Common Terms
Spirits in the Otherfaith often have associations and ties to our gods. Some can be placed into groups known as the Greater, Younger, or Smaller Spirits. This triad of spirits serve specific purposes within the religion and impact human-god relationships. Many other spirits do not fit into the triad but establish their own unique relationships with the gods and ourselves.
Whether one is a pagan often comes down to self-identification above all else. The Otherfaith may be considered a pagan religion. Officially, the spokesperson does not hold a stance either way. Individual Other People may identify as they feel appropriate. The Otherfaith is a polytheist and magical tradition.
A polytheist may believe the gods to be distinct beings with their own consciousness while another polytheist may see them as personified forces of nature. Other polytheists may see the gods comparably to archetypes. To fully understand what a person means when they call themselves a polytheist further inquiry is necessary. It is best not to make assumptions about an individual's specific beliefs. Similar to how 'monotheist' lacks detail, so too does 'polytheist'.
The Otherfaith is a polytheist religion but does not seek to define polytheism beyond the dictionary term. It is expected that someone attending Otherfaith ceremonies will respect the gods and spirits appropriately. Other People extend this same hospitality to the traditions they take part in. One key component of Otherfaith belief is in the agency and integrity of the gods and spirits; whether a polytheist believes the gods to be forces of nature or more concrete persons, the Other People treat the spirits as distinct persons with their own preferences and personalities.
The agency and personhood of plants, animals, and places is considered important in the Otherfaith. This is in part due to the animist belief informing the religion. This impacts daily life as well as religious life for the People.
Within the Otherfaith, 'spirit work' refers to the work with the spirits rather than strictly internal work. It may tie into another part of the Other People's practice, 'energy work', but this is dependent on the practitioner. Spirit work is more devotional and religious based; energy work is more magical and witchcraft-oriented.
Within the Otherfaith, 'energy work' refers specifically to manipulating our own energies and utilizing magical practices rather than manipulating spirits to do our bidding.
The Otherfaith embraces much of modern life, including pop culture. The Other People focus on literature, comics, and creative media as a way to develop our relationships with the gods and spirits. Media reflects on ourselves and can show us unexpected concepts relating to the gods. We may compare a god to a comic book character, for example, and in doing so find new aspects of a deity. It is important, however, to be critical of the media we are consuming, especially so with pop culture.
Fanfiction is seen as the province of women or feminine individuals and is sometimes denigrated because of this. As fanfiction becomes better understood and fanfiction creators speak out about their craft this stigma is fading. As with any literary tradition, fanfiction has a complex and intersectional history.
The Other People tend to refer to stories about the gods and spirits as fanfiction rather than myths or legends. It is up to the individual Person how they refer to their specific work, but it should be understood that all Other People are co-creating our understanding of the gods through myriad fanfiction written about them.