Please Explain Being Pagan...

[Miss Amy]

Hi There. I foloow Buddhist beliefs, one of my sisters is paegan and the other follows first Nations beliefs. I am trying to understand a little more about their beliefs... can anyone shed any light on this subject?

[bgruagach]

Paganism is a generic term that refers to a wide range of religions. It's generally used to refer to religions that are not Christian, Jewish, or Muslim although it's debatable -- most people respect if particular religions choose to not be considered Pagan.

Druids, followers of Voudou, people who are reconstructing ancient religions of Greece, Egypt, Rome, etc., as well as more modern religions such as Wicca and Asatru are generally all classified as Pagan.

If you want to find out what the beliefs are you'll need to specify which religion you are interested in.

[Snoopy]

Originally Posted by bgruagach

It's generally used to refer to religions that are not Christian, Jewish, or Muslim

Soooooooooo.......

To say that Paegan refers to religions that are not Abrahamic does not really provide any encompassing wording for it, does it? What I mean is, for example, by this definition Buddhism and Taoism are Paegan?

You're going to say they are aren't you???!!!

I'm not being nit-picky for the sake of it, just interested. Is the term too wide ranging and "plastic" to be pinned down? I imagine some people just use it (or have done) as a pejorative rather than understanding what it truly means (which is what I'm trying to do I think!)

s.

[Francis king]

yes, think the term was first used by christians to describe ppl of other faiths.. ?

[Snoopy]

Originally Posted by Francis king

yes, think the term was first used by christians to describe ppl of other faiths.. ?

including Jews and Muslims? (i.e. other Abrahamic religions)

s.

[Francis king]

dunno snoopy...

[Snoopy]

Good.

As Zen Master Seung Sahn repeatedly exhorted: maintain Don't Know Mind.

s.

[17th Angel]

Paganism comes from the Latin for Paganus... It's meaning is 'rustic' 'country dweller' Today I guess it would mean (hick) (farmer giles) (hillbilly) (country bumpkin...) ..... but it is a term for POLYTHEISM religions mainly.. Which was out side of the "abrahamic" group so yeah... christianity, islam and judaism... Wouldn't come under that term for this reason and the Polytheism... So like shinto, Dharmic religions, mythology, ethnic religions (voodoo) and so on.. Indeed a Latin word used by the christians... It comes from the word from Judaism "Gentile" Right....?

[bgruagach]

17th Angel is partially correct. The term Pagan originated in Latin and was used to refer to rural people who were considered less sophisticated than urban dwellers. "Hick" would be a modern equivalent in English.

However, over the years it has come to mean a lot of things including non-Abrahamic religions (including monotheistic non-Abrahamic religions), as well as those who are non-religious. Pagan isn't a simple term with just one clear meaning.

While some people, depending who you ask, do classify Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, etc. as Pagan, there are definitely others who do not. The general rule of thumb used within the modern Pagan community is that we respect how people self-identify -- if they say they are Pagan then we respect that, and if they say they are not Pagan we respect that as well. But there is not always an absolute determination for all religions counting as Pagan or not. For example, some Buddhists happily self-identify as Pagan while others do not. (I've personally met people in both categories.)

[bgruagach]

Oh, and just to clarify, the determining factor in being classified Pagan has nothing to do with being polytheistic. I mentioned in my last post that there are monotheistic Pagan religions too!

[Snoopy]

Crumbs! OK ta.

Now I don't know if I'm a Pagan or not!

s.

[17th Angel]

EH!?!?!

But, for a era of time it was used to describe poltheistic religions right? Time moves on huh?

Bgru, you know anything about it connecting to Gentile then? Or did I slip in a red herring?

Originally Posted by Snoopy

Crumbs! OK ta.

Now I don't know if I'm a Pagan or not!

s.

Your choice... Doesn't really matter lol... It is but a title... Titles mean nothing.

[bgruagach]

Originally Posted by 17th Angel

EH!?!?!

But, for a era of time it was used to describe poltheistic religions right? Time moves on huh?

Originally (in the Latin) Pagan had nothing to do with religion.

Later on when Pagan was used in a religious sense it was used to refer to non-Abrahamic religions regardless whether they were polytheistic or not. Polytheism is not a requirement to be classified as Pagan. To illustrate this, some have said early Judaism was polytheistic -- is Judaism Pagan then even though it's the original Abrahamic religion? Of course not.

[bgruagach]

Originally Posted by Snoopy

Crumbs! OK ta.

Now I don't know if I'm a Pagan or not!

s.

It all depends on how you define Pagan, doesn't it. And whether you feel the label suits you or not based on the definitions you've accepted.

[17th Angel]

I see so I could make Sheogorath my one god... and I could if I so wished call myself a Pagan..... Interesting... I was sure it meant a multitude of gods not one, or both for that matter..... OH HOW WRONG