I wanted to share with all of you a conversation that I observed taking place on a listserv I subscribe to, in which an individual wrote a post that highly praised a book she had recently read about modern Pagan practice. A number of other folks chimed in, agreeing with her assessment that it was The Awesomest Book Ever, and that clearly the author was a wise and wonderful person. And then all hell broke loose.

Why?

Because someone disagreed.

Yes, someone had the gall and bad manners to question the author's scholarship, point out errors and inconsistencies in the book, and gently suggest that readers might want to examine some other sources as well. This, naturally, led to accusations of "intolerant" and "mean" and "jealous," because clearly the dissenter must be an angry and hateful person to bring up any of these things.

Years ago I read a book by a particular author (although not the one referenced in the listserv discussion) and had some doubts about some of the "facts" she presented, many of which were in direct contradiction to (a) things I'd learned in history class, (b) my personal experience and (c) logic. I raised these doubts to a few other folks, and was immediately pounced on by the leader of a discussion group. "She is an author who sells a lot of books," she told me. "Why isn't her word good enough for you? Aren't we supposed to have perfect love and perfect trust?"

To this individual - and apparently lots of the people on the listserv --the notion of "perfect love and perfect trust" meant blindly following the writings of an author without question, and that's troubling.

If we Pagans want to be taken seriously as a community, we do have to question things that don't make sense, or at the very least, ask for the source of information so we can explore it in more depth. Blindly following along, never asking questions or setting higher standards, benefits no one.

More importantly, we need to recognize that the words "intolerant" and "mean" shouldn't be bandied about every time someone disagrees with the majority opinion. Just because we try to be respectful of the opinions and ideas of others doesn't mean we've left our common sense and critical thinking skills at the door.

We often talk about what makes a book worth reading, and the fact that sometimes, you really do have to go through a lot to weed out the stinkers. That doesn't mean you should doubt every single thing you read - simply that if what you read seems off, or in contradiction to what you've already learned, there's nothing wrong at all with stopping and saying "Hey, I wonder if I can find out more so I can have an informed opinion."

It's okay to question. It's okay to doubt. And most of all, it's okay to continue exploring and learning so that you can think for yourself and form your own opinions.