Pagans: If the God and Goddess Are Equal... (priest, tradition)

[Feathers in Hair]

Originally Posted by Pardus

They still perpetuate the imbalance by being imbalanced themselves.

How do you mean?

[Pardus]

If it is believed that feminist movements/religions are there because of the imbalence within the patriarchial system, which means that when you tip to one side you create a need for others to tip to the other.

Meaning that if you try to rebalance things against them, you give them more reason to exist.

[Feathers in Hair]

So you are referring to those Pagan traditions that state that the Goddess should be worshipped over the God? If so, I certainly agree.

[Pardus]

Other than those trads, what is dianic?

[Feathers in Hair]

Originally Posted by Pardus

Other than those trads, what is dianic?

In the McFarland tradition, it's a non-heirarchal, Faerie-centered path. I'm begining to realize, though, that in my joy in finding what I'd thought was a good summary/ term for what my general beliefs, that there seems to be a conflict in trying to explain what I believe- that one can celebrate the feminine and still honor the male- and what the tradition itself seems to have a perception of being.

My apologies to everyone. I was just so happy for a brief time to have thought there was a name for my tradition.

[Mike182]

Originally Posted by Feathers in Hair

In the McFarland tradition, it's a non-heirarchal, Faerie-centered path. I'm begining to realize, though, that in my joy in finding what I'd thought was a good summary/ term for what my general beliefs, that there seems to be a conflict in trying to explain what I believe- that one can celebrate the feminine and still honor the male- and what the tradition itself seems to have a perception of being.

My apologies to everyone. I was just so happy for a brief time to have thought there was a name for my tradition.

i have always seen, and i may very well be ignorant in this, that dianic traditions put a lot more emphasis on the feminin than the masculine - but that is not me saying Dianic traditions are bad/wrong, just different

i myself tend to be guilty of overlooking male Deities to an extent, i am yet to find one i am completely comfortable relating to and working with, where as i have found a few female deities that *fit* with me. this is something i am aware of, and hope to balance out in time when i have become accustomed with one or two male Deities, i think the masculine aspect is deffinatley missing in my spiritual path at the moment

in answer to the OP, yes, i think a balance between the two is a healthy spiritual path for myself, and i hope to find that - but i wouldn't say that someone who does not have a balance of God and Goddess is in some way wrong. i guess it depends upon the individual's needs, or the needs of the person at specific times in their lives...

... at certain times in my life, i might feel the need to boost the elements of my personality that i attribute to the Goddess, so i will primarily focus upon her at those times, and vice verse. but i guess in a way that might balance itself out, again i guess it depends upon the individual needs of the person.

[Pardus]

Originally Posted by Feathers in Hair

that one can celebrate the feminine and still honor the male

Do you notice a problem in what you said there? It might be a typo, or it might be more important.

"Feminine" and "Male"

I would assert that feminity has nothing to do with female empowerment (yes i know i'm just "strawman"ing here) acctually female empowerment is quite a masculine thing, it is about your masculinity.

Goddess gives/nutures life, God takes/defends life. (You must kill to eat, animal, vegetable, does not matter)

We all have both within us.

[Makhsihed]

It depends on what sect of paganism you're talking about, I think.

The Wiccan and Wicca-derived paths of paganism tend to concentrate more on the Goddess than the God, agreed. But it's not that way in the non-Wicca-esque traditions.

For instance, the Heathens/Norse pay a lot of homage to Odhinn and Thor just as they honor Freyja and Frigg (and so on); there's not so much exalting female over male or vice versa. Same with Hellenics. Same with Celtic Reconstructionists, Druids, etc.

Any reconstructionist faith doesn't really honor male over female or female over male, for the most part, from what I've seen.

And then there's Kemetic pagan/Kemetic reconstructionist, which is anything but dualistic - there's no stark concentration on male/female dualism like there is in Wicca.

(My apologies if I'm slightly incoherant. The naprosyn is fuzzing my brain. @_@ )

[Zephyr]

Jumping in here a bit late, but oh well. Makhsihed put it pretty well. When it comes to Heathenry, who said the Gods and Goddesses are equal? Some gods are clearly more powerful than eachother, but they all fit in their own little place. While Woden or Ziu are clearly stronger then Walburga Frouwa or Frija, they certainly would be in a bind if they tried to fill their places.