Modern paganism - Knowledge

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Hanegraaff suggested that whereas various forms of contemporary paganism were not part of the New Age movement – particularly those who pre-dated the movement – other pagan religions and practices could be identified as New Age. Various differences between the two movements have been highlighted; the New Age movement focuses on an improved future, whereas the focus of Paganism is on the pre-Christian past. Similarly, the New Age movement typically propounds a universalist message which sees all religions as fundamentally the same, whereas paganism stresses the difference between monotheistic religions and those embracing a polytheistic or animistic theology. Further, the New Age movement shows little interest in

1060: 394:, have emphasized the use of the upper-case "Paganism" to distinguish the modern movement from the lower-case "paganism", a term commonly used for pre-Christian belief systems. In 2015, Rountree opined that this lower case/upper case division was "now convention" in pagan studies. Among the critics of the upper-case P are York and Andras Corban-Arthen, president of the ECER. Capitalizing the word, they argue, makes "Paganism" appear as the name of a cohesive religion rather than a generic religious category, and comes off as naive, dishonest or as an unwelcome attempt to disrupt the spontaneity and vernacular quality of the movement. 824:, pagan and even some Traditionalist or Tribalist groups have a history of Grandmother Stories – typically involving initiation by a Grandmother, Grandfather, or other elderly relative who is said to have instructed them in the secret, millennia-old traditions of their ancestors. As this secret wisdom can almost always be traced to recent sources, tellers of these stories have often later admitted they made them up. Strmiska asserts that contemporary paganism could be viewed as a part of the "much larger phenomenon" of efforts to revive "traditional, indigenous, or native religions" that were occurring across the globe. 3671:(in Rodnoverie, it is in the Russian North, the Northern Urals, or beyond the Arctic Circle); the connection of their people with the "Aryans" or complete identification with them (in Rodnovery, "Slavic-Aryans"); the antiquity of one's people and its racial or cultural superiority over others; their people (or the ancient "Aryans" identified with them) are regarded as cultural tregers, distributors of high culture, founders of great civilizations of antiquity, (in Rodnoverie, Slavic or "Slavic-Aryan" "Vedic" technological pracivilization, "taught" all other peoples), and creators of ancient writing (in Rodnoverie, 799:"Modern Pagans are reviving, reconstructing, and reimagining religious traditions of the past that were suppressed for a very long time, even to the point of being almost totally obliterated... Thus, with only a few possible exceptions, today's Pagans cannot claim to be continuing religious traditions handed down in an unbroken line from ancient times to the present. They are modern people with a great reverence for the spirituality of the past, making a new religion – a modern Paganism – from the remnants of the past, which they interpret, adapt, and modify according to modern ways of thinking." 1647: 40: 349:. They have also suggested that these could all be included under the rubric of "paganism". This approach has been received critically by many specialists in religious studies. Critics have pointed out that such claims would cause problems for analytic scholarship by lumping together belief systems with very significant differences, and that the term would serve modern pagan interests by making the movement appear far larger on the world stage. Doyle White writes that modern religions that draw upon the pre-Christian belief systems of other parts of the world, such as 3761:'s forced introduction of Christianity, Wotanism was practiced in what is now the Danubian territory of Germany. List considered Charlemagne the killer of the Saxons in memory of the bloody baptism of the pagans of Northern Germany by him. List considered the entire Christian period as an era of cultural decline, oblivion of the true faith, and unnatural racial mixing, when the "Aryan" ruling caste of priest-kings was forced to hide, secretly saving their sacred knowledge, which now became available to List as a full-fledged aristocratic descendant of this caste. 860:, the belief in and veneration of multiple gods or goddesses. Within the pagan movement, there can be found many deities, both male and female, who have various associations and embody forces of nature, aspects of culture, and facets of human psychology. These deities are typically depicted in human form, and are viewed as having human faults. They are therefore not seen as perfect, but rather are venerated as being wise and powerful. Pagans feel that this understanding of the gods reflected the dynamics of life on Earth, allowing for the expression of humour. 4472:

category.... The classification structure of this group is: 613 Nature Religions 6130 Nature Religions, nfd (not further defined) 6131 Animism 6132 Druidism 6133 Paganism 6134 Pantheism 6135 Wiccan/Witchcraft 6139 Nature Religions, nec (not elsewhere classified) If a response of Pagan is qualified with additional information such as Druid or Wiccan, this additional information will be used in classifying the response. For example, Pagan Wiccan would be classified as 6135 and Pagan Celtic would be 6133. Pagan alone would be classified as 6133.

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was being avid readers, something that she found to be very common within the pagan community despite the fact that avid readers constituted less than 20% of the general population of the United States at the time. Magliocco came to a somewhat different conclusion based upon her ethnographic research of pagans in California, remarking that the majority were "white, middle-class, well-educated urbanites" but that they were united in finding "artistic inspiration" within "folk and indigenous spiritual traditions,"

4420:. p. 47. Paganism, as I use the term, refers broadly to an emerging spiritual movement comprised of overlapping forms of spirituality referred to by many names (e.g. 'neo-paganism,' 'paganism,' 'neo-pagan witchcraft,' 'witchcraft,' 'the craft,' 'Wiccan spirituality,' 'Wicca,' 'Wicce,' 'Wiccan religion,' 'the old religion,' 'Goddess spirituality,' 'nature spirituality,' 'nature religion,' 'earth-based spirituality,' 'earth religion,' 'ecofeminist spirituality,' and 'Euro-American shamanism' 833: 4134:

throughout the world." Further, there is a common belief in the pagan community that Christianity and paganism are opposing belief systems. This animosity is flamed by historical conflicts between Christian and pre-Christian religions, as well as the perceived ongoing Christian disdain from Christians. Some pagans have claimed that Christian authorities have never apologized for the religious displacement of Europe's pre-Christian belief systems, particularly following the

398: 2510: 18523: 1092: 18533: 3679:; orientation to the faith of ancestors (hence paganism); anti-Christianity (the idea that Christians seek to enslave the people) and antisemitism (Jews as "racial enemies"); "Aryan" socialism (an integral part of the ideology of Nazism) as the most natural for its people (in Rodnoverie, the "original tribal system" of the Slavs, which is thought of as a kind of "Aryan" socialism); symbols and gestures close to or derived from Nazism, etc. 1174: 3641:. The "National Alliance" met regularly to discuss the ideas of "cosmotheism". Pierce dismissed Christianity as "one of the chief mental illnesses of our people" through which "Jewish influence" spreads. Pierce saw the proposed government after the "racial revolution" as religious, which would be "more like a holy order." He considered the future religion of the "white race" the "Aryan religion" - the "cosmotheism" that he created. 785:-oriented forms of paganism were prevalent in Central and Eastern Europe. They noted that in these latter regions, pagan groups placed an emphasis on "the centrality of the nation, the ethnic group, or the tribe". Rountree wrote that it was wrong to assume that "expressions of Paganism can be categorized straight-forwardly according to region", but acknowledged that some regional trends were visible, such as the impact of 2988: 1471:"The rise of modern Paganism is both a result and a measure of increased religious liberty and rising tolerance for religious diversity in modern societies, a liberty and tolerance made possible by the curbing of the sometimes oppressive power wielded by Christian authorities to compel obedience and participation in centuries past. To say it another way, modern Paganism is one of the happy stepchildren of modern 2418:

native religion. Since Mari make up just 45 percent of the republic's population of 700,000, this figure means that probably more than a third claim to follow the old religion. The percentage of pagans among the Mari of Bashkortostan and the eastern part of Tatarstan is even higher (up to 69% among women). Mari fled here from forced Christianization in the 17th to 19th centuries. A similar number was claimed by

2356: 4323: 534:, respectively. Reconstructionists do not altogether reject innovation in their interpretation and adaptation of the source material, however they do believe that the source material conveys greater authenticity and thus should be emphasized. They often follow scholarly debates about the nature of such pre-Christian religions, and some reconstructionists are themselves scholars. 515:"We might say that Reconstructionist Pagans romanticize the past, while eclectic pagans idealize the future. In the first case, there is a deeply felt need to connect with the past as a source of spiritual strength and wisdom; in the second case, there is the idealistic hope that a spirituality of nature can be gleaned from ancient sources and shared with all humanity." 3222:. The movement included a religious modern pagan component. The ideology developed out of German nationalist romanticism. Nazism is considered one of the movements within the völkisch or as strongly influenced by the völkisch. Völkisch consisted of many religiopolitical groups whose leaders and followers were closely associated with each other and the developing 3300:

Jews, and the Christian church, seeking to destroy the ideal "Aryan" German world by freeing the "non-Aryan" mob to establish a false equality of the illegitimate (representatives of "non-Aryan" races). History, including wars, economic crises, political uncertainty, and the weakening of the power of the German principle, is seen as the result of racial mixing.

3520:. In online media, modern pagan völkische often express a belief in the threat of racial miscegenation, which they blame on the social and political establishment, sometimes claiming that their ideas of racial exclusivity are the result of the threat that other ethnic groups pose to "white" people. While these groups generally claim to be aiming to revive 2454:, in which a question about religious affiliation was asked for the first time. Respondents were able to write in an affiliation not covered by the checklist of common religions, and a total of 42,262 people from England, Scotland and Wales declared themselves to be pagans by this method. These figures were not released as a matter of course by the 386:, with some expressing disapproval of it, arguing that the term "neo" offensively disconnects them from what they perceive as their pre-Christian forebears. To avoid causing offense, many scholars in the English-speaking world have begun using the prefixes "modern" or "contemporary" rather than "neo". Several pagan studies scholars, such as 3683:

loss of the great "empire" (USSR), land, and influence and in search of internal and external enemies, neopaganism became widespread among nationalist ideologues, just like in Germany in the 1930s. In Rodnoverie, the unity of the Russian people was undergoing a new re-mythologization with an appeal for support to the ideas of the "

761:. Other pagan groups allow people of any ethnicity, on the view that the gods and goddesses of a particular region can call anyone to their form of worship. Some such groups feel a particular affinity for the pre-Christian belief systems of a particular region with which they have no ethnic link because they see themselves as 2984:, and had performed her own devised rituals in dedication to them. When she eventually came across the Wiccan religion many years later, she then found that it confirmed her earlier childhood experiences, and that "I never converted in the accepted sense. I simply accepted, reaffirmed, and extended a very old experience". 1026:- so this bond is held with mountains and rivers as well as trees and wild animals. As a result, pagans believe the essence of their spirituality is both ancient and timeless, regardless of the age of specific religious movements. Places of natural beauty are therefore treated as sacred and ideal for ritual, like the 4162:, where conservative Christian dominance is strong, pagans have faced continued religious persecution. For instance, Strmiska highlighted instances in both the US and UK in which school teachers were fired when their employers discovered that they were pagan. Thus, many pagans keep their religion private to avoid 2116:, is a pagan religion in which a singular, monotheistic Goddess is given predominance. Goddess Spirituality revolves around the sacredness of the female form, and of aspects of women's lives that adherents say have been traditionally neglected in Western society, such as menstruation, sexuality, and maternity. 982:. In contrast, some contemporary pagans believe that there are specific spirits that inhabit various features in the natural world, and that these can be actively communicated with. Some pagans have reported experiencing communication with spirits dwelling in rocks, plants, trees and animals, as well as 3304:

justify the "coming era" of the German world order. To counter the modern world, "corrupted" by racial mixing, the Ariosophists created many small circles and secret religious societies to revive the "lost" esoteric knowledge and racial virtues of the ancient Germans to create a new pan-German empire.

