History is repeating itself
Lessons from Lithuania
If you are paying attention to international news you know that Poland invoked Article 4 of NATO’s founding treaty last week. It’s a stark reminder of the fragile situation in Europe, and it's something my family and I witnessed firsthand during a recent trip to Lithuania.
There are around 1,000 US troops stationed in Lithuania. On March 27, 2025, four lost their lives when their tank sank in a swamp during a training exercise. Dignitaries and thousands of Lithuanians came to honor our fallen soldiers before their caskets were flown to Dover Air Base where Pete Hegseth greeted them.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausada attended the special service for them in the Vilnius Cathedral, just across the street from the Artagonist Hotel where we stayed. He said, “Their readiness to be with us, as they say, in a difficult neighborhood, is the best proof of who our friends are today."
There is a large courtyard in front of the cathedral entrance that is flanked by the university. We visited many of Lithuania's 1025 churches and chapels that are beautifully maintained by this historically Catholic nation.
You might be surprised if you ask Lithuanians what we are proud of. People are shocked when I tell them my answer. Yes, I am proud of my pagan roots. I am a collapsed Catholic who worships in St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, which encourages us to be stewards of the world. “Stewardship is a theological belief that humans are responsible for the world, humanity, and the gifts and resources that have been entrusted to us.” In a way, pagans are the original tree huggers who understand the cycle of life and the elements needed to sustain the world.
“Lithuanians were the last non-nomadic people in Europe to actively practice an indigenous pagan religion. These beliefs persisted as an active, living faith, deep into the early modern period. It is hard to say when these beliefs finally died out (if indeed they ever entirely did). Certain folkloric customs, perhaps stripped of much of their original religious significance, persisted even to modern times.” And so, as a nod to my pagan roots, I'll pour some beer in the corners of my room and invite my ancestors to visit me. We have many stories to share.
