Cultural Backlash: An Open Post

[causticus]

There were some interesting discussions on yesterday's Magic Monday post and on the past month's or so posts on the Ecosophia blog regarding the collapse of alternative spirituality in the West and a likely impending cultural backlash against decades of general rot and grubbiness that is decaying our civilization from within.

Some of us here in the US are afraid that a sudden cultural jolt in the other direction, away from leftism/progressivism, will result in any type of spirituality that doesn't fit a narrow, literalist Christian/Abrahamic format as being seen by the reaction mob as "part of the problem." Anything the people leading and directing this backlash deem to be adjacent to the aforementioned cultural rot will be lazily lumped together into one big, bad conspiracy against what they believe they are trying to save and preserve. This likely means anything occult/esoteric, overtly pagan, or too foreign will be included, with very little nuance. As we know, the moral collapse of both Neopaganism and the postmodern occult scene hasn't helped matters at all in this respect, especially in light of recent tragic events.

Anyway, I want to know what anyone else here thinks of this and anything in your own area (US or somewhere else) you have seen indicative of a new cultural direction that may or or may not involve the condemnation of the things I listed above (or anything else that comes to mind). Also, we could use this space to think up ideas on how to preserve and carry on various spiritual teachings and practices if/when an intolerant religious climate becomes reality.

This is an open post that will stay open for quite a long time.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you for holding opening up this thread. I've been getting concerned, too. And as always, it's hard to know how much of the online world's insanity is bleeding over into regular life.

In my part of rural Colorado, folks tend to be pretty conservative, but we also tend to mind our own business and not ask a lot of questions. I'm hoping that continues. I don't know what's being said in the churches, but publicly I've encountered some grief about Charlie Kirk and not much else.

However, since moving here I've kept my mouth shut about my spiritual leanings, because I know how rapidly gossip can spread in a small town.

One thing I've been irked by, regarding online pagans, is their habit of launching continual jibes and insults at Christianity. Is it too much to plainly state that Christianity is a perfectly valid religion?

-Cliff

[causticus]

You're welcome. Thank you for stopping by, and thanks for the data point!

I certainly agree that the constant jabs and insults against Christianity and Christians is rather puerile and unproductive, to say the least. It really shows that the bulk of Neopaganism has always been so fixated on rebelling against the (once) Christian overculture.

[lukedodson]

Cliff, as I recall you posted on MM a little while back about having experienced synchronicities related to the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi.

Monday had passed by the time I saw it, so I didn't get a chance to respond, but I wanted to say that I also had a similar experience last year related to that Branch, and I'd be happy to talk to you about it in more detail if you're interested. My email is (no spaces): lukesdodson at protonmail dot com.

[(Anonymous)]

I sent you an email. If you haven't seen it, yes I would love to talk about the Mabinogion.
-Cliff

[lukedodson]

And an anecdote more directly relevant to your post - at a festival over the summer, I was talking to someone about religion while queueing up at the bar, and I described myself as a 'pagan who acknowledges Christ as a god'. A guy just ahead of me turned around, looked at me, and gave me a fist-bump without saying a single word! It was a very nice and amusing moment.