Pagans (Not atheists please) what exactly do you get out of your?

Question

religion? Please can only real practising pagans answer th

Answer 1

I don't know what you mean by that.
What does anybody get out of a religion?
I have a close personal relationship with a few Gods, so I have to be a polytheist, don't I? I absolutely adore the world and I am comfortable in my place in it. I am charged to seek knowledge, learn from my mistakes and shape my life according to my own Will. I am responsible for my own actions. What I get? I don't know. When I think of the Mysteries of my religion my heart swells with joy. When I look at the wonders of Nature I am filled with love for it and pride that I am part of something so marvelous. Not separate. As far as the afterlife... I am happy that I won't be sent away to some other place when I die but I will simply continue to be a part of Nature. How marvelous is that? What more could anyone want? Money? Power? Sex? Anyone can get that through their own efforts religion or no religion. I am part of a family that includes the whole Universe. There's nothing better.

Answer 2

What I like best about being an Ásatrúar? That we are polytheistic. That is, we believe in a number of deities, including Goddesses as well as Gods. That we do not accept the idea of "original sin", the notion that we are tainted from birth and intrinsically bad, as does Christianity. Thus, we do not need "saving".

Because it gives me a fulfillment in life that no other religion ever could do. Being connected to the Gods who are as close to you as bloodkin, following a Lore that teaches you to be strong and independent, honoring your ancestors and the heroes of before, that is Asatru for me.

It gives me strength in daily life, it gives me hope that there are actually Gods that care, and that stand with you if times are hard.
Asatru is the only religion that doesn't clash with the modern day scientific view on the world, it views the world as it is, a natural place, with many Gods.

I like being Asatru because it rewards people who are academically-inclined. Really and pervasively, not just in theory.

I like being Asatru because its ethos match mine. I can be a reasonably good example of an Asatruer; I would never be anything but a marginal, footnoted, troublemaking member of any other religion. I like hanging around with people who think that an oath is an oath, for example.

I like being Asatru because it validates my inclination to bonk irritating people on the head with a Big (Rhetorical) Hammer. I am blunt; in Asatru, blunt is a good thing. "Frith" and "cooperation" are much more resonant values for me than "niceness" or "harmony".

I like Asatru because it is not a One Way kind of religion. I can disagree strongly with other Asatruars about all sorts of things and we can still be in the same religion together just fine. And I don't have to worry about sorting out all the people outside of Asatru, either.

And I like Asatru because it describes the world (mundane and spiritual) as I experience it. And I get to talk to other people who see it the same way I do. Constant simultaneous translation can be quite draining.

Answer 3

Well, I'm not sure what you mean by "get out of it". I'm spiritually fulfilled, I'm happier than I've ever been, I'm healthy, and I sleep very well at night.

I never worry about hell or if my "bad" thoughts are going to be held against me at some later date. I help others because I want to, not because I feel like I have to. I have sex with my boyfriend and I enjoy it without worrying if we're "sinning" or not.

I play with my cats. I bless my food. I dance under the full moon. What more can I say?

Answer 4

For me, I get a sense of connection with the Divine and with the world around me, an understanding of my place in the balance of things, and joy in the knowledge that we are all interconnected.

Answer 5

Why is it all about what you get out of it?? Paganism makes SENSE - isn't that enough to "get out of it"?? Or do you want to see us flying and turning people into frogs?

Answer 6

I get peace, learning, happiness, a sense of fulfillment, and so much more.

Really, words cannot describe the myriad of things that happen within me. If you are a Christian, think, how do you feel about Christ, and when praying, how do you feel? That's how I feel.

Answer 7

Happiness and peace. Blessed be.