One of the things about the Pagan belief is that in our culture, we see men and women as equals. We believe in both Gods and Goddesses. I am kind of a more narrowed down Pagan Myself. Some of us like to study ancient religions, but I have been guided to develop a more intimate relationship with our Planet’s spirit by calling the Earth My Goddess.

She is the Ground, the Water, and the essence of Spirit. Until recently, I have had a hard time calling the masculine elements of our existence “The God” because it makes it feel kind of monotheistic, and by calling something “My God” just doesn’t feel right, But we as children exists because our God and Goddess are our Spiritual Mothers and Fathers, and how our parents do, or at least at one time loved each other, so does our Spiritual Father and Mother Love each other as well as Love us.

Both work together to continue to give life abundantly to all whom seek their embrace. My Mother is The Ground, Water, and the Spirit of Kindness. My Father is Fire, My Father is the air, My Father is the Spirit of Will. And as our Mother and Father neutralize their extremes, so I too strive for Balance.

Fire is creation; Fire is the seed of life. As Fire makes up the core of the planet, so too does fire heat the Surface of our beautiful Earth. Fire can be destructive, it can be consuming, and so too can move without direction or purpose. That is why The Mother is water. She cools this flame, controls the Flames, and maintains Balance.

Water is the Mother’s equivalent to the Father’s Fire. As Fire Brings creation, water brings life. Water feeds all creatures great and small. Water feeds everything from the field mouse to the mighty lion. Without water there would be nothing. Water is the Mother’s blood, water follows itself, and is peaceful and powerful, both beautiful and powerful.

Air is of The Father. Air as in sky, air as in what we breathe. Air is an ingredient to water and without air there cannot be fire or water, and without fire and water there is no life at all, only spirit. Air is a very important element. The existence of air proves that Both God and Goddess can be autonomous, but without the other there is no child, there is no produce, there is no order or abundance, only masculine or feminine. Singleness, solitude and boredom.

The Earth is of the Goddess. It is strong; it is steadfast, and forever unchanging. Without the other elements, Our Planet is barren and dry. The earth is the physical manifestation of our Goddess that is why I care for it so much, that is why Fire, Water, and Air settle to the Earth. The Earth is like the Mother’s Womb. It is Barren without the Love that comes from The Father’s Fire and Air, and is equally uninhabitable without the water which to me represents the Mother’s Gentleness and Goodness, and desire to provide.
Then the last Element is Spirit. All four elements form a point, a point that points up. Spirit is the key unity between The Father and The Mother. Both exist in the Spiritual form as well as their physical forms, the elements I have just written about. Spirit is their will, Spirit is their unabridged love and compassion to all those whom will return their blessings. Spirit is the highest of the elements.

This Forms The Pentacle. Typically, The Pentacle is a Wicca Magic sign; But I wear the Pentacle for two reasons. First of all, it explains the outline of my beliefs as Father and Mother reign as God and Goddess. It outlines their elements, and shows them as a unified structure. Secondly, Although a Wicca sign, it has become the most socially accepted symbol of Paganism.

People who are ignorant of Paganism will generally see it as a satanic symbol, but at least it shows that I am part of a different Belief rather than the more dominant Christian Religion. (The Pentagram is the satanic symbol; it is upside down.) Anytime someone asks me about it, I explain that I am a Pagan, Not a Satanist, and I’ll say that I’m a Cleric, studying to become a Shaman, and that the Pentacle is a Wicca Magic sign, not a Satanist symbol. I explain a lot, but I don’t get mad, I’m a very easy-going person and actually rather enjoy cleaning up the rubbish that is heaped onto the Pagan Beliefs.

People don’t react very oddly, and ask me quite a bit about it. I don’t put off a bad vibe; in fact, I’d have to say I actually attract people. I’m Eccentric, and I’m Happy. I focus not on a pie in the Sky, Heaven is not my home, and I tread the Physical manifestation of the Goddess herself! How could I POSSIBLY Hate my situation in life?! I like to Share my beliefs, but I do not try to convert anyone, they ask, I tell, Otherwise the only way I appear any different then anyone else, is that I wear a Pentacle at all times because I am After All, A Proud Pagan. It is also a Beautiful Reminder of The coexistence of God and Goddess fit together and reminds me of the honor it is to call them My Lords.

