Paganism

endacl

Blaire Faithful Swatter wrote: »

A bit crustyish. More like a fat metal dude with long hair and a mental beard.

I think I know him.... An academic?

Kev W

failinis wrote: »

I know a troubled girl who is a witch as such - she likes spells and crystals and all that.
She is not doing any harm to be fair to her.
I think its all horse shíte, but if its harmless for the person/not hurting others its like any other religion.

Actually that would make it unlike most religions!

Kev W

Candie wrote: »

I know a self-professed witch. She abandoned the irrational and unreasonable belief system of traditional Christianity to embrace the altogether more reasonable and rational belief system of Wicca, with it's many gods, magic spells, and reliance on props.

Christianity at least has a three-in-one God (take three Gods into the shower? Not me!), calls it's spells "prayers" and keeps the props down to the odd cross and candle.

4zn76tysfajdxp

Not sure what other religions have to do with this thread.

iguana

Blaire Faithful Swatter wrote: »

Not sure what other religions have to do with this thread.

Because you are calling someone nuts for believing in one religion and others are pointing out that it is no more nuts than any of the others. I'd argue that it's less nuts tbh as it's principles are all actually nice and there are no arbitrary rules like having to avoid sex before marriage or lop off your son's foreskin shortly after his birth. I'm an atheist but if any religious believer have it right (which they don't) I really bloody hope it's the neo-pagans.

Blaire Faithful Swatter

Blaire Faithful Swatter wrote: »

Not sure what other religions have to do with this thread.

Not too sure but maybe give us your opinion on the legalisation of marijuana so we can hear some more sides argue without either one giving an inch.

The Corinthian

Candie wrote: »

You should have told him he's not a witch, but a warlock.

That term tends to be rejected by such groups as it's derived from the old English word for a 'deceiver'.

Conall Cernach wrote: »

No, I'm saying that claiming to be a pagan or Druid and that you are taking part in an ancient form of worship is bull**** as those religions were invented pretty recently. No one knows for sure what the historic pagans believed or what their rituals consisted of so all of their ceremonial stuff has just been made up recently.

Pretty much. What little knowledge we have on the druids is from Roman literature (especially Caesar's Gallic Wars) which were very propagandist and sought to paint the religions of barbarians as, well, barbaric.

Modern druidism, much like Wicca or the other polytheistic religions that have been popping up in the last few decades, are reconstructed religions that have their origins in the late romantic period, no more than 150 years ago. Basically they're based on a mix of cherry picked classical literature and archaeology of the period, but otherwise completely made up.

Does that make them any less valid that the established religions? Who cares?

Personally I find Wicca something I just can't take seriously, but each to their own. If it makes them feel special to call themselves witches and not consider their otherwise pointless existences, then good for them.

Now, were there a cult of Dionysus knocking about, I'd be tempted to join, but that would be more down to the free booze and sex than any spiritualism.

One eyed Jack

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Not too sure but maybe give us your opinion on the legalisation of marijuana so we can hear some more sides argue without either one giving an inch.

Legend

Nothing like a good laugh out loud moment in the morning before I've even had my coffee break. Good on you Sir :pac:

GerB40

iguana wrote: »

Because you are calling someone nuts for believing in one religion and others are pointing out that it is no more nuts than any of the others. I'd argue that it's less nuts tbh as it's principles are all actually nice and there are no arbitrary rules like having to avoid sex before marriage or lop off your son's foreskin shortly after his birth. I'm an atheist but if any religious believer have it right (which they don't) I really bloody hope it's the neo-pagans.

Exactly. Plus they worship the sun which a) does give us life and without it we would not exist and b) definitely, irrefutably is real. Those two facts alone give paganism more credibility than every other major religion in existence today. It's still a bit mad but shur there's far worse beliefs out there...

evolving_doors

Look, if there's any magic going on in this thread I'm really not asking for much...

It's day 5 and I still can't find the bloody remote. At the very least, the next time there's some mad orgy could you keep it in the back of your head to seek a vision.

it look like this btw
Philips universal remote

Prayer to St. Anthony isn't working either btw

Samaris

Gebgbegb wrote: »

Cool... could you tell me where the goddam TV remote is, it's been missing for the last 4 days and I've searched everywhere?

Try under the front of the couch. They like hiding under there.


