Spirituality
So I'm delving into Paganism / Wiccanism. I'm very interested in these spiritual beliefs. The one hang up I seem to have so far is the whole God / Goddess thing. I've always thought that everyone was connected on some level, and this connection is what I consider "God," Not some uppity being looking down on us from some kingdom in heaven judging us on our behavior. I realize that the pagan / Wiccan God and Goddess is nothing like that, but still I have reservations. I've always believed that organized religion of any kind was meant to control the masses. I know Monarchies used them, and I watch our own government attempt to use them to guilt people into being patriotic. Another thing is ritual; I believe that ritual is only there to give us the focus necessary to put fourth our will (i.e., do magic, cast a spell) and I also think that once someone is truly enlightened, ritual is no longer necessary. Another reason why religion was mixed with witchcraft, 1) faith makes the focus stronger, and 2) when you live life a certain way, I think you can be more in tuned with the forces that dictate Karma and Magic. Again though, religion is used to get a certain way of life out of someone, and though I admire allot of aspects of this way of life, I will have to learn allot more before I can subscribe to it.
(There is a difference between being a slave and wanting to be a slave. Do you want to be my slave?)