The Agnostic Pagan

It may seem strange that I can claim to be a practicing priestess of a Pagan path, yet also claim to be agnostic. I have set aside this space to tackle the issues involved as best I can:

What is an agnostic?
Simply put, an agnostic is someone who sits on the fence when it comes to deity. They are not atheists, for they do not deny the existence of the divine, nor are they theists, of any sort, for they do not claim the same either. On the face of it, agnosticism can seem like indifference, the easy, middle road.

Agnosticism values knowledge over blind faith, and frees the individual to explore the possibilities of the divine with an open mind. Through this it can be seen that it is no 'easy road', for we leave behind the crutches of total denial, or religious doctrine.

There is a lot to be said for 'not being sure' it allows us to explore a range of ideas and ideals, to experiment with alternative practice and not feel guilty, to accept that another's path might be just as valid as our own, and to learn from them, without having to completely subscribe to their way of thinking.

Now when I speak of being an agnostic, I am not, bizarrely, speaking of someone who is the opposite of a gnostic. This will confuse, so I shall explain. A gnostic is defined as someone with a special knowledge of spiritual mysteries, therefore it might seem sensible to give the 'agnostic' label could be applied to someone who has no knowledge of the divine. Of course this label could then be applied to many. There are plenty of fervent believers out there who have plenty of *faith* but no knowledge, this is not agnosticism. Agnosticism is the acceptance that the existance of deity, is unknown and unknowable.

An agnostic could have plenty of knowledge and/or experience of the divine. However, those with knowledge and experience in almost any field will tell you that the more you know, the more you realise you know very little. Nowhere is this felt more, than in spiritual learning. Therefore it is possible that the greatest of gnostics, could stand up and say, "I have learned a lot, I have seen a lot, but infinity lies beyond me, and therefore my knowledge is negligable, I know nothing, and can know nothing". Which would be very Taoist!

Equally we could say that all we percieve is but chemical reactions in our brains, how can we *know* that what we experience is the truth, if you agree that we cannot know, without a doubt, then we are back to agnosticism.

Now I shall introduce to you the Church of the Apathetic Agnostic (Universal Church Truimphant of the Apathetic Agnostic (UCTAA)).

The UCTAA performs the unusual service of promoting agnosticism, whilst maintaining many of the other elements of religion (spirituality, ethics etc), their website is full of essays and useful resources to this effect. The website is, in my opinion, well put together, with just the right proportions of humour, apathy and sincerity. It is however, not Pagan, and unfortunately, rather atheist, in that they accept that there 'might not be', so act as if there 'is not'. The apathy expressed is of little help to anyone exploring the spiritual, or even themselves.

For this section, I have used their ironically named 'Articles of Faith', published by the UCTAA as a framework for exploring the compatability of a Pagan path and agnosticism. The articles of faith are three simple statements, if you can agree with them, then you qualify as an apathetic agnostic, well done! On a personal note, I can go with the statements, if left freestanding, and open to interpretation. I however, would replace the term 'apathetic' with 'independant'.

Pagans have no written doctrine and are free to interpret the spiritual world as they experience. We are able to practice with a working hypothesis, as opposed to beliefs that are set in stone. We need not believe anything that we have not yet experienced.
The pursuit of the divine is a worthy one, we learn many things along the way, although we may never reach the final answer, other spiritual pursuits may yield better results for the individual. An agnostic outlook, allows us to be open minded and objective. As a Pagan agnostic I will not have a crisis of faith if my hypothesis is proven wrong, I will simply keep searching for more knowledge, form another hypothesis, and carry on.
There are several ways in which Pagan gods can be interpreted, so even a deity based Pagan can be agnostic. Pagan gods can be seen as archetypes that allow us to channel a specific aspect of ourselves, or of a part of nature, they can be viewed as spirits, ancestors, in fact very few would fit the definition of 'Supreme being' even if we could truly 'know' that they existed. A Pagan can believe in the existence of their gods, but need not claim to know or understand the existence, or the manner of the same.

The concept of Awen, the great spirit or Brahman found in several Pagan paths are compatible with the idea of an independant spiritual force. These non sentient, life force/energy/magic godforms fit the independant deity concept. It is therefore possible to follow the above whilst still maintaining the spirit of independant agnosticism.
The study of gods, the search for gods, the worship of gods, has a profound effect on the individual, but there are many who would argue that this effect is down to the individual themselves, and would take place regardless of the existence or non existence of the deity.

Although there is much to be learned along the way of one's search for deity, there are other aspects of spirituality to explore, that may yield greater treasures.
Spellcasting has been described as being similar to prayer, except that the caster calls upon or draws out the power within themselves as opposed to calling upon a higher being (some forms of spellcasting are said to call upon a higher being, but this is not the place to discuss that). It is a simple case of DIY as opposed to bothering anyone/thing else with it. Folk magic in particular has a very independant agnostic attitude to it! "Don't trouble the gods when you can deal with it yourself" takes on further significance if you accept that any gods that may exist, care very little for our general existence, let alone our day to day dramas.

If anything is to be gained from this, it is freedom. To believe what we see fit, to seek our spiritual path how we choose, to take control of our own destiny, without the burdens of either cynicism, or doctrine.

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