Return of the Ancient Gods: The Resurgence of Paganism
10 JULY, 2018
Over the past two centuries, Europe has become increasingly secular. Scholars in fact no longer talk of the Christian West when they speak of Modern Europe and North America, but of the Secular West. There is however evidence of a spiritual revival stirring on the continent where God is supposedly dead.
Old traditions pre-dating the appearance of the Jewish carpenter turned Messiah are beginning to re-emerge. Since the 19th century, there has been an increasing interest in ancient pre-Christian European religions such as ancient Greek, Germanic, Celtic, and Slavic paganism. This stems from an increasing interest in spirituality in Europe, specifically a spirituality in touch with European heritage and ethnic roots in a similar manner to indigenous religions of Native Americans and Aboriginal Australians.
Ancient and Modern Combine
Among modern Pagans, there are two approaches to reviving pagan practices. One is eclecticism or syncretism, in which elements of historical ethnic religions such as the ancient Norse religion are combined with modern movements such as Wicca, Theosophy or other New Age philosophies. This is largely based on romantic views of these ancient religions which emerged in the 19th century which may or may not be historically accurate.
In Iceland, the Norse gods are making a particularly strong comeback and Nordic paganism is now Iceland’s fastest growing religion. In fact, they will soon complete the first temple to Thor and Odin to exist in Iceland in over 1000 years. “I don’t believe anyone believes in a one-eyed man who is riding about on a horse with eight feet,” High priest Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson told the Guardia n. “We see the stories as poetic metaphors and a manifestation of the forces of nature and human psychology.”
Denmark too completed a pagan temple dedicated to Odin for the first time in a millennium in 2016.
Reconstructing the Past
The other approach is polytheistic reconstructionism which is an attempt to make an historically accurate reconstruction of these ancient religions based on historical sources, archaeological data, and perhaps ethnographic comparison. Reconstructionists avoid embellishing ancient pagan religions with modern movements and ideologies.
Germanic Paganism
One of the largest movements currently which can be either syncretic or reconstructionist is the revival of Germanic Paganism or “Heathenry.” Modern Germanic Pagans or Heathens, as they prefer to call themselves, worship the old Germanic gods, especially Thor and Odin as well as Germanic nature spirits such as Elves and Trolls. Germanic Heathens appear to have three different approaches to proselytizing and practicing their religion. Some Heathens emphasize simply the worship of the Germanic gods and believe that anyone regardless of their national, ethnic, or racial background can worship the Gods. These are the universalists.
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