The owner of the blog "HELLENIC RECONSTRUCTIONISM" seems to have find his life's purpose in spreading lies about ethnic Hellenes. However, it is very easy to see through his propaganda. He (or she) wants those who are defending their culture against colonialists like him to be gone, wants them out of his way, so he can exploit their culture ("Hellenismos") and ethnonym ("Hellenic") without disruption. If experience has taught us anything, it's that cultural appropriation goes hand in hand with moral depravity. But let’s take a look at some of the things he claims and the facts that thwart his stories.
FIRST COLONIAL DISTORTION
"Folkism is ethnonationalism, or an ideology where one ethnic group is held as better than others. In Hellenismos, folkists are usually white Greeks and Greek Americans who think that being of Greek descent gives them more say or more knowledge in Hellenismos"
KEY MESSAGE
- Indigenous people have no say on their own culture
- the internal perspective gives Indigenous people no more knowledge in terms of their own culture
- an American pagan knows more about Hellenismos than an ethnic Hellene, everyone who says different is a "folkist"
For someone who calls his blog "Hellenic Reconstructionism," our little colonialist has a hard time distinguishing Hellenismos from "Hellenic polytheism," or fantasy from reality. In common with all other pagan anti-Hellenes, he accuses Hellenes of "folkism," a term most people have never heard of. The driving force behind the accusation of "folkism" is ethnocentrism, which is typical of this type of paganism. In fact, it is so typical that one could say the accusation of "folkism," and ethnocentrism are two sides of the same coin. By ethnocentrism I mean "understanding, and perhaps judging, the professed convictions and other behaviors and cultural products of persons in other societies in terms of the categories and standards of one’s own" (Benson Saler: Conceptualizing Religion: Immanent Anthropologists, Transcendent Natives, and Unbounded Categories, New York/Oxford, 2000, p. 8-9). So when someone accuses you of "folkism," don't waste time defending yourself. It's very likely that an ethnocentrist is standing before you.
The accusation of "folkism" is the attempt made by pagan colonialists to distract from their own colonial transgressions. It’s a smokescreen, just like their tolerance or diversity rhetoric. This is very understandable and quite disgusting. Anyway, after introducing the term "folkism" to the readers of his blog, he goes on to agree with "Aliakai," an other pagan colonialist, "that most Hellenic pagan folkism is dogwhistle-based, and not as overt as some of the Neo Nazi Heathens." "Aliakai" is the pagan who denied Greek genocide, spreading Turkish nationalist propaganda. So, of course, he agrees with her. Pagan ethnocentrists have a big problem with people defending their ways against their rotten desires. But they have no problem with reproducing the propaganda of the Turkish Grey Wolves, a neo-Nazi group with delightful opinions about the Greek genocide and Greeks in general. Pagan hypocrisy in all its glory. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8aq9gaceZ8
This is not a coincidence. It seems typical of this kind of genocide deniers to deny people their right to self-determination. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKQFqKYARQI
As we all know, anti-Hellenism is nothing new in Angloamerican paganism. https://hellenismos.org/2021/12/04/25-great-articles-essays-on-cultural-appropriation-in-paganism-the-new-age-and-nationalism/ and https://hellenismos.org/english/
My maternal great-grandmother Kyriaki lost five children to the genocide of the Greeks in the Ottoman empire. Turkish nationalists abused her, and she nearly escaped the attrocities against the pontic and other Greeks. Pagan colonialists are spreading neo-Nazi propaganda and yet they have the audacity to accuse others of "ethnonationalism." Ethnocentrists accuse others of "ethnonationalism." Now only the magician and fire-eater are missing. Welcome to Grotesque!
But genocide deniers and their buddies don't care about genocide or peoples' right to self-determination. The only thing they care about is to possess, consume, and to satisfy their hunger for the "exotic." It is always about them; their rights, their desires, their opinions. Nothing else matters. And they will use anything in order to satisfy their hunger.
