Charge of the Green God
Should Pagans Be Vegetarians?
I have heard some folks say that Pagans should be vegetarians since we claim to honor all life. Most of these statements have come directly from Vegetarian Pagans. Honoring life does not mean that we can't or shouldn't consume the meat of animals.I don't believe in animal cruelty and go out of my way and above my budget to buy animal products that are more respectful to the animal in question - such as cage free eggs and free range chicken. While I respect the Vegetarian life style I do not believe that it is a necessary choice in the eyes of the Goddess.
The religion of the Goddess is one of nature. In nature there is something called the food chain. Big animals eat little ones all the time. We are just fortunate enough to have the ability to be grateful for our food and respect the animal that it came from. This is more than the other creatures in the natural world can say. On the flip side we also have the ability to feel guilty about consuming another beings life, but I personally don't think it's a necessary emotion.
Nature (the only real bible the human race possesses) tells us that we need meat. We have big molars for shredding meat, and canines (passed down by our ape ancestors who also supplement their diets with meat) which we use to tear chicken from the drumstick. Our bodies require amino acids - some of which we can only find in meat.
Now, in saying all of those things I would like to specify that I do not believe we need to eat as much meat as we do in this country. It has been proven that all we really need is a portion the size of the palm of our hand once to twice a week. Cutting down on our consumption of meat, specifically cattle, can help save acres of forest a year. If there is less of a demand for meat products then there will not be a need for so many cows or the grazing lands creating by destroying forests.
So, human beings need meat, and as a person practicing a religion based on nature I see no problem with this. I do however see a problem with disrespect for the animals and inhumane treatment.
We're natural hunters so I don't mind hunting just as long as the animal is eaten and there are no trophies kept for the purpose of ego. That just makes me ill and seems like an act of complete disregard for the respect of the animal.
Below I have written a little Goddess prayer for meal times in order to show the reverence for life and the respect for the sacrifice of the animal.
Goddess, we thank you for the sacrifice of your plant and animal children whose lives were taken to provide us with this meal. We honor their spirits and will forever carry a piece of their memory within us. In reverence of life we feed our bodies and accept your blessings. So mote it be.
Labels: Modern Paganism
7 Comments:
What you written here is very much along the lines of what I believe and have been unable to put into words myself. I do see that eating meat is a natural part of our place in the food chain, but I agree, we need to be respectful to the animals who are sacrificed in order to sustain us. (and plants as well!)
There is such an abundance of food in our society nowadays that we have forgotten it was not always this easy, and we've fogotten to give thanks. Thanks for the reminder.
I agree with Turtleheart's statement regarding the abundance of food in our society. It reminds me of a conversation that I had with a neighbor recently.
We were discussing vegetarianism, and how we both had been vegetarians before. She told me that she was a vegetarian/vegan until she had gone to Cuba to distribute medical supplies. She mentioned that most meals in Cuba includes pork because that is sometimes all they have available to them.
She said that she came to the realization that people in our country have so many options that we are able to choose our lifestyles while people of other countries may not have that option. While that is not necessarily bad that we have the ability to choose, she said that she came to the conclusion that, for her, she had been trying to make a political statement with what she had been eating. After her experinece in Cuba, she said that it seemed silly to continue to refuse meat.
I believe that it is an individual's decision and that it shouldn't be pushed on anyone. I see this kind of attitude of "Pagans should be/do/etc....." as similar to the attitude of some Christians who dictate what people should be/do/believe and find it sad. I thought that was what most people were trying to get away from.....
Thanks, Grian, for writting this.
Thank you both for your comments. I think you're both very right. There is a ton of food to go around in our society, a lot of which gets wasted.
I can't even begin to count the times I have felt guilt ridden over a meal I couldn't finish, realizing that there are so many out there who would give their eyes to have the food I had to throw away. These days I take the leftovers out to my backyard - at least the vegetable products. I figure if I have no room left in my stomach for it, perhaps the woodchucks, dear, chipmunks, squirrels, birds, etc. can find some nourishment in it.
