Contemplating the Gap: An Examination of Religious Division

Cheddar Gorge, looking south

There is a conflation of terminology that is no longer truly accurate. It is the notion that Heathen and Pagan are synonyms.

In English common usage, this is easy to understand – both come from a linguistic origin essentially meaning “country-dweller”. However, there is a nuance we need to focus on if we want a better understanding of what it means to be Heathen.

Firstly, we will need to take into account the difference between a common and a proper noun. For example:

A Heathen is a pagan, but Pagans are not Heathen.

To explain. A common noun is a label for an object (such as a table), but a proper noun is a name of an individual or group (such as Christian).

Thus, the word "pagan" has a very different meaning to the word "Pagan". Whilst the word "heathen" also has a very different meaning to the word "Heathen", it is a synonym of the word "pagan".

A pagan is a person who does not follow one of the Abrahamic religions (notably Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, possibly also Yazidi).

A Pagan is a person who follows a modern, eclectic religion that is often highly personalised.

A heathen is a person who does not follow one of the Abrahamic religions (notably Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, possibly also Yazidi).

A Heathen is a person who follows a modern religion inspired and informed by the cultural religious practices and worldviews of the pre-Christian Germanic peoples of northern, western, and central Europe. Within this modern (and still emerging) religion, we can find numerous denominations that take various approaches based on varying levels of historical study and modern innovation.

To understand both the conflation and distinction of these terms, we need to look at the rise of modern religious movements during the previous century.

In the last sixty years or so, the world has seen the birth of numerous religious movements who have been loosely affiliated with one another for various reasons. Often, these groups are all combined under the umbrella term of “Paganism”, however there is such a level of variety between these groups it has been hard to accurately give definition to the term “Paganism”, beyond the traditional “not Abrahamic” concept.

About forty years ago, another religion began to rise from the ashes of the past. Inspired and informed by legend, lore and study of the historical pre-Christian Germanic cultures, it called itself Heathenry, also known as Heathendom. Within Heathendom, we have seen (and are continuing to see) various factions arise (and fall) and interpret the available information in their own ways.

As numbers grew within Heathendom, more and more adherents began to question the term “Paganism”. It was not of Germanic origin; used traditionally, it carried a negative definition – definition by what it is not; and was used in a newer sense to refer to a cluster of modern movements that shared little commonality with Heathendom. As such, these Heathens began to make a distinction between Heathendom and Paganism.

For some reason, there has been a backlash against this from the Pagan movement(s), with many Pagans maintaining that Heathendom is Pagan, regardless of what others say.

Personally, I acknowledge the difference. We can disregard the original definitions as obsolete, as the two terms are no longer used in that fashion. I find the academic/anthropological definition of “pagan” as “non-Abrahamic” seriously objectionable and intellectually lazy. This is because it sets up a false dichotomy of only two religious models – Abrahamic and everything else. This stems from a time of Christian dominance where there was only “one, true, God” and anything else was either quaint superstition or outright diabolism. I find such usage to be extremely bigoted and, frankly, intellectually dishonest.

By accepting the distinction between Pagan and Heathen, it becomes possible to avoid mischaracterisation, reduce misinformation, and allow for each religious grouping to thrive without unnecessary acrimonry.