Idolaters and polytheists were referred to as pagans in ancient times.
The term pagan comes from the Latin pagānus , meaning "villager." It is an adjective used to refer to polytheists and idolaters , and to any infidel who has not been baptized .
The concept began to be used by Christians in the 4th century to name those who rejected monotheism and the Holy Scriptures . On the contrary, pagans used to believe in more than one god and performed rituals and worship practices that were rejected by Christians and Jews as being considered as idolatries (the worship of an image).
Pagans, polytheism, pantheism and animism
When talking about paganism, it is important to know that there are a number of concepts that are closely linked to it. This would be the case of polytheism, pantheism and animism.
Polytheism is the religious doctrine that believes in several gods. Pantheism is based on the fact that God is everything. And finally, there is animism, which is based on the fact that spirits are part of objects, whether they are animate or inanimate.
It is believed that the word pagan began to be used in the religious sphere in relation to the practices of worship of the gods that were maintained in rural life when the cities had already turned to Christianity.
There are different kinds of pagan ceremonies and rituals.
Different types of rituals
Some pagan rituals are preserved today, either combined with Christian beliefs or through the defense and revaluation of other cultures . The Day of the Dead in Mexico is one of these examples.
It should be noted that, to a certain extent, all Christian rituals are based on some pagan rite, since they were established at times when attempts were made to convert pagans and, therefore, their practices were maintained with modifications. There are those who claim that even Christmas was established in the calendar according to a pagan rite (of sun worship).
Pagans today
Likewise, we cannot ignore the fact that in recent times the term neopaganism has emerged. This term is used to define the entire group of spiritual movements that have as their basis the existing religions that are defined as being polytheistic. Specifically, we can say that it is structured or divided into four clearly defined fields: pagan reconstructionism, traditional witchcraft, syncretisms and Wicca.
The latter can be established as a neopagan religion that emerged in England in the early stages of the 20th century , based on the figure of the sorcerer and which has the pentacle among its most important symbols.
Other uses of the term
The dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) recognizes another use of the term pagan: the adjective can also be applied to the person who pays, generally due to abuse, guilt or other people's accounts.
All this without forgetting that in the Spanish autonomous community of Asturias the term pagan is used with another meaning. Specifically, in this region this concept is used to refer to the wild chestnut, that is, it acts as a synonym for the word regoldo .