The word paganism and pagan come from the Latin "paganus," meaning "country dweller." Neopagans hold a reverence for the Earth and all its creations, plant and animal alike. Generally Pagans see all life as interconnected, and tend to strive to attune one's self to the manifestation of this belief as seen in the cycles of nature. Pagans are usually polytheistic (believing in more than one god), and they usually believe in immanence, or the concept of divinity residing in all things. Many pagans, though polytheistic, see all things as being part of one Great Mystery. The apparent contradiction of being both polytheistic and monotheistic can be resolved by seeing the God/desses as masks worn by the Great Mystery. Other pagans are simply monotheistic or polytheistic, and still others are atheistic. Some people believe paganism to be a religion within itself; others see it as a belief system that can be incorporated into religions. The fact that we are re-creating religion for ourselves after centuries of suppression makes us very eclectic and very concerned with the "rightness" of a particular thing for the individual.
Paganism is one strand of neopaganism that strives to allow each person to draw from whatever religious and cultural traditions are meaningful for the individual. Some people view Paganism as a non-initiatory forms of Wicca, or Wicca as an initiatory form of Paganism that is highly structured, much like the Catholic religion. Paganism tends to be less structures and strict about the way ceremonies can be performed making it more open to personal interpretation.
We will use the European meaning of Witchcraft, or the craft of the wise. There is a whole range of styles of folk-magic around the world, which are called witchcraft in English. If the word Witch is capitalized, it indicates that it is being used to refer to a member of a pagan religion, not just to a practitioner of folk-magic. There are also Witches, who practice religions called Witchcraft, which is not Wicca. These religions tend to be more folk-pagan than Wicca, drawing on the heritage of a specific culture or region.
Wicca itself is a new religion, drawing strongly on the practices of Ceremonial Magic. While there are claims that Wicca goes back into the mists of pre-history, honest examination of the practices and history of the Wicca will make it clear that Wicca is new. (Actually, the word "Wicca" itself is recently coined, at least in its present usage. The new word "Wicca" is pronounced "wick-uh", capitalized as a religion, and means a religion, not a person. However, Wicca has developed in many directions and should not be seen as a unified whole, even though it is fairly new. Rituals and beliefs vary widely among Witches.
Unlike most of the neopagan religions, Wicca is an initiatory religion, that is, people who choose to practice Wicca believe that the commitment to this path set changes in motion in their lives. Many Traditions (sects) of Wicca formalize this with a ritual (or series of rituals) of initiation.
Others, including Pagans and especially Solitary Witches, trust that the Gods will do the initiating of the Witch.
Are Pagans Satanists? This is a bit of a loaded question, since there are several different conceptions of what Satanism really is. Most pagans do not worship Satan or practice satanic rites. Some pagan's practice something-called Satanism, but it is a far cry from the Hollywood image of Satanism. These people tend to value pleasure as a primary motivation, or to find meaning in images which the repressive Christian churches attacked. For some of these folk, reclaiming the word "Satanist" is an act of resistance against oppression. If what you're really wanting to know is do we sacrifice babies and worship evil incarnate, the answer's no.
Because neopaganism follows so many traditions from many different parts of the world, there is no single set of holidays that all Neopagans celebrate. Several calendars are available which list many different holidays, one or more for every day of the year. Most of these holidays are either dedicated to particular deities, or mark seasonal changes in the environment (e.g. the solstices and equinoxes). What specific holidays are celebrated is something decided within a certain tradition, or by the individual.
The names that are generally used to denote the Sabbaths (as well as festivals of many pagan traditions) come from Gaelic (both Scots and Irish), Welsh, Norse, and Anglo-Saxon. There are variations of pronunciations for each one. We are not trying to say that if you don't say it like we tell you to, that you'll be wrong or anything like that. But since so many people have asked, here is a list that can give you a good start in trying to sound like the languages from which these words came.
Just remember this is not some kind of secret Pagan language; many of these words are in use in Europe today by pagans and non-pagans alike to denote these days. And yes, this shows a European bias, but then so do the commonly used names for Wiccan holy days.
Samhain-Irish Gaelic for "summer's end." The standard Irish pronunciation is either "SOW-in" with the "ow" like in "cow", or "SAH-win". Other pronunciations that follow with the many Gaelic dialects include "sow-een" "shahvin" "sowin" (with "ow" like in "glow"). The Scots Gaelic spelling is "Samhuin" or "Samhuinn." There is no linguistic foundation for saying this word "samhane" the way it might look if it were English. (To be really untechnical about it, the "mh" is a little linguistic gadget that tells you not to pronounce the "m" like, well, an "m".) When in doubt, just say "Hallows" or even "Hallowe'en."
