October 4, 2008
Neopagan Mythological and religious sources
The sources from whence most Neopagan reconstructionists adapt their beliefs and practices are usually ancient mythologies. Wicca in particular is sometimes referred to by its proponents as the “Old Religion”, a term popularised by Margaret Murray in the 1920s. Its use until the 1990s drew on a perceived underground European Paganism and supposed ancient “Goddess religions.” These models are now largely discredited, notably by Ronald Hutton, and allusions are now more cautiously made to local folk healers/small groups, and a plurality of ancient “Goddess traditions,” among others. However, while Neopagans draw from old religious traditions, they also adapt them. The mythologies of the ancient civilizations are not generally considered to be literally factual or historical in the sense that the Bible is claimed historical by fundamentalists. Nor are they considered to be scripture, as most Neopagans are resistant to the concept of scripture. (Read the article)