In recent times, persons adhering to any of a heterogeneous group of religions holding the Earth sacred have taken to calling themselves "pagans," largely because that they are attempting to revive the [ancient religion of the Celts]? and other Pagan traditions. Their religious practice is called Neopaganism to distinguish it from old pagan religions such as Hinduism or that of the Druids of the Celtic religion|ancient Celts.
Neopaganism is a very diverse belief system. It has been said that there are as many Neopagan belief systems are there are Neopagans, and there is some truth to that. However, while Neopagans do establish their own, personal belief system, they do tend to share some common precepts, including reverence for nature and the belief in magick. Many Neopagans practice Witchcraft, which is often referred to simply as The Craft, and refer to themselves as witches. While not all Neopagans are witches, and not all witches are Neopagan, the two tend to go together.
Adherents.com estimates there are one million Neopagans (see http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html). There probably are at least one million Neopagans worldwide, but there could be anywhere up to several million -- an exact figure is extremely difficult to obtain. Unlike most other sects, most Neopagans do not have churches per se, usually holding rituals in private homes or sacred groves and other outdoor locations. There are no membership lists to consult, no baptismal records. Many adherents keep their faith secret for fear of repercussions. Many also practice their faith as "solitaries", and work within no fixed spiritual community.
The [Covenant of the Goddess]? conducted a poll of U.S. and Canadian Neopagans in 1999 that estimated the population in those countries at 768,400 (see http://www.cog.org/cogpoll_final.html). This would seem to support the view that there are at least one million worldwide. This poll was not scientific and represents a self selected subset of all Neopagans, but it does provide some interesting insights that confirm what many Neopagans have observed anecdotally. Some other statistics from this poll are:
While Neopaganism does continue many beliefs and practices of original Paganism, including many of their Gods and Goddesses, it is in many other ways fundamentally different. For example, while many Neopagans worship ancient Gods and Goddesses, their beliefs about the fundamental nature of the Divinities behind those names are often completely different.
Many Neopagans believe that there is a single Divinity, a life force of the universe, who is immanent in the world. The various names and archetypes which they worship are seen not as truly separate individuals, but as facets, or faces, of something that is far beyond our human abilities to see, know, or understand. Rather than attempt to describe the undescribable, they approach the Divine through one of Her many aspects.
The choice of which Gods and Goddesses to use in personal practice is a personal one. Many find inspiration in earlier religions, many are eclectic but have one or a few favourites, while others use one pantheon exlusively.
Neopagans celebrate eight major holy days, which are called Sabbats. Each year's Sabbats are together called the Wheel of the Year. Most Neopagans also hold smaller rituals, alone or with a coven?, at each full moon. These are called Esbat?s. Sometimes rituals are held at the [dark moon]? as well.
Neopaganism began with Gerald Gardner in England in the 1940s. We need to expand on this. It's very vague at present.
A sect within Neopaganism is referred to as a tradition. There are many traditions within the larger world of Neopaganism, most of which are identified according to the pantheon they work with, or the founder of the tradition.
Some of the larger traditions of Neopaganism include:
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