Are Pagans atheists in the sense that they are just personifying nature as a god?

Question

Or are you not simply personifying nature?

Fred: Would you grace me with your explanation then? If Pagans don't believe in a personal god who acts and merely thinks of nature as a god, then they are atheists in my book.

Answer 1

I can only speak for myself... no. I'm not personifying nature. I view the whole "Mother Nature" as merely a way to communicate certain symbols (that all nature should be respected, hence the "Mother" title). Now, I have run into a few that do believe Mother Nature IS The Goddess (Gaia). Others say it is merely an aspect of the Great Goddess, Gaia being only one among thousands of images of the Goddess.

This is why it's so hard to say exactly what Pagans believe.... because you have 10 of us in a room, ask this question, and get 12 different answers. The beliefs are extremely personal, though we all share some basic ideas (that nature should be respected is one of the main ones). It doesn't matter to us what the others see as the image of that nature.

Answer 2

Atheists don't personify anything as god, therefore a religion that does cannot be atheists.

Christians personify a being they don't know, don't have form for, and call it god.

Why can't pagans do the same? And not all pagans worship nature, some have many gods, some have one god, and some call on the same god the christians do.

Answer 3

Actually no. While I can't speak for every Pagan out there, I can speak for myself and many others who agree with me.
The Gods are part of Nature, they have distinct personalities, they are, in many ways, like us, and in many ways very different from us. Nature is the material representation of the Divine, created of Divine fabric, but Divine consciousness and Nature are two entirely different things.

In my belief Gaia is a Goddess who is literally the Earth and Nature is a part of Her and so are we all, but She doesn't really communicate with people as She's too busy being what She is and She doesn't differentiate between who She destroys and who She blesses because of that. She created Herself and the Gods who in turn created (or aided in the creation of) and watch over everything else. There are many other (countless) Gods- Her children- who are not tied up in the constant creation of materiality (what you call Nature) who take an active interest in what goes on in the world. Most Pagans have a very deep and personal relationship with the Gods they follow.

If Nature and the Earth were destroyed, they would continue to exist because they are pure Energy (which cannot be created or destroyed) and would eventually re-establish themselves at their pleasure. With or without us.

Answer 4

While some do personify nature as a deity, most who do have a panentheist view - the deity is immanent as well as transcendant. As such, rarely will you see a Pagan who considers nature to be a deity that does not act.

That said, many Pagans believe in a number of deities.

Answer 5

Ah, the "Worshipping the Creator versus the Creation" argument in a slightly different suit?

Most Pagans I know (who are primarily of a Wiccan persuasion) most *definitely* honor and worship Deities. Those Deities not only created the world around us, but are also a part of it - transcendent as well as immanent. That's probably where you get confused about the "worshipping nature" thing.

We don't "worship the trees" - we honor the spirit of the Divine that exists within all things.

But no, that definitely is not "atheist".

Answer 6

My head started to hurt a little when I read your question! I am not up on Pagans or aetheists so that why I felt a bit lost I suppose!
What I would like to say is that I am dissapointed that we seem to have such a big need to personify all gods? Are they not forces just like gravity,etc This leads to my g is bigger, better,more powerful than your g

Answer 7

I don't know any pagans who personify nature as a god. They recognize that nature is a manifestation of the Goddess/God. That's quite different.

)O(

Answer 8

Think about what you just said. Consider that atheism denotes lack of belief in gods. Consider that a pagan belief is simply a pre-Christian religion, not a specific religion.

What you are talking about is a pagan religion that deifies the Earth or nature. Any deity is semantically a god, belief in such a thing would denote theism, not atheism.

Put simply, no.

Answer 9

Some of them are.
Traditionally, Wiccans (the type of Pagan I am) do not personify nature. Instead, we see nature as part of an underlying set of cycles.

Answer 10

There is no personification of nature. Some may be agnostics in the sense that the Gods/Goddesses we do worship are just symbols for the connection between us all.