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in Austria between 1890 and 1930. The term "ariosophy" can also be used generically to describe the "Aryan"/esoteric teachings of the völkisch subset. The doctrine of Ariosophy was based on pseudoscientific ideas about "Aryan" purity and the mystical unity of spirit and body. It was influenced by the

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ethnicities, their religion shows many similarities with Finnic and Slavic paganisms; moreover, the revival of Vattisen Yaly in recent decades has occurred following modern pagan patterns. Today the followers of the Chuvash Traditional Religion are called "the true Chuvash". Their main god is Tura, a

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Prior to the spread of the 20th-century modern pagan movements, a notable instance of self-identified paganism was in Sioux writer Zitkala-sa's essay "Why I Am A Pagan". Published in the Atlantic Monthly in 1902, the Native American activist and writer outlined her rejection of Christianity (referred

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Discussions about prevailing, returning or new forms of paganism have existed throughout the modern period. Before the 20th century, Christian institutions regularly used paganism as a term for everything outside of Christianity, Judaism and – from the 18th century – Islam. They frequently associated

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scholars Kaarina Aitamurto and Scott Simpson wrote that they were "like siblings who have taken different paths in life but still retain many visible similarities". But there has been much "cross-fertilization" between these different faiths: many groups have influenced, and been influenced by, other

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The relationship between pagan studies scholars and some practising pagans has at times been strained. The Australian academic and practising pagan Caroline Jane Tully argues that many pagans can react negatively to new scholarship regarding historical pre-Christian societies, believing that it is a

3919:. When Adler asked one gay male pagan what the pagan community offered members of the LGBT community, he replied, "A place to belong. Community. Acceptance. And a way to connect with all kinds of people – gay, bi, straight, celibate, transgender – in a way that is hard to do in the greater society." 3745:

considers it wrong to reduce the diversity of native faith groups to nationalism only - he views the ecological direction of Rodnovery as no less significant. Historian and religious scholar Roman Shizhensky believes Rodnovery poses little danger and law enforcement agencies should deal with radical

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Völkisch groups often use ethnonationalist language and claim that only members of these racial groups are entitled to practice a given religion, taking the pseudoscientific view that "gods and goddesses are encoded in the DNA" of the members of a race. Some practitioners explain the idea of linking

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Census figures in Ireland do not provide a breakdown of religions outside of the major Christian denominations and other major world religions. A total of 22,497 people stated Other Religion in the 2006 census; and a rough estimate is that there were 2,000–3,000 practicing pagans in Ireland in 2009.

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The 2001 UK Census figures did not allow an accurate breakdown of traditions within the pagan heading, as a campaign by the Pagan Federation before the census encouraged Wiccans, Heathens, Druids and others all to use the same write-in term 'pagan' in order to maximise the numbers reported. However,

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faith was revived, and in 2012, 29% of the population identified with it (North Ossetia is about 2/3 Ossetian and 1/3 Russian). Modern pagan movements are also present to a lesser degree elsewhere; in Dagestan 2% of the population identified with folk religious movements, while data on modern pagans

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Paganism's public rituals are generally calendrical, although the pre-Christian festivals that pagans use as a basis varied across Europe. Nevertheless, common to almost all pagan religions is an emphasis on an agricultural cycle and respect for the dead. Common pagan festivals include those marking

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abuse. He suggests that part of the term's appeal lay in the fact that a large proportion of pagan converts were raised in Christian families, and that by embracing the term "pagan", a word long used for what was "rejected and reviled by Christian authorities", a convert summarizes "in a single word

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Many scholars have favored the use of "neopaganism" to describe this phenomenon, with the prefix "neo-" serving to distinguish the modern religions from their ancient, pre-Christian forerunners. Some pagan practitioners also prefer "neopaganism", believing that the prefix conveys the reformed nature

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Neopaganism has been criticized on a variety of fronts, ranging from pseudohistory to racial issues to institutional issues. As neopaganism is not a unified religion, it means that the criticisms of certain groups often do not apply to other groups. Criticisms of specific neopagan groups range from

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and a positive attitude towards Muslims. These features of the regime contributed to the formation of specific views of neo-Nazi neopagans, which are represented to a large extent among the socially unprotected and marginalized Russian youth. In their opinion, power in Russia was usurped by a cabal

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Supporters of the universalist and anti-racist approach believe that the deities of Germanic Europe can call anyone to worship them, regardless of ethnic origin. This group rejects the völkisch focus on race, believing that even unintentionally, such an approach can lead to racist attitudes towards

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in fact has a continuous existence, but it has co-existed with Orthodox Christianity for centuries and experienced a renewal after the fall of the Soviet Union. A sociological survey conducted in 2004 found that about 15 percent of the population of Mari El consider themselves adherents of the Mari

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Pagan ritual can take place in both a public and private setting. Contemporary pagan ritual is typically geared towards "facilitating altered states of awareness or shifting mind-sets". In order to induce such altered states of consciousness, pagans utilize such elements as drumming, visualization,

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members, and many of its white members have spouses who belong to different racial groups. While some pagans continue to believe that Germanic paganism is an innate religion, universalists have sometimes argued that this paganism is an innate religion for the lands of Northern Europe and not for a

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with anti-urban, back-to-the-earth populism. To overcome what they considered the ailment of scientific and rationalistic modernity, the authors of völkisch found a spiritual solution in the essence of the "people," perceived as genuine, intuitive, even "primitive," in the sense of the location of

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Based upon her work in the United States, Adler found that the pagan movement was "very diverse" in its class and ethnic backgrounds. She went on to remark that she had encountered pagans in jobs that ranged from "fireman to PhD chemist" but that the one thing she thought made them into an "elite"

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that is common to other reconstructionist groups. While Wicca is identified as an eclectic form of paganism, Strmiska also notes that some Wiccans have moved in a more reconstructionist direction by focusing on a particular ethnic and cultural link, thus developing such variants as Norse Wicca and

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Michael F. Strmiska writes that "in pagan magazines, websites, and Internet discussion venues, Christianity is frequently denounced as an antinatural, antifemale, sexually and culturally repressive, guilt-ridden, and authoritarian religion that has fostered intolerance, hypocrisy, and persecution

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stated that paganism "parallels the New Age movement in some ways, differs sharply from it in others, and overlaps it in some minor ways". Ethan Doyle White stated that while the pagan and New Age movements "do share commonalities and overlap", they were nevertheless "largely distinct phenomena."

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One of the main starting points for the formation of Slavic neopaganism was the search for a rationale for the national idea. Hence follows an increased interest in the origins of national self-consciousness and the national type of religiosity. In the post-Soviet period, in the conditions of the

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In Heathenry, the terms "völkisch", "neo-völkisch", or the Anglicised "folkish" are used both as endonyms and exonyms for groups who believe that the religion is closely related to the claimed biological race. Völkisch practitioners consider paganism to be an indigenous religion of a biologically

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as children, imagining a world of "enchanted nature and magical transformations, filled with lords and ladies, witches and wizards, and humble but often wise peasants". Magliocco noted that it was this world that pagans "strive to re-create in some measure". Further support for Adler's ideas came

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made it possible to describe oneself as pagan-Wiccan, pagan-Druid and so on. The figures for England and Wales showed 80,153 describing themselves as pagan (or some subgroup thereof). The largest subgroup was Wicca, with 11,766 adherents. The overall numbers of people self-reporting as pagan rose

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compared a number of different sources (including membership lists of major UK organizations, attendance at major events, subscriptions to magazines, etc.) and used standard models for extrapolating likely numbers. This estimate accounted for multiple membership overlaps, as well as the number of

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resulted in a wider interest in these subjects and a growth in cultural self-consciousness. At the time, it was commonly believed that almost all such folk customs were survivals from the pre-Christian period. These attitudes would also be exported to North America by European immigrants in these

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traditions in other parts of the world. In discussing Asatro – a form of Heathenry based in Denmark – Matthew Amster notes that it did not fit clearly within such a framework, because while seeking a reconstructionist form of historical accuracy, Asatro strongly eschewed the emphasis on ethnicity

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Many pagans have sought to distance themselves from the New Age movement, even using "New Age" as an insult within their community, while conversely many involved in the New Age have expressed criticism of paganism for emphasizing the material world over the spiritual. Many pagans have expressed

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Historian Dmitry Shlapentokh wrote that, as in Europe, neopaganism in Russia pushes some of its adherents to antisemitism. This antisemitism is closely related to negative attitudes towards Asians, and this emphasis on racial factors can lead neopagans to neo-Nazism. The tendency of neopagans to

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The works of the Ariosophists describe the prehistoric "Aryan" golden age when the wise keepers of knowledge learned and taught occult racial teachings and ruled over a "racially pure" society. It is alleged that there is an evil conspiracy of anti-German forces, including all "non-Aryan" races,

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Adler went on to note that from those she interviewed and surveyed in the US she could identify a number of common factors that led to people getting involved in paganism: the beauty, vision and imagination that was found within their beliefs and rituals, a sense of intellectual satisfaction and

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The doctrine had followers in Austria and Germany. Occultism in the doctrines of the Ariosophists was of great importance as a sacral justification for an extreme political position and a fundamental rejection of reality, including socio-economic progress. The Ariosophists sought to predict and

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Liberalism and rationalism, which demystified the time-honored order that accepted authorities and prejudices, also caused an adverse reaction from supporters of the völkisch movement. A negative attitude towards modernity characterizes the writings of German nationalist "prophets" such as Paul

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Although inspired by the pre-Christian belief systems of the past, modern paganism is not the same phenomenon as these lost traditions and in many respects differs from them considerably. Strmiska stresses that modern paganism is a "new", "modern" religious movement, even if some of its content

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Modern pagan attitudes differ regarding the source material surrounding pre-Christian belief systems. Strmiska notes that pagan groups can be "divided along a continuum: at one end are those that aim to reconstruct the ancient religious traditions of a particular ethnic group or a linguistic or

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In Slavic neopaganism, there is the idea of an ancient multi-thousand-year-old and developed civilization of the "Slavs-Aryans", while the entire Christian period seems to be an era of regression and decline, the enslavement of the "Aryans" by foreign missionaries who imposed on them a "slave"

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as an enduring national value and distinguishes two cardinal tasks that Russian neopaganism sets for itself: the salvation of Russian national culture from the leveling influence of modernization and the protection of the natural environment from the impact of modern civilization. According to

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Heathenism, also known as Germanic neopaganism, refers to a series of contemporary pagan traditions based on the historical religions, culture and literature of Germanic-speaking Europe. Heathenry is spread out across northwestern Europe, North America and Australasia, where the descendants of

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belief systems of Europe, North Africa, and the Near East." Thus it has been said that although it is "a highly diverse phenomenon", "an identifiable common element" nevertheless runs through the pagan movement. Strmiska described paganism as a movement "dedicated to reviving the polytheistic,

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in order to gain new converts to their faiths. Instead, she argued that "in most cases," converts first become interested in the movement through "word of mouth, a discussion between friends, a lecture, a book, an article or a Web site." She went on to put forward the idea that this typically

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in their rituals rather than having them be completely serious and somber. She noted that there are those who would argue that "the Pagan community is one of the only spiritual communities that is exploring humor, joy, abandonment, even silliness and outrageousness as valid parts of spiritual

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Mabon–fall equinox 2015 altar by the Salt Lake Pagan Society of Salt Lake City, Utah. Displayed are seasonal decorations, altar tools, elemental candles, flowers, deity statues, cookies and juice offerings, and a nude Gods painting of Thor, the Green Man, and Cernunnos dancing around a Mabon

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in Polish. Alternately, many practitioners in these regions view "Native Faith" as a category within modern paganism that does not encompass all pagan religions. Other terms some pagans favor include "traditional religion", "indigenous religion", "nativist religion", and "reconstructionism".

