Pagans: should we start using the phrase "They aren't real pagans"?

Question

I mean we get all these stores about "evil pagans and thier blood sacrifices". Do you think we can borrow it?

LOL yea synthentic pagans lol I like that. ;) They must hang out with those fake Christians

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070821072554AAZicRz&r=w#E59RO0fKLzfuBHCRaMaQ

My inspiration for the question of irony for the day

Jay I am versed in the Norse Gods and I agree Tyr was a pretty awesome one. :)

Answer 1

No you guys have way too much integrity for that.

Answer 2

Oddly enough, I've been studying Norse mythology the past year, and I'm totally bringing it back... short of the blood sacrifices though. Pagans, or heathens, weren't evil. Even in the Christian sense. When they slaughtered the animals, they cooked the meat, but instead of getting rid of the blood, they sprayed it on themselves "to be closer" to the animals. Kind of disgusting, and I'm sure it smelled bad, but it was all done as a community BBQ type thing. If anything, the Norsemen were the biggest partyers... Christianity came in and shut it all down... The conversion took several decades, but many of the stories have remained. Go to Wikipedia and look up Norse Gods, they are a rowdy bunch. Much more fun than the Greek ones... Tyr is my favorite...

Answer 3

I think Christians have first dibs on blood sacrifice. I am pagan and I SAVE animals I DO NOT and WOULD NOT sacrifice them. Maybe all the jerks in the world could step on up and offer themselves to sacrifice. Evil is evil there is no specifics on that. Some people whew!

Answer 4

I actually saw that the other day! It was great! Someone had become an atheist and a Pagan said, "He was never a true Pagan to begin with." I also read an atheist say that about another atheist who became a Pentecostal. I laughed so hard.

Answer 5

The problem with that is that "they" may, in fact be pagans. They may belong to a religion of one, but being the only one who believes what they spout doesn't invalidate it as a legitimate path.

That being said...I like the idea of "synthetic pagans" to describe those who think a pentacle and a spice rack are all you need to become "one of us." Lady's breasts, I get SO tired of pure ignorance...both sides seem to use it to justify bad behavior. Makes me want to knock ALL their heads against a wall and then send them to their rooms until they can act like adults.

Answer 6

Well, we already have the term "fluffy bunnies" for those who flit around in their gauzy skirts and talk about fairies and unicorns all day long. Usually they call themselves Wiccan. I've never said someone wasn't a "real pagan." It's a wide system of beliefs and we each have our own interpretation of it. My feeling when I see people like this is that they are deluding themselves if they think it's all about goodness and white light and happiness. But I'd never tell them they weren't real pagans or try to make them think like I do.

Answer 7

There was once a very real religion called pagan. But, like the word gay which once meant happy, majority religions have eschewed it's proper meaning and use "pagan" as a blanket to cover practically all others who are not (christian).

Answer 8

Well, that's the point of saying there are hundreds of types of Paganism, ya see.

"Thems aint da sorts of Pagan I is."

Edit: Also, when someone says they are something specific, we can usually judge it on a fair basis. If someone says they are a Gardnerian Witch, for example, you can find out pretty easily if they are lying.

Answer 9

LOL

well, considering pagans don't do the things that we get credit for, such as blood sacrifice, we don't even need to say they aren't real pagans. people scare me with their misinformed beliefs.

*sigh*

Answer 10

I think the evil blood sacrificing pagans have first dibs.

Answer 11

I don't think we need a "no true scotsman" theory in paganism. We aren't monocentric and don't have a specific agenda or doctrine to follow.. so, live and let live and if someone's a jerk, they're a jerk.. that kind comes in all religious shapes and sizes.