This morning, I was researching the goddess Brighid, partly because Imbolc is right around the corner and partly because since I embraced the fact that I am a Hearth Witch, I've felt a certain connection to her (she is considered a hearth goddess, among other things).
While reading, I found myself at About.com. (I seem to end up there a good bit when I'm researching something Pagan.) And while looking for Prayers to Brighid, I happened to find this article on Pagan Prayer.
While reading, I recalled a conversation I had with my dad shortly after Mom passed. He was making generalizations about what he thought my religion was and I was giving him information on what it is I actually do and believe.
Both my parents were raised Christian, so it's no surprise that prayer, a very important part of the Christian faith, came up. I was dismayed to learn that my parents thought I didn't pray.
I explained to him that I couldn't speak for every Pagan, or every faith that falls under the pagan label, but that I most certainly do pray. Daily.
The article above addresses the difference between payer and spellwork, stating that when we pray, we're asking for the help of whatever we call divinity (divine intervention), when we do spellwork, we're not asking for help so much as we are attempting to manipulate the energies of the universe to bring us what we want.
Personally, I believe spellwork and prayer often work together, but maybe that's more about technique and intention.
Using Brigid as an example, if I were to feel that my family and/or home needed protection, Brighid would probably be my go-to goddess. Now, I would probably stand at my altar, burn some incense and a candle and ask Brighid to watch over my family, to offer us her protection. To me, this is a type of prayer, and a method I find myself using often.
Depending on the situation, though, I might find myself feeling the need for something a little more powerful than prayer alone. That is when I would sit down with my lists of correspondences, gather materials, and do a more formal protection ritual. I would still call on Brighid in my ritual and ask her to aid me in protecting my family. I believe that invoking deities in ritual is also a type of prayer.
Not all spellwork calls on deities, and I feel that there's no set guideline for petitioning a deity vs not, in spellwork. It's a personal choice. But, I feel that if you do call on them, even in ritual, that there is an element of prayer involved.
As usual, this is just from my perspective. I'm sure there are people out there that believe differently than I do, and I'm not saying ALL Pagans pray. I'm sure there are some that don't, but as for this witch, I do pray as part of my daily practice.
So what about you? Do you pray?
Namaste,
Rayven Moon
