Conversion

LAPaganChick left a comment a couple of weeks ago saying that she was surprised that I hadn’t converted to Paganism and that it seemed like my path. It was a question that I found myself not able to answer on the fly and had to take some time to think about it.

The question got me thinking about the process of conversion. How does one convert? What are the reasons for conversion? What information does one need to know to convert? At what point are people able to call themselves a Pagan/Christian/Buddhist/Muslim/etc?

To my mind, this is a complicated process and rightly so. One would need to decide to make the conversion, know their reasons for converting, and dedicating the time to study their intended religion. I believe that part of this process also has to do with communicating with the people around you about your intentions. Each person’s decision to convert is going to be a very personal one. The common reasons that I could think of include being dissatisfaction with something in your current belief system, converting before or after a marriage, or after finding information through the process of be a “seeker.”

Although I could write more about the process of conversion, that is not my intention with this post. I will try to do my best to explain why I don’t consider myself Pagan.

I tend to consider myself a seeker as I don’t adhere to a particular set of beliefs that are considered to make up a religion. Don’t misunderstand; I do hold certain beliefs just not a set of beliefs that make up XY or Z religion. As such, for me to convert to Paganism, I would first have to state my intention to do so. Sure I could do that. But so could anyone. I think that what is more important then intention it is what you do after stating you them. You have to be willing to follow through with your intentions by taking the next step.

For most people, the next step would be dedicating time and energy in study of the religion that they will be converting to. In my mind, this would entail talking to someone already involved in the religion, reading about the religion and attending their religious community meetings. Sure, I’m learning about Paganism and posting what I have been learning about this set of religions but I do not consider myself learning for the sake of converting. If I was considering, I would be seeking out those in my larger community who could guide me through the process so that I learn all the important aspects of the religion. I have not done this.

I cannot say that I will never be interested in converting to Paganism, but it is currently not my intention. Truth be told, many of the beliefs that I hold do seem very similar to Paganism and maybe that is what LAPaganChick was picking up on. I tend to stay open to ideas and consider myself more spiritual than religious. I do, however, have a deep respect for those who do follow a particular religion, be it Paganism or another. Maybe someday, I will call myself a participant of a particular religion, but for now, I choose to continue to be called a seeker.