“Paganism is the ancestral religion of the whole of humanity.” — The Pagan Federation
Neopaganism is a revival of ancient paganism. It is a form of polytheism that arose in the wake of the ‘death of God’ movement.
Modern atheism fertilized the soil out of which contemporary neopaganism grew. David Miller describes it as rising from the ashes of the “death of God” (heralded by Thomas Altizer and others in the 1960 s and 1970 s). “The ‘death of God’ gives rise to the rebirth of the gods,” according to Miller. When God died in modern culture, the ancient gods rose again. Monotheism was holding back paganism.
(Norman L. Geisler)
Neo-Paganism is an increasingly popular religious movement emphasizing ancient pagan religious traditions and reverence for nature. It takes a variety of forms known as “paths,” which range from Wicca, which focuses on spells and goddess worship, to Hellenic Polytheism, which seeks to revive Greek paganism in an academically accurate form.
Neopaganism is not an organized religion and has no official doctrine. Pagans follow a wide variety of paths and may have a variety of beliefs on religious questions like the divine, human nature and the afterlife. However, there are some common beliefs that are held by most Neopagans.
Perhaps the most fundamental belief of Neopaganism is the recognition of the divine in nature. Pagans revere the cycle of the seasons, which is regarded as an expression of the divine and a model for spiritual growth and renewal. The Earth herself is regarded as sacred by many Pagans, and deep ecological concerns are characteristic of most followers of Neopaganism. Different deities are connected with different times of the year and worshipped in seasonal festivals, and practices like astrology and divination are rooted in the belief in nature’s divinity.
Neopaganism is also characterized by its revival of ancient polytheistic religions. Pagans are especially interested in the pantheons of northern Europe (Norse) and Britain (Celtic) but also incorporate gods and beliefs of ancient Greek, Roman and Egyptian paganism.
Some Neopagans are Reconstructionists, meaning that they seek to faithfully recreate the pagan religion of a particular group, such as the ancient Greeks, Celts, or Egyptians. Reconstructionists tend to disapprove of eclecticism, personal adaptation and modern trends in favor of academic accuracy and authenticity.
Most Neopagans share the same ethic of doing no harm and the basic values of religious freedom, reverance for nature, equality of the sexes, and openness to forms of sexuality.
Some Pagans regard one particular god (or the God and Goddess pair) as the Supreme Principle, worshipping that divinity above all others. Some regard all gods as aspects of the Great God and all goddesses as aspects of the Great Goddess. But nearly all Neopagans recognize the existence and true divinity of other gods; virtually no Neopagans are monotheists.
In addition to gods and goddesses, Neopagans usually honor ancestral and locational spirits. These might include deceased relatives (honored especially at Samhain), local and national heros, Elves, the spirit of the hearth, and so on.
In additon to these commonly-held beliefs, Neopagans who follow a particular path usually have their own distinctive religious beliefs.
This section provides information on some of the major sects or “paths” within Neopaganism:
Asatru (Heathenry); Druidism; Great Goddess; Hellenic Polytheism; Kemetic Reconstructionism; Male Spirit; Shamanism; Wicca.
We will just overview a few of the lesser known ‘paths’:
Ásatrú (Heathenry) is a modern revival of the pre-Christian [Iclandic] religion as described in the Norse epic Eddas. In the old Germanic religion, the central practice was animal and human sacrifice, conducted in the open or in groves and forests. Roman authors repeatedly mention the sacrifice of prisoners of war to the gods of victory.
Today, there are small groups of Asatru adherents throughout Scandinavia and North America. According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, in the 1990s the approximately 300 Icelandic adherents hoped to dechristianize Iceland by the year 2000, the 1000th anniversary of the island’s christianization. Communities of Asatru are called Kindreds, Hearths, or Garths. Priests are called Gothi; priestesses Gythia.
