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Today we shed our arbitrary layers of corporate fabric and dance gaily through the forest glade wearing the suits we were born in — for the theme of the day is paganism. Paganism is not well defined. The definition can be quite broad or progressively narrow. The broadest definition of paganism includes all religions but the Big Three: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. To a member of the Big Three, a pagan can be anyone who is not a member of their particular church. As you tighten the definition, you first eliminate the Dharmic religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Whittled down to just those who call themselves pagans, you have the Wiccans, Celtic Druids, witches, Goddess worshippers, and recreations of other ancient polytheistic religions like those from ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and the Vikings. For this reason, the term neopaganism is really more accurate to describe modern pagans. Neopaganism typically does not include any Satan worshippers, which is a bit of a popular misconception. In this podcast I'm going to use the term neopaganism as if it's a religion by itself, which isn't really correct, but should generally emcompass the beliefs of most of those who consider their religion to be pagan. Neopaganism is generally polytheistic, with gods ranging from divine beings to things in nature. Spiritualism and divinity are crucial aspects of neopaganism. Despite its separation from the world's major religions, neopagan faith is very much dependent upon supernatural beings or paranormal forces and energies. In some cases, neopagans have advertised their faith as a way to reject the inconsistencies and suspensions of science required by the major religions and yet still remain a spiritual person. However, this doesn't really hold water for me. The spiritual aspects of paganism are equally at odds with science. Pagan gods might be rocks or trees, or they might be Zeus and Athena, or they might be some other mystical force but they are still unmeasurable and undetectable paranormal entities. You can't have it both ways. If you maintain a belief in any spiritual entity, you are rejecting what science tells us about that entity. Goddess worship is popular in neopaganism. The obvious question that the rest of us have is "Who is the goddess?" We've all seen the paintings of the dude with the beard, the white robe, and the Birkenstocks, but never of a goddess. The neopagan god and goddess are not necessarily specific beings. Many neopagans believe that whomever or whatever god is, is not necessarily knowable. But they also believe that the god has masculine and feminine aspects, which they call the god and goddess. Goddess worship is thus not the worship of a particular divine female being, it's a more general worship of femininity itself. Sometimes the goddess is linked to some of the ancient named gods like Athena, Ishtar, or Venus. Sometimes the goddess refers to divine spirituality that neopagans assign to maternity, fertility, and nurturing. Clearly the god and goddess concept is in direct contradiction with Christianity's Holy Trinity, so the absolute incompatibility of goddess worship and Christianity is an important distinction. This is another case where some neopagans try to have it both ways. But I'm not going to sit here and proclaim that this makes their religion invalid. Everyone is free to have whatever divine beliefs they want, and if they want to have a goddess that's compatible with Jesus or Mohammad, fine. It's no more or less valid than anyone else's concept of divinity. One popular allure of paganism is its embracing of free sex and public nudity. I've always believed that more people secretly appreciate free sex and public nudity than are willing to admit it — at least when the chicks are hot. Wiccans have even institutionalized nudity, calling it "skyclad." This is good, because it better legitimizes the dress code for my hot tub. Skyclad apparel only, please. Is there an obligation for those who are into skyclad self-expression and disestablishmentarianism to embrace the paranormal by joining a pagan religion? I don't see that there is. Go to Burning Man, if that's what floats your boat, or move to Los Angeles. You can have fun and indulge in individuality without adopting some form of supernaturalism. If the idea is to rebel against the straight lace church that your parents made you go to as a kid, rebel against it by recognizing that it's based on hooey rather than adopting some different but equally silly brand of hooey. Another great way to buck the trend and be your own person is to use your own brain, by being rational and employing critical thinking, rather than using someone else's brain, and joining their organization, be it a neopagan religion, a radical environmental group, or a Republican campaign. Does the average modern Celtic Druid truly profoundly believe the doctrine of his religion, or does he just enjoy the company of a great group of people with a really neat philosophy? I'm all in favor of hanging out with great people with neat philosophy, even running around naked in the forest with them (especially if their chicks are hot), but I don't need to adopt belief in occult magic and reincarnation — fundamentals of druid doctrine — to do it. It would be great if joining them would give me magical powers, but rationality and critical thinking tell me that it would not be so. This has saved me many full moons of streaking through forests hoping for enlightenment. Self expression, iconoclasm, impatience with social convention, and free thinking are all great things, and something that more people should engage in. But switching from one brand of hooey to another does not accomplish any of them, and doesn't indicate that your thought process was truly critical and skeptical, and certainly not independent or unique. So while you're casting off your robe, cast off some of that joiner mentality and seek your own answers using your own brain.
References Discuss!5 most recent comments | Show all 12 comments Remember, you should always read with skepticism the comments of anyone too lame to put their real name & city. In the podcast about paganism I thought there were a few logical inconsistancies. Brian makes the assumption that all rejection of institutionalized religion is based on rejection of its logical fallacies. However, there are people who reject standard religions on the basis of other reasons. A few female Wiccans I know became disenchanted with their original religious beliefs because they felt the religions consined women to marginal roles and that the texts the religions were founded on, (in the two cases I know of, the texts of Judiasm and Christianity) were fundamentally anti-female in nature. They weren't bothered by the implausibility of magical divine beings and that aspect did not figure into them leaving their native religions. Many pagan beliefs, such as goddess worship appeal to women and ment who like the whole "magical" ideas of organized religion, but aren't interested in the sidedish of sexism that goes along with. Sciluv, Toronto Most people that grew up in western societies have a hard time putting pagans into perspective, 90% of our view of pagans are biased by decades of media ignorance and centuries of religion extremist. Alvaro, Santiago, Chile ~ I agree with Alvaro... Cindy, Nashville, TN Skyclad is a good thing, here in florida thre are many nudist camps where one can go and gongregate with others totally nude, and they are form all walks of life. Darmock, Florida Make a comment about this episode of Skeptoid (please try to keep it brief & to the point). Anyone can post: You can also discuss this episode in the Skeptoid Forum, hosted by the James Randi Educational Foundation. Join the Skeptalk email discussion list. |
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Skyclad does happen today, but was much more typical in the 60's (but then, wasn't everyone naked?). This cursory, shallow, and at times, just plain incorrect report makes me, a recent listener, question the quality and research of your other podcasts. It seems that your goal is to shed some light on topics covered with misconceptions and socially accepted views. Great, that's why I'm here! But if you don't do the research and espouse views just as false as the ones you are prefessing to challenge, you're wasting everyone's time
Fran W, Vancouver, BC, Canada
April 26, 2007 9:40am