Misunderstood faith

 Faith is something that is so very powerful, and often very personal....and for many people very misunderstood.  Not in the sense that a person misunderstands their own faith (though that happens!), but typically that other people misunderstand your faith.  

This isn't a Pagan only problem.  This is something that is faced by anyone who's faith isn't mainstream....and even then sometimes!  I honestly think that it's not an exaggeration to say that the average person understands very little about faiths that they haven't lived with personally.  

And I think this is a HUGE failing on our part as a society.  Of course faith is a broad topic, and even with more structured religions (that have a holy book, tenants of faith and other rules and regulations that constrain followers) there are so many variations that it's very hard to remain current on what the standards are.

Add into that the fact that many people (in a wide variety of faiths) personalize their beliefs, and you start to see the issue.  Many people like to assume they know what someone believes, because they were told certain things about different faiths, and that is such a dangerous way to approach something that is considered so sacred to many people.

For example, witchcraft is still shaking off associations with things like devil worship and human sacrifice...something most modern witches would never consider practicing!  And I've never come across anyone, who has those associations, who got them because they actually knew someone who identified as a witch and used those practices (or 'heard it from a friend').  It's almost always another religious 'leader' who is telling people these outdated stories (often out of a desire to turn people to their own religion).

Speaking of which, if we flip the script around, and talk about Christianity for a moment....that's another religion where I feel many people are misunderstood (and others are very clearly understood....they just aren't actually practicing what they say they are).  The sad fact of the matter is that there are SO many very loud 'Christians' who don't see their faith as a guideline for how to live their own life, but rather a metric for judging others (harshly) in order to feel more self-righteous.  And that has led to many great Christians being seen as hypocritical or being distrusted, because of the actions of the loud ones.

I feel like one of the biggest issues plaguing this topic is one of silence.  Many faiths include holy secrets, things that aren't discussed with outsiders.  And religion has become such a hot topic that discussion of it is discouraged in many places (because people can't figure out how to talk about things respectfully *sigh).

But talk is exactly what we need!  We need to talk to people of other faiths, and to learn about the faiths of people in our lives.  I love learning about what my friends and family believe in, and I would much rather ask someone directly what they believe in (and thus hear their personal feelings and thoughts on it...and any twists to the standard they might take) than to search online for an 'impartial' definition.

I understand that some aspects of our faith might be private and not something to be shared, but when able we should strive to have honest conversations with other people about what we believe in.  And when someone shares their beliefs with us, and they aren't something that works for us, we should be respectful in honoring our differences (assuming of course that their beliefs don't involve harming other people...because then the gloves can come off!)

We should also do our best to not judge anyone based on a preconceived notion of what their faith is.  There are a lot of vilified faiths out there, often where extremists who use their faith to hurt others have tainted the reputation of the faith as a whole...even though the extremists aren't actually representing the faith as a whole.  A very similar issue is when we take outdated sources as 'fact' and judge modern practitioners based on what ancient books say.

Of course a tricky spot for this is when a religion has a holy book that is also historic.  Because there are so many things that used to be common and accepted..that are no longer tolerated.  That would be like someone judging all witches by the writing in the Witch's Bible (including all the gender stuff and sexualized content).  

I also think that we should encourage everyone to be very critical about their own faith.  To question things in their personal beliefs that maybe haven't stood the test of time.  Or any kind of issue where 'you think this (insert judgemental thing here) is wrong/sinful/amoral, but you don't have a problem with (people who do the thing)'....often called 'hate the sin, love the sinner'.  Difference of opinion is one thing, but believing a part of someone is 'evil' but claiming you don't dislike the person...that's a conflict of thinking right there.

I don't think we will ever see a world with unified religion, because religion is such a personal thing.  What I think we should be aiming for instead is religious harmony, where people can practice what makes them feel most fulfilled (again...without harming or restricting other people), and everyone is okay with it.  Where each person's faith is treated with respect and honor, and people are given space (and time!) to practice in the way they see fit.