Theology / Philosophy of Paganism - is there one?

[nnmartin]

I have a background in Christianity and love the Theological concepts of it and the inspiration of Jesus , who is very much like the Buddha really. I am more drawn to the spirituality of Paganism though, always have been and I can't really see Christianity as any more than a philosophy as I disagree with some of the core concepts.

So is there a general ideology to Paganism and if so what?

 

[Erebus]

First off welcome to the forum

Paganism is essentially an umbrella term to cover a wide variety of belief systems, so there is no single Pagan theology or philosophy. Each individual branch will have it's own views, practices and beliefs.
As a general rule though, you can organise most Pagan religions into two categories. Firstly you have the reconstructionist types who will look to follow one of the ancient religions as accurately as possible. These are often hard polytheists who sometimes look down on the blending of different pantheons.
Secondly you have the eclectic types who generally have a less strictly defined view of deities and will often blend pantheons based on a deity's archetype.
Wicca, arguably the most well known and popular form of Paganism can fall under either type depending on the coven in question.
This is all very general of course, but hopefully it should give you something to work on

I'd certainly recommend taking a look at some of the specific Pagan areas as these will generally have a brief overview of what each entails stickied at the top.

 

[Quintessence]

I'm going to assume that you're asking about NEOpaganism, rather than Paganism, for the most part. In spite of its broadness, there are actually underlying theological and philosophical ideas. It is just that they are diverse and generally held in common rather than always held in common; and they are not well-studied since the West fixates on classical monotheism rather than philosophies/theologies inherent to Pagan (and Neopagan) religions. Neopaganism is also a new religious movement not even a century old, so it has not built up the base of literature that religions like Christianity or Buddhism have had thousands of years to do. There are a few sources I would recommend looking at:

• One book you will want to look at is Michael York's Pagan Theology: Paganism as a World Religion. This one actually covers Paganism more broadly, rather than strictly Neopaganism.
• Another is Michael Greer's A World Full of Gods: An Inquiry into Polytheism. This book is basically a review of some basic philosophy of religion and how it does (or does not) apply to polytheism.
• While I haven't read this one yet, another is Jordan Paper's The Deities are Many: A Polytheistic Theology
• Philosophy of Wicca covers issues specific to Wiccan theology, though the author's POV is somewhat biased to particular forms of Wicca and not others.

There are also tons of individual short essays written by individual Neopagans on issues relating to theology and philosophy. It is hard for me to make a link list for this, but at a minimum I have to list Witches' Voice. It hosts tons of essays written by individuals in the Neopagan community. Many of them will touch on aspects you're interested in, but it will take quite a bit of work to find what you're probably looking for. There are also a few anthologies I have read that have explored issues relating to Neopagan theology and philosophy, but I forget many of the titles.

To provide more than just links to things you can read here, this is a lost of commonalities to Pagan (not just Neopagan) religions that I pulled together based partly on the sources above. Note, that these are qualities and trends often seen, not always seen.

• Locality-oriented. A Pagan’s practices are an expression of their surrounding environmental context.
• Nature-centered. A Pagan’s conception of the divine or way of practice is inexorably tied to the natural world.
• Pluralistic. A Pagan’s understanding of the divine is pluralistic; it is diverse and accommodating of other views.
• Immanent. A Pagan sees the divine as primarily manifest in the world rather than separate from it.
• Experiential. A Pagan religion emphasizes personal experience and is based more on actions than dogma or doctrine.

I can expand on any one of these. I wrote up a file on Pagan theology for my own personal reference a few years ago because I was sick of the inadequate treatment of it in the literature I was finding.

 

[nnmartin]

I guess what I really need is some kind of Spiritual leader/Higher Power type entity.

With Christianity it's easy , just follow Jesus - backed up by much theology and philosophy - or the same with Buddha / Indra.

Any ideas for a Pagan spiritual leader?

 

[Cassiopia]

I guess what I really need is some kind of Spiritual leader/Higher Power type entity.

With Christianity it's easy , just follow Jesus - backed up by much theology and philosophy - or the same with Buddha / Indra.

Any ideas for a Pagan spiritual leader?

In a word, no.

As has been explained above, Paganism is really an umbrella term for a number of paths and beliefs. There isn't one overall dogma let alone leader.
One of the concepts that is key to most (if not all) pagan paths is personal responsibility. While we may be inspired or guided by our gods and goddesses (those of us that believe in them) we are encouraged to create our own destiny and take responsibility for our own successes and failures. Thus there is no universal leader to follow.
We may well each have individuals within our belief system that inspire us and whom we respect and look up to, but there is no universal leader.

 

[Me Myself]

"Know yourself" ?

 

[Quintessence]

Neopaganism does have leaders, but they're not the same sorts of leaders that you probably mean, Nnmartin. We have our BNP's (Big Name Pagans) who have been highly influential on many people's personal religious paths, and within particular subgroups you will have high priests/priestesses that serve as leaders for their particular group, but there is not some singular figurehead everyone dogmatically looks up to. Some will dedicate themselves to the ideals of a particular deity who they name as their patron and that serves as something they follow. Some also have other forms of spirit guides who exist in the otherworlds that serve as a sort of leader.

 

[Draka]

"If that which you seek you find not within you, you will never find it without."

That's about as close to "scripture quoting" as I get I just happened to find it fitting here.

 

[nnmartin]

that's a good point. I can't see how a religious book or doctrinal creed is going to make you find 'God'.

trouble is , I'm living in a crowded developing country city and doing virtually anything remotely Pagan seems impossible - even getting books.

 

[Quintessence]

What does it mean to do something "Pagan" to you? With how I would define that, it's impossible for me to concieve of a situation where I couldn't do anything Pagan. All it takes is directly experiencing and choosing to connect with the land around you and whatever divinity you see in it. No books required. No tools required either. Just a mindset whereby everything is magical, nothing is taken for granted, and mysteries are seen hiding in plain sight.

 

[nnmartin]

well , I feel I need at least some nature to commune with.

Virtually none in the city where I'm living - there is a river in the centre with several sewage outlets leading into it making the water black , plenty of rubbish lying around and a fair bunch of homeless druggies to harass you - doesn't really entice one to spend much time there. As for parks etc.. they just don't exist here.

If I was more experienced as a Pagan perhaps I could find a way -

 

[Quintessence]

Ah, that is a problem.

There is a tradition in many of our cultures of pretending there is a wall that divides humanity and nature. It is important I think to learn to recognize that this is not true. There is no wall. All is nature, including humans and all things they modify with their hands. I've worked with the Spirit in human-modified things as well as things that have not been human-modified.

Heh... there is actually a whole subsection of Neopaganism called "technopaganism" that works very extensively with human-modified aspects of nature.

 

[nnmartin]

that's true - I certainly can get a spiritual connection with buildings - not just the nice looking ones.

An industrial looking tower block set against the rain during the winter is very powerfully spiritual - it's all man and nature at the same time after all.

I've always had a fascination with derelict buildings too - something to do with the feeling of 'what once was' - and 'what will become of it'.

 

[Draka]

You can always bring the outdoors indoors. A few plants, fabrics with nature motifs/themes, keeping your windows open as much as you can for fresh air, even burning candles and incense which mimics outdoor aromas can help to make you feel closer to nature, even while cooped up inside. Crystals and stones around your home would be nice things to have as well. If you want to feel more connected with nature, and you can't get to it, just bring as much of it to you as you can.