I get a lot of varied responses when it comes to my religion. So, out of frustration, I made a "list" of things I'd rather people didn't do, and things people did do. Originally, it was aimed for Heathenism, but a lot of my points fit for multiple religions, so I thought I'd post it here.
(Note: Some of it is still a little Pagan/Heathen centric, though. Sorry :/)
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Things I'd Rather Ты Didn't Do:
1 Don't assume
~A. Don't assume I don't know about other religions. Just because I don't follow that path, doesn't mean I'm ignorant about it.
~B. Don't assume Ты know why I chose this path.
~C. Don't assume that my personal beliefs are going to line up with the beliefs of “some guy I knew this one time.” Every person who falls under the Pagan umbrella is different. (Anyone who falls under any umbrella is different, really.) We all come from different back-grounds, and have different morals. Some of us are pro-choice. Some of us are vegan. Some of us are for the death penalty. There is no singular “Pagan” belief. Just because Jimmy was a homophobe doesn't mean we all are, или that it's a “Pagan” belief.
~D. Don't assume I worship the devil/Lucifer/Satan. или believe in the devil. или even think that worshiping the devil is a bad thing. In fact, don't assume Ты know who/what I worship period.
~E Don't assume I do animal sacrifice. или support it. или am against it.
~F Don't assume my religion is like another religion. Yes, it is a religion. No, that doesn't mean it is anything like Christianity. Yes, it is a Pagan religion. No, that doesn't mean it is anything like Wicca. There are hundreds different branches of Paganism alone. Some of them are similar. Most of them are not.
~G Don't assume Ты know everything about my religion. The media, other religions (including other Pagan religions) don't always tell the facts straight up. Sometimes, they just out-right twist and make up “facts” to suit their own agenda.
~H Don't assume I'm against other religions, или that I believe my religion is “right.” We're all different. What works for me isn't necessarily going to work for you.
No, I'm not Christian. No, I'm not Wiccan. No, that doesn't mean I have a problem with either one of those religions, или the people that practice them.
~I Don't assume I'm an Universalist. Don't assume I'm Folkish.
~J Don't assume I believe in black magic/white magic/grey magic. или spell magic with a 'k'. или practice magic at all. или don't practice magic at all. или would или would not do certain spells/types of magic.
~K Don't assume I have a pentacle. или a broomstick. In fact, don't assume Ты know what my symbols are, and/or that I wear any at all.
~L Don't assume that we know all Pagans everywhere, and know everything about every Pagan religion in existence.
~M Don't assume to know what my religion tells me about gods. You'd be surprised to find that many Heathens, for example, aren't “godless” but, rather, hard polytheists.
2 Don't push. Don't push your beliefs. Don't push the Three Fold Law, don't push veganism. Don't push you're prayers. Don't try and push me to go to church with you. Don't try and “push” me to read the Bible, или “meet Jesus” или that "This goddess is actually this other goddess." I know me better than you. Let me be me. I'll let Ты be you.
3 Don't invalidate. My beliefs and experiences are as real and important as yours. Just because I can feel “at peace” или have a “religious experience” with someone other than Yahweh, или outside a church doesn't mean I'm crazy/making things up/confused as to who I'm speaking with.
Things I Would Very Much Rather Ты Did Do:
1 Ask questions. Ask anything that pops into your head. It's okay. I (and majority of other Pagans, I'm sure) would much rather Ты ask Вопросы Ты feel are “obvious” или “silly” than assume Ты know the answer.
2 Research. Ты don't have to take our words to heart. All the information we have is easily and readily available to Ты as well. Don't believe me when I say the swastika isn't solely a Nazi symbol? Google is your friend.
3 Have an open mind. Yes, we're aware that “I talked with Zeus” sounds crazy. But it's what we do. It's what our experiences tell us.
(Note: Some of it is still a little Pagan/Heathen centric, though. Sorry :/)
__________________________________________________________________________________
Things I'd Rather Ты Didn't Do:
1 Don't assume
~A. Don't assume I don't know about other religions. Just because I don't follow that path, doesn't mean I'm ignorant about it.
~B. Don't assume Ты know why I chose this path.
~C. Don't assume that my personal beliefs are going to line up with the beliefs of “some guy I knew this one time.” Every person who falls under the Pagan umbrella is different. (Anyone who falls under any umbrella is different, really.) We all come from different back-grounds, and have different morals. Some of us are pro-choice. Some of us are vegan. Some of us are for the death penalty. There is no singular “Pagan” belief. Just because Jimmy was a homophobe doesn't mean we all are, или that it's a “Pagan” belief.
~D. Don't assume I worship the devil/Lucifer/Satan. или believe in the devil. или even think that worshiping the devil is a bad thing. In fact, don't assume Ты know who/what I worship period.
~E Don't assume I do animal sacrifice. или support it. или am against it.
~F Don't assume my religion is like another religion. Yes, it is a religion. No, that doesn't mean it is anything like Christianity. Yes, it is a Pagan religion. No, that doesn't mean it is anything like Wicca. There are hundreds different branches of Paganism alone. Some of them are similar. Most of them are not.
~G Don't assume Ты know everything about my religion. The media, other religions (including other Pagan religions) don't always tell the facts straight up. Sometimes, they just out-right twist and make up “facts” to suit their own agenda.
~H Don't assume I'm against other religions, или that I believe my religion is “right.” We're all different. What works for me isn't necessarily going to work for you.
No, I'm not Christian. No, I'm not Wiccan. No, that doesn't mean I have a problem with either one of those religions, или the people that practice them.
~I Don't assume I'm an Universalist. Don't assume I'm Folkish.
~J Don't assume I believe in black magic/white magic/grey magic. или spell magic with a 'k'. или practice magic at all. или don't practice magic at all. или would или would not do certain spells/types of magic.
~K Don't assume I have a pentacle. или a broomstick. In fact, don't assume Ты know what my symbols are, and/or that I wear any at all.
~L Don't assume that we know all Pagans everywhere, and know everything about every Pagan religion in existence.
~M Don't assume to know what my religion tells me about gods. You'd be surprised to find that many Heathens, for example, aren't “godless” but, rather, hard polytheists.
2 Don't push. Don't push your beliefs. Don't push the Three Fold Law, don't push veganism. Don't push you're prayers. Don't try and push me to go to church with you. Don't try and “push” me to read the Bible, или “meet Jesus” или that "This goddess is actually this other goddess." I know me better than you. Let me be me. I'll let Ты be you.
3 Don't invalidate. My beliefs and experiences are as real and important as yours. Just because I can feel “at peace” или have a “religious experience” with someone other than Yahweh, или outside a church doesn't mean I'm crazy/making things up/confused as to who I'm speaking with.
Things I Would Very Much Rather Ты Did Do:
1 Ask questions. Ask anything that pops into your head. It's okay. I (and majority of other Pagans, I'm sure) would much rather Ты ask Вопросы Ты feel are “obvious” или “silly” than assume Ты know the answer.
2 Research. Ты don't have to take our words to heart. All the information we have is easily and readily available to Ты as well. Don't believe me when I say the swastika isn't solely a Nazi symbol? Google is your friend.
3 Have an open mind. Yes, we're aware that “I talked with Zeus” sounds crazy. But it's what we do. It's what our experiences tell us.