Pagan Practices

I touched on a thought in one of my earlier posts that I want to explore in greater depth. One of the things I've noticed about Fundy-ism and my upbringing in it is the way in which some of its practices mirror pagan behaviors very closely. Now I realize before I even start this discussion that I'm stepping on toes, but I would encourage any readers who find themselves offended or concerned to hear me out before making a judgment on what I have to say. You might find that you agree with me. :)

I would also like to preface my remarks by saying that I don't believe Chrisitianity is merely a form of paganism that's managed to survive and become widespread in its acceptance. I do believe it to contain the truth we so desperately need. Humans as a species, however, tend to implement certain elements into their spirituality, pagan or Christian, so it's only natural that we would see some of these things creep up where they shouldn't.

The one practice that comes to mind most forcefully at present is that of using a ritual of some kind to achieve a desired end. This takes on many forms. Sometimes it involves making sacrifices to appease an angry god. Sometimes it's performing a sacred rite or practicing a certain behavior to get a blessing or a gift from the god. Sometimes it's giving an offering to make sure the god stays happy. In the end, though, it all boils down to the same thing: without this ritual, the seeker can't get what it is he or she desires, and the only source for satisfying that desire is the god.

I think that for humans this repeated element in spirituality comes from some strange need in us to earn what we want. Maybe it's what Christ followers call a "works" mentality; maybe it's a remnant left over from the Fall of Man (theologian language!!) that makes us unable to trust the divine. Maybe it's the apparent capriciousness of a world in which freak accidents can occur and young men die before reaching the fullness of age and potential. Whatever it is that spawns this in us, however, it is nearly universal when one looks at religious practice. In this, Fundies are right in with the rest.

Theologically, Fundies are right on target. In fact, one of the things that makes Chrisitianity stand out from other religions is that, in what it teaches at least, it does away with this use of ritual (works) to obtain something from the divine. In practice... well, Christ followers have the fatal flaw of being human, and therefore they muck (or one could say fuck. Haha) it up. I've seen numerous examples of how this plays out.

The church I stopped attending a little over a year ago was rife with examples of ritual. One (and this one is extremely common in the Christian church) seems silly to mention, but it's a prime illustrator of my point. Like most Christians I've known, we all ended our prayers with "in the name of Jesus." Now, before the last Fundy reader I have abandons me forever, I'm not challenging the teaching of Jesus on praying in His name. On the contrary, I'm pointing out how ritual may have stripped it of its true meaning and power. Every prayer, whether giving thanks over food, a request for a blessing, or something else ended with "in the name of Jesus." We were taught that the name of Jesus was powerful, and in this we were taught correctly. Where the mistake came in was in practice. Rather than perceiving that praying in Jesus' name is about coming to God as a representative of Jesus and making a request according to His heart and character, the name of Jesus became a sort of talisman or "magical phrase" - rather like the incantations used by those who practice witchcraft - that was supposed to get God to answer and guarantee that the request would be satisfied. We were taught that the name of Jesus obligated God to answer prayer, and that a request might not be granted if it wasn't made "in the name of Jesus." Talk about paganistic nonsense! Since when does a father interact with his child in such a way? What lover would tell his bride that she must be certain to include a magical phrase if she wants him to grant her what she desires of him? Sounds more like the stuff of fairy tales than truth. I can't tell you how many times I heard people (and did the same myself) toss an "in the name of Jesus" on the end of a prayer without any real thought about what it was supposed to mean. It was a habit, a ritual, a phrase to make sure one included before the final "amen." Without it, the prayer didn't really count.

That's a rather mild example, but that kind of thinking can really do damage when it begins to be applied in other contexts, and once it's entrenched, even those who see it for what it is can still fall victim to it. As an example, my dearest friend has been struggling with infertility. I hesitate to mention this on my blog because it is such a private matter and I want to respect her and this painful journey she and her husband are taking. Like me, she was raised a Fundy, so she has the full set of nutso ideas that have been ingrained in her as well. One of the things we've talked about is the fact that she is, at times, tempted to think that if she just learns what it is God has for her to learn, or if she just does something specific that He wants her to do, or if she just has the right person pray for her and lay hands on her womb she'll miraculously conceive. These thoughts are further complicated by other Fundy thinking that leans toward pagan ideas at times - thoughts such as this: God's punishing me for sins I committed a few years ago; or God's withholding this blessing because I don't have enough faith.