They have the right to exploit, expropriate and appropriate whatever they want. But pagans, occultists and New agers have a lot of experience "in exploiting, abusing and misrepresenting the sacred traditions and spiritual practices" of indigenous people. The Lakota, Dakota and Nakota can tell you a thing or two about it. http://www.thepeoplespaths.net/articles/warlakot.htm
The Greeks, on the other side, can tell you many things about colonialists and how they operate. During the cold winter wars in the early 1940s, great-grandmother Kyriaki, who was a healer and seer, smuggled weapons and food packages under her skirt to the resistance fighters in the mountains of northern Greece. (Back then, the Greek people had not only to fight back against the Italians and Bulgarians, but also against the Nazis.) She also smuggled her medicine to the war prisoners (under the guise of giving them only food). She was an old woman, but she had found her own way to fight the Nazis and Axis colonialists. We Hellenes know how to fight invaders, that's why we know how to handle colonialists like "Aliakai" and the depraved individuals behind the "Xenia Declaration" and "Hellenic Reconstructionism." They don’t scare us. On the contrary, their hatred makes us even more eager to stand our ground.
SECOND COLONIAL DISTORTION
"The YSEE believes Greeks are superior, and that Christianity is bad because it is a foreign religion related to Judaism (they are big time antisemites)."
KEY MESSAGE
- YSEE believes Greeks are superior
- YSEE thinks Christianity is bad because it is related to Judaism
- YSEE is anti-Semitic
No. YSEE doesn't believe that Greeks are superior, in fact, it is known for its harsh criticism of Greece, modern Greeks but also ancient Greeks, which has led conservatives and so-called "patriots" to call YSEE "traitors." The best proof of this are YSEE's press releases, allmost all of which are only available in Greek, which leads the notion that a non-Greek knows as much about Hellenismos as a Greek ad absurdum.
YSEE is also a member of the Greek National Group of Europe’s Action Programme for diversity and against discrimination. https://web.archive.org/web/20051122072756/http://www.ysee.gr/index-eng.php?type=english&f=stop-discimination
Reading YSEE's Faq can also be very enlightening. https://www.ysee.gr/faq-eng.html#24
As ethnic Hellenes growing up in modern Greece, the members and friends of YSEE know exactly what real intolerance and discrimination looks like - including death threats, arson attacks and slander. However, they survived all the attacks and are now so much stronger than before. So if pagan colonialists think they can bring them to their knees by writing some articles, they are delusional.
An other anti-Hellenic blogger claimed "that YSEE is a white supremacist/nationalist group and should not be recommended to newbies." Well, life must be very interesting on their planet. https://pinkhellenicgods.tumblr.com/post/619258185449095169/hey-everyone-this-is-a-reminder-that-ysee-is-a
It goes without saying that such people are not welcome in Hellenismos. "It should be obvious by now why we keep such people out of our community, culture and our lives. The Hellenic communities of the Diaspora are not just religious communities but rather safe havens where our people especially our children can safely express their ethno-cultural identity, their Hellenicity, without having to worry about discrimination or others misunderstanding them. They provide places to gather, socialize, play, celebrate, learn, teach, exchange advice, meet members of different tribes, and feel safe and secure in a friendly environment. Therefore colonialists and anti-Hellenes have no business being there." (Stilian Korovilas: Pagan depravity and Genocide denial, November 25, 2021). Idiocy is not really appealing to Hellenismos. Hellenic culture has its own problems to deal with and therefore no time to deal with problematic individuals or groups.
The late Vlassis G. Rassias, General secretary of YSEE, was the first
author who wrote a Hellenic book against nationalism (Ethnos, ethnismos,
ethnokratos, ethnikismos, Athens 1996). Ethnic Hellenes are known for their
stance on nationalism and other forms of political monotheism. They have
already defended their culture against the instrumentalization attempts of
anti-Semites and fascists. https://pankarpia.wordpress.com/2020/06/04/elliniki-apantisi-ethnikismo/
Just like they are defending their culture against pagan colonialists right now.
Most ethnic Hellenes, not only YSEE, reject Christianity not because it is "a foreign religion related to Judaism," but because of the crimes committed against Hellenism, because of the persecutions and many other things you can only fully understand if you read one or two books here and there, or if you have the internal perspective, which, of course, would make you a "folkist" according to this colonialist. In his multivolume work on the history of Christianity's imposition on humanity, Vlassis G. Rassias attacked Christianity because of its crimes, not because of its "roots." https://www.rassias.gr/9011.html
THIRD COLONIAL DISTORTION
"Hellenic folkism is all about hatred and exclusion. This is why the Xenia Declaration was made – so people could have a better idea of tolerant organizations and such – note that YSEE and Hellenion did not sign the Declaration"
KEY MESSAGE
- there is a thing called "Hellenic folkism"
- people defending their culture against haters, colonialists and genocide deniers are haters themselves
- they didn't sign the "Xenia Declaration" because they are intolerant
There is no such thing as "Hellenic folkism." And there is no room for pagan stereotypes, terms and dualisms in Hellenismos (such as reconstructionism / revivalism, soft polytheism / hard polytheism or universalism / folkism). So do us a favor and keep your ethnocentrism to yourself.
