In spite of what is, generally, a nice, neutral article, Maggie Fitzroy refuses to use a capital letter when writing about Pagans. Does she do the same when writing about xians, or Jews, or Buddhists, or Muslims?
And, note the quotation marks around the words high priestess:
"On the full moon, we use the energy from that to bring good things into our lives," said Holly Charland, the temple's 'high priestess.'"
Does Ms Fitzroy use quotation marks when discussing a Catholic "priest," a Jewish "rabbi," or a Muslim "iman"?
People, it's really, really simple. If you capitalize the names of some religions and/or religious groups, you should capitalize Pagans. If you don't put quotation marks around the religious titles of other celebrants, don't put quotation marks around Pagan priestesses.
Simple. Uncomplicated. Really.
3 comments:
Fitzroy did the same thing with altar tools:
"They'd come to celebrate the full moon with a ritual that included dancing, incense, "altar tools" such as a knife and a star on the sand, chanting prayers to the gods and tossing bay leaves into the waves."
Maybe someday, Fitzroy will "grow-up" and write like a "real" journalist.
The term for this (mis)use of quotation marks is "sneer quotes" or "scare quotes." The use, and particularly the overuse, of sneer quotes is an indicator of lazy and lousy reportage.
And, anent Maggie Fitzroy: she is not a journalist. Edward R. Murrow was a journalist. Lowell Thomas was a journalist. Maggie Fitzroy is a reporter. For the Florida Times-Union. In Jacksonville.
It's amazingly simple.
You don't walk all over the deity of another Pagan path. In a previous post, you;ve indicated that you'd LOVE to have the Tara hightops . . . How does this square with respect for another's deity?
Hindus and Buddhists consider it a high insult to depict a deity on shoes. And the soles of the shoes shows the eyes of enlightenment and then you go and WALK on these representations of the highest state and keep them in the mud?
Remember the guy who threw shoes at former President Bush?
From one Pagan path to another, why would behave in an offensive manner to another's deity?
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