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Paganism: An Introduction to Earth- Centered Religions Paperback – July 8, 2002
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A comprehensive guide to a growing religious movement
If you want to study Paganism in more detail, this book is the place to start. Based on a course in Paganism that the authors have taught for more than a decade, it is full of exercises, meditations, and discussion questions for group or individual study.
This book presents the basic fundamentals of Paganism. It explores what Pagans are like; how the Pagan sacred year is arranged; what Pagans do in ritual; what magick is; and what Pagans believe about God, worship, human nature, and ethics.
- For those who are exploring their own spirituality, or who want a good book to give to non-Pagan family and friends
- A hands-on learning tool with magickal workings, meditations, discussion questions, and journal exercises
- Offers in-depth discussion of ethics and magick
- Print length250 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherLlewellyn Publications
- Publication dateJuly 8, 2002
- Dimensions7.5 x 0.66 x 9.13 inches
- ISBN-100738702226
- ISBN-13978-0738702223
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As the world's oldest and largest independent publisher of books for body, mind, and spirit, Llewellyn is dedicated to bringing our readers the very best in metaphysical books and resources. Since 1901, we've been a source of illumination, instruction, and new perspectives on a wealth of topics, including Paganism and witchcraft, astrology, tarot, wellness, magic and the occult, and the paranormal.
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From the Publisher
A Comprehensive Guide
If you want to study Paganism in more detail, this book is the place to start. Based on a course in Paganism that the authors have taught for more than a decade, it is full of exercises, meditations, and discussion questions for group or individual study.
This book presents the basic fundamentals of Paganism. It explores what Pagans are like; how the Pagan sacred year is arranged; what Pagans do in ritual; what magick is; and what Pagans believe about God, worship, human nature, and ethics.
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
About the Author
Joyce and River have taught Paganism classes throughout the past decade. They have planned and organized local and national Pagan gatherings, written articles for Pagan publications, appeared on radio and television broadcasts, spoken at Christian and Unitarian churches, and attended interfaith councils. They also helped found the Council for Alternative Spiritual Traditions, which hosts public Pagan and alternative events in the Midwest.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
What is Paganism?
Paganism, also called neo-Paganism, is a new religious movement whose adherents are found throughout the world. Paganism is an umbrella term that describes a variety of denominations―known to Pagans as traditions―which for the most part organize themselves and operate without a centralized religious body or a standardized dogma. While variety of belief and practice is a source of pride for Pagans, it can sometimes be a source of confusion for others. In the pages that follow we present what we believe to be the fundamentals of Paganism. We explore such questions as why Paganism is called an earth-centered religion, how many Pagans there might be in the United States, what Pagans are like, how the Pagan sacred year is arranged, what Pagans do in ritual, what magick is, and what Pagans believe about God, worship, human nature, and ethics.
Over the years we have met thousands of Pagans throughout the United States. We have watched the Pagan movement grow from a fairly small, insular movement to one that may now number more than a million in the United States. We have spoken to numerous Pagans individually, participated in discussions and debates about the nature and future of the Pagan movement, and helped organize local and national Pagan events. For more than a decade we have explained and taught Paganism to many people in a variety of likely and unlikely places. We've taught Sunday school at Christian churches, given the main address at Unitarian churches, attended interfaith councils, taught world religions classes, demonstrated Pagan ritual for Mensa, given retreats, spoken at festivals and conventions, and provided newspaper, radio, and TV interviews on the subject. For most of these years we've also offered private class instruction in Paganism at beginning and intermediate levels. It is from this source of accumulated personal experience that we have collected and developed the concepts we present in this book. While elements of the topics covered here can be found in other books on Paganism, the beliefs we identify as fundamental to Paganism and how we interpret them are uniquely our own.
We have on occasion been asked to name the most important belief or concept of Paganism. This is difficult given the many traditions within the movement. However, if we could reduce Paganism down to its essentials, we believe its two most central concepts are interconnectedness and blessedness.
The belief that every part of the universe is profoundly interconnected shapes how Pagans view the nature of the Divine, the sorts of relationships possible with the Divine and the universe, and forms the Pagan approach to prayer and magick. Most Pagans believe that all parts of the universe, whether "animate" or "inanimate," are connected at very deep levels that extend beyond the boundaries of space-time as we know them. Because of this interconnection, many Pagans believe they are able to interact with the universe and the Divine as co-creators. This concept is further explored in chapters 5 and 6.
The belief that every part of the universe is blessed in its nature, and that there is nothing wrong with the universe or with you, means that the purpose of Pagan spiritual practice differs from that of religions focusedon issues of purification and salvation. Paganism takes the position that human beings are unflawed in their natures, are not spiritually doomed or damned, are born with all the tools and skills necessary to live ethically and spiritually, and are naturally oriented toward their own greatest growth and development. No part of Pagan belief, practice, ritual, or sacrament is designed to "save" Pagans from a flawed or corrupt nature, or to avert supernatural punishment arising from such supposed flaws. Elements of this concept are developed throughout the book, particularly in chapter 7.
