What makes someone a heathen?

Answer 1

"Heathen" has been a name used for centuries by Christians to insult those not of their religion. Historically, it was used to describe Pagans in Medieval Europe.

Literally, it means "One who is not a Christian or Jew". It derives from Olde English, but the word itself has it's roots in Greek ("ethenos"), and was Latinized when the Catholic Roman Empire was invaded by the Pagan Goths in sixth century or so.

Answer 2

The word ‘Heathen’ comes from Old English ‘Haeden’ meaning someone who was not a Christian or a Jew. This itself is possibly derived from the Gothic ‘Haithi’ Meaning one who dwells on the Heath. Comparisons can be made with the Latin ‘Paganus’ meaning a country dweller.

recently the word has been used to describe a pagan path.

Heathens come under the general umbrella term of Pagan, but refers to someone with quite specific beliefs. Heathens are Pantheistic, That is the believe and worship a group or family of Gods and Goddesses. In particular Heathens follow the old pre-Christian, North European Pantheons of Gods and Goddesses known as The Aesir and Vanir.
Heathens today honour the same Deities as our ancestors. That we worship them in the same way is highly unlikely. We do not claim a direct line of initiated pagans going back to the Viking age. However there are literary clues from various sources.
The main body of lore for Heathens is contained in the Eddas. There are two Eddas: the younger or, prose Edda; and the Elder or, poetic. Many Heathens will especially look to the Havamal which is one of the poems contained in the Poetic Edda in which Odin gives advice on a range of things from women, to drink and battle tactics!

The surviving codex of the Poetic Edda was written in Iceland around 1270. The poems are almost certainly much older though, most likely dating from the C10th and possibly originating in Sweden. The author or copyist is not known. It contains a number of poems and fragments of poems in a variety of styles.

The Prose Edda is all the work of one man: Snorri Sturlusson . He lived in Iceland between 1179 and 1241. It is in various parts the first is the Gylfaginning or the deluding of Gylfi, which is a guide to the mythology of the Northern Peoples. The second is a text book on Skaldic art: the skaldskaparmal or poetic Diction. Skalds were poets who wrote epics and sagas. If you lived your life with honour and did many great deeds you would have a great song written about you which would be remembered for many generations. Snorri also wrote a long poem called ‘The hastate’ written in honour of King Hakon which is an example of this.

There are also various Poems of Anglo-Saxon origin the most well known of these is surely Beowulf. Some Heathens will also look To Tacitus who was a Roman general and diarist who wrote of his journeys in Germania and the British isles. Some will even look as far as the writings of Bede.
Heathens are Pantheistic. That means they follow or honour all the Gods and Goddesses in a pantheon. In Heathenry’s case there are two pantheons , The Aesir and Vanir. Some Heathens fit that in with a more generalised view that their Gods and Goddesses are just aspects of other god forms; some see their Gods and Goddesses as distinct and separate entities.

To Heathens their Gods and Goddesses are not just deities to be invoked or connected with in ritual. We are very much a part of their world and they ours. They are from where humans originated. There are humans today who will claim DNA links back to the Saxons and Vikings. This is especially true in Europe. The Swedish Royal family claims a direct blood line back to Yngvi-Frey. This is some nine hundred years after Christianity became the official religion of Sweden. Such is the strength of the bond we have with our Gods and Goddesses. As I said they are more than just our Deity they are our ancestors too. They are family.

Answer 3

A believer calling them that. Typically it is the term used by Christians against non-Christians.
Heathen just refers to someone who doesn't hold the prevailing beliefs of the particular church.
To a Muslim, both atheists and Christians are equally heathens.

It is just a pejorative word.
It has no real meaning other than labelling a person.

Answer 4

I prefer the term heathen... and these days it means anyone who doesn't believe the same...

Answer 5

Believing in a non-christian belief structure. Usually, one that is ethnic. It is the equivalent of being a Pagan. Only a mater is semantics, to be sure.

Answer 6

Anyone not belonging to your group.

This word was first invented by the Gentiles who got organized after the Council of Nicaea... if you get the drift.

LOL.

Peace be with you.

Answer 7

Ask Deke. He once refered to me as a "friggin' heathen." lol

Answer 8

Self Mutilation;Metal ----Tattoos-half Naked--Making sounds like animals when they "Sing" and -always Loud, Last of all They hate God;

Answer 9

Living in the grasslands

Answer 10

Get out your dictionary.