Neo-Pagan

 

polytheistic religious movement, practiced in small groups by partisans of pre-Christian religious traditions such as Egyptian, Greek, Norse, and Celtic. Neopagans fall into two broad categories, nature-oriented and magical groups, and often incorporate arcane and elaborate rituals. Two of the movement's most influential thinkers were Alphonse L. Constant (1810–75) and Gerard Encausse (1865–1916).

Bibliography

See M. Adler, Drawing Down the Moon (1981, rev. ed. 1986); T. M. Luhrman, Pervasions of the Witch's Craft (1989); J. G. Melton and I. Poggi, Magic, Witchcraft, and Paganism in America (1992).

It has been suggested that Dark Paganism be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

Neopaganism or Neo-Paganism is an umbrella term used to identify a wide variety of new religious movements, particularly those influenced by ancient and pre-Abrahamic Pagan religions.^[1][2]

These movements are extremely diverse. The beliefs of adherents of Neopaganism range widely from monotheism to polytheism as well as other paradigms. See List of Pagan Traditions.

Many Neopagans practice a spirituality that is entirely modern in origin, while others attempt to reconstruct or revive culturally historic Pagan and indigenous belief systems.^[3]

Etymology

The word Pagan comes from the Latin (paganus, literally country dweller), originally meaning rustic or from the country. As the cities converted to Christianity, the rural folk held onto their old beliefs longer. Always pejorative, pagan was applied to polytheistic religions to indicate they were nothing more than the rural superstitions of the uneducated farmers.

Neopaganism may be defined as a "post-Christian" new religious movement, and is pronouncedly a modern phenomenon with its roots in early 19th century Romanticism. Other Neopagans stress a connectedness or lineage with older forms of Paganism in terms of an alleged "underground" continuity or tradition but such claims often display fakelore as opposed to outright reconstruction or cultural continuation.^[4]

Terminology

The term "Neopagan" is used by academics and adherents alike to identify Pagan traditions which are largely modern in origin, or which are conceived as reconstructions, continuations or revivals of ancient practices.

While "pagan" (lowercase) is still used by many to denote an irreligious person, adherents of modern Pagan and Neopagan religions capitalize these words because, in these cases, the words are being used to describe a set of religious practices, or adherents to these, "in the same way as one would describe a 'Christian' or a 'Jew'."^[3]

The term "Neopagan" provides a means of distinguishing between historical Pagans of ancient cultures and the adherents of modern religious movements. The category of religions known as "Neopagan" besides polytheistic reconstructionism includes syncretistic or eclectic approaches like Wicca, Neodruidism, and many others.^[5]

"Reconstructionists" - those who practice modern forms of culturally-specific historical pagan religions - sometimes self-identify as Pagan or Neopagan, depending on their respective personal or group belief. Generally, most reconstructionists avoid usage of the term "Neopagan" and even "Pagan", instead preferring terms like "polytheist", or traditional terms from the languages of their specific cultures.^{[citation needed]} Some Reconstructionists do not identify as part of the Neopagan community, although in a purely technical sense, their traditions are "Neopagan" since even the most historically accurate reconstructions are now being practiced by modern people in a contemporary context.^[6][7] Reconstructionism attempts to understand and historical beliefs and worldviews and emulate them in the contemporary world. This should be distinguished from attempts to reconstruct the entire setting of a historical epoch, known as living history or historical reenactment.

History

The roots of Neopaganism begin with the Renaissance and the reintroduction of Classicism and the resurgence of interest in Graeco-Roman polytheism in the wake of works like the Theologia mythologica of 1532.

