Those Damned Intellectuals

"Lady Eris, protect my enemies. Let them remain strong enough to continue blocking my path whenever I might otherwise run into danger. Let them know that they have helped me almost as much as my friends."
-from an Erisian Prayer

I am opening up a terrible can of worms here. And under the issue of intellectual development and/or lack thereof, I am knowingly slipping a couple other issues into the mix. Read on and see if the following applies to YOU and then feel free to respond directly or to decide what you are going to do about it, if you feel you should do anything at all.

The Neo-Pagan movement will be heading towards a stagnant and disastrous future if the fluffy-bunnies which are currently cropping up everywhere are allowed to control the discourse of our spiritual and/or practical outlooks. The battle between practitioners of Wicca and the adherents of Wicca-lite is symptomatic of the what will overtake us all if something isn't done. That's why many of us are writing, talking, and doing things to avert the twisting of our nascent spiritual traditions into saccharine feel-goody pap which has nothing to do with insights, no matter how sunny our dispositions are supposed to be.

I am frankly upset over this trend. It seems that Pagans everywhere are turning away from the intellectual rigors of measured and gradual study and are leaping towards the 'instant mystical insight' ethos exhibited by the people of the New Age. This ethos values feelings more than intellect due to its inherent confusion between intuition and emotion. (And if you are asking yourself what the difference between intuition and emotion is, you may have caught an infection from that ethos.)

It hasn't always been this way. Despite the spurious scholarship of some of the people cited and celebrated by the early Neo-Pagans, at least it was scholarship that could be expanded upon or debunked in light of new evidence. Also the practical spiritual insights being discovered by practitioners of Neo-Pagan paths were pushing the development of Neo-Paganism far beyond what any of the original founders of any tradition had first envisioned. There was a time when, despite a mistrust stemming from certain prejudiced academic views, Pagans respected intellectual development.

Nowadays, I see that respect waning rapidly. And it is not a good sign.

People are starting to become so mentally lazy that many are asking questions for which only a minute or two of their own thinking could probably answer for themselves. People are reading simple descriptions and false information and adhering to them as if they are the holy truth while attacking others who disagree. When queried as to their lack of research and learning, such people usually cite a lack of adequate time and resources...and this in a movement of spiritual traditions in which it shouldn't cost one anything for practice and insights and where, like all true spiritual practices, time is needed to learn and grow in the practice. (Lack of time? What? You claim to be a Witch/Druid/[insert other Pagan title here] and yet have no time to honor your deities, to pray, or to make your observances? You have no time to study certain magical practices? You can't be bothered to learn any rituals and meditate upon their significance? Perhaps you ARE in the wrong religion.)

This laziness is horrible and inexcusable. How busy are you really? I know people who have families, jobs that take up most of the days in their week, and various community and neighborhood obligations and yet have still found the time to study and learn. When I was studying in Photo school and had not free time...i.e. from class to studio to darkroom to job to girlfriend to class to studio to darkroom to eating to digital lab to class....etc. Get it? I had no time...or at least I could use the excuse....but I never did and never will. Because I always found the time. Why? Because my spiritual practices actually mean something to me. Being Pagan isn't some 'alternative' or 'kewl' neato new fix for me to use to appear different. I actually practice it. And that means continued study, introspection, ritual practice, magical experimentation, seeking, and communing. I really don't care if other people in the general populace who are not Pagan never catch on to what I am doing. (I never wear myself on my sleeve and I think that those who do so are as disgusting as someone who masturbates in public.)

I have cultivated an intellect and a respect for others who have done the same. Scholars like Hutton or Bonewits have done their research into modern Pagan paths and those of us considering ourselves Pagan can only do well, if not better, to learn and study from their efforts and publications. But that is not what is happening overall now, is it? Our Pagan traditions are being overrun by the same instant-mystery ethos and anti-intellectual bias that has become the trademark of the New Age. The situation has gotten so out of hand that even the elders of our traditions are not being respected for their experience and learning. Why? If insight and mystery is marketed and packaged as "instant" and/or "satisfaction guaranteed," why should anyone feel the need to actually learn and practice things that may take time, dedication, discipline, and long-term experience?

A lot of people going around wearing their Paganism or their Witchcraft on their sleeves and proudly announcing their religious practices to every else have not done the research nor the study needed to have a thorough grounding in not only the history and practices but also the beliefs themselves. This learning entails not only what appeals to oneself personally but also the arguments and knowledge tracks that others throughout the Neo-Pagan family of practices have developed. Wearing one's religion on one's sleeve can thus be a solid indicator of one's actual level of study and practice and also of one's shallow connections to what they are proclaiming so proudly as their own religion. All of you would-be Pagan defenders should take note of this and adjust yourselves accordingly. Some of us Pagans actually want people arguing for our faiths to have made the effort and to have taken the time to actually KNOW what it is they are defending. And another thing to think about, at least with respect to Wicca and its Witchcraft derivatives, is that "power to be silent" clause. Remember that? The main reason for that clause is not, as you may suspect, persecution and misunderstanding (though it has its place as one of the side reasons). The main reason for daring to be silent is that we don't proselytize simply because we respect other people's religious choices so long as they respect ours and leave us be to practice it. Just as you would dislike people pushing their faith in Jesus on you, use some consideration towards others. Not many people like those who wear their spirituality on their sleeves. That is why we have clergy and other specialists for that. And unless you are going pony up to the bar and become clergy or an elder/teacher, you may find that you really have no NEED to loudly announce your faith/spirituality to everyone around you. In fact, you don't really see clergy or teachers going around announcing their faith to everyone around them. Usually they just minister to the people who come to them or to their temples/churches/what-have-yous.

So why ARE you displaying your Pagan practices to everyone else?

And just why do you not feel the need to deeply develop the insights that could be yours if only you would close down your incessant chatter and actually learn to listen?

Then again, you could simply label me as another one of those damned intellectuals and not even think about anything I have raised above at all, meanwhile coming up with some angry invective about how I am attacking your religion/spirituality. But people, being anti-intellectual and having no respect for learning and knowledge is not a good sign. Not one bit.

-Irreverend Hugh, KSC
jan.24.2005


This page published by the DSSS/PMM on Chaos 30th.