Being Pagan and single.
Hi folks,
I read the article over on The Wild Hunt blog about Buffy the Vampire-Slayer inspiring UK women to leave the church and turn to Wicca.
In the list of reasons why women aren't going to church in the University of Derby press release on this, I noted that under the heading "Family Diversity", the article notes that "singleness" is a growing trend. I've heard this before, not just as a social trend but also one creating an economic impact. Apparently where single women are concerned, it's even become a special focus of research for marketing purposes.
Now, I had never thought of "singleness" as a reason to leave (or join) a religion, and personally I am quite enjoying my singleness at this time in my life. I thought certainly that there must be some group celebrating the single life out there, so I googled it, and I was surprised to find that a search for "celebrating singleness" spat out nearly an entire page worth of Christian sites, books, and programs for helping supposedly forlorn singles feel like God has a plan for them... in the church.
I don't think singleness or lack thereof has ever been an issue one way or another in any of the Pagan groups I've been involved with. Perhaps the presence of diverse single/married/etc. role models (in the forms of Gods, Heroes, and even among fellow community members) "normalizes" these various social roles within our communities. Plus I think that the Pagan emphasis on personal empowerment and choice goes a long way towards affirming the dignity and importance of individual people regardless of their marital or relationship status.
Has anybody else noticed anything along these lines?
I read the article over on The Wild Hunt blog about Buffy the Vampire-Slayer inspiring UK women to leave the church and turn to Wicca.
In the list of reasons why women aren't going to church in the University of Derby press release on this, I noted that under the heading "Family Diversity", the article notes that "singleness" is a growing trend. I've heard this before, not just as a social trend but also one creating an economic impact. Apparently where single women are concerned, it's even become a special focus of research for marketing purposes.
Now, I had never thought of "singleness" as a reason to leave (or join) a religion, and personally I am quite enjoying my singleness at this time in my life. I thought certainly that there must be some group celebrating the single life out there, so I googled it, and I was surprised to find that a search for "celebrating singleness" spat out nearly an entire page worth of Christian sites, books, and programs for helping supposedly forlorn singles feel like God has a plan for them... in the church.
I don't think singleness or lack thereof has ever been an issue one way or another in any of the Pagan groups I've been involved with. Perhaps the presence of diverse single/married/etc. role models (in the forms of Gods, Heroes, and even among fellow community members) "normalizes" these various social roles within our communities. Plus I think that the Pagan emphasis on personal empowerment and choice goes a long way towards affirming the dignity and importance of individual people regardless of their marital or relationship status.
Has anybody else noticed anything along these lines?