The Romantic movement of the 18th century led to the re-discovery of Old Norse literature and Germanic poetry. Based on this, the 19th century saw a surge of interest in Germanic paganism with the Viking revival in the British Isles and in Scandinavia. In Germany the Völkisch movement was in full swing. These Neopagan currents coincided with Romanticist interest in folklore and occultism, and the rise of nationalism.^[8]

During this resurgence in the United Kingdom, Neo-Druidism and various Western occult groups emerged, such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and the Ordo Templi Orientis, who attempted to syncretize "exotic" elements like Egyptian cosmology and Kabbalah into their belief systems, although not necessarily for purely religious purposes. Influenced by the anthropologist Sir James George Frazer's The Golden Bough, several prominent writers and artists were involved in these organizations, including William Butler Yeats, Maud Gonne, Arthur Edward Waite, and Aleister Crowley. Along with these early occult organizations, there were other social phenomena such as the interest in mediumship, and an interest in magic and other supernatural beliefs which were at an all time high in the late 19th century and early 20th century.

In the 1920s Margaret Murray theorized that a witchcraft religion existed underground and in secret, and had survived through the witchcraft prosecutions by ecclesiastic and courts. Most historians now reject Murray's theory, as it was partially based on the similarities of the accounts given by those accused of witchcraft and such similarity is thought to actually derive from the standard set of questions laid out in witch-hunting manuals that were used by interrogators.^[9] Murrays idea nevertheless exerted great influence on certain neopagan currents; in the 1940s, Englishman Gerald Gardner claimed to have been initiated into a New Forest coven. Gardnerian Wicca is used to refer to the traditions of Neopaganism that adhere closely to Gardner's teachings, differentiating it from similar traditions, such as Alexandrian Wicca.

In the meantime, Germanic mysticism in Germany had developed into baroque forms such as Guido von List's "Armanism", from the 1900s merging into anti-semitic and national mysticist (völkisch) currents, notably with Lanz von Liebenfels' Guido von List Society and Ostara magazine, which with the rise of Nazism were partially absorbed into Nazi occultism (while other Germanic mysticist groups, such as the Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft of Ludwig Fahrenkrog were disendorsed by the Nazi regime). Such distortions of Germanic mythology were denounced by J. R. R. Tolkien, e.g. in a 1941 letter where he speaks of Hitler's corruption of "that noble northern spirit, a supreme contribution to Europe, which I have ever loved and tried to present in its true light" (Letters, 55-56). Because of such connections with Nazism, neopaganism was virtually eclipsed for about two decades following World War II.

The 1960s and 1970s saw a resurgence in Neodruidism as well as the rise of Germanic Neopaganism and Ásatrú in the USA and in Iceland. The 1980s and 1990s saw, on the one hand, an increasing interest in serious academic research and Reconstructionist Pagan traditions, and on the other, popularization and syncretism with elements of New Age, counter-culture. Wicca was notably influenced by feminism in the 1970s, leading to the creation of an eclectic movement known as Dianic Wicca, and further diversified into other sub-denominations, distinguished from British Traditional Wicca which emphasizes initiatory lineage.

Oberon Zell-Ravenheart was a modern popularizer of the term "Neo-Pagan", beginning in 1967 with the early issues of Green Egg, described as being published by "the 1st Neo-Pagan Church of All Worlds".

Historical sources

Many Neopagans and Neopagan traditions attempt to incorporate elements of historical religions, cultures and mythologies into their beliefs and practices, often emphasizing the hoary age of their sources. Thus, Wicca in particular is sometimes referred to by its proponents as the "Old Religion", a term popularized by Margaret Murray in the 1920s, while Germanic Neopaganism (more properly defined as a Meso-Paganism) is referred to as Forn Sed or "the Old Way". Such emphasis on the antiquity of religious tradition is not exclusive to Neopaganism, and is found in many other religions. For example the terms Purana, Sanatana Dharma, and the emphasis on the antiquity of the Ancient Egyptian sources of the Hellenistic Mystery religions. Antiquity of source suggests authenticity and authority to many believers.

Some claims of continuity between Neopaganism and older forms of Paganism have been shown to be spurious, or outright false, as in the case of Iolo Morganwg's Druid's Prayer. Wiccan beliefs of an ancient monotheistic Goddess were inspired by Marija Gimbutas's description of Neolithic Europe. The factual historical validity of her theories have been disputed by many scholars, including historian Ronald Hutton.