Hellenic polytheists worship the ancient Greek gods, including the Olympians, nature divinities, underworld deities and heroes. Religious beliefs of Hellenists are typically influenced by ancient Greek writers like Homer and Hesiod, scholarly sources on ancient Greek religion and, usually to a lesser degree, personal experience.
A majority of Hellenic polytheists are Reconstructionist — that is, they seek to faithfully reconstruct the rituals of a particular ancient religion, as opposed creating an eclectic faith from a variety of sources. The American organization Hellenion, for example, emphasizes historical accuracy in replicating Greek practices and rejects Wicca, shamanism, and other modern Neopagan ideas.
Kemetic Reconstructionism (“Kemet” is the ancient word for Egypt) is a form of reconstructionist Neopagan religion that seeks to recreate ancient Egyptian religion as accurately as possible, based primarily on the latest research of Egyptologists.
The largest Kemetic organization is the House of Netjer or Kemetic Orthodoxy, founded in the late 1980s by Tamara L. Siuda. It gained official recognition in the U.S. as a religion in 1994. Siuda underwent her coronation as Nisut-Bity (Pharaoh) in 1996 through ceremonies performed in Egypt, and is now known formally within her faith as “Her Holiness, Sekhenet-Ma’at-Ra setep-en-Ra Hekatawy I, Nisut-Bity of the Kemetic Orthodox faith.” The House of Netjer is headquarted at the Tawy House temple in Joliet, Illinois, and followers of the faith around the world correspond via the internet. [One of their many interesting beliefs is that] If the heart is too heavy with sin, it is fed to the monster-goddess Ammit and the person is destroyed forever. Those who pass this test become Akhu, or Blessed Ancestors. They reside in Duat, the land of Osiris, and can be communicated with by humans on Earth. If a person flees judgement or gets lost on the way, he or she may become a Muet, or angry dead person, terrorizing living descendants.
(Religionfacts.com)
Neopagans believe that divinity is both immanent (internal) and transcendent (external). This principle of immanence is frequently phrased as, “Thou art God” or “Thou art Goddess.” Neopagans believe that divinity is as likely to manifest in a female form as it is in a male form, and that the word “Goddess” makes just as much sense as “God.”
Neopagans believe in a multiplicity of gods and goddesses, as well as “lesser” beings, many of Whom are worthy of respect, love and worship. We have a wide variety of non-exclusive concepts as to the nature of these entities. While some of us believe in a “Supreme Being,” we don’t anthropomorphise Him/Her/It/Them — i.e., a Supreme Being is not perceived as even remotely humanoid — a concept like the Tao or the “Force” is perhaps closer to an adequate concept.
Neopagans do not believe in, respect, or worship any divine or semidivine figure of ultimate Evil, leaving such concepts to the dualistic monotheists. “The Devil” is a character in Christian and Islamic mythology, a blasphemous parody of ancient Paleopagan deities, and an entity we have not the least bit of interest in.
Most Neopagans believe it is necessary to respect and love Nature as divine in Her own right, and to accept ourselves as part of Nature and not Her “rulers.” Many of us accept what has come to be known as “the Gaia hypothesis.” It states that the biosphere of our planet is a living Being who is due all the love and support that we, Her children, can give Her.
Many Neopagans consider sexual ecstacy as both a divine blessing and a major source of spiritual growth and enlightenment, though we vary widely in how, with whom, and under what circumstances we seek such ecstacy. By and large, the Neopagan community is sympathetic towards many sexual minorities and alternative relationship styles which have been persecuted by monotheistic religions for sexist or erotophobic reasons.
Neopagans believe that with proper training, art, discipline and intent, human minds and hearts are fully capable of performing most of the magic and miracles they are ever likely to need.
Most Neopagans believe in some sort of afterlife, usually involving rest and recovery in an Otherworld before reincarnating. We have no concept of “eternal” punishment or damnation, and do not accept the “right” of other faith communities to impose their opinions about this (or any other) topic upon us.
Neopagans almost all believe that monolithic religious organizations and would-be messiahs are a hinderance to spiritual growth.
(neopagan.net)