Modern Paganism is extremely diverse . . .
. . ranging from strict reconstructionists, to 100 kinds of non-theist Pagans.
Of course, we have our fundies, who say you can't be a Pagan unless you believe in god entities that are completely separate from humans, because that's what our ancestors believed in. This is wrong. Our ancestors had many different viewpoints, theist and non-theist - so we pretty much ignore their insistence.
Even non-theist Pagans often refer to gods and goddesses by name. because these are shorthand representations of complex concepts of nature an human society.
Many people don't realize their spiritual attitude is quite in line with modern Paganism. One woman recently explained her attitudes to me. I told her all she needed to become a practicing Pagan was an altar (could be as simple as a single meaningful item) and a ritual (could be as simple as just a few meaningful words).
She thought that was a great idea. She said a friend of hers had an altar and considered it very helpful in focusing her life. There are many who don't need to be converted, just told what they are and why.
There's an interesting book titled Godless Paganism (available from Lulu) that is a collection of short essays by about 30 non-theist Pagans of various stripes - from Jungian Pagans to Animists.
By far the greatest number of Pagans are solo practitioners, belonging to no organization - the Internet is our organization. There are also print magazines, like Witches and Pagans that serve to distribute concepts and attitudes.
Of course, we have our fundies, who say you can't be a Pagan unless you believe in god entities that are completely separate from humans, because that's what our ancestors believed in. This is wrong. Our ancestors had many different viewpoints, theist and non-theist - so we pretty much ignore their insistence.
Even non-theist Pagans often refer to gods and goddesses by name. because these are shorthand representations of complex concepts of nature an human society.
Many people don't realize their spiritual attitude is quite in line with modern Paganism. One woman recently explained her attitudes to me. I told her all she needed to become a practicing Pagan was an altar (could be as simple as a single meaningful item) and a ritual (could be as simple as just a few meaningful words).
She thought that was a great idea. She said a friend of hers had an altar and considered it very helpful in focusing her life. There are many who don't need to be converted, just told what they are and why.
There's an interesting book titled Godless Paganism (available from Lulu) that is a collection of short essays by about 30 non-theist Pagans of various stripes - from Jungian Pagans to Animists.
By far the greatest number of Pagans are solo practitioners, belonging to no organization - the Internet is our organization. There are also print magazines, like Witches and Pagans that serve to distribute concepts and attitudes.