Honestly, I think the OP was pretty rude in how she dealt with yer man. Depends how it arose, ofc. If he was trying to force his religion on her, then yeah, disengage. But someone mentioning it passing or it coming up in conversation, it seems rather unpleasant to dismiss him as "a loser" and walk off for fear that others might think you contaminated.

I might think that Wiccan or Paganism (with a capital P, as opposed to a small one, which is basically "any other religion than mine") is fairly nonsensical, although at least I can tell the difference between the two. But not really much worse than any other.

Egginacup

Blaire Faithful Swatter wrote: »

I was introduced to a friend of a friend at a party there last weekend when we got into our hobbies and interests.

Instead of informing him that I have almost 30,000 posts on an internet forum I was telling him about my other passions (exercising, languages etc) and he told me that he was a pagan witch.

"Excuse me?"

Apparently, it's true. He is a pagan witch of some sort, away with the faeries and dancing in the woods or whatever with the other... witches.

I couldn't stand to be seen with such a loser any more so I let him know his beliefs were complete bobbins and decided to join my other friends for a game of beer pong instead. We lost. Your man probably cursed us.

Anyway. Have you met any witches? Are you a witch? Is this a form of mental illness?

:pac:

I dont know how many guys i meet that are "MMA fighters". Its not until you delve a little more that you realize that they work in tesco and train mma at the weekend. Kinda like i do with football.

I dont know how many guys i meet that are "MMA fighters". Its not until you delve a little more that you realize that they work in tesco and train mma at the weekend.

Does this mean im a footballer ?

Kev W

Deleted User wrote: »

I dont know how many guys i meet that are "MMA fighters". Its not until you delve a little more that you realize that they work in tesco and train mma at the weekend. Kinda like i do with football.

I knew a lad years ago who took two classes of ninjitsu and stopped going but insisted on telling people he was a ninja for at least a few months after.

Believe it or not, he wasn't 11.

bpmurray

Conall Cernach wrote: »

I can't understand how anyone can believe rubbish like this. Aren't all druidic and witchcraft ceremonies and beliefs just 19th and 20th century inventions. Wicca was invented in the mid 20th century by an English bloke with a penchant for nakedness.

I lived for a few years in the next town from Salem, MA. That's called "witch city" - over 8000 there, and they exploit it around Hallowe'en - great craic altogether.

However, Wicca is just another religion and, if you step back and take an objective look, so are all religions. So if you're criticising Wicca, I hope you're also criticising Christianity, Islam, etc.

Custardpi

bpmurray wrote: »

I lived for a few years in the next town from Salem, MA. That's called "witch city" - over 8000 there, and they exploit it around Hallowe'en - great craic altogether.

However, Wicca is just another religion and, if you step back and take an objective look, so are all religions. So if you're criticising Wicca, I hope you're also criticising Christianity, Islam, etc.

Exactly, I wonder if the OP would have informed his interlocutor that his beliefs were "bobbins" if the latter had admitted to being a Presbyterian.

4zn76tysfajdxp

Custardpi wrote: »

Exactly, I wonder if the OP would have informed his interlocutor that his beliefs were "bobbins" if the latter had admitted to being a Presbyterian.

I probably would have, in fairness. I have no issue with letting people know their personal beliefs are bobbins if they keep going on about them, such as when a friend of mine claimed that Jack Warner's arrest was an attempt at silence by the Illuminati.

Conall Cernach

bpmurray wrote: »

I lived for a few years in the next town from Salem, MA. That's called "witch city" - over 8000 there, and they exploit it around Hallowe'en - great craic altogether.

However, Wicca is just another religion and, if you step back and take an objective look, so are all religions. So if you're criticising Wicca, I hope you're also criticising Christianity, Islam, etc.

I'm an atheist and think all religions are a waste of time (some to a greater extent than others) but the more established ones like Islam and Christianity have at least a continuity of worship. They can point out that they have in fact done things in more or less the same way over hundreds and in some cases thousands of years. Wiccans and other pagans such as Druids cannot do the same. They cannot say with any authority that they practice the same religion as their ancient counterparts as almost all of the ritual and ceremony now associated with their religion has only been invented in the last century or so. A Christian time traveler to early Christian Ireland would find that they would be able to recognise and be familiar with the form of worship going on even if it weren't exactly the same. A pagan time traveler to late pagan era Ireland would find little in common with their own religion.

