Being a Pagan Parent

Being a Pagan Parent

This was a subject I was debating on talking about because it puts my family in a public light. However, I don't see many people discussing how to raise their kids in a pagan household. As I've said in other blogs, my husband and I practice two different faiths; I'm heathen and he's a practicing Palero and Osanyin Priest. So, how do we handle educating them? It's pretty easy, honestly.

Heathenry and Youtube

I follow this gentleman on Youtube who runs a in-depth channel on the Norse Religious texts, the Prose and Poetic Eddas. He speaks in the old Norse language as well. We listen to his videos on car rides and talk about the stories we heard. My son is five years old, so he has a lot of questions and breaking things down on his level can be a but challenging. He's absolutely fascinated though and loves to hear the funny stories. My daughter is three so just listens to have a good time. I plan on continuing this until they both know the books well. I also picked up an audible account and buy the Norse mythology books or other subjects they would be interested in for lessons. So far, it's a hit! I would highly suggest this for any parent on the go as much as I am. 

Palo and Music

My husband does plan on having our kids scratchedscrat the faith. Scratching is just a term for initiation. My husband talks to him about Osanyin and Palo when he gets the chance and we already have some spirits for him to work with. Both my husband and son are excited about him coming to age. To teach him more about the Afro-cuban faith, we often play the Yoruba and Congo music  and then my husband hard translates as best as he can. This faith is oral, so anything outside of stories passed down, makes the knowledge limited. 

Indoctrination

We do NOT believe in forcing our children into a particular faith, even ours. We'd prefer it, but it's entirely their choice. We plan on enrolling our son into a Catholic private school. We also took our kids to a Mosque and a Hindu Temple just so he can get a better education and can make sure he's religiously informed from all sides. We're very proud of their interest in our practices and will continue to feed those flames until they can decide how they are fulfilled. 

We will continue this blog talking about the ways we educate our kids in the Pagan paths.