{"id":29465,"date":"2023-09-27T03:00:21","date_gmt":"2023-09-27T09:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/?p=29465"},"modified":"2023-09-26T18:40:25","modified_gmt":"2023-09-27T00:40:25","slug":"wearing-pagan-jewelry-and-clothing-is-a-lot-more-than-advertising","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2023\/09\/wearing-pagan-jewelry-and-clothing-is-a-lot-more-than-advertising.html","title":{"rendered":"Wearing Pagan Jewelry and Clothing is a Lot More Than Advertising"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

I recently saw a social media post where an atheist showed a picture of someone wearing a cross and said:<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t advertise my non-belief on my body. Why do Christians feel the need to advertise their belief?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I\u2019m not going to attempt to speak for Christians. Some of their reasons overlap with mine and some are their own. But I want to respond to the question from my perspective as a religious Pagan.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The assumption behind the question: the public square should be religion-free<\/h2>\n \ This wasn\u2019t a neutral, value-free inquiry. This was a \u201chey, I\u2019m just asking\u201d question where a particular viewpoint is assumed to be correct.<\/p>\n \ The question assumes that the purpose of religious clothing and jewelry is advertising. Now, let\u2019s be honest: some Christian apparel is all about advertising, especially the in-your-face t-shirts like those I sometimes see advertised on Patheos. But that\u2019s far from the only reason people \u2013 Christian or Pagan or other \u2013 wear religious items.<\/p>\n \ Beyond that, it assumes that wearing such items is a bad thing. It assumes that the public square should be free from all religious displays and be entirely secular.<\/p>\n \ When governments put up religious displays, that\u2019s a bad thing. When government officials and employees promote their religion in their official capacities, that\u2019s a bad thing. When the gatekeepers of the public square allow some religious displays but not others (hello, Satanic Temple\u2026) that\u2019s a very bad thing.<\/p>\n But individuals wearing Jesus t-shirts or hijabs, crosses or pentacles, yarmulkes or turbans? That\u2019s all part of the glorious garden of religions<\/a> we have in this, the most religiously diverse society in the history of the world. And that\u2019s a very good thing.<\/p>\n

Atheists do this too<\/h2>\n \ The original poster may not advertise their religion on their body, but some atheists do. Search for \u201catheist shirts\u201d on Amazon and you get over 3000 results. Those aren\u2019t all being bought by fundamentalists who want to burn them. Some of them are accurate, some are funny, and some are needlessly offensive.<\/p>\n \ Some atheists insist they have no religion. I take them at their word, but non-theistic religion is still religion. And at least some non-theists like wearing clothing and jewelry that identifies them as non-theists. Whether that makes them religious or not is a matter for them to decide, but it sure looks the same as what theists of every variety do.<\/p>\n \ For visibility of a minority religion<\/h2>\n \ Nobody likes watching commercials on TV or looking at the ads here on Patheos (but that\u2019s the only way the writers get paid, not that any of us get paid anything close to minimum wage). But in an economy built on commerce, advertising is a necessity\u2026 although some advertising crosses the line into malefic magic.<\/p>\n \ Advertising isn\u2019t a necessity for those of us who practice non-proselytizing religions. I\u2019m not trying to \u201cwin the world for Cernunnos\u201d \u2013 and if I was, I think He\u2019d tell me I had my priorities mixed up.<\/p>\n \ At the same time, visibility is a good thing. If nothing else, I want people to know we\u2019re here, that there\u2019s a religion (or a group of many religions) that sees the Divine as many and Nature as sacred. And I want people who are looking for what we have to be able to find us.<\/p>\n \ Wearing a Pagan t-shirt or my Awen pendant silently says \u201chey, we\u2019re here!\u201d<\/p>\n

To remind ourselves of our commitments<\/h2>\n \ Read any wedding vows \u2013 traditional or contemporary \u2013 and you will see words of commitment from spouse to spouse. \u201cWith this ring I thee wed\u201d and such. Wedding rings aren\u2019t there to tell the world someone is \u201coff the market\u201d \u2013 they\u2019re there to remind the spouses of their commitments to each other.<\/p>\n \ The same can be true with religious jewelry. When I wear my Cernunnos pendant, I am reminded that I am His priest and that I have made certain commitments to Him. My Awen pendant reminds me of my commitment to this path of Druidry.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n

To fulfill a requirement<\/h2>\n \ There are no clothing or jewelry requirements that apply to all Pagans. But I have friends who have a geas<\/em> to always wear certain items of clothing, or to not wear others. It\u2019s not a fashion choice. It\u2019s not a choice, period \u2013 that\u2019s what a geas<\/em> is. It\u2019s a religious requirement. Some have items they are never allowed to remove for any reason, or only allowed to remove in certain places around certain people.<\/p>\n \ This isn\u2019t advertising or visibility or even a commitment. It\u2019s a requirement, a command, something a person was instructed to do by their Gods. And so they wear it, even if it upsets Christians and atheists\u2026 and the Pagans who don\u2019t like the idea of Gods who make demands.<\/p>\n \ I\u2019m thankful I have no such requirements. I rarely wear jewelry outside of ritual \u2013 I don\u2019t like the way it feels on my body. But some do, and I respect their dedication.<\/p>\n

As amulets and talismans<\/h2>\n Anyone who grew up on classic horror movies knows you wear a cross to repel vampires (and those of us who read Anne Rice<\/a> as teenagers know it doesn\u2019t always work that way). Some of our Pagan jewelry isn\u2019t just religious \u2013 it\u2019s magical.<\/p>\n The pentagram is a symbol of protection \u2013 a pentacle (a 3-dimensional pentagram) serves as a shield against harmful spirits and energies<\/a>. Some crystals and stones do the same thing. Others draw certain energies and spirits to the wearer.<\/p>\n Pagan jewelry can have a functional aspect.<\/p>\n Because we like the way they look<\/h2>\n*** ** ***Not everything has to have a deep meaning or functional use. Sometimes we just like the aesthetics of something.<\/p>\n When you\u2019re dealing with aesthetics in the context of religious and spiritual traditions, the question of appropriation always comes up. Christians have complained about pop stars wearing crosses since at least the early days of Madonna. In 2017 we were arguing about the \u201cbasic witch\u201d trend \u2013 I wrote The Aesthetic of Witchcraft and the Return of Real Magic<\/a> where I said that my work \u201ckeeps me so busy I can\u2019t spend much time worrying about those who just want to look like a witch.\u201d<\/p>\n But you can\u2019t appropriate your own tradition (you can misuse or disrespect it, but that\u2019s another topic). If you\u2019re a witch who likes to dress in ways stereotypical of witches, have at it. My wardrobe has a lot of black in it, in part because of its association with witches, but also because I just like black. I\u2019ve worn tons of black since kindergarten.<\/p>\n And sometimes we dress against tradition, because we like other things too. I\u2019m a Druid \u2013 sometimes I wear a white robe, and sometimes I wear khakis and a polo shirt.<\/p>\n As a Pagan, I will gladly ally myself with anyone who will help in the work to build a better world here and now \u2013 which includes the work to keep governments from establishing, supporting, or promoting any one religion over others. But those who want a religion-free public square are fighting needlessly and for the wrong things.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" An atheist asked why religious people \u201cfeel the need to advertise their belief?\u201d with jewelry and clothing. There are many reasons \u2013 most of which have nothing to do with advertising. 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