Paganism — The Ancient Nature Faith

The chapter opens with the etymology of «pagan»: the Latin word meaning «villager, non-urban» began to be used in the 4th century, in a Roman Empire that had adopted Christianity as its official religion, to disparage communities far from the cities that still worshipped the forces of nature. It then gives the distinction between «paleo-paganism», «meso-paganism» and «neopaganism», noting that this classification is Christian in origin and ignores the other monotheistic religions — a good critical touch for a pocket book.

The most interesting part is the sociological context of neopaganism. The book says the 19th-century prediction that secularisation would wipe out religion has not come true; since the 1960s a turn described as a «new religious awakening» or «the revenge of God» has begun, but it is individual rather than communal religiosity. There is a nice comparison here too: customs such as Muslims tying cloth to wishing trees or jumping over fire are old pagan traces kept alive by communal bonds, whereas neopaganism is the response of lonely urban individuals whose communal ties have weakened.

The core teachings of neopaganism are listed as bullet points: nature is sacred, every being has a divine aspect, the soul lives on after death and is reborn, one must encounter the divine face to face without intermediaries, ecological responsibility matters, there is no belief in a messiah, and a protective circle is drawn in rituals. The list is clear and useful, but it sometimes blurs which group it refers to — for example, the same list says «we have no dogma» while presenting a definite belief system.

Wicca stands at the centre of the chapter. The book explains how this movement, which spread in England after Gerald Gardner's 1954 book «Witchcraft Today» and became popular in America in the 1960s, differs from witchcraft; its ethical principle «do what you will, so long as it harms none»; the «Law of Threefold Return» holding that good and evil come back threefold; the «Summerland» where souls rest; the pentagram; and covens of thirteen. The «13 Principles» of American Wiccans are given in full — but without any commentary or context, almost like promotional material.

The section on Druidry is also interesting, but here errors multiply. The Druids are called «bearers of a Protagorean philosophy», whereas ancient sources usually link them with Pythagorean ideas (the transmigration of souls). The Ásatrú movement is spelt «Asartu» and eclectic paganism «Eecleetic». On Stonehenge there is an interesting correction: the last megaliths were built around 1400 BC, while the Celts arrived in Britain around 500–600 BC, so attributing these structures to the Druids is historically difficult. The reference to the Asterix and Obelix comics brings the subject closer to the reader.

Overall this chapter is the most up-to-date and readable part of the book: it tries to present neopaganism not as a fad or a «witchcraft» cliché but as a reaction to modernity, urban loneliness and ecological anxiety. Yet unsourced figures (a hundred thousand neopagans in the US, the claim of the «fastest-growing religion»), typesetting errors and the lack of a critical approach to the principles it presents make it only a first source of information.

• Teachings and principles listed as bullet points
• Short biographies in the margins (e.g. Gerald Gardner)
• Colour illustrations and images of symbols
• Bibliography and the translator's sources at the end