While most Neopagans draw from old religious traditions, they also adapt them. The mythologies of the ancient traditions are not generally considered to be literally factual by Neopagans, in the sense that the Bible and other Abrahamic texts are often thought of by their followers. Eclectic Neopagans in particular are resistant to the concept of scripture or excessive structure, considering personal freedom to be one of the primary goals of their spirituality.^[10] In contrast, some Reconstructionist sects, like those who practice Theodism, take a stricter religious approach, and only recognize certain historical texts and sources as being relevant to their belief system, intentionally focusing on one culture to the exclusion of others, and having a general disdain for the eclectic mentality.

The mythological sources of the various Neopagan traditions are similarly varied, including Celtic, Norse, Greek, Roman, Sumerian, Egyptian and others. Some groups focus solely on one cultural tradition, while others draw from several. For example, Doreen Valiente's text The Charge of the Goddess used materials from The Gospel of Aradia by Charles G. Leland (1899), as well as material from Aleister Crowley's writings.

Some Neopagans also draw inspiration from modern traditions, including Christianity, Buddhism and others, creating syncretisms like "Christian Witchcraft" or "Buddheo-Paganism".^[11] Since many Neopagan beliefs do not require exclusivity, some Neopagans practice other faiths in parallel.

Since eclectic Neopagans take a rather undogmatic religious stance,^[10] and sometimes see no one as having authority to deem a source "apocryphal", Neopaganism has been notably prone to fakelore, especially in recent years, as information and misinformation alike have been spread on the Internet and in print media. A number of Wiccan, Neopagan and even some "Traditionalist" or "Tribalist" groups have a history of spurious "Grandmother Stories" – usually involving initiation by a Grandmother, Grandfather, or other elderly relative who is said to have instructed them in the secret, millennia-old traditions of their ancestors. As this "secret wisdom" has almost always been traced to recent sources, or been quite obviously concocted even more recently, most proponents of these stories have eventually admitted they made them up.^[3]

Ecological and mystical currents

Neopaganism generally emphasizes the sanctity of Earth and Nature. Some Neopagans are influenced by Animist traditions of the indigenous Native Americans and Africans.

Neopagans often feel a duty to protect the Earth through activism, and support causes such as rainforest protection, Organic farming, permaculture, animal rights and so on - the frequent embracing of animal rights by Neopagans stands sharply at odds with historic European Paganism, in which animal sacrifice was all but universal.^[12] Many Neopagans who are vegetarian or vegan are only such in response to the modern factory farm, finding its methods of ending animal life for food or other uses inhumane.

Many Neopagans refer to themselves as following Nature-based spirituality, and this ethic links Neopagan spiritual practitioners with indigenous, shamanic, and other traditions that supposedly pre-date agricultural civilizations.

Concepts of the divine

Most Neopagan traditions are polytheistic, but the interpretation of the concept of deity or deities varies widely, including monist, pantheist, panentheist, dualist, deist, animist, henotheist, psychological and mystical variations and interpretations.

Hutton states that the historical Pagans did not see "All Goddesses as one Goddess; all Gods as one God", but some types of modern Neopagans believe that there is but a single divinity or life force of the universe, which is immanent in the world. The various manifestations and archetypes of this divinity are not viewed as wholly separate, but as different aspects of the divine which are ineffable.

In Wicca, (especially Dianic Wicca) the concept of an Earth or Mother Goddess similar to the Greek Gaia is emphasized. Male counterparts are also evoked, such as the Green Man and the Horned God (who is loosely based on the Celtic Cernunnos.) These duo-theistic philosophies tend to emphasize the God and Goddess' (or Lord and Lady's) genders as being analogous to a concept similar to that of yin and yang in ancient Chinese philosophy; ie, two complementary opposites. Many Oriental philosophies equate weakness with femininity and strength with masculinity; this is not the prevailing attitude in Neopaganism and Wicca.^[13] Among many Neopagans, there is a strong desire to incorporate the female aspects of the divine in their worship and within their lives, which can partially explain the attitude which sometimes manifests as the veneration of women.^[14] Other Neopagans reject the concept of binary gender roles.

