate than they do on love and tolerance. I believe
there is a passage in the bible that addresses judging others... "Judge
not least you be judged".
You don't have to agree with or like people who
share different philosophies, but stating they don't have a right to believe
in what they want is just plain wrong. Ones religious preference is protected
under the United States Constitution. This was put there for a reason,
to protect one from persecution. Let us not forget that over 3 million
people were murdered and tortured at the hands of so called "Christians".
We can not allow the Burning Times to ever happen again. Visit our web
site if you would like more information about religious
tolerance:
http://www.silvermoon.net/fote
Bright Blessings!
Rev. Sandy Johnson
Founder/Director
Fellowship of the Earth
On the day this appeared in the paper, I sent the letters to the editor a "thank you" message for printing my letter:
Greetings,
I wanted to thank you for printing my letter
about religious intolerance. I really think it's an important issue for
our community. Although, I did notice a few important comments I made were
omitted and feel rather disappointed about that. I understand you have
to make decisions on length of articles and maybe questionable content,
but completely omitting certain items that are there for a reason I think
is a little biased. But I guess I have to take what I can get and be thankful
for what I have, which I am. You have done a good service by allowing those
of us with opposing viewpoints to express our opinions within your forum.
Whether people agree or disagree, we can all learn from one another. I
appreciate the promptness as to which my response was printed. Thank you
again, and do hope our community can benefit from learning more about religious
tolerance.
Blessings,
Rev. Sandy Johnson
Fellowship of the Earth