What a horrible burden to carry! Now I don't know the reasons why she and her husband haven't conceived, but I don't believe those reasons have anything to do with something God's waiting on them to fix. I don't think their faith is too weak or they are unworthy because of mistakes God no longer remembers. I know there are reasons, but I am firmly convinced that those reasons are good, not retributionary. And I also know that when He does see fit to give them a baby, it will be in the context of relationship, not because they managed to complete everything on His "Pre-Conception Checklist for Prospective Parents." And I have to think that it grieves the heart of God to be so misunderstood and misrepresented that people would actually think that's how He operates with His kids.

These aren't the only nutso, pagan-like teachings the church puts out there. And the sad thing is that most of these things are based on scriptures that have been grossly misinterpreted or misunderstood (e.g. "in the name of Jesus"). There are actually preachers out there who teach people that if they ask God for the same thing twice He won't answer their prayer because it indicates they didn't have faith the first time they asked. Instead, these people are taught to make a request once and then thank God from that time forward for giving them what they've requested ("in the name of Jesus," no doubt. Haha.). When they're struggling with doubt, these preachers say the worst thing they can do is "confess" it. So instead of encouraging them to cultivate real, honest, authentic relationship with God in which a struggling soul can come before its Creator and find strength in weakness, they are to fake it till they feel it. They just keep thanking God for the blessing as though He can't see the doubt that's living deep within them, as though He doesn't long for them to come into the place where they can interact with Him honestly and find the help and answers they truly need. (This "speaking in faith" thing even extends so far as to convince people that if they verbalize their fears, those fears will become reality! Talk about making people afraid. You'd better not accidentally tell someone your health concerns or fears about your marriage. If you do, you might as well flush your hopes and dreams for those things right down the toilet. And I suppose my friend should conceal her agony about trying to conceive and just keep spouting her belief that she's already pregnant "in the Spirit." Never mind that by cutting her off from sharing the pain of her journey with God and those who love her most she is being cut off from comfort and hope that she depends on to get through this season.) I mean really, I'm not sure I would want to be connected with a god who has a built-in faith-o-meter that will tell him if my faith is an ounce or two below the required amount for the prayers I've prayed, and therefore my requests get a big, fat rejection slip. I'm not sure I want to entrust myself to a Being to whom I can't bare all the deepest secrets, needs, fears and longings of my soul and still find acceptance and compassion.

I can't be the only person out there who hears shit like what these guys and gals are saying and thinks that sounds an awful lot like pagan religions. Instead of speaking an incantation over a rock or river, we "speak in faith," sometimes lying to ourselves and our God about what we're really thinking and feeling, just so we can obtain the desired blessing, never mind that we've abandoned authentic relationship in favor of a vending machine system that doesn't produce the Skittles 75 percent of the time. Instead of slaughtering our first-born or stacking produce on an altar as a sacrifice, we toss our obligatory 10 percent in the offering plate, believing that our pitiful gift will guarantee us a win in the heavenly lotto, and missing the point entirely behind giving back to God - the development of a grateful and generous heart. Instead of doing a rain dance to convince the god to meet our needs, we repeat scripture verses that apply to our situation until they become meaningless words that we no longer mean or understand.

Pardon my French, but that's fucked up, and it sure as hell isn't what God wants for us. That's not to say that certain rituals and traditions can't be beautiful, powerful things. It doesn't mean that some of those rituals can't help us connect to God. But when rituals replace or hinder the experience of genuine relationship, when they become meaningless tools that are used to manipulate God into ponying up the blessing, that's the time they need to be exposed for what they are. When we begin turning to rituals and displines to do the work we should entrust to God, it's time we tossed those rituals altogether.

I can't tell you how many times I heard someone who was struggling with something or waiting for an answer to prayer share that battle with another Fundy. You know what the response was? A ritual. "Maybe you should take Communion... Are you speaking in faith?... Quote this Bible verse six times every morning... You just need to stay at the altar until you sense that God has answered you... You just need to keep thanking Him... Have you fasted? I did a 40-day Daniel fast and God just revealed so much to me and totally stepped into my situation."

It's not that I think fasting or Communion or prayer or scripture memory have no value. I think they're very valuable. But when we use them as a replacement for rain dances and incantations and vegetables on an altar and traveling to Calcutta on our knees to prove our devotion, well, I think we can safely say we're mis-applying them and we have a serious problem.