The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum

I am not being disigenious

That statement was offensive

Mea culpa

That statement was a phrase built in to a sentence

"Now there are people who don't want to have the responsibility for their own life, there are people who really feel they need to earn their pats on the head and doggee biscuits from their patron, there are people whose sexuality makes it best to relate to them as a dom [Kaldera comes to mind as an example of the last case] and there are probably more legitimate reasons I could come with if I actually liked the idea more than I seem to"

I left the caveat of "more legitimate reasons" and admitted to not liking the idea in general

Now "more legitimate reasons" serves as a point for people to self identify with if they did not feel any of the prior explainations suited them, saving them the need to feel personally offended

So I am surprised that I actually hit a nerve

I feel like one phrase of mine has been ripped unfairly out of context, nobody had to think it applied to them

I've screamed obscenities at one god and have him laugh in my face and then say, "OK, fine, I'll give you what you ask... you amuse me." (This is risky behavior. Newbies, don't try that at home.)  

I thought SatSekem made it pretty clear that it was not the practice she was disgusted by, but the terminology.

I find it hard to summon sympathy for anyone who's upset that other people find their religious path naming choice upsetting when they choose to use a word that belittles decades of abuse, torture, rape, and genocide.

I have no experience in this life-path, but I hope its not too rude of me to interject my thoughts on the matter.

1)I think the word slave, despite its historical association, means that you've entered something similar to a contract with your Deity. That is... that consequences for breaking this contract might be more severe than if you were just a devoted follower who is taking a small break. Whatever the conditions of the contract are, they would be severe enough to warrant use of the word "slave".

2)I don't know much about this, but I think a parallel might be able to be drawn in that it's the job of the s to do everything in their power to please the M. Because a M is generally human and has limited power, the "slave" has much greater responsibility to the Deity. I cannot speak for any sexual aspect.

3)Wouldn't a servant of God, at least in the way I'm familiar with hearing it, be something people strive to be? Rather, a God-Slave is something you fall into rather than aspiring to be, as I imagine "Servant of God" being.

Not sure what you mean by that.

I apologize wholeheartedly if my comment made you uncomfortable or if it has insulted you. My 'ew'ness is not something I was directing to the concept of god-slavery in itself but rather to the idea of someone scarring herself repeteadly as a ritual choice.

I do understand that pain can be an useful ritual tool but the idea of bringinging it to the point of physical disfigurement strikes me as a bit unhealthy. That's only my POV, obviously and it can be flawed. Especially since all i know of GK is what I read on this thread.

I am a squeamish when it comes to physical pain, so i can't imagine my Lady would ask that from me... because I am not comfortable with it.

This doesn't mean I disrespect those who are on a different path . My reaction and feelings were uniquely directed to the idea of disfigurement... as it triggered thoughts of medieval Cristianity and monks whipping themselves bloody because they didn't feel whorty enough.

Of course, the same gesture has a  different value within pagan context, one that has little to do with shame and self-loathing.

...

There's no reason that needs to be different for other kinds of ordeal work - and in fact, that's something the BDSM community has been relatively self-aware about for quite a long time. (In major contrast, in my experience, to many people in the Pagan community, who often don't think about aftercare and recovery time as part of their ritual planning, and who are then shocked that they aren't coping well, or have lasting blisters/minor infections/heat exhaustion, etc. after, say, an outdoor ritual that wasn't fully thought through.)

Which is the understanding most people are going to take home and not the same thing as methodically stripping down the ego boundaries to get at the spirit with in. I don't know how you can understand it without having the experience.  

And when religious people do have it, when they have what they feel is Jesus coming to them after they have given everything up in despair,  which is their equivalent of it, they will usually see the circumstances leading up to the crises as Gods plan.

Most of them will probably think getting oneself tortured to accomplish the same ends as humans usurping Gods role.