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 Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 10:14 pm
(Okay, I'm a Christian as a heads up. But I do not care about a person's personal beliefs so don't think I'm trying to persecute you or anything.)
I realized just recently that I know a LOT of Pagan people and I want to understand them better without making them think that I want to convert them or something.
I know what Pagan meant in the Roman times, but I have a feeling it has changed a lot. So I was just wondering what Paganism means NOW.
What IS the Pagan faith?
Why did you decide to become a Pagan?
Are you an active Pagan, and what does the term "active" constitute?
I just want a basic knowledge of Paganism mrgreen
Thanks!
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Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 10:23 pm
"Pagan" and "Paganism" are umbrella terms that can mean any number of things. Technically, a Wiccan can be considered a pagan. So, before your question gets answered I'd like to ask you: What kind of pagans are your friends?
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Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 11:51 pm
A Pagan is anyone that isn't a follower of the Abrahamic God. So if your not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew...you're basically a Pagan.
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Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 1:08 am
vegan_was_here I know what Pagan meant in the Roman times, but I have a feeling it has changed a lot. So I was just wondering what Paganism means NOW. What IS the Pagan faith? As the others have told you, there isn't one Pagan faith. There are many. And there's not a whole lot that really links them together, besides the fact that they aren't Abrahamic religions. There might be other things depending on how widely you cast the Pagan umbrella, but when you make generalisations there's nearly always someone who will say "well I'm a Pagan, and I don't do/believe that". And they're technically correct, so... Quote: Why did you decide to become a Pagan? Hard question. It was sort of a slow process. I'd read Pagan myths as a kid and wish those gods were still "alive", that they were still worshipped. I was always into the occult, for some reason. Then I grew up (a little), looked into witchcraft, and from there found modern Paganism. It's not so much that I decided to become one because there wasn't a moment where i made a conscious decision. I was just delighted to find it. Quote: Are you an active Pagan, and what does the term "active" constitute "Active" will mean different things to different people, but to me it means I pray regularly, celebrate holy days and hold ritual. I also work elements of my practice into my daily life (or at least I try) but I don't think you need to do that to be an "active" Pagan. I do know Pagans who don't actively practice; they believe but don't really do anything about it, insomuch as they don't pray very often and only celebrate the odd holy day when they think about it.
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Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 3:10 am
Others have already answered that. I don't think I need to repeat them vegan_was_here Why did you decide to become a Pagan? I don't think I ever actually ever decided to become a pagan. I think it was more researching and finding there were names for things that I already believed in. Does that make sense? vegan_was_here Are you an active Pagan, and what does the term "active" constitute? I don't know what you mean by 'active'. I am active in my research and learning a lot more than in my practice at the moment. I don't know whether this answers your question or not.... Edit: Note to self: When you start spelling 'active' as 'cative' and 'know' as 'hoe' It is a sure sign of tiredness.
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Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 9:35 am
Thanks for your replies!
The people I know are into Wicca (?) and the occult. I'm quite confused about both currently....
Are there different categories of Paganism?
And when you guys say Paganism is an umbrella term, do you mean it is the general term for multiple faiths?
If so, which faiths does it cover?
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Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 11:26 pm
vegan_was_here Thanks for your replies! The people I know are into Wicca (?) and the occult. I'm quite confused about both currently.... There's an FAQ on Wicca in the Morality & Religion subforum of ED which may help. In short, Wicca is a faith defined by the rituals you practise. It worships two deities, the Lord and Lady of the Isles. The rituals are experiential; you understand the core of Wicca by participating in them. All Wiccans are taught, and practise, these rituals in groups called covens. All Wiccans are initiated into these covens, and can trace their initiatory "lineage" to the creator of Wicca, one Gerald Gardner. Wicca is a fertility religion. There are sexual elements to rituals. The deities are celestial, symbolised by the moon and the sun. Their names are secrets; you have to be initiated to know them. "Occult" means "hidden". Quote: Are there different categories of Paganism? Yeah... different kinds of categories too. The first distinguishes new pagan religions from ones that predated Christian conversion (primarily in Europe) and from those that sort of survived as best they could and incorporated some Christian elements as they went. Pre-Christian Paganisms are Palaeo-Pagan; recently created (or recreated) ones are Neo-Pagan. Ones that continued on, sort of, are Meso-Pagan. I'm not fully up with Meso-Pagan definitions, so you might want to look that one up for yourself. The second type of category distinguishes those religions based strongly on particular Palaeo-Pagan religions, and those that are not. "Reconstructionist" or "Recon" refers to those religions that try to reconstruct old Pagan practices. You can be strictly recon, or you can be recon-based or recon-derived, suggesting that you base your faith mostly on these old practices but may have some inspiration from elsewhere as well, or choose to practise some things slightly differently. The other half don't really have a name. They are often (but not always) inspired by pre-Christian religions (or at least romantic ideals about pre-Christian religions) and/or the natural world. Note: both categories here might worship the same gods. Then under these categories are different specific religions, sub-categories etc. Quote: And when you guys say Paganism is an umbrella term, do you mean it is the general term for multiple faiths? If so, which faiths does it cover? Yes, that is precisely what we mean ^_^ It covers all religions that are not Abrahamic. Abrahamic religions are those that stem in some fairly direct way from the biblical patriarch Abraham. It includes Christianity, Rasta, Judaism and Islam. And possibly others. Just as an aside, though: there are quite a few religions that fit this umbrella technically but do not define themselves as Pagan. Particularly Dharmic religions: Hinduism and Buddhism. etc.
