Spiritual Care for Modern PagansA Guide for Hospital Chaplains

Carol T. KirkCherry Hill Seminary – Spring 2012

They are doctors and nurses, lawyers and scholars, students, housewives, soldiers and statesmen.

They are your neighbors and your friends.

They may well be patients or their families in this hospital.

Paganism is an umbrella term that refers to a number of different religions which are loosely based on some of the pre-Christian religions of the world.

Paganism is one of the fastest growing religious movements in the United States.

Asatru Druids Goddess Spirituality Heathens Reconstructionists Wiccans Witches - Religious

Follows the religions of Viking-age Scandanavia

Places heavy emphasis on family and community.

Stresses the Nine Noble Virtues of honor, hospitality, truth, discipline, loyalty, self-reliance, perseverance, industriousness and courage

Symbol – Frequently wear Thor’s Hammer.

Based on the pre-Christian beliefs of Celtic Europe and particularly Britain and Ireland.

Druids seek above all the cultivation of wisdom, creativity and love.

Druids teach love and respect towards all of life

Teachs a reverence for nature

Seek to reclaim the Divine Feminine. View the moon as a symbol of the

Goddess. Many women who follow this path have

a history of abuse at the hands of men and/or the Church.

Some view worship of the Goddess as a balance to the God-centered Abrahamic faiths.

Based on the beliefs and practices of pre-Christian Germanic and Anglo-Saxon Europe.

Places heavy emphasis on family and community.

May wear Thor’s Hammer symbol like the Asatru.

Seeks to follow the religions of specific ancient civilizations and cultures.

Examples of Reconstructionist Religions Celtic Hellenismos - Greek Kemetic – Egyptian Religio-Romana – Roman Slavic

Modern religion based on the folk practices of Britain

Views the Divine as God and Goddess Tries to live their lives by the maxim

“Harm None”. Symbol is the 5-pointed star within a

circle. Points of the star represent Earth, Air,

Fire, Water, and Spirit.

May be members of any religion including Christianity or Paganism.

May not acknowledge any specific Deity but have reverence for nature and the forces of Creation.

Tend to be Polytheistic May be Monotheistic or view the Gods as

Jungian archetypes. Tend to see the Divine as both male and

female. View Deity as both transcendent and

Immanent. View all of Creation as being in some

way sacred.

Do not believe salvation by an outside source is necessary.

Believe that no intermediary is necessary in order to have a personal relationship with the Divine.

Some Pagans practice in small groups called variously covens, groves, kindred, etc.

The vast majority of Pagans work as solitaries only occasionally coming together for community rituals.

Yule – December 21-23 Imbolc – February 1 Oestara – March 21-23 Beltane – May 1 Midsummer – June 21-23 Lammas – August 1 Mabon – September 21-23 Samhain – October 31

Pagans do not believe that evil stems from an outside source such as a malignant Deity.

Most Pagans believe that evil comes from making unethical choices.

Many Pagans believe that the consequences of their actions come back to impact them. Making bad choices brings back negative consequences on the person who made them.

Most Pagans are pragmatic about illness and see it as stemming from disease or from unhealthy lifestyle choices.

Some Pagans may view illness as a punishment for unethical choices they have made in this life or former lives.

Some Pagans are reluctant to use modern medicines and prefer natural treatments such as herbs, acupuncture, or Reiki.

Many Pagans believe in reincarnation where they return to the Earth many different times.

Some Pagans believe that they go to a place called the Summerland where the soul can rest and reflect before being reborn on Earth.

Some Pagans believe that the souls of the dead go to a particular place such as Valhalla or the Elysian Fields.

Pagans tend to view death as simply part of the cycle of life, not something to be feared.

Many Pagans believe that they will be together with those they love through many lifetimes.

Many Pagans hold special ceremonies to honor their dead at Samhain (Oct 31)

Pagans pray to their Gods in times of trouble just as people of other faiths do.

Some Pagans will call on specific Gods with whom they have a spiritual relationship.

Some Pagans may simply call upon the Lord and the Lady (God and Goddess).

Many people believe that Pagans are Satanists.

Some people believe that Pagans are all ignorant, poor, deviant, and of loose morals.

Some people are afraid that Pagans will try to convert them to Paganism.

Some people believe that Pagans are unfit parents.

Some people are afraid that Pagans will cast evil spells on them.

Some people even believe that Pagans should be killed.

Of course none of the above are true, but they may impact patient care for the Pagan patient.

Pagan patients have the same fears, concerns and spiritual needs as any other patient.

Pagan patients who do not work in a group may not have access to Pagan clergy.

Pagan patients may be reluctant to identify themselves as such because of fear of mistreatment.

Some staff may be reluctant to work with Pagan patients if they view them as Satanic.

Staff may become frustrated if Pagan patients are resistant to medical care because they believe natural remedies are better.

Staff may have problems accepting non-traditional families that are common among Pagans.

Many Pagans came to their present faith after being evicted from their previous religious home(s) or even family homes Be alert to family disagreement on the patient's spirituality and lifestyleBe ready for differences of meaning of religious words: prayer, faith, belief, salvation –

If you are uncomfortable with something – breathe, relax, and listen before judging. Personal objects in the room may be sacred tools – do not touch without permissionRemember always that they are human beings with spiritual needs.

I who am the beauty of the green earth and the white moon among the stars

and the mysteries of the waters,

I call upon your soul to arise and come unto Me.

For I am the soul of nature that gives life to the universe.

From Me all things proceed and unto Me they must return.

Let My worship be in the heart that rejoices,

for behold – all acts of love and pleasure are My rituals.

Let there be beauty and strength, peace and compassion, honor and humility,

mirth and reverence within you.

And you who seek to know Me, know that your seeking and yearning

will avail you not, unless you know the mystery:

for if that which you seek, you find not within yourself,

you will never find it without.

For behold, I have been with you from the beginning,

and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.

Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship. (2012). Retrieved March 3, 2012, from Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship: http://www.adf.org/about/

Celtic Druidism: History, beliefs,practices, myths & Neopagan revival. (2010, April 24). Retrieved March 3, 2012, from Ontario Center for Religious Tolerance:

Kirk, C. (2009). Pastoral Counseling for the Wiccan Soldier.

McColman, C. (2008). When Someone You Love is Wiccan. Pompton Plains, NJ: Career Press.

Norse Heathenism. (2011, February 6). Retrieved March 3, 2012, from Ontario Consultants for Religious Tolerance: http://www.religioustolerance.org/asatru.htm

Reconstructionist Paganism. (n.d.). Retrieved March 3, 2012, from The Cauldron - A Pagan Forum: http://www.ecauldron.net/reconindex.php