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developed these ideas into a concept he called "metagenetics". McNallen and many other members of the modern pagan "ethnic" faction explicitly state that they are not racist, although Gardell has noted that their views may be considered racist under specific definitions of the term. Gardell

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The aim is to get Pagans of all persuasions (Wiccan, Druid, Asatru, Hellenic, Egyptian, Heathen etc.) to put themselves on the census form as 'Pagan' or 'Pagan, *your path*'.... Paganism is included in the Australian Standard Classification of Religious Groups (ASCRG), as a separate output

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In 1985, Pierce purchased a large piece of land at Mill Point in West Virginia, fenced it in with barbed wire, and began selling books on Western culture and Western "pagan traditions" there. He aimed to save the "white race" away from the federal government. In part, he also drew on

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spoke of the need to create a "neo-Germanic religion" capable of replacing Christianity. The Old Testament was especially repugnant to the Nazis. Adolf Hitler called it "Satan's Bible". Rosenberg demanded that it be banned as a "vehicle of Jewish influence" and replaced by the Nordic

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of people from that society. There is greater focus on ethnicity within the pagan movements in continental Europe than within the pagan movements in North America and the British Isles. Such ethnic paganisms have variously been seen as responses to concerns about foreign ideologies,

4439:. Sreda.org; 29% "adhere to a traditional religion of their ancestors, worship gods and the forces of nature". (исповедую традиционную религию своих предковпоклоняюсь богам и силам природы). This figure compares to 1.2% adherents of ethnic religions in all of the Russian Federation. 867:

or other psychological constructs that exist in the human psyche. Others adopt the belief that the deities have both a psychological and external existence. Many pagans believe adoption of a polytheistic world-view would be beneficial for western society – replacing the dominant

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and songs and the lighting of candles and incense. Common pagan devotional practices have thus been compared to similar practices in Hinduism, Buddhism, Shinto, Roman Catholicism, and Orthodox Christianity, but contrasted with that in Protestantism, Judaism, and Islam. Although

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have periodically been labeled as pagan and churches have demanded that they should be purged. The Western attitude to paganism gradually changed during the early modern period. One reason was increased contacts with areas outside of Europe, which happened through trade,

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literature, where it had been imbued with "a certain mystery and allure", and that by embracing the word "pagan" modern pagans defy past religious intolerance to honor the pre-Christian peoples of Europe and emphasize those societies' cultural and artistic achievements.

10772: 3403:" camps, often clash, with Kaplan claiming that there is a "virtual civil war" between them within the American modern pagan community. The division into universalists and völkisch also spread to other countries, but had less impact on the more ethnically homogeneous 993:

Animism was also a concept common to many pre-Christian European religions, and in adopting it, contemporary pagans are attempting to "reenter the primeval worldview" and participate in a view of cosmology "that is not possible for most Westerners after childhood."

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Domestic worship typically takes place in the home and is carried out by either an individual or family group. It typically involves offerings – including bread, cake, flowers, fruit, milk, beer, or wine – being given to images of deities, often accompanied with

609:. Concern has also been expressed regarding the utility of the term "reconstructionism" when dealing with paganisms in Central and Eastern Europe, because in many of the languages of these regions, equivalents of the term "reconstructionism" – such as the Czech 581:. Strmiska also suggests that this division could be seen as being based on "discourses of identity", with reconstructionists emphasizing a deep-rooted sense of place and people, and eclectics embracing a universality and openness toward humanity and the Earth. 3524:, their race-centric views have their origins in 19th-century culture, not antiquity. This group's discourse contains the concepts of "ancestors" and "homeland", which are understood very vaguely. Researcher Ethan Doyle White characterizes the position of the 3848:-predominant mainstream religious establishments, has often sought spiritual acceptance and association in neopagan religious/spiritual practice. Pagan-specializing religious scholar Christine Hoff Kraemer wrote, "Pagans tend to be relatively accepting of 1513:

to as "the new superstition") in favor of a harmony with nature embodied by the Great Spirit. She further recounted her mother's abandonment of Sioux religion and the unsuccessful attempts of a "native preacher" to get her to attend the village church.

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was edited by Clifton, while the academic publishers AltaMira Press began release of the Pagan Studies Series. From 2008 onward, conferences have been held bringing together scholars specialising in the study of paganism in Central and Eastern Europe.

3113:. In contrast, many areas of post-Soviet modern paganism, including Russian, are occupied not so much with individual self-improvement as they are occupied with social problems, and they also create nationalist ideologies based on the "invented past". 4125:

for example, Muslim men cannot marry pagan women while they are allowed to marry among people of the book; and Muslims can eat meat of halal animals that are slaughtered by people of the book, but not that slaughtered by methods of other religions.

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One of the origins of modern pagan movements lies in the romanticist and national liberation movements that developed in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries. The publications of studies into European folk customs and culture by scholars like

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Beliefs and practices vary widely among different pagan groups; however, there are a series of core principles common to most, if not all, forms of modern paganism. The English academic Graham Harvey noted that pagans "rarely indulge in theology".

192:, there is no consensus about how contemporary paganism can best be defined. Most scholars describe modern paganism as a broad array of different religions, not a single one. The category of modern paganism could be compared to the categories of 3035:

fandom and comic book fandom. Other ways in which many North American pagans have gotten involved with the movement are through political or ecological activism, such as vegetarian groups, health food stores, or feminist university courses.

1872:) was one of the first modern pagan synagogues, founded in the early 1990s by Stephanie Fox, Steven Posch, and Magenta Griffiths (Lady Magenta). Magenta Griffiths is High Priestess of the Beit Asherah coven, and a former board member of the 3057:

The sociologist Regina Oboler examined the role of gender in the American pagan community, arguing that although the movement had been constant in its support for the equality of men and women ever since its foundation, there was still an

3260:) was subsequently transformed into the idea of "racial essence", and Völkisch thinkers understood this term as a life-giving and quasi-eternal essence and not as a sociological category, in the same way as they considered "Nature". 2747:

The United States government does not directly collect religious information. As a result such information is provided by religious institutions and other third-party statistical organisations. Based on the most recent survey by the

2392:, the Abkhaz native faith has also been revived, and in the 2003 census, 8% of residents identified with it (note again that there are many non-Abkhaz in the state including Georgians, Russians and Armenians); on 3 August 2012 the 2138:

Adherents of the Goddess Spirituality movement typically envision a history of the world that is different from traditional narratives about the past, emphasising the role of women rather than that of men. According to this view,

3991:"Neopagan practices highlight the centrality of the relationship between humans and nature and reinvent religions of the past, while New Agers are more interested in transforming individual consciousness and shaping the future." 970:

related that a core part of goddess-centred pagan witchcraft was "the understanding that all being is interrelated, that we are all linked with the cosmos as parts of one living organism. What affects one of us affects us all."

10786: 3120:

with its components such as the idealization of a particular people's historical or mythological past, dissatisfaction with modernity, and the ease of transition to a radical stage with the postulation of national superiority.

3784:, an instrument for the enslavement of the "Aryans" by Jews, and staged the genocide of the pagan Slavs. Roman Shizhensky singles out the neopagan myth about Vladimir and characterizes it as one of the most "odious" neopagan 3246:

Völkisch thinkers tended to idealize the myth of the "original nation", which they believed could still be found in rural Germany, a form of "primitive democracy freely subject to its natural elite". The idea of the "people"

2425:

A modern pagan movement drawing from various syncretic practices that had survived among the Christianised Mari people was initiated in 1990 that was estimated in 2004 to have won the adherence of 2% of the Mordvin people.

477:

of the term "pagan" by modern pagans served as "a deliberate act of defiance" against "traditional, Christian-dominated society", allowing them to use it as a source of "pride and power". In this, he compared it to the

10802: 2976:

confirmed "some original, private experience, so that the most common experience of those who have named themselves pagan is something like 'I finally found a group that has the same religious perceptions I always had.

4072:, who pointed out parallels between Hinduism and European and Arabic paganism. Swarup reached out to modern pagans in the West and also had an influence on Western converts to Hinduism or pro-Hindu activists, notably 3699:

of conspirators, including hierarchs of the Orthodox Church, Jews, and Muslims. Contrary to external differences, these forces are believed to have united in their desire to maintain power over the Russian "Aryans".

2042:

in 1939, and that the religion he discovered was a survival of the pagan witch-cult described in Murray's theory. Various forms of Wicca have since evolved or been adapted from Gardner's British Traditional Wicca or

6918: 3344:

In Nazi Germany, Germanic pagan folklore, as a source of primordial moral standards, was revered higher than Christianity associated with Judaism. Many Nazis saw anti-Christianity as a deeper form of antisemitism.

1218:

is held by a "significant number" of contemporary pagans. Among those who believe in it, there are a variety of different views about what magic is. Many modern pagans adhere to the definition of magic provided by

9717:

Herrmann-Pfandt, Adelheid (2009). "Hindutva zwischen, Dekolonisierung' und Nationalismus. Zur westlichen Mitwerkung an der Entwicklung neuen hinduistischen Selbstbewusstseins in Indien". In Manfred Hutter (ed.).

4211:, North-East England in 1993. It was organised by two British religious studies scholars, Graham Harvey and Charlotte Hardman. In April 1996 a larger conference dealing with contemporary paganism took place at 4249:

threat to the structure of their beliefs and to their "sense of identity". She furthermore argues that some of those dissatisfied pagans lashed out against academics as a result, particularly on the Internet.

3656:

share the common idea of a pan-European unity based on an "Aryan" identity and the desire to part with Christianity, the period of domination of which is seen as two thousand years of "wandering in darkness."

891:. Among many pagans, there is a strong desire to incorporate the female aspects of the divine in their worship and within their lives, which can partially explain the attitude which sometimes manifests as the 2301:, whom Sättler equated with the Christian Satan, and which purported that the end of the world would come in 2000. Adonism largely died out in the 1930s, but remained an influence on the German occult scene. 3624:

and leaned towards the "Panaryan" Nordic cults. These cults emphasized the idea of a unique closeness of "white people" with nature and the natural "spiritual essence", which was influenced by the ideas of

2527:

Numerous pagan groups – primarily Wiccan and Druidic – exist in Ireland though none is officially recognised by the Government. Irish paganism is often strongly concerned with issues of place and language.

