Is Paganism Too Sexy? (rituals, moral, pagans, sexuality, moral)

[Enigmata]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

What do you say to those people who insist that the openness of Paganism to sex encourages pervs?

Would you like to have sex? Thats what I say to them. Just joking! I don't normally say anything to them because there really isn't anything I could say to them that would change their mind even if it made sense.

[KSojourner]

Originally Posted by daddy_turk

I'm too sexy for my paganism. Too sexy for my paganism. So sexy it hurts.
I'm a pagan. You know what I mean. And I'll do my little turn on the cat walk.


That was the first thing I thought about when I saw the poll.

I need a good laugh today! Thanks, daddy turk!

[KSojourner]

Originally Posted by Fluffy

You can't have a pervert without the belief that sex is in some way wrong .

I'm sorry, but I can't agree with you on this. You can have perverts - as in the kind that take sex to an extreme like child porn or rapists. In that case, it is wrong.

[MaddLlama]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Is Paganism preocuppied with sex? Is the religion too full of sex for its own good? Do Pagans need to add more respect for sexuality to their religion? Or, do they have the right balance now?

I do think it would be a good trend if people stopped being afraid of or intimidated by sexuality.

Is it lewd to conduct rituals skyclad (i.e. nude)?

Not if you're on private property.

Are fertility rites immoral? Is it wrong to celebrate the fertility of nature, crops, and people?

Of course not. Reproduction is a natural part of life for everything including plants. And this reproduction keeps us alive.
People take fertility drugs, and I don't think that's immoral. I don't see much of a difference.

Does Paganism simply accept sex for what it is and for the role sex plays in our lives and in nature, or does it go overboard?

Paganism itself simply accepts all things in nature as they are. There's nothing wrong with that.
I think there are individual people who take it too far, and some still who use it to thier advantage, but that doesn't make it a characteristic of the religion itself.

Is the Pagan insistence that sex is not sinful immoral?

Only if you believe that sex is sinful. *shrug*

Is the Pagan insistence that sex is not sinful healthier than the insistence of some others that sex is indeed sinful?

Not necessarily. Both perspectives aim for a healthy attitude towards sex, but it's a matter of whether you believe control or teaching is a better way of achieving your means.

Does your little sister or little brother know you go on the internet to talk about wild Pagan sex? Will he or she tell mom?

Luckily for me I don't talk about those things with my family 0.o

[Draka]

Is Paganism too sexy? Depends on the pagan and the"hot" factor of that person.

In all sincerity I agree with turk on all points.

[KSojourner]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Is Paganism preocuppied with sex? Is the religion too full of sex for its own good? Do Pagans need to add more respect for sexuality to their religion? Or, do they have the right balance now?

I think that there is a misconception that Pagans are preocuppied with sex. Yes, a good percentage of Pagans will state that they love to have sex but let's face it, there are not many people that don't.

I also would say that the religion itself is not full of sex. People of other religions have sex as well, but that doesn't mean that they are "full of sex." If this was a reference to skyclad rituals, I would have to say that being naked doesn't equal sex. Most Pagans will say that there is nothing sexually about being naked within a ritual.

As I think that Pagans already have a high regard and respect for human sexuality, I would have to say that there is no need to "add more respect."

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Is it lewd to conduct rituals skyclad (i.e. nude)?

No. I think that each person makes a choice regarding this issue and knows what they are getting into before worshiping skyclad. Anybody that is in it for the sake of nakedness is usually thrown out of the group if they start to make it into something that is lewd.

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Are fertility rites immoral? Is it wrong to celebrate the fertility of nature, crops, and people?

I don't think so as there are many ways to celebrate. Think Easter. Is that immoral? No, and that was originally based on a Pagan Holiday that included fertility rites.

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Does Paganism simply accept sex for what it is and for the role sex plays in our lives and in nature, or does it go overboard?

Most Pagans do have a healthy attitude toward sex. I do not think that it goes overboard.

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Is the Pagan insistence that sex is not sinful immoral?

LOL No. You're using another religion's views to ask this question.

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Does your little sister or little brother know you go on the internet to talk about wild Pagan sex? Will he or she tell mom?

LOL - Yes. No. (and who says those of other religions can't have wild sex?)

[Sunstone]

I have to agree with those who say nudity by itself has absolutely nothing to do with sex. I sometimes go for a soak in one or another of the clothing optional hot springs here in Colorado and I have noticed significantly less lewdness and much less gawking among the people who go nude at those pools than among the average joe and sally on the city streets. IME, people at clothing optional hot springs almost never look at strangers in an overtly sexual way, while people on the city streets do so frequently.

[MidnightBlue]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Does Paganism simply accept sex for what it is and for the role sex plays in our lives and in nature, or does it go overboard?

I think pagans -- or at least, pagans who have the kinds of attitudes your OP seems to reflect -- have some of the healthiest attitudes toward sex of any religion. Slapping big bold VERBOTEN stickers all over everything just makes people even weirder about sex than they would be otherwise.

Discussing what movies my nephews were allowed to watch, I once asked my sister-in-law (who's always been very strict about sex but not about violence) if she really thought it would be worse for them to see a woman's breast than a decapitation. She thought it would. To me, that's sick.

Isn't it odd that people should think pagans are odd for not thinking sex is dirty?