So, by fitting this whole puzzle together, an adult could logically reason that I think that all of this around us, EVERYTHING is a result of two Supernatural beings having sex, Fire and Air are the Sperm, water is the Breast milk, The earth is the womb, and Spirit is the act of love that fueled this orgasm, we are the child… I guess that’s the gist of it. I prefer to look at it more reverently myself, but to simplify things; that’s pretty much the whole picture.

I am young, I am new at this, and again I will Stress that I have not been taught extensively in the ways of the Pagans, Therefore, My ideas should not be taken as universal Pagan Doctrine; We would never have such a thing anyway. I have read some, but most of what I have come to view as revelation has come from Meditation and Prayer.

Here are some ideas that will not only save you money, but are also great alternatives to hazardous cleaning chemicals that poison the environment. As well as some other things you could do to help prevent waste.

Alternative for degreaser: Take a spray bottle, fill it with 1-4 vinegar, and fill the rest with water. This works as a chemical degreaser but is not poisonous like chemical cleaner. It’s also cheaper. Off-brand vinegar can be bought in the gallon form for as little as 88cents! Granted, it’s not as powerful as its chemical counterpart, but unless your kitchen has the grease output of a fast food restaurant, why bother?

Alternative for Sanitizer: Take a Spray bottle, put in a tablespoon of bleach, and fill the rest with water. This works as well as any spray can of Lysol, but doesn’t have aerosol, which depletes the ozone layer, or any airborne inhaled toxins. This makes it safer to use, especially with children. Granted, bleach is still bad for the environment, but compare a tablespoon of hazardous material vs. Store-bought cleaners. Plus, this will last you a good while, making a single gallon of bleach last well over four months, giving you equal quality cleaning. Off brand bleach, like vinegar is incredibly cheap.

Think these might not work, Ask any culinary school or restaurant if these chemicals are approved by OSHA or other food safety codes, and they will tell you yes. In fact, chances are your professionally prepared food had been entrusted with these safe, more environmentally friendly cleaning chemicals.

Try it sometime, not only are you saving money, but also you’re making the world a better place. The less chemicals companies need to produce to keep up with demand, the less poisons are made.

Today, I was thinking about some of my beliefs and some ways I feel about things and how they connect to my beliefs in our Mother the Earth and our progress as humans. I enjoy life, I enjoy people, and we have our problems. Recently, it’s always brought into view as a way to mock nature worshippers, people bring up the history of when protestors tried to stop a hospital from being built because the site was a nesting ground for a type of owl or moth. I forget which.

Anyway, like I have said before, we are not all the same. I am not calling their ways wrong, I am not their judge; but Saying that I would do the same just because I am a pagan is like saying all clergyman of Christian establishments like to molest children, because they believe in the same ideas and concepts. To find clarity and my Goddess’s answer to such a predicament, I meditated on these until I was given my answer.

We, as People in general our gifts to each other. Like Lions live together, like gazelle live together, we are our gifts to each other from the great Goddess who loves us. This kind of species connection is displayed throughout all of Nature. She is a Goddess that loves and wants us to love equally. Part of loving your species is to support it and promote it, which involves building hospitals and other civic structures. We can have pets, but no cat or dog will ever take the place of a human in our life. It’s not healthy, it’s not natural.

We as people need to act as a united species. Not necessarily have to agree, but we have to look after our evolution and betterment of our species. A hospital wont destroy a species, and although it takes it’s toll on the environment around, everything that anything does consumes Our Goddess weather we like it or not. Our mother is one of balance. With life, comes death, with happiness, comes sorrow. If Lion didn’t eat Gazelle, Gazelle would become too abundant and eat all the grass, and starve themselves because they’ve consumed too much.

