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Introduction
Introduction
One of the most commonly heard phrases when it comes to Paganism, witchcraft, and/or spirituality in general is, "It's all evil, no matter how you look at it." But let's look at Paganism specifically, as well as what it truly is and what it really stands for.
Where did the Term Come from?
Where did the Term Come from?
Years ago, before this term meant unity and community, it was used in a derogatory way to insult and belittle those who were considered rural or "country swellers." Anyone who was considered Pagan at the time the term was first coined, wouldn't have referred to themselves in such a manner. The word "Pagan," comes from a Latin word known as "paganus," which means someoene who was more on the country side of things considering Christianity was a city religion to begin with during these times. Another derogatory term used towards this group of people was "heathen," which essentially meant "peasant religion." During this time, the Pagan community was more of a close knit group of people who believed the same way rather than the organized religion we know it as today.
Pagan History
Pagan History
Let's dive deeper into the details of Pagan history and discuss what Paganism really was, and where our modern day Paganism came from. There is a term known as "pre-Christian," and it was essentially a term given to communities who didn't identify with Christianity, by the Christians. It's where the religion we know it to be today comes from. What we know about this practice, is that it didn't originally involve much writing, but there was tons of physical evidence in things such as pottery and stone work. Writing came with Christianity, as most things did, and the only written records we have are from the Romans. All the rituals, gods, goddesses, and spells we know today, had little to no written records in the past outside of the Romans. Christianity started to spread around the area, which caused a huge cultural shift, thus shifting the polytheistic ideology of multiple gods, to one god. Christians love to say how evil Paganism and such is, but if you look into what Paganism truly is, you'll see it has a lot more similarities to Christianity than one would think. For example, a lot of Pagan traditions were repurposed to fit Christianity. Churches were built on old sacred sites, for example, so sometimes you'll see some of the oldest Yule trees in church yards. Another example is Christmas; Pagans celebrate Yule, which was repurposed to get what most people know as Christmas. Referring back to churches built on old sacred sites, this was done to make the shift into Christianity easier for pre-Christian communities. Christianity starts to become the main religion as time moves forward, but the conversion from pre-Christian to Christianity only becomes more harsh as monarchs start to involve themselves. The Middle Ages were VERY heavily Christian. During the 1600's , the Salem Witch Trials took place, and these trials were believed to have targeted women, and those who traditionally practiced pre-Christian beliefs. Once the 1700's and 1800's rolled around, the Age of Enlightenment had begun, and this was a very scientific based era. Christianity was also still heavily believed in as the main religion until about the nineteenth century, when the Romantic era took place.
The Romantic Era
The Romantic Era
When this era took place, it began connecting people back to nature and the outdoors. People began to have increasing interests in folktale and similar traditions again, and old folk traditions gained an enormous revival! We had groups such as Aleister Crowley, and thhe Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn creating spiritual movements based on what was deemed as magic and witchcraft at the time. These movements along with the Romantic era itself led to what we know Paganism as today.
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