About seven years ago, I was involved in an online exchange with another Hellenic Polytheist where I said that philoxenia was demanded by our religion. When I was challenged to provide source material for that statement, I was fortunately able to bring not only one but two quotes from the Odyssey to the table. I had actually based that on the remnants of traditional religion in Hellenic culture but the quotes firmed up my statement in the minds of others who did not have my cultural upbringing.

Fast-forward to today’s blog entry where I plug an new venture in the Hellenic community: Pandora’s Kharis, which is a movement within the Hellenic Polytheistic community to generate communal gifts to social charities. The gifts are being given to each month’s chosen charity at the Noumenia. There is a blog and a FaceBook group to discuss which charity to donate to and how to donate to the giving circle.

Looking at this, I can only think “Why didn’t I think of that?” and that shames me. Because YEARS AGO I was saying that something like this was demanded of us — and did not take it another step. It is easy for us to forget how good we truly have things, until we are faced with difficulties. It is a lot harder when we are faced with difficulties to see that there are people who have even more difficulties than us. But this is something that I think we NEED to do — because we need to learn to work as a group to affect the world around us.

I don’t know what the first month’s charity will be yet, but I am praying that I can find a way to donate to it — despite some financial issues that I will not go into here. I am thankful that my family has what we need, and that makes Pandora’s Kharis all the more important…..