following deer

spirituality sideblog eclectic pagan exploring christianity adult • male (he/him) • icon by nigelgraz

[wuhtapantam]

hello! this is my spirituality/religion sideblog :)

you can call me Faelan, i use he/him pronouns and i'm an autistic queer man in my early 20's

my spirituality is best described as nature-focused eclectic paganism with heavy influence from celtic (mostly irish) paganism and appalachian folk magic. i'm also exploring christopaganism and incorporating aspects of christianity into my practice

i'm white (mostly irish+scottish-american) with indigenous american & melungeon ancestry. i am learning indigenous spiritual traditions from my cousin who is native

some of my beliefs & practices include reincarnation, worshipping nature, ancestral veneration, divination through tarot cards, prayer, fae/spirits, and observance of the wheel of the year, though these are often changing and i'm also constantly learning new things

i am strongly pro-palestine, anti-zionism, anti-colonialism, anti-mission, pro-choice, pro-immigration, and pro-LGBTQIA

no dni (i'll just block) but i would prefer only adults follow me

[queers4christ]

happy memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church!

[thepaganhjalli]

Question for pagans (all pagans!) and those that practice witchcraft - what music do you put on while praying, meditating, grounding, making offerings, etc! I'm curious!

Pagans, do you have music you consider devotional? Do you put anything on in the background while you pray or do altar or shrine-work?

For those who practice witchcraft, similar question - do you put anything on in the background while you meditate? While grounding? While doing other work?

Personally I listen to Hrungnir by Danheim as I cleanse my space before settling down in front of my altar to pray or give offerings. I'll switch over to Panacea by Atoom or Ótroðinn by Adrian Von Ziegler as I sit and meditate in front of my altar, and also while I pray and make offerings. To shake myself off afterwards I love moving my body to Ymir by Danheim and Gealdýr. It feels so satisfying.

What do you like to listen to? What gets you into your devotional mindset? What helps ground you? What puts you in the mood?

[wuhtapantam]

i usually use my white noise machine about half the time i listen to just white noise, the other half i'll have it play chinese flute music which i find very relaxing lol

sometimes i also just look up "meditation music" on youtube and play the first thing

so basically just whatever i find relaxing that will help my focus. but i do like the idea of playing particular songs or even making a worship playlist... hmmm

[wuhtapantam]

something about somebody who isnt appalachian writing a book about appalachian folk magic or "witchcraft" is deeply infurating to me

[wuhtapantam]

also i understand that many ppl are uncomfortable with christianity, but it is IMPOSSIBLE to separate appalachian folk magic from christianity if you're truthfully writing about it.

ofc you don't have to be christian if you're an appalachian folk practitioner, but you cant write a whole book about it and not even mention anything about christianity. historically, appalachian folk magic is largely a faith-based practice.

many appalachians are deeply religious and you can't ignore that fact when you're appropriating our practices for money. if you're going to follow our beliefs, you have to embrace the entire region no matter how uncomfortable it makes you

[wuhtapantam]

something about somebody who isnt appalachian writing a book about appalachian folk magic or "witchcraft" is deeply infurating to me

[fierysword]

[Brigid] is said to preside over fire, over art, over all beauty, 'fo cheabhar agus fo chuan,' beneath the sky and beneath the sea. And man being the highest type of ideal beauty, Bride presides at his birth and dedicates him to the Trinity. She is the Mary and the Juno of the Gael. She is much spoken of in connection with Mary, generally in relation to the birth of Christ. She was the aid-woman of the Mother of Nazareth in the lowly stable, and she is the aid-woman of the mothers of Uist in their humble homes.

Carmina Gadelica

[wuhtapantam]

interpreting cernunnos as transmale makes me a lot more comfortable reaching out to him.

for me, the divine has always felt feminine or neutral and even with saints i feel more comfortable with female ones.

i'm not sure why this is because i'm male myself, maybe due to growing up around conservative christianity and the association with god as male?

either way, i've found the loophole to make me feel okay with reaching out to men like cernunnos and jesus. transgenderification beam.

