What were common “Pagan” beliefs and practices? how they worshipped?
and did most Pagans believe their was 1 god or several gods? or how different to the monothesitic ideas attached to Christianity or Islam?
please explain
how and why pagan beleifs were changed? and how quickly?
please explain what you can
and how to find out more ? under which topic headings?
thanks for your answers!
September 13th, 2010 at 11:12 am
Shamanism, Druidry, Witchcraft, Norse Tradition are all pagan paths. pagans believe that there are many gods. The beliefs have not changed. Paganism has 3 main beliefs.
1. worship of nature
2. do what you want, as long as it harms nobody
3. the gods are many
September 13th, 2010 at 11:21 am
it depends on which pagan religion you go for.
there is Norse, the religion of the northern Europeans, Saxons if you will they believed in a god of all named Wodin, the god of thunder, Thor, and various others. what is interesting about the Norse religion is that the force that created the earth were called Ice giants and they lived in the north pole ice cap and they were a form of evil.
The Celts they followed druids who were priests in their faith. they believed that you were reincarnated right after you die so this made them fierce warriors which is one of the reasons that the Romans couldn’t conquer them. they would finally end up in a place called Tir-Na-Nough, which means land of youth.
the waods and picts where ancient Brittans they were where the idea of sorcery came from. their leaders were soothsayers, people who know the future by the flight of birds. they went to Avalon when they died.
then you have the Greeks they are the most known just search Greek mythology
September 13th, 2010 at 11:32 am
Q: What were common “Pagan” beliefs and practices? how they worshipped?
A: The number of religions that are considered Pagan or Heathen are many, though I will explain to you those that I know. Common Pagan beliefs were in a Pantheon of gods, the Norse worshipped the Aesir(Odin, Thor, Tyr, etc.) and the Vanir(Frey, Freyja, etc.). While the Greeks worshipped the Olympians(Zeus, Poseidon, etc.) and to a lesser extent the Titans(Kronos, etc.). As far as “how” they worshipped. Most Pagan peoples prayed, had holidays,(most of which were stolen by christianity) and made sacrifices. Some(the druids, aztecs, etc.) even made regular human sacrifices.
Q: and did most Pagans believe their was 1 god or several gods? or how different to the monothesitic ideas attached to Christianity or Islam?
A: All Pagan religions were Polytheistic, those non big 3 religions that were monotheistic(Zoroastrian comes to mind) are not Pagan. As far as how different Pagan religions were from monotheistic religions depends on what facet of those religions you are speaking of. Most of the myths in the bible and koran were stolen from Pagan religions after all.
Q: how and why pagan beliefs were changed? and how quickly?
A: Pagan beliefs were changed for the most part due to the spread of christianity. Usually the change was violent and so it was “officially” very quick. However the religions survived underground for a very long time, and this is the reason we have what little surviving histories and traditions we do have today.
Q: and how to find out more ? under which topic headings?
A: Google is your best friend. I suggest you google the word Asatru if you’d like to know more about Norse Mythos.
@Wolfnuts: The whole worship nature thing is a new idea. Wiccan’s are poor excuses for Pagans.
September 13th, 2010 at 11:40 am
There are still many pagan beliefs still in use today. I copied a web site link below where you can read more about some pagan beliefs.
Personally I think the most common, and popular is Wicca. Wicca is a basic belief in Nature and that nature has provided everything we need to survive. Food, Water, fire, and air are those that we all need to survive. Our four Gods are:
1. Mother Earth is our home and something we have to take care of.
2. Water hydrates our bodies, waters our gardens, and washes our bodies.
3. fire Cooks our food, warms us in the winter months, and helps us forge tools.
4. Air Gives us the Oxygen we need to live.
After fully understanding everything about Wicca and our Law of three some decide to also become a Wiccan witch. In these modern times both men and women can become a Wiccan witch. You cannot be any other religion and Wicca because they are far too different.
We do not in ANY way worship Satan, the Devil, or any similar beings only nature.
September 13th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
What were common “Pagan” beliefs and practices?
“Pagan” Is a difficult to define word. It usually refers to any religion that is no based around the God of Abraham (ie: Judaism, Christianity, Islam etc). Sometimes it refers to any polytheistic faith. Sometimes it refers to pre-Christian european based faiths. The term is used today by a growing community of people who practice religions that fit one or more of the above definitions, so “pagan” is not a purely past-tense phenominon. The term Paganism refers to a large number of very different religions, so not a lot of specifics can be attached to it as a whole. If you want specifics, you’ll have to limit your question to specific pagan religions (such as Wicca, Druidry, Heathen reconstructionism, etc)
and did most Pagans believe their was 1 god or several gods?
Most pagans (today and in the past) believe in many gods. Some believe in no Gods at all and some believe in a universal deity and could possibly be considered monotheistic, but a majority of pagan religions tend to be polytheistic.
or how different to the monothesitic ideas attached to Christianity or Islam?
Since pagans don’t generally believe in or worship the God of Christians and Muslims, the beliefs about deity are very different. While Abrahamic religions have a lot in common with pagan religions, one defining thing about paganism is that few, if any, pagans believe in a monotheistic deity that demands obedience and worship. Those pagans who are monotheistic do not believe in a jealous God like YHWH/Allah.
how and why pagan beleifs were changed? and how quickly?
Pagan beliefs changed with their cultures, just as Christianity has changed with the cultures it’s encountered. Egyptian beliefs didn’t change much throughout time because Egyptian culture didn’t seem to change a great deal over long periods, though it went through periods of rapid change. Religions change with the changes in the people who celebrate them. Christianity has gone through vast changes in the past 2000 years… pagan religions, too, have changed rapidly and vastly.
and how to find out more ? under which topic headings?
You can check out a couple of FAQs I have on my own site about modern Paganism and Wicca (http://lilacphilex.tripod.com/index.html) or you can find pagan forums and ask the pagans there questions (though most of them will speak only of modern paganism and pretend that it is the same as it was thousands of years ago… it’s not.) If you want to learn about ancient paganism, you’ll have to pick out specific cultures and religions to study… Egyptian religion, Germanic mythology etc…
-Scarlet
September 13th, 2010 at 12:27 pm
There’s way too many to list here. There’s no way to even give just the basics for each basic religion, as ancient Pagans didn’t view religion like that. If you were to ask an ancient pagan what their religion was, they’d give you a confused look. Asked what gods they worship and you would probably get an answer like “I worship the gods of my family/tribe/people/etc…” They’re beliefs (OUR beliefs) are a part of us, a part of our life…. there’s really no distinguishing the religion from our lives other than in discussion. But here is a website that will give you the basics. I won’t guarantee the info is all correct, but from what I’ve seen it’s a decent site.
September 13th, 2010 at 12:52 pm
I’ll explain how we worship today. I’m a Neo Pagan.
1. Ecology: Most if not all Pagan traditions have an ecological component, (it doesn’t matter if you’re a Neo Shaman, or a Wiccan, or a Druid) as we see ourselves as stewards of the Gaia.
2. Polytheism: Most if not all Pagan traditions have many gods, or at least two. Even where they are Henotheistic, worshiping one, they don’t ignore the existence of other gods.
3. Pluralistic: Most if not all Pagan traditions believe other religious traditions have something to say in the universe.