The New, the Ignorant, and the Misguided

I have spent some time pondering this issue, and tend to think that at times
we over-react to them.

Many of them are starting off on their spiritual journey and have only been
exposed or had access to the Llewellyn type Paganism.

Some will of course always be superficial as that is their nature, just as
in any spirituality 95% of the work will be done by 5% of the folk.

IMO they are also a very fertile recruiting ground for the deeper ways.
Eventually they will find a need for MORE. If we have disengaged and are not
available where shall they look and find it. They will not find it by us
telling them their journey is crap, but by is being there as guides and
mentors when they realise they need it. As it is, they have almost nowhere
to go when they realise the insubstantiality of what they have, and many
will realise it. They end up going away altogether.

Quality education and resources for the serious are very RARE. In many
places even the eddas and sagas are hard to come by. Whereas we are swamped
by new age and spurious literature and information. It is irrelevant to
most, and in particular novices that nearly all of it is crap.

Further to that we need to be aware that there were major variants in the
manner in which the our ancient traditions and Dreamtime was practiced. We
have only what was written down which primarily focussed on the Male
Deities. The practices associated with the Goddesses are virtually unknown
to us and often a subject of UPG. It is known that different tribes and
groups had strong associations with particular Deities, and it is not
inconceivable that some tribes or groups within tribes were primarily
Goddess focussed.

In this day and age, we encourage all to effectively be their own "priest"
but it was not always so. Most people in elder times were illiterate and the
priesthood was a small educated elite. Vitkar were rare, Gothar were also
not "dime a dozen". Understandings of deep mysteries and theologies were not
the mark of the common folk, but rather a simple understanding of nature and
the forces around them. I must add also a huge respect for the Gothar and
Vitkar and Spae and Siedkona who were to them, larger than life figures. It
was a time of celebration or fear if one of them arrived. They were a
spiritual elite due to their knowledge and understanding.

The training in the spiritual and magical arts is no less demanding than
that in the Martial Arts. It requires discipline, loyalty, study, practice,
and time. In the martial arts your trainer (Sensei) is a figure of respect
and honour, not of politics.

As Heathens and Pagans, we have sometimes been accused of eating both our
Young and our Elders

Perhaps the above is a call to think before reacting.