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Apologia Report 19:7 (1,190)
March 12, 2014
Subject: Von Daniken's return
In this issue:
NEOPAGANISM - new books profile its growth and influence
VON DANIKEN, ERICH - still searching for ancient alien connections
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NEOPAGANISM
Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe, edited by Kaarina Aitamurto and Scott Simpson [1] -- according to Daniel Harms (State University of New York College at Cortland) this collection of essays "examines the various ways in which pagan and native faiths (described with various terms in different settings) have been revived in Central and Eastern Europe. Although contributors mention movements such as Wicca, Druidism, and Asatru, the chief focus here is on the autochthonous philosophies and groups that have arisen since the fall of communist regimes in the regions. Russian and Polish faiths occupy multiple articles, but others include movements in Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Armenia. Having evolved in isolation from one another, these faiths are usually small-scale and define themselves as deliberately outside the mainstream of their cultures, whether secular or Christian. [M]ost of the contributions describe particular figures, organizations, and ritual practices. Nonetheless, the book covers a fascinating religious phenomenon that is little known in the English-speaking world." Choice, Jan '14.
Another recent book provides insight into the growth of neopaganism by way of popular music. J. B. Wolford (University of Missouri, St. Louis) reviews Pop Pagans: Paganism and Popular Music, edited by Donna Weston and Andy Bennett [2]: "The general public wildly misunderstands Paganism as Satanism, which it is not. Among Pagans and/or scholars, a wide range of approaches and philosophies define various Pagan groups. The principle unifying Paganism may be its reverence toward humans' sacred integration with the natural world. While Pagan popular music is an emerging subfield, the 14 Australian, UK, and US contributors to this volume cover the multiplicities of Paganism admirably. The editors divide the book into four sections, 'Histories,' 'Genres,' 'Performance,' and 'Community,' all equally strong. Each contributor, implicitly or overtly, showcases how Paganism and popular music in whatever form share traits of individualism, community, and transcendence. This work successfully serves as a broad overview of the relationship between popular music and Paganism, but can serve equally well as a general introduction to the core ideas and foci unifying diverse Pagan groups. For some, it may likewise serve to demystify and to humanize (oddly non-ironic terms, given Paganism's spiritual focus) what is an essentialist approach to any person's relationship between self and place, and between the physical world and the transcendent." Choice, Jan '14.
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VON DANIKEN, ERICH
Jason Henninger reviews von Daniken's latest: Remnants of the Gods: A Visual Tour of Alien Influence in Egypt, Spain, France, Turkey, and Italy [3]. "Even casual readers of books about aliens and UFOs will have heard the name Erich von Daniken. Since 1968′s Chariots of the Gods [4], he's been recognized as the authoritative voice on theories about prehistoric alien influence. He's written several overlapping books on the subject....
"Von Daniken examines a side of history and human development he considers blatantly and purposefully ignored by mainstream science. He says there are, in various tombs, caves, and other structures, numerous examples of geometric precision and planning well beyond the scientific knowledge of the time. These structures left over from antiquity, from Stonehenge to the pyramids, he says, show evidence of superhuman extraterrestrial visitors.
"Von Daniken is a persuasive writer, engaging throughout, and his research is shown in a reasonable and orderly manner. He points out intriguing contradictions in what we know of prehistory. The inflammatory, illogical, and downright paranoid rhetoric of many UFO theorists is all but absent in his writing. Aside from occasionally preachy pronouncements, railing against what he sees as the cowardice of mainstream science, Von Daniken's voice is that of a curious and imaginative archeology student.
"Von Daniken is an expert in asking 'why' and 'who,' if not necessarily in answering 'how.' Why, for example, is there a line beginning in northern France, running down to southern Italy, along which numerous towns - Calais, Alix, Alet, Alaise, among others - have very similar names? It is indeed a strange occurrence. Another question: who really built the pyramids? Modern understanding is that Cheops commissioned them, though Von Daniken, quite persuasively, asserts that no records contemporaneous with the pyramids themselves can back this assertion. He offers instead that according to some ancient historians, the pyramids were built by Saurid, an Egyptian counterpart for Hermes. And as far as Von Daniken is concerned, mention of gods equals aliens.
"Does either the line of towns or the architecture of pyramids instantly imply aliens? No. But they fit as a part of his larger view, which includes many other examples of seemingly coincidental organization on a scale he finds too grand and precise to have been accomplished by the sciences of the time. As he puts it, 'incomprehensible facts lie below everyone's feet, so to speak, which do not fit into any conception of history or archeology textbook.'
"The book's numerous illustrations are a useful addition to the text, though sometimes the layout of photos in relation to the text feels clumped and haphazard. Still, it's an intriguing study overall. Whether the reader is a believer in aliens or not, he or she will find curiosities enough to remain interested." Foreword Reviews, Spr '14. <www.ow.ly/uoXKL>
You can read a classic debunking of Von Daniken's work at <www.ow.ly/uutzT>.
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SOURCES: Monographs
1 - Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe, edited by Kaarina Aitamurto and Scott Simpson (Acumen, 2013, hardcover, 352 pages) <www.ow.ly/unHQs>
2 - Pop Pagans: Paganism and Popular Music, edited by Donna Weston and Andy Bennett (Acumen, 2013, paperback, 256 pages) <www.ow.ly/uoUis>
3 - Remnants of the Gods: A Visual Tour of Alien Influence in Egypt, Spain, France, Turkey, and Italy, by Erich von Daniken (New Page, 2013, paperback, 224 pages) <www.ow.ly/uoXxD>
4 - Chariots of the Gods: Unsolved Mysteries of the Past, by Erich von Daniken (Berkley, 1999, paperback, 224 pages) <www.ow.ly/uoXHY>
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