Pagans Count Selves Among The Faithful
A profusion of steeples, spires and crosses reach for the sky in McMinnville, but these symbols of our nation's dominant Christian faith do not reflect the full range of spirituality among the county's population.
That range includes Earth-centered faiths that first began to reach the public eye in the 1960s under labels like New Age, Pagan and Neo-Pagan.
What adherents have in common are a rejection of traditional worship practices and a desire to get closer to the environment and the Earth. Some refer to themselves as witches, pagans or shamans, while others reject such loaded terms.
"Pagan" comes from the Latin term for "country dweller" or "villager." It has traditionally been used to describe people, often indigenous tribal people, not embracing Christianity, Islam, Judaism or one of the world's other major religions.
It has sometimes been applied even more narrowly, as has "heathen," to anyone outside the Christian faith. Because it carries connotations of being primitive and uneducated, it has long been considered derogatory.
However, it has been embraced by many practitioners nonetheless. Full Story
Related: religion, wicca, pagan, spells
That range includes Earth-centered faiths that first began to reach the public eye in the 1960s under labels like New Age, Pagan and Neo-Pagan.
What adherents have in common are a rejection of traditional worship practices and a desire to get closer to the environment and the Earth. Some refer to themselves as witches, pagans or shamans, while others reject such loaded terms.
"Pagan" comes from the Latin term for "country dweller" or "villager." It has traditionally been used to describe people, often indigenous tribal people, not embracing Christianity, Islam, Judaism or one of the world's other major religions.
It has sometimes been applied even more narrowly, as has "heathen," to anyone outside the Christian faith. Because it carries connotations of being primitive and uneducated, it has long been considered derogatory.
However, it has been embraced by many practitioners nonetheless. Full Story
Related: religion, wicca, pagan, spells
posted at 11:01 PM
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