asked a Pagan? (priest, rituals, moral, virginity, tradition)

[Mike182]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

I was under the impression that it was the other way around, that the pentacle had the circle and the circle was to represent a sense of unity within all five elements, tie them all together and such...

sorry, you are right - the pentacle is the religious symbol with the circle around it, and the pentagram is just the 5 pointes star,

Originally Posted by Gentoo

The purpose of the Wicca oath is to keep the coven and covendom a secret, break it and you have to face the wrath of the Goddess. As a solitary, I feel that it is unnecessary to take the oath, as there is no coven or covendom to keep a secret. What are your thoughts?

i would assume that this tradition specific, so i will attempt to cover this by lumping it with my post on initiation rites and general coven practise to answer an earlier question, after i have got my info together

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Mike182

sorry, you are right - the pentacle is the religious symbol with the circle around it, and the pentagram is just the 5 pointes star,

It's okay

Originally Posted by Mike182

i would assume that this tradition specific, so i will attempt to cover this by lumping it with my post on initiation rites and general coven practise to answer an earlier question, after i have got my info together

Okay, thank you!

[Gentoo]

I'm also willing to help answer questions, so keep 'em coming!

[Mike182]

actually Gentoo, CDraider asked a good question in post 2 which i answered in post 5, but would you care to look over and see if there is anything you would like to add to it?

[CDRaider]

Well this all raises another question... pagenism, wiccan, and other things like that, how are they connected and which ones are connected? Is it like christainity were there are many kinds and if so which is the big category?

I don't know any pagens other than a girl who thought she was pagen because she wanted to do magic but found out it was too hard so thats not much of an example

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by Mike182

Death:
some Pagans believe in what could be called a form of heaven, "summer lands", different people have different images, i like the image of a vast field with forest areas, streams and rivers, a mountain range - a spiritual world where our spirits (souls) freely live with other spirits and deities

some Pagans believe in reincarnation, some believe reincarnation will be a choice (ie, we can choose some of our surroundings, family etc) and some believe it is assigned to us through the Karma of past lives.

Marriage:
the Pagan marriage tradition is a Handfasting, and is a ritual mostly performed outside, set up to the couple's liking (favourite incense, flowers, friends casting circle/calling quaters) - the wording also depends upon the couple, but will be along the lines of each member of the couple presents themselves to the high priest/priestess, presents their guardian (parent/friend - kinda like bridesmaids and best man) and declared commitment to the other member of the couple. the high priest will tie their hands together in what is usually a white chord, and they recieve the blessing of x God and/or x Goddess.

drinking and general merry making usually follows.

as far as i know, no Pagan Handfastings are legally recognised, so it is common practise to have a civil wedding either before or after the Pagan ceremony.

Virginity and sex before marriage:
most Pagan traditions have no moral authority prohibiting sex before handfasting, though i must admit the only authority i am really familiar with in Pagan traditions is the Wiccan Rede*, a Poem from 1974, the final words being the main moral point: "these eight words the rede fulfill, an' it harm none, do as yee will" - relating this to sex, any act that is consentual is a-ok!

Membership:
depends entirely upon the tradition and practices of individual groups/gatherings. i haven't done any research into differen initiation ceremonies, or how different traiditions typically govern their membership, so i will have to get back to you on this one.

Thanks for these questions, if you have any other questions to further clarify any of these answers, please jump right in and ask them!

I think you did a great job of this! To add my own thoughts:

Marriage: All I can say about what you said is that I want a Handfasting!!

Sex: In some other mainstream religions, I'll use Christianity because it's the one that I know most about, sex in general is not looked kindly upon. They say that the body is a temple for God, and sex is bad and will 'dirty' the temple. Pagans also believe that the body is a temple for the Divine, but we view sex as sacred (not something to be thrown around, and such) and that it's a wholesome experience. Male and female coming together to create new life, something that we and the God and Goddess have in common i.e. the sabbat of Beltane(). In terms of being a temple, well, I say "A clean Temple, is a Happy Temple!"

Membership: Admittedly, I don't know much about Asatru, and Druidism so I can't speak on their behalf. But in Wicca, there are many different Traditions that you can join based on your beliefs. The ceremonies differ greatly, but one thing is usually the same, the dedicant has to study under the guidance of the coven for (usually) a year and a day. After that time, they are free to leave if they wish to seek out a new path for themselves, or they can continue with that coven and become a First-Degree Initiate.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by CDRaider

Well this all raises another question... pagenism, wiccan, and other things like that, how are they connected and which ones are connected? Is it like christainity were there are many kinds and if so which is the big category?

I don't know any pagens other than a girl who thought she was pagen because she wanted to do magic but found out it was too hard so thats not much of an example

Paganism is an umbrella term to cover a lot of very different belief systems. Unlike in Christianity, saying that you're a Christian says a lot about what you believe, before getting into much. By saying you're a Pagan, often more questions need to be asked before a proper "placement" can be done.

Under Paganism, there are religions like Wicca, Asatru, Druidism etc. These religions actually don't have much in common, save a few basic beliefs and being Pagan.

[Bishka]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

Sex: Unlike in some other mainstream religions, I'll use Christianity because it's the one that I know most about, sex in general is not looked kindly upon. They say that the body is a temple for God, and sex is bad and will 'dirty' the temple. Pagans also believe that the body is a temple for the Divine, but we view sex as sacred (not something to be thrown around, and such) and that it's a wholesome experience. Male and female coming together to create new life, something that we and the God and Goddess have in common i.e. the sabbat of Beltane(). In terms of being a temple, well, I say "A clean Temple, is a Happy Temple!"
.

That's good to see we have something alike.