This is a discussion I've had about a kagillion times with my agnostic husband in the last ten years: who will be the next wave of elders/leaders in the pagan world?
Let's face it the Neopagan world (in the United States) was carved out by the generation who came into their own during the nineteen sixties and seventies. The experience of civil rights, free love, gender and sexual equity battles deeply influenced the leaders of paganism today.
Can you imagine Selena Fox and The Lady Liberty League without the formation crucible of the fight for civil rights?
How about Issac Bonewits' degree in Magic could that happen now or even twenty years ago?
What would police action or anti-defamation be like without Kerr Cuhulain?
Our leaders are aging and in some cases gone. Who shall step into the void?
Where in the generations since the baby boom: the Me generation: "Greed is good" or the alphabet soup of X Y and Z, and let's not forget the Millenials will our: Selena Foxes, Starhawks, Ian Corrigans, Scott Cunninghams, Issac Bonewits', Kerr Cuhulains, Z Budapests, Raymond Bucklands, Laurie Cabots (and the list can go on) come from?
Who from my generation on will stand for our freedoms and will solidify our traditions and protect and nurture our futures?
Who will be the hand to reaches out in interfaith trust? Not only with other world religions and to those of no faith but who will create trust and dialog and unity within our own multitude of Pagan ways to live?
I am not talking of lock stepping all Neopaganism into one modality but simply who will be there to provide a bridge for Heathen and Witches and Wiccans and Druids and Family trads and Initiate trads and Solitaries to speak in common?
Who will train those called to service? Who will be our priests/priestesses and our brothers and monks and nuns?
Who shall step up and brave being a public face of an infinite varietal religious belief system? Who is ready?
I see a great swelling lately. I can think of ten such folk being the pillars and the gateways thanks to blog portals and access to electronic media. But can't we be more in number? Can't we be together in purpose?
So think on your community. Who are your leaders? What programs and services do you have in place? Which needs can you identity? Who and how will these services be provided by and for?
What can you do? How do you serve? How can you support the efforts of those who provide for the pagans in your community?
How do we handle: substance abuse, bereavement, birth, death, hospice, incarceration, environmental issues, poverty, educational, milestone, ecumenical, elderly and childhood issues within the context of our belief systems and traditions?
Lets work together now. RIGHT NOW let's talk about this issues and tackle them.
Please let's work now while we still have the resource of the First Wave Elders wisdom to draw upon. Let's stop reinventing the wheel when we can create the automobile. Let's redefine the car so that we can fly!
Let's jump head first in so there's no voids to fill just a continuum to grow and mold and foster for ourselves and the next seven generations.
We the first born of the pagan boomers need this, our traditions need this and our children need this.
Now whose with me?
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