posted
Well, you have to look at the origin of the word. It started out as a Latin word meaning "civilian" or "peasant". The Xians used it to refer to non-Xians. So, the technical meaning of "pagan", when used this way, is "non-Christian". The reason I said that it can, in the narrowest sense, exclude a whole three religions, is that it has, in more recent times, come to mean "non-Yahwist", so that it refers to anyone who isn't Xian, Jewish, or Muslim. So, saying that not all pagans are vegetarians is a statement regarding two to three billion people. Anyone who thinks that all pagans are vegetarians is very misinformed, indeed.
------------------ "Yeah...apparently Sizer is very hard to say, so they replace it with 'Is Mr. Caeser home?' Sometimes I'll say that no, he has, in fact, passed away. 'My apologies.' 'Oh, that's ok, I'm over it. Brutus is still a wreck though.' Then I hang up." -Simon Sizer on telemarketers, 1-Nov-2000
posted
In the BROADEST term, "pagan" excludes Christians, Muslims and Jews. In the narrower term (obviously non-dictionary), pagan refers to members of earth-based/nature religions (Jubilee was the first person I learned it from). Pagan is also synonymous with "witch" (refers to both genders) and "wiccan" (used for members of Wicca and as a less offensive term for "witch").
------------------ "The distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." --Albert Eistein
posted
No, in the broadest sense, it excludes only Xians.
And "pagan" does refer to Wiccans. But only because they're non-Yahwist. Trying to claim the term "pagan" as your own is going a bit far. It'd be like saying the term "Christian" only refers to Methodists, or something on that order.
If you say "pagan", and expect people to automatically know that you're talking about Wiccans, you're just using the term wrong.
------------------ "Yeah...apparently Sizer is very hard to say, so they replace it with 'Is Mr. Caeser home?' Sometimes I'll say that no, he has, in fact, passed away. 'My apologies.' 'Oh, that's ok, I'm over it. Brutus is still a wreck though.' Then I hang up." -Simon Sizer on telemarketers, 1-Nov-2000
posted
Besides, Willow became a Wicca, and then stopped fancying the very funny and talented Seth Green, and started going out with some girl who had the charm and charisma of George W Bush*
*If you support Bush, then please substitute "plank of wood" for "George W Bush".
------------------ "If every vampire who said he was at the Crucifixion was actually there it would've been like Woodstock. I was at Woodstock. I fed off a flower person and I spent six hours watching my hand move." - Spike, BtVS
posted
Hey, now...! I'm offended by that! I fully support planks of wood!
------------------ "Yeah...apparently Sizer is very hard to say, so they replace it with 'Is Mr. Caeser home?' Sometimes I'll say that no, he has, in fact, passed away. 'My apologies.' 'Oh, that's ok, I'm over it. Brutus is still a wreck though.' Then I hang up." -Simon Sizer on telemarketers, 1-Nov-2000
posted
TSN: "Pagan" doesn't automatically mean "Wiccan". Wicca with a capital W is a specific branch of nature religion. And no, I'm not using pagan wrong, I'm just using it with a connotation, like that bit about "revising" in the library thread.
UM: You might've been making jest, but wiccans/pagans hate that movie. They don't endorse Blair Witch 2 either.
All right, this is a meat topic, not a pagan topic. There'll be no more pagan rants from me. ------------------ "The distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." --Albert Eistein
[This message has been edited by Tora Ziyal (edited November 07, 2000).]
posted
Well, you should know that you can't assume that people will automatically know what you're talking about when you say "pagan". When I hear the word "pagan", I consider everything non-Yahwist, and possibly even everything non-Xian...
------------------ "What he did to that walrus gentle-man was inexcusable." -T. Herman Zweibel on "Mr. Woodrow Wood-pecker", The Onion, 7-Nov-2000
posted
Tora: ALL Wicans/Pagans hate that movie? Isn't that a bit like saying "ALL Christians hate 'the Ten Commandments'" (er, the movie, not the, er, commandments)?
Were Wicans asked to endorse Blair Witch 2? Because I wasn't asked to endorse Austin Powers, even though it's obviously based on me in every way.
------------------ "If every vampire who said he was at the Crucifixion was actually there it would've been like Woodstock. I was at Woodstock. I fed off a flower person and I spent six hours watching my hand move." - Spike, BtVS
------------------ "If every vampire who said he was at the Crucifixion was actually there it would've been like Woodstock. I was at Woodstock. I fed off a flower person and I spent six hours watching my hand move." - Spike, BtVS
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