BEING something of a pagan virgin, I approached the Pagan Federation’s
annual conference at the Fairfield Halls, Croydon, with trepidation. The first
hurdle, at the entrance, was to pass through a group of Christians, who were
armed with a megaphone.
Inside, the atmosphere was more relaxed. Many of the women among the 1200
who attended were clad in velvet. The men favoured black trousers and shirts;
small ponytails seemed to be de rigueur. Male waistlines spoke of the
famed penchant for real ale among many pagans.
One stall was offering a 20-per- cent discount on all magic wands; there was
a vast array of ceremonial knives and swords; and among the books on offer were
A Manual of Celtick Magic and A Natural History of the Penis.
I noticed that a “step-by-step guide to succeeding in business through the use
of magick” had been reduced from £9.95 to £3.
I attended sessions on shamanism (using techniques akin to contemplative
prayer and an Ignatian approach to the imagination), and ritual drumming
(hugely enjoyable), and watched Hindu temple dancing.
Bravely into the midst of all this walked the Revd Richard Thomas,
communications director for the diocese of Oxford. For the past eight years he
has engaged in interfaith dialogue with pagans, and was recently described in
the letters column of another Anglican newspaper as “part of the rot that
infests the Body of Christ”.
Taking his theme from the Christians at the gate, Mr Thomas said:
“Conversion may be needed, but it is needed by both Christians and pagans
alike. It is the conversion of our relationship with each other, so that we can
together protest more effectively, and work more closely for an understanding
of this wonderful, beautiful, sacred place.”
The title of his talk was “Jesus, the Green Man of the Bible”. He argued
that the appearance of Green Man carvings in medieval cathedrals was not a
hang-over from an older paganism: “It is a recognition that the founder of
Christianity himself was at the heart of creation.”
Mr Thomas connected with another theme popular with pagans: “Sex is itself
an expression of deity, of sacredness. . . This is what lies at the heart of
the Green Man: this celebration of potent sexuality, this riotous fecundity of
nature.”
The first pagan respondent roundly criticised Mr Thomas for parsonical
sermonising. Most of the audience, however, seemed to approve of his bravery
and intellectual honesty, however lonely it might make him feel among his
co-religionists.
http://www.paganfed.demon.co.uk/
