Must Not Call it Paganism, Even Though it Is


As I understand ancient Paganism, it was about local gods and spirits we today would call imaginary. But, even in prehistory, we can assume these thoughts brought comfort in times of uncertainty. Gods do this today. If people had insecure food sources in dry areas they might have had gods they could appeal to for rain. People living with too much rain would have had other gods. Different gods served different purposes. 

Along came agricultural societies which needed trade and specialization. Some people grew crops, others made tools. These societies needed to be organized with authorities deciding rules. It became clear to authorities that if everyone worshipped to same god the rules that came from this god (or the human rulers) would be better accepted. That was the source of the God we have in the West. Now that God is slipping in popularity and it is increasingly common for people to say they have their own individual source of the divine. Even some religious scholars are acknowledging these individual concepts of the divine are quite like the old Paganism. 

Human minds have always looked about for solutions. Why not look for new gods when the old ones no longer.

I can't claim it understand the mind of a Catholic, but when I hear there is a saint for this purpose and  that purpose it sounds just like Paganism. Catholics can get angry at me for saying this--it will not help. 

In my view, the metaphor for Paganism is our TV's, computers and phones. They keep expanding our choices. Not long ago it was amazing to have 200 channels. Now there are an infinite number of channels. You Tube allows anyone to start a series of programs and make them available all over the world. The only equipment needed is a cell phone. When someone wants to tell of a vision or gift of prophesy a click sends it to thousands or millions. 

So far as we know, the prehistoric Paganism was the religion of choice for a big portion of the globe. The proliferation of beliefs seems like it is back and growing.  

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