3543:. Members of the universalist and ethnocentric factions criticize those who adopt an "ethnic" stance. The former view "ethnic" modern paganism as a cover for racism, while the latter view its adherents as 526:

geographic area to the highest degree possible; at the other end are those that freely blend traditions of different areas, peoples, and time periods." Strmiska argues that these two poles could be termed

6459:

Archaeology and Fertility Cult in the Ancient Mediterranean: Papers Presented at the First International Conference on Archaeology of the Ancient Mediterranean, the University of Malta, 2-5 September 1985

4017:. An issue of academic debate has been regarding the connection between these movements. Religious studies scholar Sarah Pike asserted that in the United States, there was a "significant overlap" between 1489:

The rise of modern paganism was aided by the decline in Christianity throughout many parts of Europe and North America, as well as by the concomitant decline in enforced religious conformity and greater

1773:. Heathens believe in multiple polytheistic deities adopted from historical Germanic mythologies. Most are polytheistic realists, believing that the deities are real entities, while others view them as 966:

Dennis D. Carpenter noted that the belief in a pantheistic or panentheistic deity has led to the idea of interconnectedness playing a key part in pagans' worldviews. The prominent Reclaiming priestess

3249: 283:

originates in Christian terminology, which individuals who object to the term wish to avoid. Some favor the term "ethnic religion"; the World Pagan Congress, founded in 1998, soon renamed itself the

3562:. According to Kaplan, these adepts occupy the "most remote corners" of modern paganism. The lines between this form of modern paganism and Nazism are "extremely thin" because its adherents praise 2067:

or feminist Wicca, which emphasizes the divine feminine, often creating women-only or lesbian-only groups. In the academic community Wicca has also been interpreted as having close affinities with

256:, with the anthropologist Kathryn Rountree describing paganism as a whole as a "new religious phenomenon". A number of academics, particularly in North America, consider modern paganism a form of 6894: 3062:

view of gender ingrained within it, with female deities being accorded traditional western feminine traits and male deities being similarly accorded what western society saw as masculine traits.

244:

actually represents/represented a profound and meaningful religious worldview and, secondly, that a religious practice based on this worldview can and should be revitalized in our modern world."

2523:

between 2001 and 2011. In 2001, about seven people per 10,000 UK respondents were pagan; in 2011, the number (based on the England and Wales population) was 14.3 people per 10,000 respondents.

3488:", "Aryan", "Northern European", or "English". Völkisch modern pagans generally regard these classifications as self-evident, despite the academic consensus that race is a cultural construct. 3383:

The issue of race is a major source of contention among modern pagans, especially in the United States. In the modern pagan community, one view is that race is entirely a matter of biological

220:. This perspective has been critiqued, given the lack of core commonalities in issues such as theology, cosmology, ethics, afterlife, holy days, or ritual practices within the pagan movement. 10434:

Shlapentokh, Dmitry (2014). Research laboratory "New religious movements in modern Russia and European countries". Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University named after Kozma Minin (ed.).

8605: 2170:, specifically Christianity in the West. Adherents look for elements of this human history in "theological, anthropological, archaeological, historical, folkloric and hagiographic writings." 5219: 2954:

In 2006, there were at least 6,804 (0.164%) pagans among New Zealand's population of approximately 4 million. Respondents were given the option to select one or more religious affiliations.

810:

derives from ancient sources. Contemporary paganism as practiced in the United States in the 1990s has been described as "a synthesis of historical inspiration and present-day creativity".

10596:

Tully, Caroline Jane (2011). "Researching the Past is a Foreign Country: Cognitive Dissonance as a Response by Practitioner Pagans to Academic Research on the History of Pagan Religions".

1280:

and colonization. Increased knowledge of other cultures led to questions of whether their practices even fit into the definitions of religion, and paganism was incorporated in the idea of

3143:

At the beginning of the 20th century, the spiritual crisis in Russia led to a fascination with paganism, at first ancient and then Slavic "native gods," which was especially true for the

1295:

Positive identification with paganism became more common in the 18th and 19th centuries, when it tied in with criticism of Christianity and organized religion, rooted in the ideas of the

600:

of Northern Scandinavia, Siv Ellen Kraft highlights that despite the religion being reconstructionist in intent, it is highly eclectic in the manner in which it has adopted elements from

9103:

Beskov, Andrey (2014). Research laboratory "New religious movements in modern Russia and European countries". Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University named after Kozma Minin (ed.).

963:. In both beliefs, divinity and the material or spiritual universe are one. For pagans, pantheism means that "divinity is inseparable from nature and that deity is immanent in nature". 3472:

particular race. Universalists often complain that some journalists portray modern paganism as an inherently racist movement, so they use the Internet to highlight their opposition to

4223:, North-West England, it was entitled "Nature Religion Today: Western Paganism, Shamanism and Esotericism in the 1990s", and led to the publication of an academic anthology, entitled 3648:

notes the activation of "Aryan" modern paganism in the West and Russia. For example, social movements are thus developing that appeal to the Celtic past and call for a return to the "

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the "radical-racist" faction, which believes that members of other racial groups should not follow their religion because racial identity is the natural religion of the "Aryan race"

887:

It is its inclusion of female deity which distinguishes pagan religions from their Abrahamic counterparts. In Wicca, male and female deities are typically balanced out in a form of

4192:, although it would not be until the 1990s that the actual multidisciplinary academic field of pagan studies properly developed, pioneered by academics such as Graham Harvey and 11185: 10474:

Snook, Jennifer; Horrell, Thad; Horton, Kristen (2017). "Heathens in the United States: The Return to 'Tribes' in the Construction of a Peoplehood". In Rountree, Kathryn (ed.).

8438:

Kraemer, Christine Hoff (9 March 2012). "Contemporary Paganism, Utopian Reading Communities, and Sacred Nonmonogamy: The Religious Impact of Heinlein's and Starhawk's Fiction".

4388:

The very persons who would most writhe and wail at their surroundings if transported back into early Greece, would, I think, be the neo-pagans and Hellas worshipers of today." (

10455:

Simpson, Scott; Filip, Mariusz (2013). "Selected Words for Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe". In Scott Simpson; Kaarina Aitamurto (eds.).

3691:

antisemitism is a logical development of the ideas of neopaganism and imitation of the Nazis and is also a consequence of some specific conditions of modern Russian politics.

3019:

Many pagans in North America encounter the movement through their involvement in other hobbies; particularly popular with US pagans are "golden age-type" pastimes such as the

816:

takes an undogmatic religious stance and therefore potentially sees no one as having authority to deem a source apocryphal. Contemporary paganism has therefore been prone to

9400: 8985:

Aitamurto, Kaarina; Simpson, Scott (2013). "Introduction: Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe". In Scott Simpson; Kaarina Aitamurto (eds.).

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further complicates matters. Nevertheless, there is a slow growing body of data on the subject. In the US, there are estimated to be between 1 and 1.5 million practitioners.

9848: 6915: 10814: 5664: 3868:

that are marginalized by mainstream society." Conflict naturally arises, however, as some neopagan belief systems and sect ideologies stem from fundamental beliefs in the

978:. This has been interpreted in two distinct ways among the pagan community. First, it can refer to a belief that everything in the universe is imbued with a life force or 369:, and that while some pagan worldviews bear similarities to those of indigenous communities, they stem from "different cultural, linguistic, and historical backgrounds". 3629:. According to the doctrine, each race has its predestined role: "whites" are predisposed to strive for God, blacks strive for laziness, and Jews strive for corruption. 1271:

paganism with idolatry, magic and a general concept of "false religion", which for example has made Catholics and Protestants accuse each other of being pagans. Various

8575: 112:, folkloric, and ethnographic sources to a variety of degrees; many of them follow a spirituality that they accept as entirely modern, while others claim to adhere to 584:

Strmiska nevertheless notes that this reconstructionist-eclectic division is "neither as absolute nor as straightforward as it might appear". He cites the example of

9111:(1. Paganism in the 20th–21st centuries: Russian and European context). Nizhny Novgorod: Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University named after Kozma Minin: 11–23. 3802:

Concerning the trend of convergence of neopagan associations from different countries, Andrey Beskov notes that neopagan nationalism is not an obstacle to "neopagan

3424:

an "ethnic" faction seeking to forge a middle path by recognizing their religion's roots in Northern Europe and its connection to people of Northern European origin

3391:

rooted in cultural heritage. In US modern pagan discourse, these views are described as völkische and universalist positions, respectively. The two factions, which

12229: 12078: 8506: 3757:, argued that an ancient developed "Ario-Germanic" culture reached its dawn several millennia before Roman colonization and Christianity. According to him, before 1126:

came to the conclusion, based upon her ethnographic fieldwork in California that certain pagan beliefs "arise from what they experience during religious ecstasy".

236:

characterised paganism as encompassing "all those modern movements which are, first, based on the conviction that what Christianity has traditionally denounced as

7084: 252:

pagan religions, making clear-cut distinctions among them more difficult for scholars to make. The various pagan religions have been academically classified as

1494:

that developed, allowing people to explore a wider range of spiritual options and form religious organisations that could operate free from legal persecution.

538:, conversely, seek general inspiration from the pre-Christian past, and do not attempt to recreate past rites or traditions with specific attention to detail. 4196:. Increasing academic interest in paganism has been attributed to the new religious movement's increasing public visibility, as it began interacting with the 3329:. Influenced by these works, List used the terms "Ario-Germans" and "race" instead of "Germans" and "people", perhaps to emphasize the overlap with the fifth 12502: 2285:, or CUUPs, encourages its chapters to "use practices familiar to members who attend for worship services but not to follow only one tradition of paganism." 1627:

was legally established across Russia and a number of other newly independent states, allowing for the growth in both Christian and non-Christian religions.

683:

Collection of various symbols used for or by modern pagan religions or groups. The symbols are identified by the uploader as (from left to right): 1st Row

223:

Contemporary paganism has been defined as "a collection of modern religious, spiritual, and magical traditions that are self-consciously inspired by the pre-

4148:. They also express disapproval of Christianity's continued missionary efforts around the globe at the expense of indigenous and other polytheistic faiths. 1592:

opened a new chapter in public awareness of paganism. With the growth and spread of large, pagan gatherings and festivals in the 1980s, public varieties of

1284:, where it was ranked as a low, undeveloped form of religion. Another reason for change was the circulation of ancient writings such as those attributed to 19835: 12325: 7568: 3147:. The publicist Daniil Pasmanik (1923) wrote that consistent antisemitism should reject Judaism and Christianity. He noted that this trend had already led 4062:

involving European and Indian traditions. The ECER has made efforts to establish mutual support with Hindu groups, as has the Lithuanian Romuva movement.

2980:" A practicing Wiccan herself, Adler used her own conversion to paganism as a case study, remarking that as a child she had taken a great interest in the 19561: 12340: 10744: 6891: 1445: 1227:: "the Science and Art of causing change to occur in conformity with Will". Also accepted by many is the related definition purportedly provided by the 14943: 12539: 12522: 12517: 12487: 12130: 10861: 3887:

In response, groups and sects inclusive of or specific to LGBT people have developed. Theologian Jone Salomonsen noted in the 1980s and 1990s that the

232:

nature-worshipping pagan religions of pre-Christian Europe and adapting them for the use of people in modern societies." The religious studies scholar

1288:; this made paganism an intellectual position some Europeans began to self-identify with, starting at the latest in the 15th century with people like 18569: 15034: 12497: 12053: 3675:); "Aryan" proto-language (in Rodnoverie, "Slavic-Aryan" or Old Slavic), from which all or many other languages of the world originated; reliance on 3354:. The Nazi ideology combined the veneration of the "pagan heritage of the ancestors" with puritanical, Christian sexual morality, which the "Nordic" 2131:

that were matristic or goddess-centered worshipping a female deity of three primary aspects, which has inspired some modern pagan worshippers of the

413:. Strmiska believed that modern pagans in part reappropriate the term "pagan" to honor the cultural achievements of Europe's pre-Christian societies. 10103: 9145:

Carpenter, Dennis D. (1996). "Emergent Nature Spirituality: An Examination of the Major Spiritual Contours of the Contemporary Pagan Worldview". In

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Some modern pagans of the völkisch movement are white supremacists and outright racists representing a "radical racist" faction that uses the names

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traditions. The establishment and growth of the Internet in the 1990s brought rapid growth to these, and other pagan movements. By the time of the

200:

in its structure. A second, less common definition found within pagan studies – promoted by the religious studies scholars Michael F. Strmiska and

5193: 18843: 17325: 3956:, "you have to have sometimes in your life a womb, and ovaries and and not die". This belief and the way it is expressed is often denounced as 3799:(1970s). Shizhensky notes that the neopagan myth about Vladimir contradicts scientific work on the issue and the totality of historical sources. 3432:

accepted Gardell's tripartite division, and referred to these groups as the "aracist", "racial-religious", and "ethnic" factions, respectively.

