Our Motto Is: "Do What Makes You Happy and Harms No One" [Transcript]

Becky: So pretty much, Paganism is very much about doing whatever makes you happy and doesn't hurt anyone else, really.

Gwen: It's very individualistic, os it's pretty much what you make of it. So morality and ethics are determined by you, most of the time. There's a lot of talk about making "Pagan Ethics" now, but there isn't really an overarching one, aside from "Don't harm anyone," like Becky said.

Kat: I think, even if there were an overarching moral code, homosexuality wouldn't even be an issue in Paganism, just from the nature of the religion.

Becky: And also, there's historically been a lot of glorification of the sacred nature of sexual contact. There's been documentation of hetero- and lots and lots of homosexual sacred sexual rituals and things like that.

Gwen: I think it's promoted in some of them even, in some Druid sects. I mean, every single Druid I met in the U.K. was a homosexual. (laughter) So, that kinda gives you an idea of how prevalent it is. Maybe it says something about Paganism, maybe it says something about homosexuals, the fact that it draws in those types of people, to certain brances even...

Kat: Well, yeah, it's somewhere that you can be accepted and you can practice freely so...

Gwen: And it's majority male too, so... (laughter)

Kat: (laughter) Well, yeah, Druids.

GETTYSBURGIANS ARE PASSIVE-AGGRESSIVE: No One Ever Said Anything To My Face (James)

Even though I'm from a predominantly White area (Pasadena, MD), I didn't experience an intense feeling of racial discrimination. The first time I actually realized I was different from my classmates was in the 1st grade when a kid yelled, "You're out, Black boy!" during a heated game of Kickball... my older brother kicked his ass the next morning, and it never happened again.

Other than that, no one has ever said anything racist TO MY FACE. The closest anyone has ever come has been shouting slurs from a speeding pick-up truck. In that sense, there are more outspoken bigots back home than there are at Gettysburg College.

Almost my entire life, I've been a very thin guy and I've been teased relentlessly about it by family, friends, and even strangers. What can I say? I ran track, did gymnastics, danced, practiced vegetarianism, and was constantly training to be stunt double... of course, I'm thin and toned! As the doctors have all told my parents, I'm in optimal health. I've always body image issues and only recently have I told my friends how much their comments (no matter how loving) really hurt me.

Surprisingly, I have never really encountered discrimination based on my sexuality, mainly because I didn't come out until my senior year of high school. At Gettysburg College, I find that everyone, in general, is passive-aggressive and prefers to say things behind each other's backs. I've felt accepted here, mostly because I tried to be upfront and honest from the very beginning.

Not until I came to Gettysburg had I even encountered people from the upper middle class and above. And typically, I don't associate with them because I don't believe that they take their education as seriously as those of us who are here on academic scholarships.

Whenever I hear about some Right Wing idiot trying to take away the rights of law-abiding gay citizens, I get extremely upset and am very likely to join an online protest, donate to an advocacy group, etc. Similarly, if there's been a gay bashing at a school, I will somehow acknowledge it, and bitch about it with my friends. However, when it's an isolated incident like that, I'm not as likely to take extreme action.

As you can guess, I identify myself as 1) Male, 2) Gay, 3) Black, 4) Educated, 5) Pagan, and 6) Middle Class.

I've been an active member of ALLiES (Gay-Straight Alliance) since my freshman year. Jai [Schock] initiated me, because we had Creative Writing together, and one of my stories had gay characters... even though it wasn't made obvious. I'm in ALLiES because I want to do everything I can to "fight the good fight," and make sure that future generations will live in a world of GLBT equality.

I WAS a member of the NAACP during my freshman year, as well. However, the group was extremely disorganized and never got anything done at meetings. Being an anal-retentive person, it really bugged me and I never came back.

I'm also a member of the GAIA Pagan Society, which is a nice forum for people who don't exclusively practice Christianity. It's comforting to have a group where people, gay and straight, can discuss spirituality and participate in religious rituals.

REPRESSION IS UNNECESSARY: Paganism Celebrates Sexuality of All Kinds (DeLue)

I was baptized catholic and raised vaguely Christian. My father's side of the family is Christian, while my mother's side of the family is Athiest. I was raised believing in god in some vague and not very regimented sense until I started to question. Thus began the "research" phase of my religious life.

I started researching religion as a whole. Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Taoism, Paganism, Satanism and have discovered a great deal about organized religion. I've also learned that religion cannot be judged by texts, but by people.

I describe myself as a Buddhist/Pagan and am not much for organized religion. I am very happy with the philosophies of Paganism and Buddhism and they reaffirm not only my spirituality but my belief in the innate good of all men and women.

I'm a firm believer in a separation between church and state.

Religion to me is very important not really in the way of meditation prayer and ritual (though I want to make that a larger part of my life) but as a guide for the way I live. I used to listen to a podcast called Pagan Living, and she told you exactly that, how to live pagan. Not just do a ceremony on full moons or things like that but trying to be a good pagan every day through my actions. I'm happy I found a path that's as accepting as I did. Sexuality in paganism is not a dirty hidden disgusting part of us, but a celebrated and wonderful and magical and spiritual part of every one of our beings' no matter who it is with. Homosexuality is as celebrated and supported as heterosexuality.

In defense of Satanism, though it may seem like a "all for #1" philosophy, it's really about satisfaction and what people earn from you. A Satanist will be your best friend because you have earned trust and loyalty from them. This is hardly thinking only for yourself. Just playing devil's advocate. (Hehe, I made a funny...)

INDEPENDENT INTERPRETATION: I Favor Solitary Practice Over Organized Religion (James)

From birth to age 5, I was raised as a Methodist and attended Sunday School and church every week. When my family stopped going to church, I remember missing all the hugging we used to do with our Sunday School classmates before every lesson.

During my darkest hour, the third grade (1995), a.k.a the year when the Maryland district lines were re-drawn and my closest friends were transferred to separate elementary schools, I felt like that there was something missing in my life. I wanted to believe in some kind of higher power; I wanted to feel like I wasn’t alone in the world.

Having been a longtime computer nerd, in my spare time, I would just type names into the interactive Merriam-Webster Dictionary. I was fascinated by the literary origins of my friends’ names. It was enlightening to see how, for the most part, we’ve earned names from mythical beings. I embraced those stories and called upon those figures (mainly Greek and Roman gods) for guidance.

Eventually this fascination with mythology and magic led me to start purchasing books on Wicca. For the longest time, I believed that I could control the weather with the power of my mind; I always thought that would be a cool ability to have. I also got really good at reading tarot cards. My faith made me a happier person, but when I had a bad experience during a solitary ritual (involving 6 golden spiders crawling over my body), I completely abandoned it.

During my junior year, some friends of mine started the GAIA Pagan Society, and just being around such enthusiastic, positive people re-affirmed my faith and made me want to practice again. Since the pagan religion values sexuality of all kinds and it is thought that states of sexual ecstasy bring followers closer to the Goddess and the God, homosexuality is perfectly acceptable.

Religion isn’t a huge part of my life, but I do think that everyone should believe in something, meaning some higher power. I’m not a huge fan of organized religion; I prefer solitary practice, and it’s comforting to know that I have a one-on-one connection with a divine being. I wouldn’t mind if my partner weren’t religious at all, and I wouldn’t try to force my beliefs onto him. However, if he were a ”crazy Christian” who spouted off slogans like “Hate the sin, Not the sinner,” then that would probably cause major problems in our relationship.