|
Gay and Pagan
by Wind Dancer
I discovered pretty early in my life that
I was gay. At the age of 13 I suspected. At the age of 17 I had my first
sexual encounter with a man. At the age of 18 I began to come out to family
and friends. While the coming out process is life long, the majority of
people in my life know that I am gay. I prefer it that way. There are no
secrets, and I don’t have to worry about keeping them.
|
Much later, at about the age of 25---10 years
after my first exposure to paganism, I began to explore a new spirituality
which would eventually lead to the priesthood.
|
One of the reasons I pursued my interest in
paganism is that the people who I practiced with were so very accepting
of my sexuality. I could talk about my deepest feelings, the vast amount
of experiences I had, both positive and negative, and I was never rejected
for those feelings or experiences.
|
More importantly, I found that the Goddess
and the God never, and I mean never, asked me to change myself. No words
like sinful or shameful or evil or unnatural ever entered my relationship
with the Divine. I never had to atone for or be ashamed of being gay. Being
gay was cause to be celebrated, just as my heterosexual brothers’ and sisters’
relationships and marriages were cause to be celebrated. Note that I said
celebrate … NOT tolerate.
|
I am so tired of hearing people say that they
tolerate gay people. I don’t want to be tolerated, I want to be celebrated.
Just as I celebrate the heterosexual relationships of the people around
me. Weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, invitations as a couple, recognition
of family are all things that are given automatically to most heterosexuals.
I want those same things for “alternate” lifestyles. Shouldn’t gay, bisexual
and transgendered marriages, which contain just as deep a bond as their
heterosexual counterparts be recognized? I say yes. Shouldn’t our partners
be recognized as the parent of the children we help to raise? I say yes.
Shouldn’t our relationships be recognized for things such as partner benefits,
tax benefits, retirement plans? I say yes.
|
The spirituality of paganism is not separate
from the spirituality of being gay. As a matter of fact, I believe that
our spirituality is not only affected by our being gay or lesbian, but
I believe that it adds dimension and access to things that perhaps might
not be accessible by heterosexuals. This is not to say that we are in any
way better or more capable magickally than our heterosexual counterparts.
They have energies and ways of accessing energy that are different from
a gay man or woman. The attraction between a man and a woman is a very
special and powerful magickal energy. It is different, however, from the
atttraction between two men, just as it is different from the attraction
between two women.
|
All are wonderfully powerful and exciting.
The physical attraction to a woman is not something that I can bring to
a magickal circle. That does not make me less than those men who do bring
that attraction. I can, however, bring my attraction for men and my understanding
of the “feminine” and “masculine” to a circle. I often feel like I provide
a link between the two. Indeed, gay men and women were often considered
the liaisons between the two sexes in native tribes.
|
If a member of a pagan tradition ever tells
you that you cannot do something because you are gay. Run, don’t walk in
the opposite direction. There are plenty of pagan traditions and/or covens
that will accept, incorporate and celebrate your sexuality into their magickal
work.
|
I wish you blessings, love and freedom … in
whatever path you choose.
|
Blessed Be, Wind Dancer
|
|