2999:

supported this idea, noting that a great many of those Californian pagans whom she interviewed claimed that they had been greatly interested in

1505:

periods (also extending in some instances into the 1920s), via the works of amateur folklorists, popular authors, poets, political radicals and

19814: 18382: 12209: 11659: 6804: 8315: 6426: 3311:, List used the Scandinavian epic and the work of contemporary theosophists, in particular Max Ferdinand Sebaldt von Werth, who described the 777:

Although they acknowledged that it was "a highly simplified model", Aitamurto and Simpson wrote that there was "some truth" to the claim that

9004:

Amster, Matthew H. (2015). "It's Not Easy Being Apolitical: Reconstructionism and Eclecticism in Danish Asatro". In Kathryn Rountree (ed.).

6856: 6841: 6822: 6706: 6067:. p.97: "Some pagans embrace the idea of a pan-European Celtic culture, but some practice regionally specific reconstructionist traditions." 1671:

practice culturally specific ethnic traditions based on folklore, songs and prayers, as well as reconstructions from the historical record.

757:

is central to their religion, and some restrict membership to a single ethnic group. Some critics have described this approach as a form of

18334: 15682: 12775: 9357: 7313: 6993: 5908: 3620:, also created the Cosmotheistic Community Church in 1978. He considered the teaching he created within the framework of this church to be 3132:, is often identified with religion, so there is a desire to create or revive one's religion or nationalize one of the world's religions. 9860:

Kraft, Siv Ellen (2015). "Sami Neo-shamanism in Norway: Colonial Grounds, Ethnic Revival and Pagan Pathways". In Kathryn Rountree (ed.).

5967: 2313:

still prevalent among pagans, limited numbers are willing to openly be counted. The decentralised nature of paganism and sheer number of

1423: 10238:

Rountree, Kathryn (2015). "Context is Everything: Plurality and Paradox in Contemporary European Paganisms". In Kathryn Rountree (ed.).

17370: 17297: 14468: 13569: 11859: 10542:

Strmiska, Michael F.; Sigurvinsson, Baldur A. (2005). "Asatru: Nordic Paganism in Iceland and America". In Strmiska, Michael F. (ed.).

10218: 9961:

McCann, W. J. (1990). "«Volk und Germanentum»: the presentation of the past in Nazi Germany". In Gathercole, P.; Lowenthal, D. (eds.).

9529:

The occult roots of Nazism. Secret Aryan Cults and Their Influence on Nazi Ideology: The Ariosophists of Austria and Germany, 1890-1935

4163: 4108: 3585:, a white supremacist militia operating in the US in the 1980s, called themselves Odinists. Various racist modern pagans supported the 3369: 2310: 876:

first came to their adopted faiths because it allowed a greater freedom, diversity, and tolerance of worship among the community. This

3694:

Unlike previous regimes, the current Russian political regime and the ideology of the middle class combine support for Orthodoxy with

3535:

Ethnocentric modern pagans are highly critical of their universalist counterparts, often claiming that the latter have been misled by

820:, especially in recent years as information and misinformation alike have been spread on the Internet and in print media. A number of 19830: 19703: 17170: 13547: 11778: 10838: 10289: 2326: 2282: 1651: 201: 17621: 8943: 8536: 6644: 3140:, who shared Heine's opinion, noted the regularity of the tendency of the transition of German antisemitism into anti-Christianity. 1497:

Historian Ronald Hutton has argued that many of the motifs of 20th century neo-paganism may be traced back to the utopian, mystical

19687: 17461: 17335: 17320: 11172: 10935: 10639: 6203:

Introduction to the Study of Prehistoric Ethnogenic Processes in Eastern Europe and Asia, The Turkic Tribe Bulgar in Eastern Europe

4151:

Some Christian authors have published books criticizing modern paganism, while other Christian critics have equated paganism with

1991: 318: 10671: 913:

Pagan religions commonly exhibit a metaphysical concept of an underlying order that pervades the universe, such as the concept of

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ideology of radical ethnic nationalism of the dominant population, spread. The central elements of the worldview were racism and

2752:

on religion, there are over one million pagans in the United States. Up to 0.4% of respondents answered "pagan" or "Wiccan" when

2330: 1672: 1533: 448:, usually by outsiders and often pejoratively. Pagan as a self-designation appeared in 1964 and 1965, in the publications of the 6573: 5656: 3773:

or priests had to hide in secret places, preserving the knowledge that was now passed onto their direct descendants, Rodnovers.

2380:

faith has been revived after the fall of the Soviet Union, and followers of modern pagan faiths were found to constitute 12% in

2074:

In the 1990s, Wiccan beliefs and practices were used as a partial basis for a number of US films and television series, such as

456:

pagan movement. The modern popularisation of the terms pagan and neopagan as they are currently understood is largely traced to

19188: 11421: 4144: 3707: 1168: 15260: 7440: 6339: 4458: 89:. Despite some common similarities, contemporary pagan movements are diverse, sharing no single set of beliefs, practices, or 19804: 19764: 18562: 17481: 13494: 13251: 11738: 11482: 11452: 11345: 10925: 10850: 10700: 10577: 10551: 10513: 10487: 10464: 10398: 10351: 10266: 10247: 10203: 9934: 9869: 9818: 9791: 9769: 9750: 9729: 9707: 9656: 9637: 9603: 9562: 9512: 9470: 9419: 9269: 9225: 9177: 9158: 9135: 9034: 9013: 8994: 8975: 6370: 6333: 6123: 4301: 2677: 2346: 284: 8559: 5513:

Clifton, Chas S. (Fall 1988). "A Goddess Arrives: The Novels of Dion Fortune and the Development of Gardnerian Witchcraft".

3162:

German occultism and modern paganism arose in the early 20th century, and they became influential through teachings such as

3109:

are prevalent. Faith and dogmas give way to active practices, including psychotechnics, which was extensively influenced by

452:; at that time, the term was in use by Wiccans in the United States and the United Kingdom, but unconnected to the broader, 19409: 18991: 18838: 17946: 14938: 13113: 12825: 12125: 11930: 11742: 11077: 11068: 10214: 9552: 4296: 2536: 2088: 1676: 873: 97:

may study the phenomenon as a movement divided into different religions, while others study neopaganism as a decentralized

8870: 19228: 18640: 18064: 17345: 16941: 11050: 9721:

Religionswissenschaft im Kontext der Asienwissenschaften. 99 Jahre religionswissenschaftliche Lehre und Forschung in Bonn

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classifies paganism as an affiliation under which several sub-classifications may optionally be specified. This includes

2422:, for whom between a quarter and a half of the Mari either worship the pagan gods or are members of modern pagan groups. 541:

On the reconstructionist side can be placed those movements which often favour the designation "Native Faith", including

491:

his or her definitive break" from Christianity. He further suggests that the term gained appeal through its depiction in

10435: 10140:"The Völkisch Modernist Beginnings of National Socialism: Its Intrusion into the Church and Its Antisemitic Consequence" 2281:

are eclectic pagans. Unitarian Universalists look for spiritual inspiration in a wide variety of religious beliefs. The

880:

perspective has helped the varied factions of modern paganism exist in relative harmony. Most pagans adopt an ethos of "

19178: 19153: 18897: 18823: 18274: 18004: 17886: 17340: 15920: 13832: 13098: 12666: 11963: 11879: 11634: 11536: 10328: 10195: 9915: 9684: 9629: 9442: 9330: 9053: 8498: 3841: 3196: 1744: 1688: 1536:; such similarity is now thought to actually derive from there having been a standard set of questions laid out in the 546: 213: 43: 7080: 5633: 3781: 3459:

Universalists favorably accept practitioners of modern paganism who are not of Northern European origin; for example,

2439:

adherents represented by each attendee of a pagan gathering. Hutton estimated that there are 250,000 modern pagans in

18909: 18694: 18324: 17145: 14353: 13088: 11864: 11258: 10532: 10376: 10172: 10064: 10019: 9837: 9828:

Kelly, Aidan A. (1992). "An Update on Neopagan Witchcraft in America". In James R. Lewis and J. Gordon Melton (ed.).

9541: 9381: 8926: 6788: 6474: 6466: 6395: 6085: 6064: 5213: 4362: 3819: 3613: 3226:. This ideology significantly impacted various aspects of German culture at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. 2217: 1684: 3925:

existence and acceptability is especially controversial in many neopagan sects. One of the most notable of these is

357:". Similarly, Strmiska stresses that modern paganism should not be conflated with the belief systems of the world's 279:, preferring to use more specific names for their religion, such as "Heathen" or "Wiccan". This is because the term 19719: 18858: 18808: 18555: 18377: 15930: 11798: 11644: 11487: 6875: 6728: 6181: 4180:

The earliest academic studies of contemporary paganism were published in the late 1970s and 1980s by scholars like

3571: 3020: 2221: 1841: 1134: 898:

There are exceptions to polytheism in paganism, as seen for instance in the form of Ukrainian paganism promoted by

10717: 6551: 4400:, 1877, iv. 193); "Pre-Raphaelitism has got mixed up with æstheticism, neo-paganism, and other such fantasies." ( 4333: 3730:

Schnirelmann, "Russian neopaganism is a radical variety of conservative ideology, which is distinguished by frank

1532:. Historians now reject Murray's theory, as she based it partially upon the similarities of the accounts given by 19840: 19334: 19026: 18339: 18234: 17360: 17355: 17311: 16936: 15780: 15002: 13987: 11664: 5170: 4401: 3810:, one of the manifestations of which was the popularity of ethnic religions, itself acquires a global character. 3766: 3575: 3199:

organization "Germanic Faith Community" (Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft, GGG), founded by the artist and poet

3016:

pagan, you discover that you always were". They have also been supported by Pagan studies scholar Graham Harvey.

2875: 2772: 2768: 1616: 449: 17: 10442:(in Russian) (1). Nizhny Novgorod: Nizhny Novgorod State Pedagogical University named after Kozma Minin: 76–85. 9399: (2016). "New paganism, neo-paganism, Rodnovery: the problem of terminology". In Shizhensky, Roman (ed.). 7558: 2011:

in the mid-1950s, the poem allows Wiccans to gain wisdom and experience deity in "the ordinary things in life."

592:, by noting that it exhibits eclectic tendencies by adopting a monotheistic focus and ceremonial structure from 19777: 19621: 18986: 18929: 18743: 18194: 18019: 17292: 16306: 16247: 16134: 16013: 15945: 14331: 13969: 13888: 13266: 12981: 12710: 12330: 11505: 11472: 11390: 10761: 10324: 9849:"The Theory of German Continuity by O. Hoefler in the German Scientific and Political Space of the Third Reich" 6910: 6761: 4042:

criticism of the high fees charged by New Age teachers, something not typically present in the pagan movement.

