As a Sanctuary with rules and virtues it may be confusing that we would also believe there is no right way to be a Pagan, but it is honestly a simple concept we believe.
The greater Pagan community is full of many traditions both new and old, and many ways of practicing the arte of Magick.
As we are an Eclectic Sanctuary and Coven, this means we integrate many paths with how we believe in a big picture and with this, comes differences big and small. These variations are best to be celebrated!
How fortunate we are that we can have many ways to practice many paths, and that we can learn what works best for us as individual practitioners and what works best for any given group. There needs to be some give, some malleability to how we practice. If we are holding a ritual in a larger group, some techniques may work better in practice for some of the group, and other techniques may work better for the rest of the group.
It does not make any of the practitioners right or wrong, it simply means some approaches work better for them as an individual.
Luckily, there is usually a basic form factor of progression in relation to what path or mix of paths we are observing in any given ritual, but there are many approaches of reaching that goal within any given progression. Meaning, for example, when we call corners in our more Wiccan inspired rituals, we begin in a direction differently than many other Covens or Sanctuaries.
This does not mean anyone is right or wrong, this is what works best for our Sanctuary at this moment in time from our practice and what we feel in energy and see in results. Sometimes as we call corners we may use the elements, or we use deities, or we may use watchtowers. It depends on the tune of the energy we wish to cultivate in the ritual, and these are the little differences. Other rituals like a Blot will have a completely different form factor in progression, and you will find many variances in how it is performed.
Our place as a Sanctuary is not to tell you a specific way is the only way. We encourage trying new things in rituals so a practitioner can learn what works best for them and connects them to their beliefs. Our Sanctuary enjoys learning many ways of doing things, and at times we make adjustments based on what works better for us that we have learned from others.
It is true, our Sanctuary does have some practices or observances deemed prohibited. These prohibitions are mostly based on virtue and less about the Magick. About being a sincerely devout Pagan, or about morals such as no Ethnic group or Gender/Gender Identity is superior over another, that we are all equals.
What rules we do have in relation to how we use Magick is about responsibility and safety, like not using Magick that is not understood or not using Magick to harm someone who has done you no harm. There are other virtue based prohibitions within our Sanctuary, like we do not allow the sacrifice of a living creature or the use of bodily fluids in Magick, but it is about protecting nature and those weaker than us as well as causing no harm. Our Sanctuary is to communicate a message of peace and love while holding loving core values.
All in all, there is no right way to be a Pagan, and there is a wonderful amount of traditions and techniques we can all share to make us better in our own practice simply by having enough of an open mind to observe other techniques.
Being a free thinker is wonderful, it opens doors to improvement and new understanding.
– High Priest Odin