Pagan, Wicca, and The Old Ways

   During the 1940s and 1950s there was movement to make all religions known legal. This movement was known as the New Age movement, and the religions from that time are now known as New Age religions. A lot of people today do not know what went on during that time, and there are many more that refuse to look throughout history and accept anything they come across at face value. The use of Television Sets in todays society also obscure things. Writers try to incorporate these religions to make them more accepted. However, they give vague and obscure unresearched facts. I feel that clarity is needed. No offense is meant to anyone and I can only hope that people are able to understand what is being written here.

   New Age religions have come to be referred to as Pagan religions. The definition of Pagan fits and yet doesn’t fit at the same time. Pagan literally means Country Dweller. The New Age religions do have some roots in the country or countries from which they come, however most people were uneducated at best during the time the word Pagan was used. A Country Dweller can refer to someone uneducated, who makes things up, or who will believe anything because they don’t know any better. When you see people using this word now days, you have to really wonder if they can even begin to comprehend the meaning of it. This isn’t to be demeaning, but if you really think about it the word Pagan basically means that your gullible.

   The leading religion amongst the New Age religions is Wicca. You can attempt to turn this religion into something old as much as you would like, however its not really all that old. Wicca was created by Aleister Crowley and Gerald Gardner during the beginnings of the New Age Movement. They claimed that it had extremely old roots and that they were simply reviving it. They also claimed to have a Book of Shadows that was 1,000 years or more old. This however was never verified. Does this mean that the religion is fake? Actually it does not. People all over the world have always strove to believe in something greater then themselves, thats how all current religions came about. Don’t take it to heart if your religion is considered young, just be happy that you believe in something greater than yourself.

   This is the hardest thing to cover. There are many that refer to their beliefs and such as The Old Ways. That could be considered a fair title, if your beliefs consist of beliefs that are established as being old and/or ancient. These could be Sumerian (the currently oldest known culture), Egyptian, Greek, or any number of others. It could be handed down by word of mouth through your family. There is simply to much out there. The reason I included it here though is because it is something commonly heard when discussing religion. Naming your beliefs as The Old Ways simply encompasses way to much for anyone to be able to properly use it. It’s easier to tell people if your beliefs are something handed down through your family, or if they come from a particular culture. There is no shame or blame in that.

   For those that don’t believe that religion has ever really been an issue in the U.S., I can assure that it has and still very much is. Christianity is mainstream and considered acceptable to teach children, while there are many other religions that have laws stating that you cannot learn about them unless you are of a certain age. It does nothing to stop anyone, but there are actual laws on the books against such things.