The Value of Group Practice

heathenry, group practice, tribe, kindred, tribalism, heathen practice, group practice, allthing, Germanic thing, all-thing, tribal heathenry

So you may have heard of the terms universalism, tribalism, and folkism in heathenry. A lot of people don’t like them as labels, and that is fine. I do think they have value though, in trying to convey complex ideologies, so bear with me.

Universalists believe that anyone can practice heathenry and usually in any way they think is right, while the folkish belief is that heathenry is an ethnic religion with traditions that shouldn’t be appropriated by other groups. Now, obviously folkism is very clearly a not so polished veneer for white supremacist and bigoted ideologies, but universalism is also not without its problems. The problems are not so much that anyone can practice, but that if anyone can practice any way that they want that it waters down practice until it loses its meaning and value.

Tribalism is often presented as the middle point, but that is an oversimplification. Tribalists believe that you are only heathen if you group practice or are oathed into a heathen community. Anyone can join, but they have to prove their worth.

Now, I am sitting very comfortably nestled in some sort of grey area between tribalism and universalism. My sticking point is that I don’t think that there is any reason why heathens cannot have a solitary practice and still be heathen. That said, there are right and wrong ways to practice, and group practice does have value. I would argue that you grow faster as a heathen if you practice with a group. It just takes way more work for the same results if you are practicing on your own, it isn’t so much that it can’t be done.

A lot of people think they can just come to heathenry and practice solitary and learn everything they need to know by joining a few online communities. That isn’t accurate. Most heathen online communities (with a few exceptions) are ripe with memes and brosatru sentiments. If you ask a question you are more likely to be met with the gatekeeping response of “google it” than any actual helpful advice. In the heathen sense of the word, online community isn’t really community at all.

If you are practicing solitary, finding a few good online communities can be helpful, but it will take some work, since most are garbage. You need to learn to use your own critical thinking skills and never take at face value what other people tell you. Take what they say and do your own research, and make your own judgments. Determine what is good for you in your own hearth practice, what makes sense and has value. And definitely read the source material. Read it and then read what other people have said about it, and then decide for yourself what resonates. This is a living religion. We look to the past, to see how the elder heathens practiced, but times have changed, and we must adapt to make it a living, breathing, modern practice. Starting by building your hearth practice and understanding yourself and what you believe is instrumental to your heathen identity. Creating for yourself, your own hearth practices shapes the foundation for your heathen identity. For a lot of people this is enough, practicing by yourself or with your small family group within your hearth. Or sometimes, it just isn’t possible to connect with other heathens. There might not be any (or any that you can find) locally, or if there are, they might not be your sort of heathens. That is valid.

The value of group practice comes from shared ideologies, you don’t want to blindly jump into frith bonds with the first heathens you meet, at least not until you are sure they are good people whom you can get along with. I am not suggesting you will always agree on everything, but you can still be discerning of the people you let into your life.

Group practice has value. (Well duh.) Having community has value to anyone. Shared identity has value to anyone. It strengthens you to know you aren’t alone. Studies actually show that people of minority faiths who feel isolated often have negative mental health effects as a result. To know other people believe the same or similarly to you is game changing. It helps you to expand rapidly as a person, by listening to others and having conversations you can come to faster and often greater conclusions than you would alone. Really understanding the meaning of even a single aspect of heathenry is amplified when you take in all the voices of your peers. They will see things you probably missed, things that it might have taken years for you to figure out on your own. And that is just the surface value. Heathenry in particular, lends itself to group practice and building community. Establishing frith bonds with other heathens is world-changing. It will deepen your experience.

Absolutely, as a heathen I knew from the start I wanted community, even when I didn’t believe that was possible. Finding the right tribe for me was a very big deal. I don’t feel like sharing my feelings about it here, but I cannot see myself going back to solitary practice because I see too much value in group practice. I do understand though, why some people do go back to solitary practice, when they try to find community and the groups they find are not good fits for them. And I understand why some people are in the position to find groups at all. I, personally, think that solitary practice is a valid form of heathen practice, but it is definitely the more difficult road. Every day will be an uphill struggle if you are doing it right, because if you are acting as the community for yourself, then you have a lot of roles to fulfill.

You can form frith bonds outside of heathenry and build up your own community that way, while still being a solitary heathen, but it is not an easy path. You will be fighting the over-culture all the way trying to carve out that little space for yourself, whereas with a group each shares that load.

On the flipside, don’t just jump into group practice. Take some time to figure out who you are and what you stand for. Make sure you find a group that respects you for who you are. A healthy tribe moves to meet a new heathen, while that heathen also moves to meet them. Each member affects the identity of the group. If you are being asked to change too much you should be wary.

In addition, tribalism is not without its faults. Oathing into a tribe and worthing leave room for abuse of power. You need to be aware of who this tribe is and who each member is. If you think the expectations put on you are unreasonable, then you better take a serious good long look. If you are feeling pressured to tie yourself to a new group too fast, take a good long look. Oathing and frith bonds are no joke. You don’t want to tie yourself to people who don’t have your best interests or the best interests of others in mind. Look before you leap. If the group is not right for you, find another group. Don’t settle unreasonably for a heathenry that doesn’t make you comfortable.

So the take away from all of this is group practice is very valuable in heathenry, but what is more valuable is being discerning in your practice, whatever form that takes.

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