Historical Paganism, particularly in the Mediterranean, tended to regard beliefs as valid as long as they conformed to the traditions and customs, or cultural patrimony of the people. As Christian eschatology became a rising force, Pagan thinkers such as Celsus and the Roman Emperor Julian wrote arguments against Christian claims and in defense of the traditional religions, which give us insight into their contrasting beliefs.

Worship and ritual

Many Neopagan traditions include occult or "magical" elements in their beliefs and practices. Wicca in particular emphasises the role of witchcraft and ritual. Other Neopagan traditions may include a belief in the supernatural, but place much less emphasis on the working of magic.

Most Neopagan religions celebrate the cycles and seasons of nature through a festival calendar that honours these changes. The timing of festivals, and the rites celebrated, may vary from climate to climate, and will also vary (sometimes widely) depending upon which particular Neopagan religion the adherent subscribes to.

Number of adherents

Adherents.com estimates that there are roughly one million Neopagans worldwide (as of 2000).^[15]

High estimates by Neopagan authors may reach several times that number.^[16] A precise number is impossible to establish, because of the largely uninstitutionalised nature of the religion, and the secrecy observed by such institutions as there are^[17], sometimes explained by fear of discrimination.

Britain

A study by Ronald Hutton compared a number of different sources (including membership lists of major UK organizations, attendance at major events, subscriptions to magazines, etc.) and used standard models for extrapolating likely numbers. This estimate accounted for multiple membership overlaps as well as the number of adherents represented by each attendee of a Neopagan gathering. Hutton estimated that there are 250,000 Neopagan adherents in the United Kingdom, roughly equivalent to the national Hindu community.^[18]

A smaller number is suggested by the results of the 2001 Census, in which a question about religious affiliation was asked for the first time. Respondents were able to write in an affiliation not covered by the checklist of common religions, and a total of 42,262 people from England, Scotland and Wales did so. These figures were not released as a matter of course by the Office of National Statistics, but were released after an application by the Pagan Federation Scotland^[19]. From a British population of 59 million this gives a rough proportion of 7 pagans per 100,000 population. This is more than many well known traditions such as Rastafarian, Bahá'í and Zoroastrian groups, but fewer than the 'Big Six' of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism and Buddhism. It is also fewer than the adherents of the so-called Jedi religion, whose campaign made them the largest of the religions after the Big Six^[20].

The UK Census figures do not allow an accurate breakdown of traditions within the Pagan heading, as a campaign by the Pagan Federation before the census encouraged Wiccans, Heathens, Druids and others all to use the same write-in term 'Pagan' in order to maximise the numbers reported.

North America

Further information: Neopaganism in the United States

In the United States, the ARIS 2001 study based on a poll conducted by The Graduate Center at The City University of New York found that an estimated 140,000 people self-identified as Pagans; 134,000 self-identified as Wiccans; and 33,000 self-identified as Druids. This would bring the total of groups largely accepted under the modern popular western definition of Neopagan to 307,000. Other groups measured in the report, such as Native Americans, New Agers and a significant portion of Unitarian Universalists, could be categorized under this definition, but many of these adherents would not consider themselves Pagan nor would the mainstream Pagan communities accept them as such.

The Covenant of the Goddess conducted a poll of U.S. and Canadian Neopagans in 1999 that estimated the population in those countries at 768,400. This would seem to support the view that there are at least one million adherents, worldwide. This poll was not scientific and represents a self selected subset of all Neopagans, but it does provide some interesting insights that confirm what many Neopagans have observed anecdotally. Some other statistics from this poll are:

• 65% of respondents were between 26 and 39 years of age
• 86% were registered to vote, a figure much higher than the national average
• There were nearly three times as many women as men (71%)
• 13% have served in the Armed Forces, and Neopagan women served at a higher rate than the general population - 32% of Neopagans who reported having been in the Armed Forces were female

Forms

The term "Neopaganism" encompasses a very broad range of groups and beliefs. Syncretic or eclectic approaches are usually inspired by historical traditions, but not bound by any strict identification with a historical religion or culture. Gardnerian and Alexandrian Wicca, British Traditional Wicca, and variations such as Dianic Wicca are examples of eclectic traditions, as are Neo-druid groups like Ár nDraíocht Féin.

