Heathens in the Military

Hail to Lord Thor on this bright Thor's day! Today's topic is about Heathens in the military. Now last Thor's day I attended a class at the East Coast Thing dealing with this very subject. The class was run by Josh and Cat Heath, and dealt with issues that a Heathen would come across on and off the field of combat. They also got into the significant other's role in a military family situation, and how to cope with issues that may arise out of dealing with a largely Christian population in the military. Lastly they discussed a program they've designed to gain more rights for the military Heathen community.

As you can imagine, the United States military and it's soldiers are primarily Christian; followed by other Monotheistic faiths. Because of this, folks who are Polytheistic (Heathens in particular) find it hard to have their 'religious' needs met. I know for myself that I felt a new satisfaction after attending ECT (East Coast Thing) and spiritually nourished. When our folk are away from the Heathen community we they need some form of connection to the Gods, Ancestors, and Folk. Although things are suppose to be fair and equal in the U.S. military, often times they are not. With that in mind, we need to take it upon ourselves as Heathens to support or folk in the military; support their 'religious' needs.

Being a significant other in a Heathen military family can be very tough as well. As a civilian, I don't know what military life is like. I have Heathen and Wiccan friends I could talk to or hang out with. My community isn't small or limited to one type of people. If someone like a friend or neighbor decides to ignore me or end out friendship based on my 'religious' beliefs or better yet my world view; I can deal with that easier than someone in a military community who relies on friendly interaction much more than I would. A lot of times this human to human interaction is a necessity for survival in a war torn foreign land. We must keep in mind of the Heathen families who are in this situation. If we can help these folk to build a community, their survivability has increased.

One of the things that Josh and Kat discussed was an Open Halls program that will help get a Heathen Chaplain in the military. It will help network other Heathens who are in the military who would otherwise not know that other Heathens were in their unit. This program can help provide blot services and in the worst case scenario an individual's wishes for funeral arrangements. I'm not in the military, but I believe in this program. I think that we as Heathens should get behind this project. The registration for the Open Hall can be found here: http://www.facebook.com/l/a4559UgrOuBr-A2_ofPkcBcfWkg;tiny.cc/wkuk4

To Josh and Kat Heath, I wish them both Luck. Josh may Thor watch over you while you are on the field of battle; and if you may fall, may you find your way to the Halls of your Fathers.

In Frith!

Ragnar

Edited: Here is a link to the podcast done by David and Sandi Carron of Raven Kindred North and their channel Ravencast: http://ravencast.podbean.com/2010/09/11/…tary-heathenry/