a dummies guide to paganism........

[Mike182]

if you had to write a "dummies guide" to paganism, what would you include in it?

i got the idea because my RE teacher is going to a pagan handfasting, where there will be a lot of non pagans in the circle, so she has been asked to produce a small leaflet explaining simple paganism.... for dummies!

anyway, if we, the pagan community of RF where charged with writting a "dummies guide", what would we put in it?

and no turk, before you even ask, i'm not trying to ...... organise

obviously paganism is an umbrella term, and im not intending this to become a debate over the defintions of paganism, its just a bit of ........ fun!

blessed be :dan:

 

[turk179]

I have the "Idiots Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft" book from the famous Idiots Guide series. It is actually quite informative but I am usually to embarrassed to tell anyone that I own it. Of course this really doesn't have anything to do with your post.

Wait! Did you say ......organise ?

 

[turk179]

Of course if we were to write a dummies guide then we would probably have to start with a definition of what paganism is. Does anyone have just one of those?

 

[Mike182]

I have the "Idiots Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft" book from the famous Idiots Guide series. It is actually quite informative but I am usually to embarrassed to tell anyone that I own it. Of course this really doesn't have anything to do with your post.

ive seen that, but never actually brought it! the thing is, to get a good read out of a decent book on paganism, you need a good couple of evenings to read it! i was just wondering what sort of things people would deem as important to include and emphasise if we were to simplify pagan beliefs into a "dummies guide"

Wait! Did you say ......organise ?

maybe i did ........ maybe i didn't ....... are we allowed to agree?

 

[Mike182]

Of course if we were to write a dummies guide then we would probably have to start with a definition of what paganism is. Does anyone have just one of those?

well, the original meaning was one of insult, to say "country folk"

it now describes a diverse set of beliefs that are mostly polytheistic (can someone be pagan and an atheist? maybe thats for another thread.) and based on nature.

 

[Mike182]

anyone else any ideas?

would you include a bit about the deities? individual ones, or just an explanation of the Lord and Lady?

 

[Lemon]

I wouldn't really put just an explanation of the Lord and Lady seeing how that is mostly a Wiccan concept, and not all Pagans may believe that. But I would briefly describe some of the popular pagan religions.

 

[Mike182]

I wouldn't really put just an explanation of the Lord and Lady seeing how that is mostly a Wiccan concept, and not all Pagans may believe that. But I would briefly describe some of the popular pagan religions.

agreed, i know i can completely forget that not everyone shares my beliefs

would we include druidry and shamanism in the guide, as well as wicca? we could put together a description of some of the traditions like the alexandrian traditions, and the dianic traditions, to name but a few.

 

[Lemon]

You could also just put Reconstructionists as one, but describe it as the updated beliefs of ancient religions (or something like that, I'm no expert).

 

[turk179]

You could also just put Reconstructionists as one, but describe it as the updated beliefs of ancient religions (or something like that, I'm no expert).

You could put down the different types of reconstructionists (Hellenism, Senistrognata, Kemeticism,Thelema) it all depends on how big you want the book. And as was stated earlier you could put Druidism, Shamanism, Wicca and add Santeria, Asatru and Vodoun. Now some of these groups do not like to be called pagan and some of these groups do not like to be called reconstructionist but if you go with the liberal definition of what a pagan is now days then this list would include any non-Judeo-Christian or Muslim religion and if you go by Websters then none of these are pagan because a pagan is one who has no religion. So it all depends but theoretically this list could be huge. Maybe just the main streamers could get an entry. And also maybe a little info on the history and growth of paganism. And one final thought, add a list of common misconceptions about pagans like the devil thing and sacrificing animals and ritualistic orgies(still waiting on this one because this was the main reason I became a Wiccan .) Just kidding on that last comment.

 

[Feathers in Hair]

One might offer specific gods and goddesses, and how they can be celebrated in different ways, depending on the individual. I would also think mentioning that the individual can be atheistic, polythiestic or monotheistic and still find something to enjoy would be fun!

 

[Freedomelf]

My definition of pagan is "One who believes that God is found in the natural blessings of the universe, rather than in a particular culture's history or tradition."
Of course, that is just my humble opinion.