People have every right to defend themselves and their culture against colonialists, imposters and other enemies. It's the pagans who cannot take "no" for an answer, who try to "correct" others into themselves, try to shape other cultures according to their Western ideologies and even change their language from the outside. Paganism is not only a derivation of Western Christianity, it is also the heir of Christianity‘s intolerance. One of the first to recognize this fact was Timothy Jay Alexander, that's why they hate and slander him so much. https://hellenic-reconstructionism.tumblr.com/post/177142949422/authors-to-watch-out-for-in-hellenismos-wip
For instance, they claim that Alexander is homophobic, which, of course, is not true, as you can see here and here. By the way, Alexander is the only author in their list of "authors to avoid" who actually is related to Hellenismos. He touched a sore spot, and this "trauma" hurts even today:
"Neopaganism and the New Age are closely related, and often interwoven, quasi-religious movements born from the actions of Medieval Christian mystics and various occult societies, such as Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Freemasonry. Each movement borrows from both Eastern and Western religious traditions, and when borrowing from Eastern or ancient religions they ‘Westernize” them. This Westernization is more a Christianization of beliefs and practices. While much of Neopaganism and the New Age have abandoned Christian doctrine, they still very much embrace a Christian worldview, and interpret the religiosity and spirituality of cultural and indigenous religions using Christian superstitions and misrepresentations … However, I believe the biggest threat from these movements comes in the form of the globalization of religion into a universalism, where practices and traditions must be stripped of their cultural perspective. The ultimate goal of these movements is an extreme form of religious pluralism, and one world religion, in which individuals can choose from a buffet of religious practices, from around the world, that have been distorted to conform to their worldview. In my opinion, the Neopagan and New Age movements are the mirror image of Christianity’s attempt at stomp out indigenous and cultural religions." (Interview with Timothy Jay Alexander, IDEON ANTRON, issue number 2, p. 40-45, 2010).
Their lies have two goals: a) to rationalize cultural appropriation, and b) the moral ostracism of those standing in their way. But the only thing they demonstrate is how toxic and abusive (Angloamerican) paganism is. It is as if they are utterly incapable of behaving as decent human beings. Moreover, they cannot tolerate nor accept the fact that other ethnicities or cultures have their own ways, mentalities, norms, values, their own imagination. They invade their spaces, try to control them and impose their values on to them. And if you dare to say "no," if you defend your people and their ways, you are evil. You have to abandon your ethnic and cultural identity, and submit to paganism, to paganize yourself or lose the right to have rights. It's Christianity in different terms. Monotheism can change its "masks" but not its very nature. All or almost all byproducts of monotheism are intolerant, mainly because they are not able to accept diversity and inhomogeneity, the very foundation of the ethnosphere. They are driven by the missionary zeal to homogenise indigenous traditions, to westernize or, euphemistically speaking, "modernize," to change and form them according to their needs, notions or particular ideologies, and finally force them into the pagan corset. All rhetoric about diversity and tolerance is a smoke candle. When the smoke has gone down, you will recognize the same mindset, same terminology, same concepts, same approach and similar rituals behind all appropriated ethnonyms and labels. We've already talked about this. https://hellenismos.org/2022/05/15/another-pagan-deception-or-colonialism-is-in-vogue/
The best example of this is the so-called "Xenia Declaration," another masterpiece of pagan propaganda. Xenia (from xenos, foreigner) is the Hellenic concept of hospitality and guest-host relationship, it is socially regulated and placed under the protection of the gods (Zeus Xenios). The creator of the "Xenia Declaration," an outspoken occultist, altered the meaning of the Greek term "xenia" from the outside to fit her gender ideology, which has no place in Hellenism anyway and is also irrelevant to the concept of xenia itself, which has nothing to do with people’s gender or sexual orientation. It is just ignorance painted in the colors of the rainbow.
So the reason because YSEE hasn't signed this pagan declaration is because no victim is obliged to give in to its rapist. Paganism (and all its declarations) is irrelevant to Hellenismos. Hellenic people have their very own problems, interests and concerns. Indigenous people are not obliged to know or observe the bubble-activities of cyber-cons. This, of course, is very difficult to understand for a narcissist. But that's not our problem, and hnoestly, I have no desire to talk some sense into people who mistake cultural appropriation for virtue.
