I am pleased to announce the official unveiling of our new Guidance forum and introduce the guides who have graciously offered to help people out.

The Guidance forum is a private place for those who are curious about neo-pagan philosophy and spirituality but do not want to ask questions out in the open, and want straight answers from friendly, knowledgable folks without “flaming” and abuse or other embarrassment. You don’t have to consider yourself a pagan or actually want to become one. You might just be curious. Or you might be seeking help on a new spiritual path and feel overwhelmed by all that is out there.

I’ve been there, and I am still relatively new to neo-paganism. I wish there was something like this when I started. Here, you don’t have to worry about asking a “stupid” questions or what others might think about your even being curious about “taboo” subjects.

The guidance forum is not about proselytizing. Nobody here is out to convince anyone of anything. Nobody will be arguing about “which path is better” or “which Witch is really Witch.” It’s about lending a hand, presenting alternatives in a non-judgmental way, and pointing people to resources they may want to look at. Where you go with that and what you do with it is up to you.

There is a high degree of privacy offered. The forum can only be viewed by participants and guides, not the general public. Those participating in it are obliged not to divulge anything private there, but it needs to be noted that this privacy cannot be made perfect. If a participant prefers, we can set up a sub-forum just for them, where only they and guides can see, thus offering even stronger privacy.

We currently have four Guides who have graciously volunteered to help out, and we are very fortunate to have such pillars in the community willing to participate.

Cern is a neo-shaman in London who represents the Pagan Federation in interfaith matters there. He has been involved in neo-paganism for 20 years and administers the Pagan and Christian Moot, a forum for interfaith dialogue.

Durthorin lives in Atlanta, Georgia and has also been involved in Paganism for about 20 years. He is a traditional Wiccan but spent some time exploring Reclaiming Witchcraft and Native American Shamanism.

Wormheart is a Danish Asatruar, practicing since the mid nineties, and has been active in the Danish Asatruar community since ’98. He has been on the board of leadership of the official Danish Asatruar community Forn Sidr for the last three years and is in charge of the Blótlaug-fellowship.

Dragon is a Druid-level member of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids and living in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He is the leading member of the Highland Oak Nemeton there, and has been a contributing writer on my blog since its inception. Actually, most of the best articles there are by him.

I think these four individuals can offer the newcomer a wide range of perspectives and wise and mature guidance. I am very grateful to them, and I hope others will find their wisdom as valuable as I have. If you are interested in participating in the Guidance forum, mention it in a post, or send Elie or Fiacharrey a PM and we will set it up for you.