At the moment I'm very interested in finding my Patron God, but I have conflicted feelings about whats going on.
So since I was a child, I have loved ancient Greece and the Gods, so that leads me to believe I'd probably be following a Hellenistic Wiccan path, as that is what calls to me the strongest right now.
But I don't seem to be feeling any kind of call or am drawn to any Goddess at all, from any religion.
On the other hand, I feel a very strong incline towards Ares, the Greek God of War.
I have always felt a strong liking for him and have been drawn to him, but I am not a violent or angry person which leads me to be confused about this.
Could he be my Patron God even though I am not violent? I am quite an emotionally strong person so perhaps that is the reason?
Some other things that lead me to think that he could be is that my favourite colour is red, which is Ares' colour, and yesterday I got completely lost and ended up driving around a suburb I've never been in before, and all the road names were to do with Ancient Greece; places, column names, ect. It actually got to the point of seeing these literal signs and saying 'Ok enough! I get it!' at which point I seemed to immediately leave this suburb as I saw no more signs.
I haven't seen many Wiccans who have Ares as a Patron, as he kind of goes against what many Wiccans believe, like no harming others and stuff like that. But I am so strongly drawn to him that I can't help but think that.
What is your opinion on this? And how can I honour him properly as its very hard to find information online for him.
I see no reason why Ares could not be your Patron. And it does look as though he is making himself known to you.
Understand that Greek deities are often more complex than common belief made them. To think of Ares as simply a god of War is rather simplistic. He is also a God of civil order and of courage.
When our Patrons come to us it is often because they have something that they wish to teach you. Try learning as much as you can about Ares and also try contacting him in meditation to hear what he is trying to teach you. And think about your own life and which of Ares traits you might need in your life. Perhaps he is trying to teach you how to be strong and how to fight for things in your life to make you happy. Perhaps he's trying to help you bring order in your life. Think along these lines rather than literally.
I too work with a deity that is linked to war and destruction, my Patron is Sekhmet. Yet I have found no problem working with her within a Wiccan framework. And one of my students who is now a HPS in her own right also worked with Ares. So it can be done.
Thanks Lark, this has made me feel better about the whole thing. I know I could use more than one of his traits in my life so it seems quite likely. I shall set about honouring him and meditating with him in mind :D
There is an excellent book on how to go about developing a personal relationship with a deity and then maintaining that relationship called " Devoted To You " by Judy Harrow. I think that anyone seeking to work with a Patron deity would benefit from reading this book.
You definately have to open yourself up to the Gods. Ares, in my experience, as stated before is not all about war and violence. He instead uses those to maintain order. To find mine, I opened my heart, mind and spirit and waited for them to contact me. I then went on a search to figure out which one it was. I knew when I found my Goddess because I suddenly felt a sensation of peace I have never known before.
I had thought about having Ares as my patron God for a while. I think he would make a great one, actually. He may be the God of war, but isn't everything we do sort of a war in itself. A war with ourselves, wars with each other, a war with the kitchen being dirty haha. So I can definitely see how Ares would make since to someone. Good luck on your practices, dear.
