Gays, Lesbians and Bisexuals in Paganism

Part II- Finding Our Magick

                                                         by Jordsvin Buck

This article will hopefully lead to submissions by others. I hope to get a lengthy discussion going. How does queer magick differ from that of heterosexuals? (And I'm not leaving bisexuals out by the way- hope to hear from you too).

Much of the surviving Pagan magick is designed for heterosexuals. The most well-known example is that of Wicca: boy-girl-boy-girl circles, high priest and priestess in charge (I do know a lesbian High Priest, by the way). Another is the traditional Old Norse magick taught to a friend of mine by a hereditary practitioner. This tradition is designed for solitary practitioners or heterosexual couples. Why this pattern of survival? For one thing, what survived was what could survive and what the peasant farmers who kept Paganism going in secret thought had to survive. Couples practicing at home were relatively safe, and the sexually-based agricultural magick had to survive for folks to eat- Christianity with its sexual repression and virgin mother of God has very little to offer in that department. On the other hand, a temple full of lesbigays practicing intuitive, shamanic-type magick - and there is a good bit of evidence from numerous cultures that this was a common sort of thing - were the first thing on the missionaries' hit list!

I'd especially like to hear from same-sex couples of any Pagan tradition who practice magick together. What do you do and how do you do it? For those of you who have also practiced magick in the context of heterosexual relationships, how is the magick different (and similar)? If you are or have been in a Wiccan coven, how has being lesbigay affected your participation in circle magick?

My partner and I are of different tradtions: he's quite eclectic while I'm fairly traditional Norse. We attend each other's rituals, and occasionally do magick together. I've found he's helpful to me as a "battery." He can raise a lot of raw, emotional energy that I can't, as I tend to operate more from the intellect. I can take hold of that energy, and direct it toward the goal we've chosen for it. We also maintain the wards on our home directly, and have found we have no trouble doing that together. What have YOUR experiences been like?

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Last updated: 11-26-95.