3590: 3440:

emphasize that ancient northern Europeans married and had children with members of other ethnic groups, and in

2455: 2393: 2388:(both republics are multiethnic and also have many non-Circassians, especially Russians and Turkic peoples) In 2338: 1668: 1662: 1612: 1315:

as a powerful alternative to Christianity, whereas others took interest in paganism through the concept of the

121: 117: 19794: 16426: 16301: 863:

One view in the pagan community is that these polytheistic deities are not viewed as literal entities, but as

18863: 18344: 17759: 17496: 17155: 17004: 16926: 16348: 15390: 14901: 13540: 12855: 12688: 11293: 11059: 7467: 6699:

Of United Vera Abhazskyh "Christians" & "Muslims." Features of religious consciousness in Modern Abkhazia

1381: 470:, used both terms for the growing movement. This usage has been common since the pagan revival in the 1970s. 3975:

people who should seek other beliefs due to the Alexandrian focus on heterosexual reproduction and duality.

3605:, while other racist modern pagans, such as Wotanist Ron McVan, reject the syncretism of the two religions. 3040:

personal growth that they imparted, their support for environmentalism or feminism, and a sense of freedom.

1596:

continued to further diversify into additional, eclectic sub-denominations, often heavily influenced by the

1059: 167:

movement, with scholars highlighting their similarities as well as their differences. The academic field of

18773: 18611: 18402: 18204: 15412: 14120: 13093: 11915: 11849: 11572: 11431: 11313: 11207: 9285:"Northern Gods for Northern Folk: Racial Identity and Right-wing Ideology among Britain's Folkish Heathens" 6967: 4258: 3598: 3231: 3105:. The nationalist sentiments expressed by modern pagans in Western countries are marginal, so the ideas of 2205: 2132: 1692: 1578: 19369: 16436: 10409: 3380:. These groups believe that the Germanic beliefs they hold constitute the true Caucasoid ethnic religion. 1308: 19193: 18606: 18412: 18124: 18119: 17891: 16409: 16370: 15925: 15839: 15407: 15071: 13737: 12790: 12734: 11639: 11477: 11378: 10978: 10091: 9345: 9128: 8210: 7563: 7318: 4018: 4002: 3984: 3807: 3803: 1830: 700: 160: 31: 16441: 16431: 8408: 6096:

religions in an effort to create a well-researched and scholarly 'reconstruction' of the ancient Celts."

3276: 1037:

have their own natural religion, with many legitimate interpretations of divinity, and therefore reject

1022:

itself. The animistic aspects of pagan theology assert that all things have a soul - not just humans or

19464: 19449: 19168: 17185: 17130: 16826: 15566: 15061: 13732: 13674: 11686: 10903:

Doyle White, Ethan (2010). "The Meaning of 'Wicca': A Study in Etymology, History and Pagan Politics".

9528: 9486: 9457: 6694:Единая Вера Абхазских "Христиан" и "Мусульман". Особенности религиозного сознания в современной Абхазии 4286: 2519: 2451: 1704: 1636: 910:. As noted above, pagans with naturalistic worldviews may not believe in or work with deities at all. 15154: 3337:" and the "race of slaves" and about the ancestral home of the "Aryans" on the sunken polar island of 2000:

Wicca is the largest form of modern paganism, as well as the best-known and most extensively studied.

1159:

was a common part of pre-Christian ritual in Europe, it is rarely practiced in contemporary paganism.

19799: 19163: 18868: 18628: 18437: 18226: 18084: 17536: 16419: 16198: 15829: 15459: 14982: 14114: 13866: 13703: 13658: 13489: 12895: 12676: 12478: 12184: 11338: 11286: 10056: 9779: 9504: 9462: 9104: 4240: 3706:, radical nationalists. In Russia, individual neopagan organizations and essays were included in the 3392: 2360: 1712: 1605: 1099: 429: 16537: 9581:

Hakl, Hans Thomas (2010). "Franz Sättler (Dr. Musallam) and the Twentieth-Century Cult of Adonism".

8312: 6674: 4432: 2894:, and Wicca/Witchcraft. As a result, fairly detailed breakdowns of pagan respondents are available. 2225: 2007:" remains central to the liturgy of most Wiccan groups. Originally written by Wiccan High Priestess 353:

or the Americas, cannot be seen as part of the contemporary pagan movement, which is "fundamentally

19861: 19809: 19708: 19541: 19414: 19183: 19104: 19089: 18793: 18763: 18736: 18716: 18645: 17941: 17901: 17856: 17646: 17636: 17441: 17190: 17015: 16951: 16921: 16811: 16576: 16485: 16453: 16414: 16326: 15223: 14448: 14384: 13854: 13839: 13533: 12705: 12566: 12088: 11824: 11492: 11447: 10414:

Bulletin of the Buryat State University. Philosophy, Sociology, Political Science, Cultural Studies

10183: 9897: 9617: 9452: 9146: 6420: 4340: 4014: 3888: 3429: 3414:

divides modern paganism in the United States into three factions according to their racial stance:

3102: 2220:. In the United States, the Ancient Order of Druids in America (AODA) was established in 1912, the 2124: 1786: 1553: 184:

There is "considerable disagreement as to the precise definition and the proper usage" of the term

144:, upholding virtues and principles associated with paganism while maintaining a secular worldview. 51: 14891: 9971: 5205: 1095: 171:

began to coalesce in the 1990s, emerging from disparate scholarship in the preceding two decades.

19294: 19114: 19080: 18679: 18392: 18329: 18279: 18239: 18184: 17819: 17814: 17704: 17651: 17541: 17471: 17267: 17073: 16988: 16193: 16171: 15970: 15792: 15317: 14933: 14860: 14544: 13915: 13715: 13624: 13178: 12162: 12120: 11718: 11121: 11013: 10386: 9984: 9284: 6692: 6093: 5900: 4220: 3726: 2573: 2193: 2038:

was at the forefront of the burgeoning Wiccan movement. He claimed to have been initiated by the

2035: 1950: 1873: 1391: 707: 664: 622: 346: 301:

areas of Europe, the term "Native Faith" is often favored as a synonym for paganism, rendered as

253: 3211:

In Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Völkisch movement, characterized by a

1332: 19789: 19737: 19732: 19601: 19591: 19556: 19324: 18725: 18674: 18670: 18578: 18259: 18154: 18114: 18094: 17951: 17926: 17831: 17804: 17754: 17724: 17714: 17631: 17596: 17581: 17566: 17521: 17456: 17125: 17056: 16961: 16956: 16697: 16620: 16382: 16264: 16188: 15985: 15975: 15834: 15802: 15740: 15711: 15218: 15213: 14997: 14878: 14838: 14623: 13964: 13959: 13939: 13935: 13397: 13323: 13303: 13173: 13108: 13037: 12805: 12613: 12544: 12448: 12093: 11956: 11708: 11457: 11227: 10971: 10810: 10782: 9353: 6115: 5158: 4393: 3493: 3388: 2863: 2503: 2278: 2092:, leading to a surge in teenagers' and young adults' interest and involvement in the religion. 1442:, the widespread emergence of pagan themes in popular literature, and the rise of nationalism. 1312: 840: 656: 638: 457: 217: 102: 78: 19284: 10426: 5975: 4392:, letter of 5 April 1868, cited after OED); "The neopagan impulse of the classical revival". ( 4092: 4084:

has drawn much inspiration from Hinduism and visited Swarup in India. Reviewing Gérard's book

3418:

the "anti-racist" faction, which denounces any connection between religion and racial identity

2018:

identified a wide variety of different sources that influenced Wicca's development, including

941: 588:, a form of reconstructionist paganism that seeks to revive the pre-Christian religion of the 19747: 19459: 19379: 19208: 19016: 18939: 18778: 18768: 18500: 18445: 18362: 18314: 18289: 18089: 17911: 17906: 17774: 17764: 17586: 17262: 17200: 17020: 16966: 16387: 16365: 16284: 16225: 15891: 15330: 15181: 14311: 13910: 13822: 13066: 13044: 12785: 12463: 12320: 12259: 12179: 12147: 11900: 11577: 11249: 10240:

Contemporary Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Europe: Colonialist and Nationalist Impulses

9862:

Contemporary Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Europe: Colonialist and Nationalist Impulses

9809:

Radical Religion in America: Millenarian Movements from the Far Right to the Children of Noah

9782:(1996). "The Reconstruction of the Ásatrú and Odinist Traditions". In Lewis, James R. (ed.). 9434: 9235:

Doyle White, Ethan (2012). "In Defense of Pagan Studies: A Response to Davidsen's Critique".

9091: 9079: 9006:

Contemporary Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Europe: Colonialist and Nationalist Impulses

6454: 6089: 4225: 4135: 3849: 3609: 3540: 2784: 2314: 2027: 2004: 1646: 1521: 1506: 1450: 1331:, some public figures incorporated pagan themes in their worldviews. An explicit example was 1328: 1320: 1038: 915: 722: 437: 39: 15201: 15149: 9719: 6107: 4207:

The first international academic conference on the subject of pagan studies was held at the

4081: 19636: 19631: 19616: 19444: 19259: 19146: 18924: 18731: 18490: 18480: 18465: 18372: 18299: 18269: 18244: 18209: 18169: 18164: 18139: 18009: 17931: 17881: 17861: 17851: 17739: 17686: 17661: 17511: 17506: 17486: 17451: 17436: 17380: 17150: 17083: 17051: 16931: 16866: 16732: 16610: 16463: 16343: 16242: 16154: 16122: 16117: 15965: 15697: 15066: 14950: 14534: 14294: 13905: 13849: 13800: 13785: 13638: 13434: 13163: 13103: 12800: 12780: 12623: 12576: 12507: 12492: 12468: 12453: 12426: 12367: 11768: 11698: 11467: 11331: 10726:(Technical report). Australia: Pagan Awareness Network Inc. Australia. 2012. Archived from 10610: 10346:(in Russian). Biblical Theological Institute of St. Andrew the Apostle. p. xiv + 302. 10301: (2009). "Lev Gumilyov: from "passionate tension" to "incompatibility of cultures"". 6088:. p.12: "Some groups have gone even further, trying to use archaeology, religious history, 4208: 4059: 4051: 3865: 3731: 3617: 3594: 3407:. A 2015 survey showed that more modern pagans adhere to universalist ideas than völkisch. 3377: 3333:

in Blavatsky's scheme. List and Lanz developed ideas about the struggle between the "Aryan

3326: 3117: 3086: 2414: 2334: 2156: 2119:

The Goddess movement draws some of its inspiration from the work of archaeologists such as

2107: 1525: 1407: 1296: 1178: 979: 937: 734: 660: 461: 330: 153: 113: 18665: 15265: 14147: 6819: 4306: 3204: 3170: 2467: 1431: 1018:, and on humanity's membership of the natural world, bound in kinship to all life and the 8: 19753: 19713: 19656: 19626: 19596: 19254: 19119: 19006: 18902: 18495: 18470: 18450: 18427: 18354: 18304: 18284: 18199: 18189: 18144: 18104: 18059: 18054: 18044: 18034: 18029: 18024: 18014: 17999: 17994: 17989: 17984: 17979: 17956: 17866: 17841: 17719: 17709: 17671: 17641: 17626: 17611: 17601: 17591: 17556: 17551: 17501: 17446: 17421: 17365: 17222: 17205: 17093: 17088: 17078: 16946: 16747: 16660: 16605: 16581: 16468: 16353: 16311: 16106: 15955: 15583: 15375: 15250: 15029: 14816: 14701: 14629: 14519: 14440: 14267: 13920: 13744: 13590: 13499: 13226: 13221: 13168: 13138: 13133: 13017: 12693: 12618: 12581: 12382: 12279: 12063: 11814: 11805: 11773: 11703: 11669: 11654: 11649: 11524: 11400: 11132: 11027: 10757: 10280: 10276: 10029:

Oboler, Regina Smith (2010). "Negotiating Gender Essentialism in Contemporary Paganism".