Let's see the next lie.
FOURTH COLONIAL DISTORTION
"Greek pagan folkism demands that non-Greeks ‘become Greek’, an unreasonable and strange demand incompatible with history and with xenia at large."
KEY MESSAGE
- Greeks want others to "become Greek"
- Hellenization is irrational
- Hellenization has no place in Greek history
First of all, there is no Greek "paganism." It's an other fabrication with no relevance in the real world. And secondly, no one demands anything from non-Greeks. If people want to embrace Hellenismos, they are free to Hellenize themselves. No one is forcing Hellenismos on to anyone. Anyway, the concept of Hellenization seems strange only if you are unfamiliar with Greek history or the meaning of the word "Hellenist," since the whole Hellenistic era was about Hellenization.
The Oxford Classical Dictionary (Hellenism, Hellenization):
https://books.google.de/books?id=bVWcAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA656&lpg=PA656&dq=%22and+the+diffusion+of+that+culture,+a+process+usually+seen+as+active%22&source=bl&ots=oOQo51bkNd&sig=ACfU3U1vbIctMdkN9gLkkvRKf8pmR7FTnQ&hl=de&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwito9aB6Jr6AhUTS_EDHYY6AM8Q6AF6BAgDEAM#v=onepage&q=%22and%20the%20diffusion%20of%20that%20culture%2C%20a%20process%20usually%20seen%20as%20active%22&f=false
Xenia and Hellenization are two different things. Xenia is the collectively regulated hospitality, placed under the protection of the gods (Zeus Xenios). Hellenization is the adoption of Hellenism by non-Greeks, i.e. language, way of life, religion. (By the way, invaders are not guests, therefore the Greeks were not obliged to offer Xenia to Xerxes or the Nazis as they are not obliged to offer Xenia to genocide deniers, imposters, cultural appropriators and colonialists.)
FIFTH COLONIAL DISTORTION
Folkist Dogwhistles
- Rants against “monotheism”
- Saying hellenization is necessary to be a Greek pagan
- Saying Greek paganism can be appropriated
- Referring to Hellenismos as an indigenous or “ethnic” religion
- Appropriating Indigenous politics
- Referring to white Greeks as POC
- Xenophobia (hatred of refugees and Turkish people especially)
KEY MESSAGE
- Hellenes have no right of having their own point of view in terms of their own history
- there are Greek "pagans"
- Hellenismos is not indigenous or ethnic
- Greek people have no right to defend themselves
What happens here is even for "Pagan conditions" perverse. The blogger is denying Hellenes the right to identity, internal perspective and self-determination, a vital principle of international law, anchored in the UN Charter. https://www.un.org/en/about-us/un-charter/full-text
Paganism is a total stranger to the truth. The terms "Autochthonous," "Indigenous" and "Native" have been used and are still used in literature and in the academic discourse to designate Hellenic culture, ancient and contemporary. So according to pagan jihadists, the whole academic world is "folkist." Pagan anti-Hellenes are not only incapable of logical thinking and decency. No, their lies are so incoherent that it is almost embarrassing to refute them. Except of pagan jihad, they simply have nothing to offer. The truth, however, is more complex than the tragic-comical stories told by colonialists, genocide deniers and their buddies, and in times of Google, Encyclopedia Britannica online and Archive.org nearly impossible to suppress. https://www.facebook.com/hellenismos1/posts/5086436751424484
In the end, it doesn't really matter what they say:
"The Hellenic tradition is, like any other ethnic tradition, only accountable to itself and does not depend on what others think about it." Vlassis G. Rassias (from a lecture that was held at the Hellenic philosophical institution "Hekatēvólos" on June 9, 2018, in Athens, Greece).
Whatever they do, whatever they say, the cannot hold us down. We
survived Christianity, the Byzantine and Ottoman empire, Atatürk and Hitler. So
we are pretty confident we will survive paganism and the other byproducts of
monotheism too. The neo-Nazis, genocide deniers, colonialists and their buddies
should better be prepared to sow what they reap, online and in court.
Sources:
https://hellenic-reconstructionism.tumblr.com/post/662535950639988736/we-have-a-folkish-problem-too-how
https://hellenic-reconstructionism.tumblr.com/post/177142949422/authors-to-watch-out-for-in-hellenismos-wip
https://pinkhellenicgods.tumblr.com/post/619258185449095169/hey-everyone-this-is-a-reminder-that-ysee-is-a
