Political scientist and religious data analyst Ryan Burge presented what I think is an important poll result last week. He looked at a survey that asked members of various religious groups “how often do you feel a deep sense of spiritual peace and well-being?”
Jehovah’s Witnesses were the highest scoring group, with 74% of them saying weekly, followed by Mormons (64%) and Evangelicals (61%). Catholics (39%) and Mainline Protestants (38%) were in the middle, with atheists at the bottom (15%)
As with the vast majority of religious polling, there aren’t enough Pagans to generate a statistically significant response. Knowing what I know about Pagans a group, I think it’s safe to lump us in with the Nones – “Nothing in Particular” – at 24%. Even if we score as high as the Catholics and Mainline Protestants, that’s still pretty low
And that raises the question of what we can do to foster a sense of peace and well-being
The purpose of religion is not tranquility
As important as a sense of peace and well-being is, it’s not the primary purpose of religion – Pagan or otherwise. The primary purpose of religion is to form and maintain relationships with that which is greater than ourselves: our Gods and ancestors, our families and communities, our highest values and virtues, and with the rest of Nature and the world at large
When we form and maintain those relationships, we remind ourselves that we are not alone. We begin to understand that while our lives are brief (at least in this world) life goes on
Like happiness, peace and well-being are not things we can pursue directly. Rather, we do the things that make it more likely we will experience peace and well-being. And that begins by reinforcing our most sacred relationships
Peace must be grounded in reality
Calvinism and its cousin the Prosperity Gospel teach that if you follow the right God in the right way, you will prosper. And conversely, if you don’t prosper it’s because you aren’t part of their God’s “elect.” This is blatantly false
Our Pagan ancestors realized what we often forget: you can do all the right things and still lose. The stories of Herakles and of Cú Chulainn tell us that being a hero isn’t about winning. It’s about living a virtuous life and doing the right things no matter what
We live in a results-focused culture, one where the ends are all that matter, no matter what you have to do to someone else – or to yourself – to achieve them. This is not a healthy way to live
In my experience, when you do the right things results usually follow, eventually if not right away
When we ground our lives in reality, we are far more likely to find peace – no matter what the outcome
What we can learn from the high scorers – and what we can’t
It’s no surprise that the most dogmatic traditions score the highest. If you’re convinced you have The Truth and that your God is in control of everything, that will lead you to believe that everything’s going to be OK one way or another. I can’t honestly believe that – from a Pagan perspective or from theirs – and I have no desire to copy it
But also, the higher scoring traditions tend to have more active participation. Just hanging out with your people on a regular basis is a good thing. So is participating in services and rituals you find meaningful
While I’m looking forward to getting out of Texas after I retire next year, I am not looking forward to leaving my spiritual home at Denton CUUPS and Denton UU. I’m giving myself however long it takes to get moved and get settled, but once I do I have to find a new home. At the least, I want to make sure I celebrate every stop on the Wheel of the Year with other people, whether that’s a group I’m considering joining, a broader public gathering, or just a few friends in someone’s back yard.
Many Pagans are solitary practitioners, some because of isolation but many because of choice. That’s a valid approach, but if you want to facilitate a sense of well-being, find your people
We always have magic
If a sense of peace and well-being come from a confidence that everything is going to work out OK, it’s no surprise many of us rely heavily on divination in difficult times. Divination is like turning on your headlights when you’re driving at night – it shows us what’s in the road in front of us. Does the road look clear? Does your destination look good? Great – keep doing what you’ve been doing. Not so great? Make changes now so you end up in a different place
But even the best headlights can only show you so much. They can’t show you the deer that’s still in the woods that’s about to jump out in front of you. They can’t show you what’s in the road on the other side of a hill. And that’s where magic comes in
Sometimes the belief that things are going to work out OK doesn’t come from knowing what’s coming. Sometimes it comes from knowing deep in your soul that you can handle whatever comes, no matter what
And that’s a lot easier when you have magic
When you have magic – the science and art of creating change in accordance with will – nothing is ever hopeless. There is always something you can do to nudge the future in your preferred direction
And doing something – physically, spiritually, magically – improves the odds a lot more than doing nothing
Too many people in the Pagan community – including some who call themselves witches – don’t really think magic is real. You must of course believe what your heart and your mind tell you is true, but I encourage you not to default to a materialist worldview. The best way to believe in magic is to do magic, and then see the results
And if you can do magic for some things, you can do magic for many things – including those things that facilitate a sense of peace and well-being
Peace must be grounded in honesty
I would be less than honest if I didn’t mention that historically, magicians and occultists have warned people away from magic, in part because dealing with spirits and energies can be chaotic. They weren’t lying
Worshipping, working with, and working for the Many Gods sometimes brings a sense of peace and well-being. And sometimes it scares us like nothing else
I think most of us know people who are never bothered by anything, sometimes because they’re incredibly privileged but mainly because they don’t pay attention to the world around them. They don’t watch the news, they don’t follow politics, they assume that if they don’t think about bad things, bad things won’t happen to them
Until they do
I can’t live like that. If our world is full of Gods and spirits, then I want to learn everything I can about them. If magic can have blowback and perverse results (giving us what we want in ways we don’t want), I want to know about them and figure out what I can do to avoid them
If the political world can impact my life for better or worse, I want to know what’s going on so I can figure out how to deal with it – and so I can fulfill my obligations as an engaged citizen
True peace doesn’t come from ignoring your surroundings. It comes from assessing them realistically and then figuring out how to deal with them
An occasional feeling, not a constant state of being
I appreciate that the survey asked how often people feel a deep sense of spiritual peace and well-being. The response options were weekly, monthly, several times a year, seldom, and never. Constantly or even daily weren’t options
A sense of spiritual peace and well-being is something we experience. It happens, it lasts for a while, and then it fades
But the memory of it remains
And then when we’re feeling a sense of dread or fear or pain – because those times always come, sooner or later – we can remember the times when all was well, and we know we can get back there again
Toward a sense of peace and well-being
Develop a regular spiritual practice to keep you connected to your Gods and ancestors, and to keep you grounded in wisdom and virtue
Find your people and stay connected to them. Humans are social animals, not lone wolves
Understand and accept your place in life – not the head and not the center, but one part that’s connected to all the other parts. Don’t take things personally
Until they really are personal. Then assess the situation, make a plan, and execute the plan. Use magic to improve the odds that the plan will work. And if the circumstances are such that magic is all you’ve got, remember that magic isn’t just about changing consciousness – it’s about creating real, tangible change
Real peace and well-being are grounded in honesty about life, and in a commitment to living according to your highest values and virtues no matter the circumstances
