The term Pagan is an umbrella term which refers to a number of different religions including Asatru, Druidry, Celtic Reconstructionists, Heathenry, Hellenic Reconstructionists, Kemetic Reconstructionists, Wicca, and some forms of Witchcraft.
Wicca is but one of the many Pagan religions, having its own specific beliefs and practices.
Actually, a "pagan" is just anybody who believes other than the state endorsed religion. In Britain or the the USA for example, a Jew, Hindu or Muslim would be a pagan.
To see why this is, consider Britain circa 1100 AD. At that time, Christianity was the official religion, but there were still many and varied belief systems still commonly practised. Britain has a history of conquest (both conquering and being conquered), so we have a very eclectic history and culture. The Vikings brought in their Norse beliefs, the Saxons brought their beliefs, the Normans brought theirs, all different. Although Christianity was already here by the time the Normans won in 1066, having been brought much earlier by the Romans, it was not prominent. The Normans really pressed it. At that point, the belief systems of the original Britons, as well as those of all the other influences, were branded Pagan.
To be called pagan is not in any way an insult, any more than being accused of asking questions is an insult. If we ask questions, and are satisfied with the answers, then fine. If that makes us Christian, Jew, Buddhist, Taoist, Muslim, or the blanket term Pagan, then fine. No shame or insult in that. If we are not satisfied with answers, or we have more questions, then still fine, so again no insult.
Re: Wiccans v. Pagans By: WhiteRav3n / Knowledgeable
Post # 9 Jun 01, 2014
Although many people erroneously believe that the United States "God" is the Christian god, it is still a mistake. The American forefathers were mostly Deists, not Christians, and Jesus is not mentioned at all in any formal government documents. Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence was not Christian. Christianity is "Christ" or Jesus centered. So if it were Christian, there wouldn't be so many pagan symbols on our money. Our public schools are prohibited to include religion entirely. If a teacher in a public school tries to include religion in their teaching they can lose their job. That's far from a Christian country.
The military for some odd reason is more in line with Christianity, but US citizens can choose not to join or just to ignore the religious side of it. I think that is just a part of the fact that Christianity is the most popular religion, albeit nowadays you find more people making fun of the religion than preaching. Closet atheism or agnostic belief is on the rise that are only Christians on Sundays or enjoy the commercialized side of holidays.
"Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between Church and State ... "
President Thomas Jefferson
It is not an insult to call a Wiccan a Pagan, because the word 'pagan' is not a derogatory or insulting term. I'd suggest that anyone who considers the word pagan to be insulting to Wiccan people or anyone else, is themselves misguided as to the basic principles of Wicca.
Wicca, itself, is not an old religion. In fact it is very, very new as far as religions go. However it is formed from a set of much older ideas, many pre-dating any of the 'major' religions. One of the key principles of Wicca, is that a practitioner does not judge others, and does not insist that they are right while others are wrong, but instead accepts that any path is valid provided that it harms nobody else.
As Wicca is a brand new religion, there is no hard and fast set of rules as there is with the more established religions, so nobody can claim to be an authority on the subject, even if the basic principle allowed that. However it is not a matter of opinion or ideas, but rather fact, that a Wiccan is, according to the definition of the word, a Pagan, but a pagan is not necessarily Wiccan.
But I am inclined to wonder about the OP's reason for asking? And their idea of what a pagan is? This is important because throughout history, a certain propaganda engine has effectively brainwashed many to believe incorrectly that 'pagan' is a derogatory term, often associated with evil or at the very least, that pagans are going to the Christian's hell when they die for failing to conform to the strict rules imposed by the church (not by the religion, which teaches tolerance and acceptance, just the church which teaches anything but). If the OP's idea of the meaning of 'pagan' is more in line with the church's ideas, then I respectfully suggest that some independent study of the world's many and varied belief systems would be of interest. Such a path of study may also lead to a much fuller answer of the original question than can be provided on any internet forum.
They both are spiritual paths that follow a nature tradition, and apart from labels, there is not a great difference between them these days. One might argue that Wicca contains more magical rituals and has a tighter struture, whereas paganism is more electic and 'lighter' in comtent.
"Pagan" Is a an umbrella term meaning any religion that is not Jewish, Muslim, or Christian. Wicca is Pagan, there is no such thing as "traditional Paganism" etc. like my claim there is, Pagan is an umbrella term, always has, always will be.
This is a complicated question, with an equally complicated answer. We have to first understand the evolution of the word "pagan". It initially came from a Latin word meaning "country dweller", and was used to describe the people in the countryside who kept to their old ways instead of converting to the new religion (Christianity), like the people in the cities. The word was used in a derogatory sense and is akin to the modern-day word, "redneck".
Over time, the term came to refer to anyone who was not of an Abrahamic religion (namely, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam). However, it's *more* specifically referring to the indigenous spiritualities of various lands (think: Native American spirituality; Shintoism; the Druids; Norse/Greek/Egyptian/Celtic/etc mythology; et cetera). While yes, many religions may "technically" fit this definition, most probably wouldn't call themselves "Pagan", as the term "Pagan" is rather Euro-centric.
Modern, Neopaganism is, in general, the attempt to bring back those ancient indigenous spiritualities, and adapt them to the modern world. Some try to reconstruct the ancient religion exactly (to the best of their knowledge on recorded history), some bring back many of the basic beliefs of those ancient religions and mold them to fit into the modern world (including adding beliefs), and some take elements of many different indigenous spiritualities, along with modernism, and create an entirely new religion.
Common themes among Neopagan religions tend to be:
1. Polytheism, Pantheism, animism, and similar beliefs about universal energies and spirit beings.
2. Some sort of belief in a form of "magic", divination, spiritism, shamanism, witchcraft, etc.
3. Reverence for nature, the natural world, nature-oriented deities, and holidays or sabbats that are based on the cycle of the seasons. This is not necessarily "nature worship", but rather a respect and connection to nature.
So, while many religions may fit the definition of "non-Abrahamic", generally, one who uses the term "Pagan" or "Neopagan" is one who follows a belief system that probably has ancient (pre-Christian) religious connections, and tends to fit into the above bullets.
There are many Pagan/Neopagan religions and spiritualities. Wicca is just one of many.
