Do you belive everyone who says there wiccan or pagan are witches. Or is it a deeper knowing that a few have?
Pagan became a term for anyone who is NOT Christian. This was politically correct, but then Jews and Muslims could be exempt from being called Pagan, because they were accepted. If you use Not Christian as the only criteria, then many people are classified as Pagans.
How do these beliefs and ideas reflect on the Pagan Community today? Why call ourselves Pagan? Why call ourselves Witches? This is also an attempt to bring into focus the people who were persecuted as Pagans and Witches were. One reason was because they didn t behave like God Fearing Christians. The term Pagan originally meant people who were hard to find, and root out, because it costs a lot to wage a war. So, concentrate on the densely populated areas. It wasn t related to Religious beliefs until it was used by Christian zealots.
Today, many people declare themselves as “Pagan”. In many cases this simply means they do NOT follow one of the big 3 religions – Christianity, Jewish, and Islam. But, there are also practitioners of Buddhism, Native American, Santeria, and on and on. These people do not consider themselves to be Pagan.
A common misconception of the term Pagan is devil worshiping” nasty people, who boil babies in cauldrons. The people who choose to use the title Pagan, carry the title to reveal points in the truths of history, instead of the lies. There is no need to believe in any religious dogma. This is true whether they are Atheists, or if they worship various Gods and Goddesses.
Not all who embrace the Pagan viewpoint find it necessary to join a Religious Group. Some want to connect with their ancestry and to be able to understand the Lore of their native culture. Some want to recreate the “Old Days”, and step away from society. And some just like the Pagan Parties. I hope this information makes it easier to understand the difference between Pagan, and Wiccan, and Witch, in the neo-pagan community. A Pagan also shares an interest in various ecological, and esoteric practices in our society.
