| Paganism Defined ~for those of you who must be technical about everything..... Latin for �country dweller� 5 types: Paleopagan - The standard of paganism. A pagan culture which has not been disrupted by civilization. Civilopagan- The religions of �civilized� communities that evolved in paleopagan cultures. Mesopagan- May or may not still constitute a separate culture, which has been influenced by a conquering culture, but has been able to maintain independence of religious practice. Syncretopagan- Similar to mesopagan, but having to submerge itself into a dominant culture. Neopaganism- Attempts of modern people to re-connect with nature using imagery & forms from other types of pagans, but adapting them to the needs of modern people. Wicca Defined This word is found in all countries and is very old...there are many versions of the spelling, but they all mean "wise one". The root word wic means "to shape". Wicca is a Pagan religion that centers around the belief that there is a Goddess and a God, that we and the universe are connected, and our planet is to be taken care of and respected. |
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| A Brief History Paganism was the first religion. Wicca is a neo-pagan religion, a modern interpretation of pre-christian religions. Many wiccans are drawn to a certain type of wicca, for example, my heritage is celtic....and I am interested in celtic paganism. There are many types of Wiccans, just as there are many types of Pagans. All Wiccans are Pagans, but not all Pagans are Wiccans! Confused yet? Wiccans/Pagans have been persecuted for thousands of years, starting in the late 13th century and I guess you could say it's never ended. The "Church" graciously gave the Pagans the choice to convert....or to die...some choice, very christian-like behavior. Some Pagans "converted" to to keep from being murdered, others went "underground" taking their knowlege with them to pass on to future generations.Wicca has adapted and changed over the centuries, but it's core is the same: we and the universe are connected. The christians didn't stop with murder though, they began stealing land where Pagan temples were and tore down the Pagan sites and built THEIR churches on top of them! Revenge: The Pagans decided it would be fitting to carve Pagan symbols into the church, the christians had no clue their beautiful artwork was Pagan in nature! What a hoot! :o) Want to see some pretty Pagan artwork? Just go to a search engine and type in "cathedrials" and you're sure to run across some beautiful gargoyls, green men and ivy leaves.... Apparently murder and land theft were not enough, they also took the Pagan holidays and gave them new names, for example: Christmas (Yule), Easter (Eostare/Ostara), Halloween/All Saint's Day (Samhain). There is a special section dedicated to holidays. RANT; Although I try my best not to be judgmental, it becomes more and more difficult for me to be tolerant of Christianity when they are constantly coming down on non-chirstians. Most of them do not even know (or care about) the murdurous history of their religion! I have a problem with a religion that FORCED people to follow it, or be killed.... isn't one of the commandments "Thou shaltnot kill" ? Also, most chirstians I know do not live a "Christ-like" life at all (well, with the exception of my Grandmother maybe). The bible teaches love, compassion, acceptance...but only if that person is a christian! Churches don't want "sinners" in their churches, but isn't the mission of the church to allow all who seek Him out come to Him? The bible says not to be judgemental, but christians are the most judgemental people I know! Now that I've gotten that off my chest..... |
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