Pagan "Facts"

It's very important to ensure what you are saying is actually "Fact" before labeling it a "Fact". Take for instance the image below:

It's nice for people to try to list facts to educate the masses, but it hurts us far MORE when these "facts" are inaccurate. For example, the fourth paragraph from the top states:

"The term Pagan means Nature religion who believe in many different gods or non gods and only in nature"

Actually, "Pagan" (according to the Online Etymology Dictionary) comes from the "Late Latin paganus 'pagan', in classical Latan 'villager, rustic civilian, non-combatant'" or "from pagaus 'country people; province, rural district,'"

Nowhere in the etymology does it say that "Pagan" means "Nature religion".

Another example of mis-"fact" is confusing Satanist with Devil Worshiper. "Satanists" (quotes intentional) are rebellious Christians who sympathize with it's devil and pay homage to the Christian anti-deity. ACTUAL Satanists (i.e. CoS practitioners) are atheistic in nature. They don't actually worship the "Devil", but see it as symbolic of man's carnal nature; the raw self. They don't adhere to the REstraints and CONstraints of religious rule and law. They DO however, abide by man's laws.

Native Americans are not Pagan, which is yet another "mis-fact" found in this piece. You ask ANY Native American if they are Pagan and ALL of them will tell you no. The only reason they fit under the Pagan umbrella is that they don't believe in nor practice Abrahamic religions. The Chinese, Japanese and other oriental cultures are also not Pagan in nature. Paganism originated in Europe, not Asia.

The author seems to also seems to imply that any religion that is "male oriented" seems to be negative and controlling. There are plenty of male-dominated religions that are NOT controlling out there. It's dangerous to make assumptions about the centrality of a religion without actually understanding its process.

Paganism is also not a religion. It's an umbrella term. Sure plenty of Christians label themselves "Christian", but if you ask them what branch, they'll say "Baptist", "Catholic", "Protestant", "Reform", etc. Christianity is also an umbrella term. No Christian is strictly "Christian". They all fall under some subset of the term.

While it's true that to be Pagan "is to hold and believe in the sacredness of all things", however Christians, Buddhists, Jewish, Muslims, etc also hold and believe in the sacredness of all things, yet they are not Pagans. The central core of Paganism is NOT believing the "sacredness of all things". You would have to examine each and every individual Pagan religion to understand what their cores are. Again, oversimplifying is a dangerous thing.

I'm not sure what the Washington Monument has to do with Pagan facts. It's a monument to Washington, not intended to be a monument to religious beliefs. Many churches have rounded roofs, but the Washington Senate is not a monument to religion either.



To me, I don't see this "factoid" as education in nature, but more propaganda against anything anyone doesn't like that isn't pagan. If anything it reminds me of many a Christian propaganda page detailing the unholy nature of anything that isn't Christian. It's your typical fluffy nonsense that too many novices are going to take at face value. It exhausts myself and other seasoned practitioners to correct such misinformation. There are lots of people making these nonsensical "factoids" and parading them around as known facts that every Pagan holds to. I want to make clear

I DO NOT ENDORSE THIS "FACTOID". IT'S RIPE WITH ERRORS.

Describe: Paganism

Picture Credit: "Nature Bound Pagan"

Snooping around pinterest I came across this and thought it was an interesting piece, describing what a Pagan is for those who are unsure what a Pagan actually is. For the most part, it's fairly accurate except for a few things. (click picture to go to the site)

1) Not all Pagans believe the same things. Not all Pagans believe we are all "interconnected", or "unflawed in nature". Some just don't...for whatever reason they may have. It's dangerous to assume that because someone is Pagan, that means they're all lumped into the same category, even though they share the same umbrella term. Certainly humans are flawed. That's what makes us human. If we were "unflawed", we would live in an extremely boring world in which nothing happens, everyone is happy, and no one dies. 

2) Another common mistake many Pagans, themselves make, is believing that Paganism itself is a religion. It's not. It's just a term to represent numerous sub-religions that sit under this term. There is no central "Pagan" belief or authority that these "sub-religions" subscribe to. Each system believes different from the next. While Wiccans may believe in Summerland...Satanists may not believe in an afterlife period. 

3) There's a difference between a religion and a spirituality. At least in my view. Religion serves to tell believers what they need to believe and what to do in order to maintain their faith in that religion. Spirituality allows the believer the freedom to believe whatever makes sense to them, regardless of what another states. How could Paganism be both a spirituality AND a religion, especially since Paganism is simply a term of description?

4) The term "Pagan" also encompasses a LOT more than what's listed here. These are perhaps the more major or popular Pagan systems, however they are not the only Pagan systems out there. According to the most recent description of "Pagan": religions that are not Abrahamic in origins, "Pagan" can also include Hindu's, Buddhist, Taoists, Satanists, and (as much as many will deny this), Native Americans. Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Dianic, and Faery Wiccan sects are still Wiccan, so they don't need to be mentioned (and FYI, Dianic's are no longer considered Wiccans, just simply Dianic's).

5) As well, not all Pagans subscribe to the "5 Elements" as a central part of their system. In fact, I'm unsure how many Pagan systems actually incorporate the 5 Elements aside from Wiccans. As well, not all Pagans celebrate the Solstices and Equinoxes. They're just not part of their system. If anything they most likely celebrate their own holidays as according to their belief systems. So to say that "Pagans celebrate the Winter Solstice, and the Autumn Equinox", is slightly erroneous. 

6) The statistic listed here says that "69% of Pagans state they've never been persecuted". I'm going to say that that number is MUCH higher than 69%, considering half the Pagans in the US alone have no idea what persecution means. For the most part, half the Pagans in the US believe persecution means someone simply saying they're a devil worshipper. That's not persecution. If you want persecution, go live in Iraq as a Pagan for 1 month. You'll encounter TRUE persecution.

I won't flaw the creator of this meme for making this, or trying to educate those who are ignorant as to what a Pagan is. I commend them for trying. Lots of people wouldn't bother. The problem though, is there is a LOT of generalization. If you're going to try to educate, you need a LOT more information and state that SOME believe this and OTHERS believe that. You can't simply say all Pagans believe in the 5 elements and celebrate all eight sabbats (I as a Pagan only celebrate Samhain as a Pagan holiday...all others hold little meaning to me personally), and think some Pagans might not have a problem with this.

Good try :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Side Note

There's quite the humorous debate happening on the pin I found this on. If you want to look at it and shake your own head at it, here's the link:
Paganism 101 Pin
Click "See all (#) comments" to see the entire "debate"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE 08/01/2015
Hmm...it seems that the author of this little tidbit doesn't like criticism. I offered her some correction on her infographic and she chose to delete my comment. While I may moderate comments that are posted to my blog...VERY few are deleted. The ones that are, are generally rude in their composition having nothing to do with the topic at hand.

If you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen
If you can't handle criticism, get off the internet!