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Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 4:05 pm
Vegan, one thing to note is that most people who self-identify as Pagans, would more properly be called Neopagans or modern/contemporary Pagans, precisely because they are not the same as more ancient forms like the Roman example you mentioned. But really, rather than take the word of a bunch of forum users on any of this, I'd suggest you take a look at some external sources that have other takes on the issue. Here are a few of the more well-known ones: Religious Tolerance - does a decent job of explaining why what "Pagan" means is so damn complicated. Wikipedia - it's pages on Neopagan faiths are usually in good shape, so this is a good place to spend time getting an overview of many topics. About.com - I was skeptical of this source at first, but so long as you're discerning (aka, take no one source as law), the woman who maintains these pages does a good job of it. Witches' Voice - this is a networking site used by Neopagans worldwide, and has a number of essays and articles to look at. Keep in mind perspectives here are very diverse (again, just be discerning).
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Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 4:52 pm
Thanks very much Sanguina and Starlock!
@Sanguina: Thanks for making it brief, lol, and now I at least get the base of it all^^ (By the way, do you know Latin? Or another classical language? Since sanguis means blood in Latin and all.)
@Starlock: This is the opposite of what I said above, but thanks for making it extensive and in-depth, and thanks for your comments on the sites, I completely agree. mrgreen
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 2:40 am
while there are many diffrent types of pagan most people who idetyify as pagan quite often just say it to be cool and don't understand fully themself.
usually they have a good understanding of nature and it surroundings etc.
alot will perform rituals and stuff but keep it on the sly, don't pry too much just nob and smile if they talk about it too much ^^
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 2:59 am
Quote: (By the way, do you know Latin? Or another classical language? Since sanguis means blood in Latin and all.) I have studied it, yes. I can't remember much, though. In English "Sanguine" means both "cheerful" and "bloody", which is why I chose it originally, and "cruenta" is a Latin word meaning "bloody" or "blood-red".
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Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 9:28 pm
Calelith A Pagan is anyone that isn't a follower of the Abrahamic God. So if your not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew...you're basically a Pagan. Actually not true; wicca, shamanism, neo-druidism, druidism, odinism and even stanism, are all pagan, yest. Greco-roman styled pantheons and religions can also be considered paganism, but there are numerous modern movements like scientology, jediism,etc that aren't pagan, ntm eastern religions are definitely not.
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Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 11:37 pm
Vagabond8 Calelith A Pagan is anyone that isn't a follower of the Abrahamic God. So if your not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew...you're basically a Pagan. Actually not true; wicca, shamanism, neo-druidism, druidism, odinism and even stanism, are all pagan, yest. Greco-roman styled pantheons and religions can also be considered paganism, but there are numerous modern movements like scientology, jediism,etc that aren't pagan, ntm eastern religions are definitely not. So then if Pagan isn't an umbrella term for any religion that's non-Abrahamic, then what is it? Also what makes Odinism different from Greco-roman styled pantheons? And Druidism wasn't a religion, as far as I'm aware.
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2011 3:13 am
Vagabond8 Calelith A Pagan is anyone that isn't a follower of the Abrahamic God. So if your not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew...you're basically a Pagan. Actually not true; wicca, shamanism, neo-druidism, druidism, odinism and even stanism, are all pagan, yest. Greco-roman styled pantheons and religions can also be considered paganism, but there are numerous modern movements like scientology, jediism,etc that aren't pagan, ntm eastern religions are definitely not. both definitions are valid. This is another reason why it's so confusing. My religion is pagan by one definition but not the other.
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2011 10:56 am
X-Yami-no-Ko-X Vagabond8 Calelith A Pagan is anyone that isn't a follower of the Abrahamic God. So if your not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew...you're basically a Pagan. Actually not true; wicca, shamanism, neo-druidism, druidism, odinism and even stanism, are all pagan, yest. Greco-roman styled pantheons and religions can also be considered paganism, but there are numerous modern movements like scientology, jediism,etc that aren't pagan, ntm eastern religions are definitely not. So then if Pagan isn't an umbrella term for any religion that's non-Abrahamic, then what is it? Also what makes Odinism different from Greco-roman styled pantheons? And Druidism wasn't a religion, as far as I'm aware. All right, I stand corrected-paganism is a term that can be used for any non-abrahamic religion, though I have never seen any eastern religion classified as "pagan". Sorry-i got confused there. Odinism is really just a modern adaptation of the old norse religion. For druidism, I pulled this definition off of dictionary.reference.com: 'the religions or rites of the druids'
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