9405:(in Russian). Nizhyn Novgorod: Minin University, Typography Volga region. pp. 24–46. 9188: 8940: 8528: 7530: 6857:"Christians! Go home": A Revival of Neo-Paganism between the Baltic Sea and Transcaucasia 6842:"Christians! Go home": A Revival of Neo-Paganism between the Baltic Sea and Transcaucasia 6636: 4265: 4197: 4089: 4001:

Since the 1960s and 1970s, contemporary paganism, or neo-paganism, and the then emergent

3949: 3891:

movement of San Francisco featured an unusually high number of LGBT people, particularly

3881: 3877: 3845: 3722: 3718: 3660: 3317: 2419: 2381: 2167: 1863: 1797: 1624: 1491: 1476: 1285: 1242: 1109: 888: 877: 782: 742: 718: 692: 433: 418: 326: 193: 128:, which blend elements from various religions and philosophies with historical paganism. 18981: 10624:"Russian neopaganism in the context of the problem of religious and political extremism" 9879: 4095:

described Gérard's activities as part of the development of a "Western-Hindu 'pagan axis

3702:

Some associations of neopaganism, in particular Slavic, are evaluated by researchers as

3645: 955:

concept of a universe that is interconnected. This is connected with a belief in either

781:-oriented forms of paganism were prevalent in North America and the British Isles while 19772: 19546: 19484: 19479: 19244: 19198: 19173: 19158: 19099: 19070: 18877: 18848: 18828: 18475: 18455: 18422: 18319: 18309: 18254: 18249: 18179: 18159: 18149: 18134: 18129: 18109: 18079: 18074: 18049: 18039: 17971: 17936: 17921: 17826: 17799: 17789: 17749: 17734: 17729: 17681: 17676: 17616: 17571: 17531: 17426: 17413: 17215: 17195: 17120: 16993: 16816: 16490: 16448: 16289: 16257: 16232: 16159: 16139: 15960: 15908: 15896: 15874: 15466: 15424: 15297: 15122: 15117: 15112: 14911: 14695: 14671: 14050: 13974: 13722: 13668: 13439: 13343: 13158: 13071: 13049: 12932: 12880: 12820: 12715: 12473: 12441: 12431: 12392: 12387: 12357: 12347: 12204: 11693: 11594: 11582: 11546: 11405: 11154: 10891: 10667: 10663: 10643: 10561: 10479: 10070: 10000: 8967:

Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers and Other Pagans in America

8965: 6798: 6543: 6535: 5162: 5154: 4118: 4027: 3953: 3930: 3900: 3777: 3638: 3502: 3473: 3129: 3079: 2741: 2697: 2463: 2385: 2342: 2068: 1819: 1808: 1774: 1700: 1696: 1377: 1368: 1304: 1215: 1211: 1049: 881: 864: 778: 738: 688: 445: 358: 350: 19499: 15578: 15127: 14723: 14453: 2309:

Establishing precise figures on paganism is difficult. Due to the secrecy and fear of

19742: 19576: 19566: 19551: 19509: 19203: 19075: 19001: 18949: 18882: 18833: 18758: 18618: 18532: 18526: 18460: 18417: 18407: 18397: 18387: 18294: 18214: 18174: 18099: 18069: 17961: 17916: 17896: 17871: 17846: 17809: 17794: 17769: 17744: 17656: 17606: 17561: 17546: 17526: 17516: 17491: 17431: 17375: 17135: 16911: 16507: 16478: 16402: 16397: 16358: 16296: 16252: 16237: 16220: 16215: 16210: 16149: 15884: 15770: 15536: 15506: 15486: 15307: 15102: 15083: 15078: 14992: 14955: 14676: 14591: 14514: 14412: 14402: 14370: 14358: 14326: 14303: 14285: 14181: 14036: 13944: 13930: 13893: 13881: 13710: 13629: 13581: 13059: 12922: 12902: 12810: 12727: 12722: 12698: 12598: 12591: 12559: 12554: 12421: 12416: 12404: 12362: 12224: 12194: 11949: 11626: 11559: 11368: 11216: 11165: 10921: 10895: 10846: 10696: 10628:

Scientific Bulletin of the Omsk Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia

10573: 10547: 10528: 10509: 10483: 10460: 10443: 10394: 10372: 10347: 10262: 10243: 10199: 10168: 10155: 10078: 10060: 10046: 10015: 9949: 9930: 9911: 9865: 9833: 9814: 9787: 9765: 9746: 9740: 9725: 9703: 9680: 9652: 9633: 9599: 9558: 9537: 9508: 9466: 9438: 9415: 9387: 9326: 9304: 9265: 9221: 9173: 9154: 9131: 9083: 9049: 9030: 9026:

A Community of Witches: Contemporary Neo-Paganism and Witchcraft in the United States

9024: 9009: 8990: 8971: 8922: 8567: 8455: 8270: 6784: 6577: 6547: 6470: 6401: 6391: 6366: 6329: 6119: 6108: 6081: 6060: 5209: 5166: 3968: 3792: 3634: 3521: 3396: 3361: 3200: 3186: 3144: 2737: 2506:

made their faith the fourth largest religion after Christianity, Islam and Hinduism.

2048: 1720: 1716: 1611:

The 1980s and 1990s also saw an increasing interest in serious academic research and

1415: 1324: 1277: 1199: 945: 836: 813: 726: 703: 542: 248: 233: 125: 94: 15990: 15588: 15238: 14960: 12815: 10644:"Invented Culture/Invented Religion: The Fictional Origins of Contemporary Paganism" 9883: 6935:

Butler, Jenny, "Irish neo-paganism". pages 111–130 in Olivia Cosgrove et al. (eds),

6216:

Religious Developments among the Volga Nations as a Model for the Russian Federation

5355:, pp. 94–5 (Sanders), 78 (Anderson), 83 (Gardner), 87 (Fitch), 90 (Pendderwen). 5150: 4878: 3824: 2184:

Druidry shows similar heterogeneity as Wicca. It draws inspirations from historical

2147:, with communities being egalitarian, pacifistic, and focused on the worship of the 325:, the modern pagan movement can be treated as part of the same global phenomenon as 263: 19469: 19314: 19304: 19053: 18961: 18934: 18892: 18813: 18753: 18748: 18689: 18485: 18367: 18264: 17876: 17836: 17784: 17779: 17696: 17666: 17576: 17466: 17330: 17282: 17277: 16836: 16801: 16774: 16532: 16517: 16392: 16316: 16166: 16144: 16052: 15913: 15692: 15655: 15511: 15496: 15444: 15228: 15208: 15176: 15171: 15142: 15137: 15049: 15039: 14848: 14812: 14804: 14775: 14688: 14608: 14603: 14566: 14556: 14482: 14420: 14262: 14099: 13949: 13607: 13481: 13422: 13271: 13256: 13246: 12957: 12927: 12795: 12681: 12671: 12608: 12397: 12374: 12352: 12199: 12073: 12058: 11793: 11783: 11763: 11600: 11395: 11088: 11084: 10881: 10873: 10688: 10655: 10191: 10151: 9625: 9458:

The Occult Roots of Nazism: Secret Aryan Cults and Their Influence on Nazi Ideology

9296: 9244: 9202: 8447: 7437:"NATIONAL SOCIALISM • Great Russian encyclopedia - electronic version (in Russian)" 7436: 6527: 5201: 5146: 4450: 4235: 4066: 3934: 3649: 3529: 3517: 3509: 3497: 3468: 3346: 3308: 3293: 3285: 3137: 2996: 2764: 2595: 2459: 2259: 2241: 2179: 2128: 2113: 2101: 2076: 2044: 2039: 2019: 1962: 1930: 1749: 1732: 1728: 1604:

movements. These open, unstructured or loosely structured traditions contrast with

1588: 1472: 1250: 1246: 1228: 1220: 1156: 1123: 1080: 1053: 746: 684: 679: 668: 642: 570: 391: 379: 298: 209: 197: 145: 109: 19389: 16129: 10756:(Technical report). Washington D.C.: Pew Forum Web Publishing and Communications; 10589:

Which Witch Is Which? A Concise Guide to Wiccan and Neo-Pagan Paths and Traditions

9596:

New Age Religion and Western Culture: Esotericism in the Mirror of Secular Thought

7631: 6363:

The Language of the Goddess: Unearthing the Hidden Symbols of Western Civilization

4080:, who both have described Hinduism as a form of paganism. The modern pagan writer 3788:

and one of the leading Russian neopagan myths in terms of worldview significance.

2967:

Based upon her study of the pagan community in the United States, the sociologist

1234:: "magic is the art and science of changing consciousness according to the Will". 933: 116:, or else, they attempt to revive indigenous religions as accurately as possible. 19494: 19399: 19329: 19319: 19279: 19058: 18914: 18536: 17160: 17140: 16630: 16522: 16512: 16181: 15640: 15620: 15551: 15516: 15449: 15233: 15159: 15132: 15107: 15044: 15007: 14795: 14738: 14509: 14026: 13827: 13753: 13693: 13648: 13617: 13427: 13375: 13295: 13128: 12999: 12937: 12875: 12830: 12603: 12549: 12534: 12458: 12436: 12409: 12335: 12174: 12167: 12157: 12015: 11941: 11854: 11373: 11279: 11223: 11161: 11128: 11020: 10366: 10341: 10074: 9901: 9884:"Aryan myth - Russian view / Translation from French by Dmitry Bayuk. 03/25/2010" 9807: 9377: 9320: 9215: 9193: 8947: 8319: 6971: 6922: 6898: 6879: 6765: 6678: 6323: 6319: 6185: 4436: 4193: 4185: 3916: 3908: 3904: 3873: 3742: 3441: 3411: 3253: 3235: 3106: 3098: 3094: 2925: 2883: 2760: 2687: 2667: 2209: 2120: 2031: 2008: 1769:

as a basis for their beliefs, conceiving of the Earth as on the great world tree

1766: 1517: 1411: 1289: 1195: 1191: 1142: 1068: 892: 786: 771: 634: 578: 535: 474: 366: 257: 10222: 9095: 6270:

Hidden Circles in the Web: Feminist Wicca, Occult Knowledge, and Process Thought

5974:. The Online Archive of Nineteenth-Century U.S. Women's Writings. Archived from 4339:

The references used may be made clearer with a different or consistent style of

3907:'s Minoan Brotherhood, a Wiccan sect that combines the iconography from ancient 1339:

by performing pagan rites and arguing for renewed pagan religiosity in his book

432:. By the mid-1930s "neopagan" was being applied to new religious movements like 19784: 19504: 19489: 19454: 19439: 19394: 19349: 19339: 19249: 19126: 18976: 18853: 18798: 18721: 18684: 17287: 17175: 17115: 16831: 16806: 16591: 16495: 16377: 16321: 16274: 15687: 15635: 15531: 15501: 15481: 15476: 15471: 15454: 15350: 15270: 15243: 15196: 15186: 14198: 13861: 13844: 13663: 13643: 13612: 13514: 13509: 13471: 13231: 12952: 12912: 12907: 12890: 12885: 12739: 12628: 12254: 11874: 11819: 11426: 11176: 11046: 10505: 9116: 8866: 7019: 4344: 4189: 4022: 3912: 3750: 3586: 3437: 3372:, have infiltrated or assimilated many Germanic modern pagan movements such as 3272: 3133: 2736:

Canada does not provide extremely detailed records of religious adherence. Its

2562: 2471: 2440: 2229: 2148: 2060: 1946: 1942: 1906: 1902: 1601: 1498: 1419: 1076: 1011: 1005: 479: 453: 334: 90: 14463: 10692: 9487:

The Occult Roots of Nazism: The Ariosophists of Austria and Germany, 1890–1935

9300: 6531: 6516:"The Scouring of the Shire: Fairies, Trolls and Pixies in Eco-Protest Culture" 3492:

their race and religion by saying that religion is inextricably linked to the

19855: 19651: 19581: 19404: 19269: 19264: 19223: 19063: 18919: 18783: 17210: 16764: 16645: 16037: 16032: 15980: 15817: 15755: 15650: 15541: 15439: 15370: 15302: 15292: 15255: 15191: 15088: 15054: 14972: 14868: 14831: 14750: 14658: 14109: 14060: 13765: 13392: 13151: 12917: 12870: 12274: 12219: 12214: 12142: 12048: 11869: 11713: 11117: 11106: 10994: 10877: 10447: 10315: 10135: 10052: 10042: 9953: 9308: 9124: 9087: 9067: 8571: 8459: 6405: 4389: 4216: 4175: 4114: 4077: 4073: 3869: 3785: 3695: 3652:

religions" of pre-Christian Europe. For the most part, the French and German

3513: 3464: 3239: 3071: 2435: 2258:

imagery and a belief in the possibility of intercession by the fae (fairies,

2251: 2140: 2056: 2015: 1926: 1896: 1502: 1138: 983: 767: 762: 574: 441: 387: 189: 168: 15879: 13054: 11552: 10659: 8365: 8313:

List of organizations recognized by Russian courts as extremist (in Russian)

3155:

and, in the future, in his opinion, would inevitably lead Russia to worship

1564:

was notably influenced by feminism, leading to the creation of an eclectic,

585: 19726: 19661: 19606: 19474: 19374: 19359: 19289: 19038: 18954: 18655: 18635: 17350: 17252: 17108: 16796: 16791: 16769: 16759: 16640: 16072: 16007: 15950: 15935: 15901: 15526: 15434: 14430: 14321: 14316: 14167: 14137: 14011: 13979: 13727: 13698: 13685: 13504: 13444: 13407: 13308: 13261: 13123: 13076: 12947: 11910: 11615: 11607: 11383: 11300: 11203: 10572:] (in German). Vol. 5. Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J.B. Metzler. 9888: 9316: 7699: 7697: 6325:

The Gods and Goddesses of Old Europe, 6500-3500 B.C.: Myths and Cult Images

6059:

Davy, Barbara Jane (2007) "Introduction to pagan studies". Rowman Altamira

5625: 4755: 4181: 4139: 4058:

as a spiritual relative. Some modern pagan literature prominently features

3926: 3896: 3795:, one of the founders of Russian neopaganism, who expounded it in his book 3672: 3626: 3567: 3563: 3544: 3481: 3178: 3059: 2968: 2867: 2753: 2475: 2377: 2213: 2159: 2064: 1918: 1910: 1708: 1703:

reconstructionists aim to preserve and revive the practices and beliefs of

1620: 1573: 1569: 1549: 1316: 1231: 1130: 1023: 1019: 730: 606: 425: 354: 289: 241: 204:– characterises modern paganism as a single religion, of which groups like 18547: 15573: 14218: 10008:

The Price of Hatred. Nationalism in Russia and Counteracting Racist Crimes

8451: 4795: 3765:(Christian) ideology. Rodnovers often regard these missionaries as Jews, " 3667:, reproducing its main ideas: the "Aryan" idea, including the idea of the 2763:'s 1995 survey "The Pagan Census", most American pagans are middle-class, 397: 140:

are common features across pagan theology. Modern pagans can also include

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people of non-Northern European origin. Practicing universalists such as

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and its racist conclusions. Ariosophy influenced the ideology of Nazism.

3215: 3110: 3075: 3012:, who noted that among her comrades, there was a feeling that "you don't 3009: 2972: 2915: 2887: 2871: 2271: 2197: 2052: 2023: 1427: 1395: 1300: 1272: 1254: 1015: 960: 899: 652: 597: 593: 550: 496: 492: 422: 362: 16586: 16527: 15630: 15024: 14843: 14392: 10886: 10502:

The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Great Goddess

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In 1925, the Czech esotericist Franz Sättler founded the pagan religion

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as well as the start of spring and the harvest. In Wicca and Druidry, a

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Paganism in modern Russia: the experience of interdisciplinary research

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for their refusal to fully accept the superiority of the "white race".

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the "people" on the level with the original (primordial) cosmic order.

3223: 3182: 3125: 3090: 3031: 2981: 2245: 2201: 2152: 2144: 1925:, a related revivalist movement of Central Asian traditional religion, 1754: 1537: 1403: 903: 869: 857: 832: 487: 321:

and Prudence Jones, have argued that, due to the similarities of their

129: 55: 18996: 16077: 14916: 12115: 10323:(in Russian) (Second edition, revised and expanded ed.). Мoscow: 10303:

Forum of Recent Eastern European History and Culture - Russian Edition

9574:

On the power of myths in political movements. The Threads of the Norns

9217:

Jung's Wandering Archetype: Race and religion in analytical psychology

8598:"Oh, My Pop Culture Goddess: Transgender Issues in Wicca and Paganism" 7463:

The Crisis in German Ideology: Intellectual Origins of the Third Reich

6916:

2011 Census, Key Statistics for Local Authorities in England and Wales

5134: 5098: 5017: 4448: 1202:

has been developed which typically involves eight seasonal festivals.

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Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe

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Black Sun: Aryan Cults, Esoteric Nazism, and the Politics of Identity

9412:

Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe

8987:

Modern Pagan and Native Faith Movements in Central and Eastern Europe

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The Romantic movement of the 18th century led to the re-discovery of

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Another pivotal belief in the contemporary pagan movement is that of

956: 754: 601: 466: 402: 322: 294: 149: 137: 86: 18660: 14613: 14142: 10564:(2007). "Heidentum" [Paganism]. In Jaeger, Friedrich (ed.). 8075: 8024: 7859: 7760: 7736: 7682: 6758: 6735:

In Abkhazia creatures Religious Organization "Tip zhretsov Abkhazia"

3911:

with a Wiccan theology and an emphasis on men who love men, and the

3708:

list of extremist organizations of the Ministry of Justice of Russia

3453: 2509: 1173: 417:

The term "neo-pagan" was coined in the 19th century in reference to

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Mayer, Jean-François (2001). "Christopher Gérard, Parcours païen".

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Witchcraft today: an encyclopedia of Wiccan and neopagan traditions

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The New Generation Witches: Teen Witchcraft in Contemporary Culture

8738: 8276: 7104: 7102: 6986:"University of Victoria chaplain marks solstice with pagan rituals" 6221: 4152: 4055: 3735: 3602: 3384: 3268: 3082: 3004: 2495: 2483: 2389: 1922: 1885: 1852: 1724: 1680: 1583: 1458: 1435: 1281: 1075:

Such views have also led many pagans to revere the planet Earth as

1045: 1034: 967: 817: 710: 696: 648: 589: 338: 247:

Discussing the relationship between the different pagan religions,

237: 98: 82: 11323: 10523:

Strmiska, Michael F. (2005). "Modern Paganism in World Cultures".

10082: 9832:. New York: State University of New York Press. pp. 136–151. 7888: 7886: 7419: 7417: 6218:. Religion, State & Society, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995. pp. 239-243 2462:

of Scotland. This is more than many well known traditions such as

1434:

in Germany. These currents coincided with Romanticist interest in

1249:, the rituals of which are at least partially based upon those of 659:. Pagans may distinguish their beliefs and practices as a form of 19611: 19136: 19094: 17257: 16856: 16821: 16742: 16655: 16596: 16500: 16203: 16057: 15807: 15760: 15645: 15521: 15340: 14765: 14728: 14539: 14089: 14055: 13898: 13599: 13318: 13081: 12942: 12244: 11988: 11920: 11758: 11674: 10099: 9786:. New York City: State University of New York. pp. 193–236. 7619: 7583: 6845:. Journal of Contemporary Religion, Vol. 17, No. 2, 2002. p. 206. 6657:

about 1 million to 1.5 million people, identify as Wicca or Pagan

5437: 4291: 4281: 4034:, which are conversely core interests of pagan religions such as 4006: 3941: 3536: 3404: 3373: 3312: 3219: 3148: 2879: 2499: 2491: 2487: 2401: 2397: 2364: 2294: 2082: 1914: 1869: 1597: 1565: 1557: 1362: 1336: 1224: 1027: 987: 975: 907: 566: 562: 558: 224: 164: 141: 133: 19419: 13313: 10963: 10343:

Russian Rodnoverie: Neopaganism and Nationalism in Modern Russia

10167:(in Russian). Moscow: University book, Logos. pp. 320–333. 9262:

Wicca: History, Belief, and Community in Modern Pagan Witchcraft

9029:. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press. 7099: 6730:В Абхазии создана религиозная организация "Совет жрецов Абхазии" 4679: 4677: 4647: 4645: 4121:, so they do not have the same status as Abrahamic religions in 3445: 2987: 2740:

only collects limited religious information each decade. At the

1292:, who wanted to establish a new form of Greco-Roman polytheism. 1122:

chanting, singing, dancing, and meditation. American folklorist

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Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions

10288:. Studies on applied and emergency ethnology. No. 114. Moscow: 8150: 8012: 7883: 7520: 7518: 7516: 7414: 7389: 7387: 7385: 7383: 7381: 7379: 7377: 7114: 6702: 4122: 4054:

culture, many adherents of modern paganism have come to regard

4010: 3770: 3664: 3355: 3212: 3174: 3116:

Modern paganism is one of the directions in the development of

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In India, a prominent figure who made similar efforts was the

3769:", or their accomplices. At the same time, the Slavic "Aryan" 2192:. Druidry dates to the earliest forms of modern paganism: the 1522:

secret pagan religion had survived the witchcraft persecutions

19218: 16861: 16635: 16615: 16600: 16176: 16002: 15797: 15660: 15615: 15595: 14755: 14152: 13998: 13780: 13456: 13328: 13241: 11809: 11730: 10743:"Chapter 1: The Religious Composition of the United States". 9742:

The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft

9533: 9189:"Contemporary Germanic/Norse Paganism and Recent Survey Data" 8258: 7726: 7724: 7186: 4852: 4850: 4674: 4642: 4272:

to criticisms of the worldly focuses of pagan organizations.

4035: 3456:, and humans, so these modern pagans criticize racist views. 3449: 3156: 2935: 2479: 2444: 2350: 2263: 2255: 2189: 2003:

Religious studies scholar Graham Harvey noted that the poem "

1986: 1593: 1561: 1238: 821: 714: 554: 483: 268: 228: 205: 152:

or useful metaphors for different cycles of life, or reframe

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Prokofiev, A.; Filatov, Sergey; Koskello, Anastasia (2006).

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The German Conservative Revolution under the Weimar Republic

8675: 8673: 8671: 7595: 7513: 7374: 7350: 7281: 7279: 7277: 7275: 7273: 7258: 7150: 6901:(2001): '390,000 Jedi There Are'. Retrieved 18 October 2007. 6455:"Old Europe: Sacred Matriarchy or Complementary Opposition?" 6031: 6029: 4608: 4606: 3687:", the primordial untainted tradition, and the native land. 3234:. The movement combined a sentimental patriotic interest in 378:

of the religion, such as its rejection of practices such as

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