The Pagan Heart Crossroads of the Pagani

January 2005 Issue

What is a "Pagan"? By Axiom     Definitions. They box us into categories. Control and, well, define us. Often in ways we don't like. Sometimes in ways we feel proud of. And, in the case of the word 'Pagan', often in ways that greatly confuse or disappoint us. Why would I want to define myself as a Pagan if I feel definitions are controlling? For me it is about community. Yes a definition can limit or disparage. But it also acts to unite. It is up to me which purpose I choose to embrace and publicise. I look at the Christian communities, the American nation, and the people I went to university with for examples. In those cases I see a unity of purpose and like-interests that gives strength to the group. Granted, there are also weaknesses, but those are things to be battled, not reasons to destroy the group. I have definitions I can slip on for many parts of my life - woman, daughter, wife, mother, friend, student, consumer - the list is endless really. But for my spirituality, the list falters slightly. I am a Druid - easily defined in a few sentences to answer the query of a stranger. 'Druid' places me within the Celtic religion group, sub-group Druidry. But I want more. I want to define my religious beliefs as a part of that much larger, wide-spread and diverse collection of faiths all living under the one definition of 'Pagan'. The way a Christian belongs to that vast collective. Despite the efforts of many to limit the definition of the word to their own small sub-branch of a denomination, if anyone anywhere defines him or herself as a Christian, her/his audience immediately understands the general concept. I am Pagan. But what does that mean? The ultimate question of 1,000,000 million plus answers. What is a Pagan? So many responses to this seemingly innocuous question arise from the 'personal perspective' - a Pagan is whatever a Pagan defines her/himself as. But for me, seeking a sense of community, of belonging, of tradition and history, it's not enough to hear the million personal responses. I want to hear something that answers for me and those million - or at least most of them - the question of what a Pagan is in terms we all agree on. The fluid nature of our faith is a great strength. The fact we can all hold different beliefs and be a community enriches us all. Like a great river, we are composed of many separate drops that are each individual and necessary to the whole. Remove us, drop by drop, and the river dries up. But let us flow together, unified in our diversity, and we will quench the thirst of the land. Still, even a river of many drops has a basic, simple definition. It is, after all, a river. A body of water flowing downhill to the ocean. So I return to the question of what then is the basic, simple meaning of the word 'Pagan'? If I go to the dictionary, or even a selection, looking for the meaning of 'Pagan' I will at some point come across a selection of negatives - what a Pagan is not - although modern dictionaries are revising the meaning and approaching something more accurate. Still, the dictionary has little help or guidance. It tells me little about the path I follow, or that of my companion who is not Druidic, yet still Pagan. What about Pagan texts? Surely the books our community publishes should have a clear explanation? Sadly, no. Most still focus upon the personal. Some expand that to include a particular belief system or two. For example, I know of quite a few places where Paganism is equated with being Wiccan - and that, by definition, means I'm not Pagan, as I am not Wiccan. The problem stretches far and wide - how to define such a small and simple word that encompasses such a large and fluid community. However, if we take all the pieces of explanation and put them together, we can create a definition that encompasses the entirety without constraining it. So, what do we know about Pagans and their religious practices? Pagans often base their religious beliefs upon a recreation of an ancient faith system as accurately as possible without modern changes. Some examples of this include Hellenisimos and Romuva. This is known as Traditional Reconstructionism. Pagans often incorporate an aspect of "sacred earth" worship. Beliefs that include this include those of the Wiccans and the Paleolithic groups. These Pagans are Neo-Pagans, and they celebrate 'inspiration' as an aspect of their faith - change can be good. Pagans often have polytheistic ideas of deity. The pantheons of the Mesopotamian based religions and of the Kemetic Fellowship are good examples of this. The Kemetic Fellowship especially, based as it is upon Egyptian belief with the multitude of deities for pretty much every single thing you can think of! A large portion are duo-theistic - in that they see a balance of the male and the female in deity. Wicca is a good example. Pagans do not need to worship ancient (or new) deities, or the earth, or follow an ancient belief system. Eco-Pagans and Techno-Pagans are shining examples of this - people who see the sacred in the modern world - whether it's a tree or a computer. Pagans often believe in and practice magic or some form of energy work. Examples of this include New Age Pagans and Druids. Some use circles, others tools, or nothing what-so-ever, but the end result is the seed of power that grows into a magical event. Pagans practice both individually and in collectives - Solitaries form the largest Pagan group, which is humourous as they aren't a group, but rather the lumping together of all non-group Pagans. Many Solitaries are also members of groups - covens, groves, etc.... Pagan comes from anywhere and everywhere. They hold a variety of beliefs and practices that are often similar to those of other Pagans, but are at times quite disparate. Looking at it, I don't think it's easy to define 'Pagan', but I think it is possible. Paganism is the name for a vast collection of belief systems. Pagans, practitioners of these beliefs, fall into two main groups - Neo-Paganism (or 'sacred-earth' adherents) and Reconstructionism (research and practice of traditional archaic belief systems). Many Pagans are polytheistic or duo-theistic, but some are atheist. Many Pagans practice some form of magical and/or healing work. To define any one Pagan loses a significant part of what Paganism is. The best definition comes from the multitude of personal expressions of faith and the example of diversity within a community that this provides. Well, it's a definition. Whether it is better, worse or negligible to the others is a matter of personal belief.

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