Do they really believe in the Gods they worship, or are they doing it for a different spiritual purpose?
2006-07-29 17:57:32 · 9 answers · asked by Aloofly Goofy 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
And I'm not interested in it. Just wondering about the people who are participating. I just now heard of it and it didn't make much sense to me.
2006-07-29 18:05:30 · update #1
Yes, indeed, most of us who have chosen Neo-Paganism as our faith tradition believe in the Source of Life, the Producer of the Seasons, the Most Sacred, the Living Spirit of the Universe.
Most Neo-Pagans are not, strictly speaking, polytheists. Wicca and Neo-Paganism are essentially panentheist religions, based in the idea of the immanent and universal Sacred, which the limited cognitive capacity of human beings metaphorically represents in terms of deity concepts like the Goddess, or the Divine Male, Female, Both, and Neither.
Our deity concept is as real and as sacred to us as the deity concepts of other faiths are to those faiths' adherents.
2006-07-29 18:05:50 · answer #1 · answered by snowbaal 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I really think that it would depend on the Neo-Pagan.
Most Neo-Pagans that I've met DO believe in their God/dess(es). Otherwise, it wouldn't make much sense to worship or honor them. :) These people honor and worship them, as well as commune with them during meditation, offerings, etc. Its the most important part of most Neo-Pagans' path.
However, some will just call on a god/dess as part of a spell, and not take time to learn about, honor or worship them. Just like there are lazy Christians, there are lazy Pagans. ;)
2006-07-30 02:11:35 · answer #2 · answered by Ivy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We do believe in the Gods and Goddesses we worship. If you are truly interested in Paganism, there are many good books out there by Edain McCoy, Scott Cunningham and Raven Grimassi to name a few.
2006-07-30 01:03:59 · answer #3 · answered by lilbitadevil 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Neo-paganism is a rebirth of the old nature religions (sometimes reinvented with modified god/goddess names and concepts).
Some believe literally in the gods/goddesses, and some see them as metaphors.
--
I am a Christian... I used to be an atheist. Over a period of time however, I grew convinced of the existence of the Christian God, and ultimately committed my life to Christ (e.g., see http://www.godsci.org/gs/chri/testimony/seek.html ).
Cordially,
John
2006-07-30 01:02:52 · answer #4 · answered by John 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Modernized worshipers of nature or idols they make of nature. Creation worshippers that don't want to acknowledge the Creator, Yahu'eh.
Many people do this out of rebellion against the majority religion.
2006-07-30 01:02:42 · answer #5 · answered by echadone 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They believe in the Gods they worship, thank you.
:)
They -- we -- do a lot of things.
Why don't you read a Wikipedia article on it sometime?
- 16 yo Pagan
2006-07-30 00:59:14 · answer #6 · answered by Lady Myrkr 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes we do believe in and worship our God(s) and Goddess(es).
2006-07-30 01:10:33 · answer #7 · answered by Joa5 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I believe in my deities just as much as any other devoutly religious person would.
2006-07-30 01:16:11 · answer #8 · answered by Witchy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
good question. I always wondered this myself.
2006-07-30 01:01:37 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