Yule-Norse for "wheel." It's pretty much pronounced just like it looks, although if you want to make a stab at a Scandinavian sound, it'll be more like "yool" and less like "yewl." This is the winter solstice.
Imbolg/Imbolc-Irish Gaelic for "in the belly." Pronounce this one "IM-bullug" or "IM-bulk" with a guttural "k" on the end. Other names include Candlemas; Brighid (pronounced "breed"), who is the Irish goddess whose festival this is; and Oimelc (pronounced EE-mulk), which means "ewe's milk" in Scots Gaelic.
Ostara-Saxon name for a maiden goddess of spring loosely connected to Astarte and Ishtar. This one's easy-"o-STAHR-uh." Other names include Eostre (say "OHS-truh" or "EST-truh"). This is the spring equinox.
Beltane/Bealtaine-Irish Gaelic for either "fires of Bel" or "bright fires." If you want to try it in Gaelic, you can say "bee-YAWL-tinnuh" or "BELL-tinnuh." Unlike Samhain, this word can within the linguistic structure of its language of origin be pronounced like it looks-"BELL-tane"-without totally abandoning its original construction. Other names are Walpurgisnacht (vahl-PUR-gis-nahkt) and May Day.
Litha-Norse or Anglo-Saxon for "longest day." You can say this one just like it looks, or you can try for a Scandinavian sound and say "leetha" with the "th" more like a "t." This is the summer solstice.
Lughnasadh/Lunasa or Lammas (1 Aug) -- The first is Irish Gaelic for "festival of Lugh" (a major Irish deity), the second is Anglo-Saxon for "festival of the loaves" ("hlaf-mass"). Don't panic at that spelling (it's that pesky "h" acting as a signal instead of a letter again); the second (which is modern Irish as opposed to Old Irish) tells you all you need to know. Say "LOO-nah-sah." (Some people maintain that the Scots dialect says it "LOO-nah-soo.") Lammas is just like it looks, "LAH-mus."
Mabon-This is believed to be a form of the Welsh word for "son." Therefore, it would probably be pronounced "MA-bon" with the "a" like in "mass." However, most Wiccans and pagans say "MAY-bon." This is the autumn equinox.
The Burning Times is the name used by many modern Witches and pagans for the era of the Inquisition, and of the other witch hunts (including Salem) which sprang from it. During that time, many women and some men were persecuted for practices objectionable to the Church, especially witchcraft. The "Malleus Maleficarum" was a guide on how to torture accused witches into confessing to whatever they were accused of. At the height of the persecutions, entire towns were left with only one or two women in them, and to this day no one knows for sure how many people were brutally murdered during this craze. As is often the case, this horror sprang from fear and misinformation. Most of the people who were arrested, tortured and killed were not Witches (or witches) of any sort, but simply people who had gotten on the wrong side of someone who had the local magistrate's ear. Usually someone that didn't fit in particularly beautiful or ugly women, widows who had wealth or owned land, the handicapped and retarded, and even overly intelligent people. All these are examples of people who became primary targets of this persecution.
What happens to pagans/witches when they die? Most pagans believe in reincarnation. It is your choice in what to believe though. A Reincarnation is only an option; heaven could be likely or perhaps a spirit realm. It's up to you!
Although discrimination still exists against Witches and pagans, we now enjoy comparative freedom of religious practice after those dark times. But this time is considered a very important event by most Witches and pagans (comparable to the atrocities and devastation perpetrated during the Holocaust), one that should never be forgotten, and many do active public education work to assure as best they can that it will never happen again.
How does one become a Pagan? Most followers of pagan beliefs feel that, if someone is meant to find the pagan path, she/he will eventually. Usually, it is not a case so much of "becoming" a pagan as it is of finding a vocabulary for ideas and beliefs that you have always held. Good ways of investigating if this path is for you is to frequent pagan oriented bookstores or attend open pagan gatherings when the opportunity arises, and look for contacts. Most importantly, read, read, and read! There are plenty of good books out there, as well as periodicals. The latter especially might be useful in the way of making contacts in your area.
What I Believe:
As a Pagan who knows that everything is connected, I know I don't have to build a circle and call in the directions, God(s) or Spirit(s) to hold sacred space or do Magick. They are always here. They don't appear from knowwhere just because I call them, they are with me always. They do as they please. There may be times when I will call on them for a very specific ceremony with a specific purpose and outcome. At that point it's nice to have some help but to just call on the forces to acknowledge their presence is wasteful. It's like saying, 'are you there right hand, I'm calling my right hand.' They know they're out there and its up to me to connect with them, not the other way around. It's better to connect with them at a deeper level than just calling out to them. I bring them into everyday life so they can live in my heart and not in some box (church or alter).