what does paganism mean to you?

Question

just curious... i want to see how many people are actually educated on this type of faith, since as a pagan, i see a lot of christianity posts, and i'm just curious to see who out there is also a pagan or at least understands it for what it truly is. please no jokes. this is part of my life, and i do not mock any other religion.

I was asked to add more to this so I will... I am Wiccan, which is a craft religion of Paganism. I do practice witchcraft but that is not the main focus. The main focus is finding your god, goddess or both, and what you feel is right in your heart. If I answer much more, I'll answer my own question!!! lol Anyways, if you truly are simply curious, a good website for grounded, well-thought out (and not those people who do it for attention) is called http://www.witchvox.com.

I'm sorry if this offended anyone. I wasn't name-calling or trying to be rude. I was simply curious. I do not believe that my religion is the only religion, or that my gods are the only ones.

heathen means "from the heath" or "country dweller" originally, before it came to be used as it is today.... in case anyone was curious. :)

look up heathen or pagan on wikipedia. see what you get, paradise. i'm educated as well. i'm not trying to be mean with this post, so don't try to slap at me.

this question has inspired me to never ask another question on here. some people are downright rude and have forgotten that this country was founded on religious freedom. I asked this question with innocence and curiousity, and some of the messages i've gotten are just plain mean. I meant no harm through this. Blessed be to you all, and may there be light in your lives.

Answer 1

Being a pagan also, it is an everyday spiritual journey. It is the feeling I get when I walk through the woods and know that my Goddess is all around me and in me. It is watching the sun rise and thanking the God for bringing his light to warm me and shine on my family or seeing the moon and feeling myself drawn closer to my Goddess just by gazing at Her splendor. Being Pagan has brought me a peace deep inside me and has made me more conscientious of the world that surrounds me. I am grateful and thankful every day for the blessings that the Goddess has given me and my family. I have only been on this path for a few years now, but I look forward to more in the years to come!

Answer 2

I'm an atheist (not that I consider that a "religion", but, I guess it let's you sorta know where I'm coming from)...anyway, I have to admit that most of what I know about paganism comes from Ann Rice books and Charmed...and I'm not clear, for example, on the difference between Wiccan and Pagan, if there is one, or if one is a subset of the other. I've read the wikipedia article on Wicca & witchcraft, so what I understand from that is that as far as Wiccan stuff goes a lot of subscribers believe a lot of different things, and have differing rituals and such. Otherwise, I kind of generally assume that Paganism consists of a group of people that are looking for a less-structured, more nature-based "religion" than, say, Christianity or any of the more major ones. I guess that's it; y'all like to be outside and are pretty creative, from what I can tell, which actually I guess describes me as well =)

Hope I haven't offended with any of my assumptions, and good luck sating your curiousity! =)

Answer 3

As a Christian who has had Pagan friends.......
I see Pagans as a group of people who mean well. They're generally nice people. I think they're worshipping the wrong things, but I still believe they're good people who mean well but have been misled. I like to share my love of Jesus with pagans, but I don't do it in a mean way because I know they truly believe in what they believe in.
There are many groups who are considered Pagan. Many religions consider "Pagan" to be any group that doesn't worship the one God that created the world. The branches of Paganism that I'm most familiar with are Traditional Irish Celtic and Wicca. I do know that the worship nature, ancestors, gods and goddesses. I know that some DO cast spells but they believe in the rule of three (I think that's what it's called anyway) and so if they use their powers for evil, it will come back to them times three. I also know that MANY pagans are very knowledgeable about natural medicine. That's a good thing. : )

Answer 4

The Pagans were one of the first religious people around. It is nature based and does no harm to anyone or anything. There are a lot of Pagans that are vegetarians. They do things to help nature and people. I am not a Pagan but my religion is sometimes grouped in with the Pagan religions. I do have many Pagan friends though.

Answer 5

I'm more attached to the word heathen myself. Many people, and also most dictionaries, consider the words "pagan" and "heathen" interchangable. Basically, you're a heathen/pagan if you're not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim. I'm none of the above, so I'm a heathen. I am an atheist, but I do celebrate May Day and the winter solstice. To me it just makes sense to celebrate events in nature, especially when the days start getting longer and when spring arrives.

Answer 6

People
Against
Goodness
And
Normalcy.
Just kidding, that was the one funny thing in the Dragnet movie from the eighties. Pagans worship the Goddess and the Horned God. They are keepers of the garden if you will. I know quite a few of them and for the most part I am impressed with their fervor. Have a nice night.
Blessed Be.

Answer 7

I personally don't like to use the word pagan. Its usually used by christians and everyone else as a referance to the small religions/cults that have existed throughout history in europe and other places. I think its usually used for religions that are more shamanistic, or associated with earth and nature, or polytheistic with multiple deties.

one of the major religion (considered pagan by many) resurfacing in modern life is wicca, i read a book on it, quite intresting actully.


One who follows a religion of European, North African, West Asian or Pre-Columban American origin and who is not Christian, Muslim nor Jewish, or who does not worship the God of Abraham. Such usage, while traditional in the above three religions, may be considered derogatory. (Religions of Southern and Eastern Asian origin (eg. Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Shinto are not generally considered to be Pagan); a believer in Paganism or Neopaganism.

-Wikipedia

Answer 8

It depends on what type of Paganism. There are a lot of "denominations".

I tend to classify as Pagan any religion which is considered "New Age/alternative", "Earth centered", and/or Reconstructionalist that's not one of the big 3 Western religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), Native American, or can't be classified as an Eastern religion (Buddhism, Hindu, Taoism, Shinto, Jainism, etc). That includes Wicca, Asatru, Druidism, etc.

Answer 9

Pagans are basically witches, which may follow one of many different paths. Not all pagans are wiccan but all wiccans are pagan. And pagans don't worship satan.

Edit: Since I've done some reading on paganism and I was part of a pagan student organization, I might have an unfair advantage here....

Answer 10

As far as I know a pagan is an individual who does not believe in a God that created the universe. There were pagans back in the early days of the Crusades, who may have been associated with witches so to differentiate themselves they performed different ceremonies sometimes worshipping nature. Perhaps you could enlighten us, with an addition to your initial statement.

Answer 11

"what does paganism mean to you?" -- Pagans have taken the hard road, to their reward.
Pagans have chosen to make others focus their faith, to learn to understand their faith more, because being human, (pagans know) people will try to bend or break (the pagans) free will, to agree with theirs.
As to knowing which pagan path you are on, no idea. (I'm an uneducated Roman Catholic, that sins to much - so I can't judge anyone.)
Being 2006, few of the faiths calling for sacrificing humans remain, so you tend to live like everyone else. Treating others like you would like to be treated, with respect, and kindness.
I hope you have a wonderful journey.