Wicca

Main article: Wicca

Wicca is the largest Neopagan religion in the USA. Wicca is a modern religion first publicized in 1954 by Gerald Gardner. Gardner claimed that the religion was a modern survival of an old witch cult, originating in the pre-Christian Paganism of Europe and existing in secret for centuries. Various forms of Wicca have since evolved or been adapted from Gardner's British Traditional Wicca or Gardnerian Wicca such as Alexandrian Wicca. Other forms loosely based on Gardner's teachings are Faery Wicca, Kemetic Wicca, Judeo-Paganism or "jewitchery", Dianic Wicca or "Feminist Wicca" - which emphasizes the divine feminine, often creating women-only or lesbian-only groups.^[21] The common denominator amongst all the variants of Wicca are a reverence for nature and active ecology, venerations of a Goddess and/or Horned God, elements of a variety of ancient mythologies, a belief in and practice of magic and sometimes the belief in reincarnation and karma.

Reconstructionism

Main article: Polytheistic reconstructionism

In contrast to the eclectic traditions, Reconstructionists are usually very culturally oriented and attempt to reconstruct historical forms of Paganism, in a modern context. For example, adherents of Hellenic polytheism reconstruct the practices and beliefs of Ancient Greece, while Kemetic, Celtic and Germanic Reconstructionists practice the indigenous beliefs of Ancient Egypt, Celtic Paganism and Germanic Paganism, respectively.^[6]

Syncretism

Main article: Syncretism

Neo-pagans often point to pagan elements in Christian history; a notable example being the adoption of local gods in Christianity as saints. There are other historical syncretisms that happened in a less oppressive way, such as the Scottish traditions that are a product of centuries of combined Norse and Celtic influence.^[22] The early Celtic church was an excellent example of syncretism at work, and it wasn't until the end of the 8th century A.D. that Rome had managed to get its half-pagan Irish child properly Christianized. In early Medieval times, a sacred flame was tended at the monastery of St. Brigid in the same area (in Kildare or in nearby Dun Ailinne) where Pagan priestesses previously kept vigil tending a flame.^[23] Now Kildare Cathedral stands on those grounds.^[24]

Other forms

• Eco-Paganism and Eco-Magic, which are off-shoots of direct action environmental groups, have a strong emphasis on fairy imagery and a belief in the possibility of intercession by the fae (fairies, pixies, gnomes, elves, and other spirits of nature and the Otherworlds).^[25]
• Some Unitarian Universalists are eclectic Pagans. Unitarian Universalists look for spiritual inspiration in a wide variety of religious beliefs. The Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans, or CUUPs, encourages their member chapters to "use practices familiar to members who attend for worship services but not to follow only one tradition of Paganism."^[26]

See also

• Paganism
• Hermeticism
• Hierology
• List of religions
• New Age

Related theological concepts

References

Further reading

External links

• CUUPS - Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans
• The Kith of Yggdrasil - UK-based Heathen website
• Mything Links - A meta page about myths and mythology around the world
• Neopagan.net - Neopagan author Isaac Bonewits's thoughts on the development of Neopaganism, modern druidry and public perceptions
• Pagan Federation A UK-based organization promoting awareness and acceptance of Paganism in Europe and the world.
• Pagan Association UK Promoting paganism in the Community.
• PFSA The Pagan Federation of South Africa
• PaganWiki - "Striving to be the most complete pagan resource"
• WikiPagan A free content wiki-based website for Neopagans

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