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There are times when I reflect back on where I've been and what my past thinking was and I feel so foolish.
When I first came to Odinism it was a common thing to hear that this spiritual path of ours should fit you like an old pair of jeans, comfortable and not constraining.
I've tried to always keep that idea in my thinking, but somewhere along the way I forgot that concept.
Along the way though I drank to much kool-aid and started serving a "church" rather than our folk. I started pushing a very stuffy, very inorganic way for our path. The idea of preaching from the pulpit was bandied about. Telling people what to believe and how to believe that really had little basis in lore. A priesthood that taught people to do as the priests say and not as the priests do. Wearing stoles and fancy jewelry to set the cool kids apart from the rabble..... (at times it seemed like all that was missing was confession with a chastising priest ordering you to say a few "Hail Friggas" for penance.)
That's not Odinism, that's a twisted version of our folkways overlayed with a strong veneer of the desert religions.
After I quit partaking of the kool-aid my eyes began to open and I realized my folly. Our spirituality should never be twisted to fit the will of some man or group, regardless of who or what they may claim.......rather we should change who we are to rightly tread this folkway.
Our path is one that still carries the wildness of the forest within it, Sunna should still bring a smile to our face.....our values shouldn't feel like heavy chains of bondage, but rather should lay comfortably on our soul. Odinism should be lived everyday(even when no one is around to see us) and should be a path of honour and nobility.
The Gothar/Priests of our way need not stand on soapboxes railing at us about their supposed greatness. The Gothar of our way should serve our folk selflessly, they should give all they can to see our folk become better.....Being a Gothi of our folk is more one of service and less one of leadership. Those deserving of it will get the respect needed to fulfill their role; those not deserving will spend all their time trying to impress people with fancy dress and big words while reminding everyone that they're the "boss" and what they say goes.
That's not what our people need.....we need more leaders who live a noble way....... more leaders inspiring our folk through action and deed..... more leaders for whom this folkway is carved into their soul.
Yes, Odinism has rules, it did 1,000 years ago and it does now, but they were natural, common sense rules.
Yes, our Ancestors had folk leaders, but these noble men and women rightly earned their place through their deeds (generally speaking).
I'm not telling anybody how to tread this path, but when the path feels stuffy and constraining, or the leadership seems merely self-serving, then ask yourself if our Ancestors would have allowed such behavior to hijack their spirituality. Maybe, just maybe, it's time for you to set down the kool-aid.....
As for me, I'll be over here in my comfortable jeans treading a noble path with the good folk of my local community.
DO RIGHT AND FEAR NO ONE!!!
Gothi Qualls
⚡ ravenfolkunited.org
BY Folk Wisdom & Ways
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