Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Purity Is Overrated

Purity Is Overrated

Last updated on: December 5, 2012 at 7:26 pm by John Beckett

Purity Is Overrated 2012-12-05T19:26:00-06:00 John Beckett

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Most of us make our moral judgments intuitively and then look for a reason to justify our decisions. According to psychologist Jonathan Haidt, there are five primary moral intuitions that are universal throughout humanity: do no harm, fairness and reciprocity, loyalty to community, respect for authority and purity.

These intuitions were not designed or discovered, they evolved – they helped human societies survive, succeed and grow, so they were passed on from generation to generation. They began long before we became human (you can see these behaviors in chimpanzees) and are likely to influence our descendants long into the future.

A little thought can deduce the reasons why these intuitions have proved helpful. I want to focus on purity – and why I think it’s overrated, particularly in Pagan and liberal circles.

If you come across a bright shiny apple, it’s probably good to eat. If it has a worm in it, you may be able to cut the worm out and eat the rest. But if it has several worms in it, if it’s brown and mushy, if it has an unpleasant odor about it, eating it will probably make you sick. Pure food is safe, impure food is risky. Consider that very early humans may have first obtained meat by scavenging and not by hunting and the importance of purity is easy to see.

Purity, of course, is about more than just food. Humans have an even older evolutionary instinct to propagate our own genes and not someone else’s. Women know their children are their own, but men can never be sure. This is at the core of the desire by men for virgin brides – to be as sure as possible that any children the woman has will carry his genes and not some other man’s. Over millennia, this instinct has led to patriarchy, misogyny and much unhelpful sexual morality.

In today’s environment of STDs and unwanted pregnancies, sexual purity still has some value – just not nearly to the extent religious conservatives who would restrict sexual activity to married heterosexual couples would have you believe. Pagans and other religious liberals rightly understand that while sexual purity isn’t a bad thing, it’s overrated.

There’s another kind of purity that’s overrated – ethical purity.

In a blog post titled Embracing Wal-Mart Pagans Peter Dybing calls out Pagans who try to “take the moral high ground” with other Pagans. He says:

I have friends who shop at Wal-Mart, support the death penalty, work for Monsanto, support Republicans, think the use of military force is a great way to establish democracy and support cracking down on pot smokers. As a product of the counter culture revolution I find these beliefs and actions to conflict with my personal beliefs. I DO NOT, however, find the individuals holding them lacking in humanity or Pagan conviction.

Dybing’s point is that we shouldn’t bash other Pagans whose beliefs and decisions don’t line up with our own. I agree, and I see the urge to do these things as an extension of the purity intuition.

This past Summer I stopped eating at Chick-fil-a. It became clear to me that the company wasn’t just supporting conservative institutions and values, it was actively causing harm by giving money to groups that work to prevent marriage equality and that attempt to “re-orient” gay people. I don’t want to give them my money and I don’t want to be seen eating in their restaurants – their homophobia would contaminate my ethical purity.

While this is important to me, it isn’t a big deal. I stopped eating at one fast food restaurant. There are plenty of other fast food restaurants available. There are plenty of other places to get a chicken sandwich. This wasn’t a very costly decision.

Many Pagans have a problem with Wal-Mart. They don’t pay their employees well, they drive small retailers out of business, and they encourage people to buy lots of stuff they don’t need. It’s tempting to say “we shouldn’t support Wal-Mart.” I understand that impulse – it’s the same impulse that led me to stop eating at Chick-fil-a.

But what are the alternatives? Shop at Target? Is one big box store really better than another? Shop at an independent retailer? Fine, if there’s one near you, and if you can afford the higher prices. If you have a comfortable middle class income maybe that’s no big deal. If you’re unemployed, underemployed, or otherwise struggling to get by, the extra cost may make the difference between staying afloat or falling further into debt.

Align your decisions with your values, but understand that decisions that are simple for you are not so simple for others.

What about fossil fuels? As Nature-loving, future-generation-honoring Pagans we understand that every ounce of fossil fuel we burn adds to climate change and lowers the supply of energy for our children and grandchildren. How much can you burn and still be pure? Can you drive a small car? Do you have to use public transportation? But trains and buses burn fossil fuels too. How are you going to heat your house? How are you going to get electricity for your computer, or for your lights? How much pollution is acceptable?

If your answer is more than “none” you aren’t pure. If your answer is “none” I propose you haven’t thought that answer through to its logical conclusion.

There is no “harm none.” In order to live we must consume other life. Just as an overemphasis on sexual purity has led to unhelpful social practices, an overemphasis on ethical purity can lead us to arrogance, broken relationships, and disfunctional communities.

Do your best to align your life with your values. Sometimes that means making small sacrifices. Sometimes that means making major changes. Make compromises you can live with – compromises some will find too large and others will find too small.

Understand that other informed, mindful Pagans will make compromises that look very different from yours.

Have some humility and some compassion, because neither you nor they are ethically pure.

But purity is overrated.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

December 3, 2012

Sacrifice

Next Post

December 7, 2012 Seeking the Mystery

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Books Community CUUPS Druidry Foundations and Context Gods and Goddesses Magic Myth Nature Ritual Spiritual Practice Theology Travel Uncategorized Videos

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who wrote Lamentations, mourning Jerusalem's destruction?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Obadiah Ezra Jeremiah Isaiah