[wuhtapantam]

mexican catholicism is so interesting & beautiful to me, i need to learn more spanish so i can learn more about it from my partner's mom

[faithfulidiot]

“He’s the only man I can really trust. He’s like a spirit that follows me around …he helps me out in my hours of need and listens to all my problems and never laughs at me. He takes me very seriously,”

- Marsha P. Johnson (left) on Jesus Christ

"AND GOD CREATED HE AND SHE BUT HE ALSO CREATED ME!" Sylvia Rivera (right), banner emblazoned with a Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R.) logo, Christopher Street Liberation Day, New York City, June 26, 1983. Photo by Steve Zabel, c/ o @lgbtcenternyc on IG

[wuhtapantam]

also went to a powwow this weekend, i didn't have the nerve to dance this year but it was so, so grounding to hear the songs, feel the vibration of the drums through my whole body while watching the dancers.

i go every year and it always reaffirms my passion for including indigenous american spirituality in my practice. connecting with all of my ancestors, including my native ones, is so important to me.

(if you dont know, i'm not native; i have Indigenous ancestry and my cousin is native so im learning spiritual practices from her)

[wuhtapantam]

i went back home to the mountains and visited family this weekend. it brought up a lot of Feelings including spirituality-related ones

my grandma asked me if i talked to God and i told her i try, but i don't as much as i should. she doesnt know that i didn't believe in God for a long time (and that im still not sure if i do) but it was nice to be able to honestly say i do try to talk to God.

It was also nice to talk with her about guardian angels, which is something i definitely believe in whether they're truly an angel, spirit guide, or something else

[wuhtapantam]

If nobody got me i know Lady Brigid got me, can i get an AMEN?

[wuhtapantam]

i only ate like three ice cubes today and was able to curb my cravings much better than usual! praise be to the deities, spirits and earthly individuals who helped me out, i feel much better going forward

[justanotherepiscopalian]

Front of the ambry of St. Mark’s, Seattle

[wuhtapantam]

hey guys, this may sound very silly but i would appreciate prayers/positive thoughts from anyone who wants to.

i have a very persistent ice chewing compulsion that i just can't break. my front tooth has been chipped and i've likely damaged more doing this but i just can't get myself to stop. it started when i was anemic years ago (i'm not anymore) but i think its evolved into a coping mechanism for anxiety and sensory issues.

if you're pagan and feel comfortable doing so, please pray to lady brigid or mother nature/whatever earth personification you may believe in.

if you're not, i would appreciate any prayers to god or whomever you believe in. manifestation & general positive vibes are also very much appreciated.

thank you all!

[wuhtapantam]

i've been really stressing about this extra semester of college i have to do and how im going to pay for it.

i bought a candle, la virgen de la milagrosa (our lady of miracles), lit it, and prayed for a solution.

well, i got the miracle i asked for, although small in the grand scheme of miracles, i can't help but think it was the blessed mother giving me a sign that she's out there listening to my prayers. thank you, holy mother <3

[thecrookedcandle]

it pains me when the heavily religious come at me for simply being trans, as if Our Savior was not.

trans people are the closest to Holy in Human Form. centuries of Catholic art history back up the theoretical sermon at Cambridge University.

somewhere between the 13th and 15th century Europe, Christ’s side-wound representing birth/life via vulvic imagery was often depicted in luxury devotional manuscripts and arts, a “genre” of art that existed way before Puritanism, gender non-conformity. to understand why is to drop all post-reformation sensibility and consider the rawness of the Catholic Middle Ages.

Biblically speaking from my comprehension, Christ’s transfiguration resonates heavily with the universal trans experience as well, by reframing our transitions as a Revelation rather than a change. the Greek word used in the Gospel is metamorphothe, which suggests the body is not a static cage, but the Holy Grounds of Becoming.

Renaissance masters like Michelangelo and Caravaggio frequently gave Jesus softer, femme, or androgynous features in their arts to acknowledge he represented All of humanity.

not just cis, white, straight men.

we are Loved.