I am a college student, a hard working bluecollar background college student. In college I am planning to do a double major in Philosophy and Religious Studies, which is part of my goal to create a pagan based seminary. Thusly I have done the obligatory research for funds, grants and whatnot to help pay for my college (seeing as I am poor, every little bit helps). In my research I have found and noticed things that are rather...disturbing. One of the things I have noticed is that of all the religious based scholarships and grants, I have found next to NONE for ANY on one of the many paths that fall under the branches of paganism. Seeing as paganism is a collection of the oldest religions in the world and also one of the peaceful groupings of religions, I find it highly odd that there are very little to no offerings of scholarships or grants given. The abrahamic faiths, Ba'hai, Sikh's, Buddhists, Jain's even some of the newer religions like Scientology or Spiritualist Christianity have scholarships or grants in their name.
I am a pagan, been practicing for two years now. My blend of paganism is a mix of Navajo and Hopi (my ancestors) paths, shamanism, with ritualist magick. I feel it is not right that every other religion has these opportunities given while we pagans are not afforded such opportunities. There are many wiccans, druids, asatru's, ritualists, voodoo/santaria/hoodoo/obeah/etc., shamans, revialists, and ecclectic pagans of many paths. We are not a small group and we are growing, so it is insulting that we students of pagan faiths are given so little in the name of our faith while others in the names of their faiths are given so much. I'm tired of seeing pagan communities have their attempts to start scholarships be drug under or have it dry up because of outside pressures. I'm tired of the government not caring when it is their job to care, which we pay them to do with our tax dollars. I'm fed up with being jeered at or given a funny look because I wish to do a pagan seminary and start a program so I can teach and aid others, show them that there are many paths and to find their own truth.
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There actually were a few Pagan scholarships available at one point. When I get a chance, I'll look those up again and see which are still out there and which aren't. But you do make a good point. Maybe it's time to start pushing some of the bigger organizations out there to offer scholarships.
I think part of the reason though, that you don't see many rewards from Pagan organizations is because for the most part, our groups are small and don't bring in as much as some of the other faith groups out there.
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"It is never too late to give up your prejudices." Henry David Thoreau
"In case of dissension, never dare to judge till you've heard the other side." Euripides
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Fallon
I know there were, I found a few of them and tried to apply but they dead. All dried up. Some groups are large and some are not. In my hometown I am one of a very few number of pagans, however in the next city over there is a large group that actually got a pagan based church built, The Heritage House,. I think there is stuff out there but...it looks bleak.
First off, welcome to the club, I am also a student in Religious Studies and Philosophy - it's a great field and really important for what is going on in the world right now.
A word of caution, voodoo or vodou practitioners would disagree with your grouping them into a category of pagan. Most consider themselves Christian and see Vodou as traditional outgrowth perfectly compatible with Christianity.
As for your question about scholarships, I think one of the main reasons you are having trouble finding anything significant is that pagan or neo-pagan has become a catch all for all non-traditional(i.e. not Abrahamic) faiths. Also most if not all practitioners are not back by government money, corporate money or millions of tithing followers.
You might want to look more into scholarships and grants geared toward your field as well as those supporting the study of anthropology and sociology.
Best of luck.
I dunno about that. Many practicioners I have heard from claim themselves as a pagan religion. Some I have met call themselves pago-christian.
Then again, to each their own. I merely go off my own experiances.
That's an excellent point. I've been wondering about it myself.