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Paganism: Mysteries Revealed
 Paganism is
the broad term used to describe any religion or belief that is not Christian, Jewish or
Muslim. Paganism can be traced back to Neolithic times and survived up until the middle
ages when Christianity became powerful enough to erase it from existence. Paganism is an
earth based religion which lays emphasis on the worship of all aspects of nature. Paganism
appeared very early on in the history of the world. Examples of early paganism, can be
seen in ancient Greek and Roman religions, as well as in ancient Goddess worship and
Druidic religions.
Ancient
people believed that everything had a spirit and were polytheistic and they placed great
importance on the worship of many Gods, Goddesses and Deities. Gods were a part of
everyday life and great emphasis was placed on placating them through worship and ritual.
Pagans believed that the Gods were immanent and entered every aspect of their society,
influencing everything from laws and customs to the general workings of their community.
"The magic circle"
As Pagans were polytheistic they had gods and goddesses of the
forests, the sea and of all aspects of nature. Pagans began to personify the energies of
the land, sky and other elements by giving specific responsibilities to individual Gods.
As ancient civilizations began to develop and change, the Gods grew and changed with the
people. New Gods appeared, one's which were relevant to village life, for example, gods of
milling and smithcraft. The old gods remained, but aspects of them changed to conform to
the changing people. For example, as war became more prominent, so too did the gods of
war, such as Ares and Mars.
Pagans held no belief in heaven and hell as Christians do, rather
they believed in reincarnation. They believed that when the body could be re-incarnated in
another form. There are many varying beliefs relating to re-incarnation, however the theme
remains the same in most forms of Paganism.
Some of the more prominent forms of Paganism include; Ancient
Roman Religion and Ancient Greek Religion. In recent years there has been an upsurgence in the practice of
paganism. The name given to this new movement is Neo Paganism. There are several forms of
neo-pagan traditions which have taken their roots from ancient pagan practices, these
include Neo- Drudism and Wicca.
(C) 1999 Lisa O'Connell &
Amanda Singer
Somerset College Australia
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