I also define paganism as a religion of INCLUSION, rather than EXCLUSION. Paganism is a religion that accepts a wide variety of practice, belief and faith, and does not seek to control its followers by allowing only one thought process and one belief system. I consider paganism a religion of free thought and abiding by one's conscience rather than by the constraints of a particular, rigid set of rules. Again, this is just my humble opinion, and I have many dear friends who belong to traditional religions.

I am a neo-pagan who does not consider myself a Wiccan, Druid, or any other form of paganism that most people think of. I think that our Heavenly Mother and Father can be found in many ways, through many different pathways...including the traditional religions as well as non-traditional ones.

Of course, there are as many definitions of paganism as there are pagans, just about.

 

[MaddLlama]

I have the "Idiots Guide to Wicca and Witchcraft" book from the famous Idiots Guide series. It is actually quite informative but I am usually to embarrassed to tell anyone that I own it. Of course this really doesn't have anything to do with your post.

Wait! Did you say ......organise ?

Don't be embarassed, it's a good book. So are a bunch of the other books on the topic in that book series. I have most of them.

=)

That being said, there is no way to define Paganism in a consice way and include everybody. Some people get all pissy when you say "earth-based" so there is no winning.

 

[Draka]

As far as any definition I have ever seen for Paganism it usually means any religious faith based on beliefs not of the main orthodox religions of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Everything else falls under this general heading. Everything from Buddism to Shamanism, to Hindu and further. A lot of the reconstructionist religions fall under this heading and are exactly what the word means. Reconstructions of older religions based upon knowledge of past and present happenings to create a religion that functions in the world today. Therefore, a lot of older traditions/ celebrations/ holidays that have not been around or observed that frequently in the recent past have made a resurgence in the faiths of today.

At least that's where I'd begin .

 

[Mystic-als]

Umm. This book. Where can I buy it? It sounds amasing! Is there a place where all of us can work together and write it. It sounds really, really good. Imagine how this will help people finding their way.

 

[dannisayz]

My definition of pagan is "One who believes that God is found in the natural blessings of the universe, rather than in a particular culture's history or tradition."
Of course, that is just my humble opinion.

I also define paganism as a religion of INCLUSION, rather than EXCLUSION. Paganism is a religion that accepts a wide variety of practice, belief and faith, and does not seek to control its followers by allowing only one thought process and one belief system. I consider paganism a religion of free thought and abiding by one's conscience rather than by the constraints of a particular, rigid set of rules. Again, this is just my humble opinion, and I have many dear friends who belong to traditional religions.

I am a neo-pagan who does not consider myself a Wiccan, Druid, or any other form of paganism that most people think of. I think that our Heavenly Mother and Father can be found in many ways, through many different pathways...including the traditional religions as well as non-traditional ones.

Of course, there are as many definitions of paganism as there are pagans, just about.

I would be very interested to find out more about your religion as it sounds very similar to what I believe.

 

[Shrimpy]

As far as any definition I have ever seen for Paganism it usually means any religious faith based on beliefs not of the main orthodox religions of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.

I would tag on an extra wee bit to that defination and add "and self identifies as Pagan", paganism is too big and varied for any more tight a defination. =)

 

[Shrimpy]

if you had to write a "dummies guide" to paganism, what would you include in it?

i got the idea because my RE teacher is going to a pagan handfasting, where there will be a lot of non pagans in the circle, so she has been asked to produce a small leaflet explaining simple paganism.... for dummies!

anyway, if we, the pagan community of RF where charged with writting a "dummies guide", what would we put in it?

and no turk, before you even ask, i'm not trying to ...... organise

obviously paganism is an umbrella term, and im not intending this to become a debate over the defintions of paganism, its just a bit of ........ fun!

blessed be :dan:

How big do you want this beastie?

I would include :
Defintion of paganism: Anyone not of the JCI faiths that self identifies as pagan.

Overview: Use a single sentence/paragraph to describe the main beliefs of the most common groups-- so I guess that would be Wicca, Neowicca, Hellanic Recons, Kemetic recons, Celtic Recons, Ásatrú, COS, Discordianism (maybe)..

A bit of information on feast days/relgious high days

Wee essay: on how paganism is soo different from Christianity that there is no way a single book could possibly explain all the different types and beliefs.

Useful websites and books for further reading.


If we're using it for the andfasting, it would be much more appropriate to focus on that one type of paganism and describe the symbolism associated with the handfasting.