Custardpi

Continuity of belief can actually be a disadvantage when it comes to religions adapting to the modern world as it chains them to the past. "Our ancestors of 1000 years ago wouldn't have stood for gay marriage/drawings of Mohammed, etc so why should we?"

Kev W

Conall Cernach wrote: »

I'm an atheist and think all religions are a waste of time (some to a greater extent than others) but the more established ones like Islam and Christianity have at least a continuity of worship. They can point out that they have in fact done things in more or less the same way over hundreds and in some cases thousands of years. Wiccans and other pagans such as Druids cannot do the same. They cannot say with any authority that they practice the same religion as their ancient counterparts as almost all of the ritual and ceremony now associated with their religion has only been invented in the last century or so. A Christian time traveler to early Christian Ireland would find that they would be able to recognise and be familiar with the form of worship going on even if it weren't exactly the same. A pagan time traveler to late pagan era Ireland would find little in common with their own religion.

"Won't somebody please think about the time travellers?"

Conall Cernach

Custardpi wrote: »

Continuity of belief can actually be a disadvantage when it comes to religions adapting to the modern world as it chains them to the past. "Our ancestors of 1000 years ago wouldn't have stood for gay marriage/drawings of Mohammed, etc so why should we?"

What I mean by continuity of belief is that the religion had a provable set form and you can show how it evolved over the years. You could mention any period of Christian history and say "this is what they believed then" or "this is what they were arguing about then". Wicca and modern Druidism doesn't have that. We know that before Christianity took hold in Ireland that they worshipped multiple gods and held ceremonies around solar events. We can't say that "in the 3rd century they thought this and in 16th century they got up to such and such". We certainly can't say that modern druidism is related to the ancient religion beyond having deliberately borrowed some of their imagery.

The Corinthian

bpmurray wrote: »

However, Wicca is just another religion and, if you step back and take an objective look, so are all religions.

Yes, objectively all religions are indeed religions.

evolving_doors

The Corinthian wrote: »

Yes, objectively all religions are indeed religions.

Church of Scientology though.... that's a science.

The Corinthian

Gebgbegb wrote: »

Church of Scientology though.... that's a science.

Touché.

endacl

Gebgbegb wrote: »

Church of Scientology though.... that's a science.

Nope. It's a pyramid scheme.

darkpagandeath

oh god, Neo paganism invented by nudists in England in the 60s, Have a lot to answer for. You cannot do magic saying things 3 times makes you sound like you have a stutter.

endacl

darkpagandeath wrote: »

You cannot do magic saying things 3 times makes you sound like you have a stutter.

"Will you have a cup of tea, Father? No? Ah, sure you will. (1) g'wan (2) g'wan (3) g'wan".

Case rested.

conorhal

Conall Cernach wrote: »

I'm an atheist and think all religions are a waste of time (some to a greater extent than others) but the more established ones like Islam and Christianity have at least a continuity of worship. They can point out that they have in fact done things in more or less the same way over hundreds and in some cases thousands of years. Wiccans and other pagans such as Druids cannot do the same. They cannot say with any authority that they practice the same religion as their ancient counterparts as almost all of the ritual and ceremony now associated with their religion has only been invented in the last century or so. A Christian time traveler to early Christian Ireland would find that they would be able to recognise and be familiar with the form of worship going on even if it weren't exactly the same. A pagan time traveler to late pagan era Ireland would find little in common with their own religion.

Indeed. It's hilarious to hear people talk about a religion esentially invented in the 1960's as 'an ancient religious practice'.
The druids wrote nothing down and we know next to nothing about them or what they believed.
The Druidism and much of the new age guff we see today is the product of 19th Century revivalism in Wales where the industrial revolution prompted a movement to celebrate simpler times and national identity.
People would dress up and dance around fanciful stone circles that they built and have a laugh, but it was merely a fad that was only later revived by the Hippie movement in the 60's who blended it with eastern Gia worship and philosophy with a liberal dose of fanciful fantasy thrown in.

I've met a couple of practicioners and found them to be harmeless, fluffy pleasant individuals that you wouldnt have the heart to pour scorn on though.

conorhal

conorhal wrote: »

I've met a couple of practicioners and found them to be harmeless, fluffy pleasant individuals that you wouldnt have the heart to pour scorn on though.

The OP clearly has no heart.