... is an oxymoron. That combination of terms gets used regularly and is just accepted without question. It's wrong. Heathen are pagans, typically Nordic. They are not "godless" and they are not "atheist". They are a hotch-potch of religious traditions that can easily rival any of the Abrahamic ones for sheer stupidity.

From google define:heathen -

Wikipedia:
In its broadest definition, pagan [heathen] denotes all non-Abrahamic religions, that is to say it denotes all religions other than Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Wiktionary:
1. not adhering to an Abrahamic religion; pagan.
2. (by extension) uncultured; uncivilized; savage, philistine.
3. pertaining to currents of Germanic neo-paganism known as Heathenry.

Mind-n-Magick:
(1) Literally means "heath-dweller", and refers to practitioners of the Norse pagan faith.
(2) One who does not acknowledge the God of Christianity and Judaism and Islam.

TranslationDirectory:
Originally people of the heath or moor. Originally, it was a Christian term to denigrate followers of the old, pre-Christian Religion. Followers of Asatru and other ancient reconstructed aboriginal religions have embraced the term.

StarLark:
Another name for Pagan. Many contemporary practitioners of Teutonic Nature religions prefer this term for themselves and their spirituality.

Tags: atheist, get it right, heathen, pagan, pedantic

Views: 316

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Damn, and here I've been calling myself a godless heathen as a term of endearment. Oh well.
"Pagan" is from the Latin 'paganus' meaning "country dwelller' or "rustic".What we might call a 'yokel',meaning an unsophisticated person from the sticks.


This made more sense in Roman times and indeed right up to the industrial revolution, where people seldom traveled more than a few miles from their birth place. Such people were insular,ignorant and led fixed lives,compared with city dwellers.

"Heathen " is different word entirely with a different etymology; Old English via Norse. Specifically 'not Jewish OR Christian.' (Non Muslims are called 'infidels' 'or 'kafirs')

The two words have gradually become synonymous.
The meanings have varied over time, but they have never designated people with a complete absence of supernatural belief - that's the crux of the matter.

As a bit of side trivia - the spate of church burnings in Europe over the last 20 or so years by Black Metal enthusiasts. They are almost always accused of being Satanists by the media and politicians. They are not - they are in fact self-described heathens. While I don't agree with their methods, their logic is that they are only doing back what was done to the original heathen shrines.
"The meanings have varied over time, but they have never designated people with a complete absence of supernatural belief - that's the crux of the matter."

Just so

Tangent: I actually know only one person who identifies as a pagan. (not a Wiccan) She enthralled me with accounts of traveling through Ireland on moped, visiting ancient sites sacred to the Earth Mother, now mostly usurped by the Marian cult.
The term more properly would be "Neo-Pagan", because nothing that any of these people practice has pre-Christian roots. In Ireland, people converted willingly. More than likely, people identified the local goddesses with Mary, rather than the Marian cult usurping local sites. Also, the Irish, at least by the time the Christians came along, weren't worshipping some nebulous "Earth Mother".

In the past, I have found that what I knew was wrong, so if I am on this, I will be glad to be corrected.
Heh. As if they have any direct connection to those original heathen shrines.
Thanks for pointing this out, felch. I'd love to see a moratorium on groups with the name, unless, of course, it's a group for ex-Heathens.

RSS

CONNECT WITH ATHEIST NEXUS

Latest Activity

Steph S. liked Maia Rodriguez's discussion Tornado Survivor Did Not Thank God
1 minute ago
Steph S. replied to Loren Miller's discussion Latest Activity?
"The site is really looking nice! Thank you Richard. Wonderful job."
1 minute ago
Joan Denoo commented on Ruth Anthony-Gardner's group Hang With Friends
"Did you notice her expression when she reported being an atheist? I saw pride, self-respect, disdain and even sarcasm. I know, you will say I am reading into her countenance what I want to see. Did you notice how her interviewer backed…"
4 minutes ago
Loren Miller replied to Maia Rodriguez's discussion Tornado Survivor Did Not Thank God
"Here's the real poser: did Wolf know beforehand that she was an atheist and toss her a a hanging curve ball to hit out of the park?!?Atheism - It's A Conspiracy!!!  Muahahahahahaha!"
22 minutes ago
Randall Smith posted a blog post

The Rednecks are coming, the Rednecks are coming

Actually, the rednecks are here and everywhere. Let me say, I'm not a big fan of these people. That's putting it mildly. Need I describe them? You know who I mean.This seems to be the time of year when they come out of the woodwork. Here in Indiana, as the weather gets nice, the motorcyclists are out in full force. I hate the noise cycles make. Then there's the Indianapolis 500 fans, the majority of which are rednecks. Interview them or a typical Pacer fan (big news as they face the Miami…See More
1 hour ago
Loren Miller commented on Joan Denoo's photo
Thumbnail

Tunisian Women 4

"War is Peace.Ignorance is Strength.Freedom is Slavery.and...Rape is the woman's fault?  No, sorry, too much of a stretch, even for George Orwell."
2 hours ago
Dennis Michael Pennington commented on Debra Stevenson's blog post Pope's 'exorcism' caught on film video
"Maybe so. Ad that the Pope has no power over anything or anybody except for the power given to him by the office and the world at large today."
2 hours ago
Dennis Michael Pennington commented on matthew greenberg's blog post War on Christmas in May
"Happy Holidays is a good enough saying for anyone at Christmas time. I support the phrase "happy holidays" rather than the bullshit most Americans were taught. Let's go back in time to look at meanings here. "Holidays"…"
2 hours ago

Photos

Loading…
  • Add Photos
  • View All

© 2013   Atheist Nexus. All rights reserved. Admin: Richard Haynes.

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service