Life is a gift in a whole. Life is a gift that keeps on giving. Consequence, weather good or bad is the gift of the original gift. I believe that people should consume as little as possible. Nature Nurtures us and has allowed us great riches and potential. It is our duty as Her beloved children to not abuse Her generosity.

It’s like a husband giving his wife pearls. She does not say, “Now get me diamonds to go with them!” No! She thanks him, hugs him, and they live in unison and happiness, knowing that they are one. That is what my outlook on consuming Our Goddess’s gifts to us. We use them responsibly; we respect her in their use. I wear clothes made of natural and synthetic material, I drive a car, I have heat and air in my house, and I consume meats, sodas, and other animal products. This doesn’t mean that I am a parasite.

I think my Goddess for these gifts. I take care of my clothing and make it lasts. I walk where and when I can. I buy fuel made from corn; even if it is more expensive. I will keep the windows open on nice days and nights, even if I’d rather it be a few degrees warmer or cooler. I do not eat to the point where I am fat; I eat what I need and no more; and I recycle what I can. I relish these gifts, and I thank my Goddess for them. In return, I do not abuse them.

That is where people get careless and abusive of our Goddess’s gifts. Is when they wear their best clothing everywhere and get it torn up or need to have a new Wardrobe every week just because they want to be, “The Best.” That is when they buy normal fuel to save ten cents per gallon. When it’s 65 degrees outside but they shut their windows and doors because they think 72 is ideal. That is when people eat to the point that they become obese and order 14 ounce steaks when the daily diet of meat consumption calls for 6.

By over-consuming, you are not only hurting our Mother, but you are also hurting our species. People need the daily comforts you over indulge in. People go without so you can have more. I am glad Mother gave me the eyes to see this, It makes me feel more aware of the abusive decisions I make, and I am going to try to live better for Her by not Over indulging

Hi Everyone! I’ve been recently introducing myself to a lot of new things, the art of Paganism being one, and blogging being the other. I like to write, I will tell you that. I spend most of my time outdoors, but when not then, I study and meditate on my new “religion.”

Speaking of which, after this sentence, I plan on never using the words; “religion’ and ‘Paganism’ in the same sentence again. They are entirely different things you see. I guess first off, I will explain some things about myself and my convictions.

Many have this misconception that we are devil worshipers. This isn’t true. We are in no way connected with the Christian Religion, why would people of one ‘religion’ worship the evil entity of an entirely different religion? Secondly, I am not going to try to convert you. Paganism and discovering your spiritual bond to our mother and provider, the Earth is something you do for yourself.

This is something that many people discover, or are born with. This sense, this connection. It’s hard to explain. Our beliefs aren’t stereotypical, and they are not based upon what is already known, but rather what you discover. It’s a journey, and a very beautiful one at that.

Also, I do not hate anyone or their religion. Ours is not a belief that we are to make people believe as we do. In fact, we enjoy our differences, they are a blessing from our mother. She made different races, animals, species, and terrains. We believe these differences are a reflection of Her intent. The only thing we ask of non-believers is that they let us practice freely, without harassment, and at least TRY to live in a resourceful and respectful lifestyle.

Another misconception is in our ceremonies. We do not offer blood sacrifices; we do not perform orgies or other promiscuous behavior. There are a few that hide under the umbrella of Paganism to perform these lewd acts, but most of us are just normal, if not more conservative than most people. Our form of worship is in meditation and living to preserve our beautiful goddess. This means we recycle, we live humbly, we appreciate and preserve beauty, and we life in a manner that promotes our beliefs and live life accordingly.

Anyway, I’m not the ideal spokesman of our beliefs, but I am young and passionate to it. If you have questions, I’ll try to answer them accurately, and If any of you out there can offer me any support, knowledge, and advice, I’d greatly appreciate it. The bad thing is that although we are of decent numbers, our practitioners seem to be hiding in some kind of Broom Closet or something. Like our Beliefs are not acceptable or something like that. Just remember, if you’re reading this, you’re not alone. There are more of us than people think.