February 20, 2002 ("Palindrome Day")

Click here to skip the preface.

Here I am, looking at what I have written, in the following article, and it seems all so neat and planned, and thoroughly academic, which is funny, because that's not how coming to "Christo-Paganism" felt, at all. First came the experience, which shattered my preconceptions, and all I could do was try to make sense of it. Many christo-pagans will tell you the same, I think.

A few years ago, I would have never imagined that I would be reading this article, much less writing it. I was a Conservative Jew. I viewed Christianity as being hopelessly riddled with contradictions, being passed off as "the mysteries of the faith". I viewed Paganism as being a failure to distinguish between fantasy and reality. But, life had its own ideas.

I won't give you the details, because they are far too personal, and they are of no relevance to you, anyway. It is for the gods to call you to their company, or not, as they please, through your individual life experience. It is not my place to second guess their choices in this matter. Suffice it to say that in a moment of true desperation, I found myself praying to both Jesus and Aphrodite, wondering which of the two, if either, would answer. That, I thought, would give me a sense of which direction to go in as I departed Judaism. Should I become a Christian or a "Pagan"?

Imagine my amazement, when both answered.

"Huh?", I thought. "This can't be right. This must be coincidence. The two religions are in direct contradiction with each other". So, I started watching, thinking that at some point, clarity would come, and it did. It just didn't come in the form that I expected. As luck would have it, my two newfound patron deities seemed as responsive as a pair of doting parents, and the pattern continued far too long for it to be plausible, that this was all a coincidence.

More confusingly still, each deity seemed to respond to one class of prayers, but not another. I couldn't even pick and choose, because the nature of the help given was such that, were I to lose the help granted by one deity, the help given by another would have been rendered meaningless. It was almost as if they were partners, each demanding that I show the other due respect. But, that couldn't be right, could it? All throughout the Bible, God indicates His displeasure with the worship of "idols", doesn't he? Surely, the Olympians would be resentful and hostile in reply? Wouldn't they?

Apparently not. Click here to enter. (This page has been copyrighted; all rights reserved)






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