Paganism’s Promise: My Winding Path to Environmental Activism (Part 10/10)

Last updated on: May 22, 2016 at 12:00 pm by John Halstead

Paganism’s Promise: My Winding Path to Environmental Activism (Part 10/10) 2016-05-16T10:50:12-05:00 John Halstead

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Earlier in the summer, Patheos Pagan had invited its bloggers to answer the question, “Has Pagan Environmentalism Failed?” I continued to wrestle with that question for months after.

I’ve decided that, whether or not there is time to prevent global catastrophe, I choose to act as if there is.

And I believe that, if were are to going to really change things, we need to change our relationship with the Earth in a fundamental way. It seems to me that Paganism has the potential to help effect this fundamental change. I think we Pagans have something the world desperately needs: a new, and yet very old, vision of the world, a re-enchanted vision, and the tools for cultivating and sustaining that vision.

But I think most of Paganism’s potential remains unrealized … hidden in a closet.

I want to see us be more open about our Paganism and more willing to engage constructively with other faiths. I don’t mean that we should be knocking on doors like Mormons with a Book of Shadows in hand. I do mean sharing our faith with our friends, our family, our neighbors — not with the intention of converting, but with the hope of sharing the perspective that Paganism gives us. We can help normalize the idea that we are an interconnected part of this Earth and help to gradually shift people’s consciousness from a dominator paradigm to a partnership paradigm. And we can invite people to participate in simple rituals that will help them form a living bond with the Earth.

Someone recently asked me how I would like to be remembered. If I am remembered, I hope that it is in part for helping Paganism realize this potential.

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May 21, 2016

We’re Already Living in a Tree: My Winding Path to Environmental Activism (Part 9/10)

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May 24, 2016 Why I Chose to Get Arrested (with photos): My Winding Path to Environmental Activism (Postscript)

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