Product details
- Publisher : Llewellyn Publications; 37808th edition (July 8, 2002)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 250 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0738702226
- ISBN-13 : 978-0738702223
- Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
- Dimensions : 7.5 x 0.66 x 9.13 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #70,570 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #31 in Paganism
- #61 in Comparative Religion (Books)
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From there, the authors dig deeper. Chapter 2 explains what a belief system is and helps you think through yours and determine what you want and where you want to go. Chapter 3 discusses deity and the concepts that define human beliefs of deity, such as abstract vs. concrete and permeating vs. transcendent (both of which are actually a continuum). Because pagans of all kinds, including Wiccans, are often wrongly accused of Satanic worship, chapter 4 explains where the concept of Satan came from, how it changed over the millennia, and which spiritual leaders and sects contributed to the idea as we have it today. In the process, the authors help the reader analyze his/her beliefs about the world and about evil. They also briefly explain what a real Satanist is, which is not what the average person thinks, and clear up that confusion.
Chapter 5 explains modern science in a nutshell, including string theory, and this is important for understanding why Pagan concepts of the universe aren't foolhardy or insane. Chapter 6 uses chapter 5 as a foundation for understanding what magick is (i.e., something natural, not something supernatural). Chapter 7 is a wonderful discussion of ethics--something that anyone on a spiritual path will presumably wish to assess and reassess to make sure that her/his ethics and spiritual beliefs are not in conflict.
Throughout the book, the prose is a good level, making even the scientific sections easy to read and understand. Graphs, pictures, and illustrations help the reader along and make the text more interesting. Personal stories are used to illustrate concepts from time to time and make the book a more interesting read.
In each chapter, the authors provide group exercises, individual journal prompts, questions to ponder, and activities. I found most of these worth doing, and it makes you really engage with the text. Instead of just reading, I was asked to really work with the concepts and define what I believe and why. Although the book worked fine for a single reader, it would also work well in a workshop or class because of these features.
I love being challenged to think, to grow, to analyze, and to reconsider. This book really helped me to dig in and do that. I wish the Higginbothams would write more books. For now, I'm off to order the sequel to this book.
They cover some scientific theory, for those who need reassurance in that department. Of course we need to have a degree of faith, but the sections on quantum physics will give you confidence in speaking about religion with others.
Another favorite section of mine is on Satan. Even if you don't believe in him, the name can make formerly Christian pagans shudder. After all, it's been pounded in our brains to associate him with bad stuff. River and Joyce do an amazing job of looking at Satan objectively. Your fears of this make-believe entity will melt away into nothingness!
Joyce and River really focus on journal exercises. After all, this is about your spiritual growth. They make you get deep down into the crevices in your mind and figure out just who you are. You need to be very open to analyzing yourself. I do admit, this can be scary for some at first. They will do these things largely with the use of meditative visualization exercises. It would be helpful to have a recorder handy so you don't have to stop and read during all the steps,which can break your meditative state.
They talk about Christian-based faith a lot. Do not confuse this for Christian bashing. A lot of newer Pagans, such as myself, come from Christian related backgrounds and need help pulling through past fears. I knew when I started my journey I had a lot of things brainwashed into me, and I have to even still work on moving forward.
So, this book is fantastic. Even if you think you're beyond basic books, get this for the journal work!
I read the book cover-to-cover (skipping the guided meditation exercises, because I was reading on my own and wasn't going to record myself saying them and then play them back again, as suggested), thought about it for a while, and then urged my husband to read it too. He agreed that paganism, as presented in this book, makes a lot more sense and seems a lot more applicable to contemporary life than most other religions. There were some sections (particularly the chapter on the magical universe) that really opened our eyes to new ways of seeing the world, with an emphasis on scientific experiments and without being so mired in hippie dogma that we lost interest, as we both have with other new-agey books.
The book is divided into sections on the history of Paganism and how it corresponds to other (generally more western, monotheistic) religions; concepts of deity and satan; ethics; the magical universe; and creating magick through ritual. It places a huge emphasis on questioning beliefs and avoiding dogma, and frequently encourages readers to dive deep into their own beliefs, think about where they came from, deal with uncomfortable thoughts and feelings, find a belief system that works for you personally, and remember to question and expand your own belief system from time to time.
It also stresses that there is no "right" way to be a pagan - it's all about exploring, experimenting, questioning, and finding out what works for you.
Unfortunately for my novel, there was very little in this book in the way of "crazy rituals" or "nutty beliefs." The rituals as outlined in here are fluid and open for interpretation, and based on creating symbolic experiences that imitate the rhythms of life and nature.
I'm not saying I'm going to run right out and start calling myself a pagan or anything, but this definitely served up some food for thought.
Top reviews from other countries
But the absolut best part of this book is it's "workbook" aspect. There are so many writing task and meditation prompts to take on - it's incredible. Though it is definetly designed to be used in a classroom setting, most of the question and task are easily done by a single person as well. These task give you the possibility to reflect your thoughts, opinions etc. sort them out and bring them down to paper - which is incredibly eye-opening. In my opinion is honestly helps you so much, to find out where you really stand and what you want to get out of of taking on a pagan path.
I'd absolutely recommend this book to everyone: Beginners, long-time practitioners, critics, witches, pagans, wiccans etc.
Would highly recommend reading!! No regrets
Highly recommend to anyone on any spiritual path.