I'm also working on keeping leftovers in the fridge and actually eating them - in addition to preparing less food at one time. Now I just have to get hubby to cut down on his meat consumption. I swear he thinks he'll waste away if he doesn't have meat at every meal.
Thanks again to both of you - for commenting and for visiting.
While I respect all your opinions, I, as a pagan, strongly believe that the single, solid, sincerest way I can show genuine respect to all my fellow sentient creatures is to stop eating them. I have been vegetarian for 10 years, and vegan for 4 years.
I could have been a lacto-ovo, or consume, as you said, cage free eggs and free range chicken, but I can't be too sure. It's also a question of ethics to me, we all know how animals are "processed" in modern farms :(
Of course, I can't claim to be 100% vegan, its almost impossible to avoid it, (such as gel capsules in medicines), personally, I refrain as much as I can as long as it's unnecessary to my survival, and I won't die the next minute, and there are alternatives.
My nutritionist told me I needed to take lots of supplements to prevent imbalance though. You pointed that out, I get that :) and that's what I do. I have yet to find other sources of Amino acids, even if not fortified :(
I think it would be wonderful if there was some way to go back to a hunter-gatherer society where we can be sure that the animals we consume are treated with respect. Unfortunately, that is almost impossible these days. Even if we could purchase our own livestock and butcher it ourselves - that would be better. But this would require a lot of money and preparation that many just don't have the means to provide.
I respect your dedication, and though I understand your reasons, I don't agree that not eating animals is the equivalent to showing them respect. I believe death is as much a part of life as birth and should not necessarily be seen as a horrific event.
For the sake of argument (and playing devil's advocate) how do we know that plants are not sentient? I know that basic science tells us that the brain is required for sentience, but why couldn't the root system be seen as something similar to a brain? It's a complex structure of chemicals and chemical producing systems much like a brain. The human brain itself even possesses root like patterns of neurons and synapses. It's just a thought, albeit a very strange one that is in no way proven by science or rational thought. I try to think outside the box A LOT! LOL
I think it's wonderful that we can share a dialogue on a topic that we disagree upon. Please don't think I am trying to convert you to being an omnivore. I only enjoy a good debate and a sharing of ideas. Thank you for your sincere words. I look forward to many more conversations.
I am a vegetarian and have been for more than 20 years I am also a pagan. Everything has to eat to survive but you don't have to eat from the animal kingdom. That is my personal belief and I am absolutely committed to it. I think it is either okay to eat all animals (including cats and dogs) or no animals. Obviously, for me it's NO animals. But just like with choices of faith/religion/spirituality it is each person's own decision. I never bother anyone about what they choose to eat. I respect their right to eat what they want.
What I would like to point out though is that things like clear cutting the rain forest to grow cattle for fast food markets should probably be an afront to any pagan. And the Goddess spoke saying, "I hope one day my children will sacrifice this lovely rain forest so that there can be fast food restaurants on every corner in America" hmmmm.
If we weren't growing cows, etc. for slaughter, there would be a much greater yield of food crops. What about those 30,000 children who die everyday, one every 3 seconds, of extreme poverty. No, I don't think being vegetarian will fix that whole problem - but it might help provide more food.
Eat what you want to eat but remember that your choices have an impact.
I agree with you about the rain forest and cattle issue. For this reason alone I don't eat meat every day. I try to limit it to once or twice a week.
My biggest reason for being an omnivore (I hate being called a carnivore. I eat veggies too.) is that I believe it's natural. Nature created human beings to eat meat. In fact, it's one of the things they say may have increased our brain size in the earlier hominid stages. Our bodies need certain amino acids that meat provides. Our teeth are made to shred meat. Evolutionary science tells us that we are intended to have meat as a part of our diet.
I trust nature because it's the one thing that is undoubtedly given to us by Goddess. What nature teaches I take as lessons from Her.
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