On how I came to Heathenry

To answer a question posed in my other blog....

It was an interesting path that took me to Heathenry and a great bunch of friends. I became friends with Danny via another common interest, and we began to talk about faith and heathenry... the more he told me about Asatru the more I took a liking to it as it fell more into line with my belief system.

I started to look into Heathenry in earnest, looking into the myth and lore, as well as the deities present in the faith. It was like... coming home for a lack of a better way to put it. There was something I felt a connection to when I read the Edda's and especially the Havamal. Danny was always a willing source of information on history, lore, ritual, etc. and he still is; as well as the members of the Kindred who have taken me under their wing and keep teaching me.

I'm still learning about Asatru, and Heathenry so I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination... but in short the tenets of Asatru spoke to me in a way that Catholicism and other forms of Christianity never have, even when I went to church pretty regularly in my young adult life.

I was done with Catholicism and Christianity in general, mostly because of the way I'd seen people treat each other in their G*d's name and how they used the Bible as a weapon instead of a teaching tool as its intended.** The idea of the God's being there for you, but not making you subservient nor making you feel as if you are unworthy, will always be unworthy and must spend every waking moment of your life trying to prove your worthiness to a G*d that may or may not let you into heaven rang true with me.

I'd never understood or agreed with that aspect of Catholicism, nor with other subservient aspects of the Christian faith. My other beef with Christianity is that I cannot in good conscience embrace a faith that was used a tool for slavery, and as a way to keep slave submissive by telling them it was G*d's will and their lot in life to serve others.

Before anyone starts with Oh, let it go... slavery has been over for 200 some odd years, I know the physical bonds have been cut for that long, but the mental bonds and victim mentality prevail to this day. But, I digress thats a post for another day and perhaps a different blog... but hopefully I've answered your question L. If not, please feel free to poke at me with a stick for more info.

In Frith,
Tanya

On Tribalism... from the Gamall-Steinn boards

On Tribalism

by: Swain Wodening


Tough questions as not everyone describes tribal Heathenry the same way. But a rough definition of tribal Heathenry might be, "A reconstruction for the purpose of resurrecting the social structure of the ancient Heathens, and with it their emphasis on familial and other bonds." The reason we need tribalism in modern heathenry is because ancient Heathen evolved beside tribalism. The moment that the tribes started to become nations, they began to convert to Christianity, and not ironically, this is when the family as a social unit began to disappear. Modern society is not real helpful to the practice of Heathenry, and this has nothing to do with technological advances. Instead it has to do with the decay of the nuclear family, and the rise of Managerialism which largely contributed to that decay. With families not speaking to each other for years, tribalism seems to be a way to restore a social order that makes the extended family of utmost importance, and by doing so, bring back much that made Heathenry the great religion it is. Many feel then that tribalism and Heathenry go hand and hand, and you cannot truly be Heathen without it.

Too, some of the primary beliefs of tribalism allow folks to become Heathen without many of the hassles of Universialism or Folkism. Since most tribal Heathens believe folks must be adopted into the tribe, ancestry is not as much of an issue as it is with Folkism. Meanwhile, a group is not forced to admit anyone and everyone as tribalism is willing to admit Heathenry is not for everyone.

I am drawn to tribal Heathenry because of the close social interactions with other Heathens and the importance of family. As for what beliefs make me a tribalist? Well, many of those are shared with the other classifications of Heathenry, a strong respect for the lore, a willingness to make the Gods a part of one's lives, a strong respect for one's ancestors, as well as making a both a part of one's family all make one a tribalist I feel.


Welga!

Swain

taken from the Gamall-Steinn Forums with permission

Welcome to the new blog!

Greetings,

This is my webspace dedicated to my study and practice of Asatru. Its a different space than my Live Journal, and is a place for the discussion, practice and growth of my heathen ways.

Feel free to stop by, say hello and have a cup of Mead with me, while I learn more about my path as a Heathen.

Frith,
Tanya