The Glastonbury Tor is located about a forty minute walk from the center of Glastonbury, England. As someone explained to me, Tor is a Celtic word for “hill , and since Glastonbury Tor was the highest point in the area, it was considered a sacred place. I was invited by a Druid whom I had interviewed to the annual meeting of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD), which is held in Glastonbury over a weekend period coinciding with the summer solstice. I had been in Bath, England, a town about a two-hour bus ride from Glastonbury, attending a conference entitled Astrology and the Academy” at Bath Spa University College. Early in the morning I walked from the guesthouse to the central bus station in Bath to catch a bus to Glastonbury. After switching buses in one village, we arrived around 11:00 at the edge of the town on High Street, and I disembarked in search of people who appeared to be Druids.

Having no idea where I would find them, I made my way to the town center. On my way I encountered numerous people dressed in robes and carrying walking sticks populating the sidewalks. Others were bearded with long hair, typically with tattoo markings on the visible parts of the body, along with bodypiercings. I then remembered two comments: one made by a couple of the guests staying at the guesthouse in Bath regarding Glastonbury being “Hippie-dom,” the other made by a colleague in the States that Glastonbury was a town filled with New Agers and New Age shops. It did not take long for me to become aware of the reason why these people would make such comments and to realize that it would be difficult to find my informant.

Once perceived as dominant in the West, Christianity is increasingly facing the competition of spiritualities that include expressions and traditions from Europe's pre-Christian era.

Understanding Paganism

One of the fastest growing religious groups in Western society falls into a broad religious category called Paganism. As some scholars have recognized, growth rates of Pagan religions exceed growth rates of many Christian groups, as well as other religious groups. Compared, for example, to Mormonism, which grew at about 21 percent annually during its first forty years(1), the growth rate of Pagan religions seems to be nothing less than phenomenal, with an annual growth rate of 29 percent. The influence of Paganism is exhibited not only in its physical presence but also by its virtual presence on the Internet. A recent Google search returned more than double the hits on “Pagan” (30 million) compared to “Mormon” (13 million), or Jehovah’s Witnesses (217,000). If the Internet is, in fact, one purveyor of popular Western culture, then it indicates that one of the significant voices of the culture is explicitly Pagan. That voice is not only on the Internet but has been heard in popular television programs such as Charmed and in bookstores, where Pagan titles easily compete with all other major religions.

For many Christians, the word pagan simply describes their life before becoming Christians or describes the lives of those who are not Christian. Used in this manner, pagan has become a taxonomy with little meaning and relevance in a religiously pluralistic context that increasingly understands Paganism as a specific religious expression. Pagan, as understood by Prudence Jones, former president of the Pagan Federation, describes a religion that is a nature-venerating theophany personified in the great goddess and the god. In her understanding, the resurgence of Paganism, while reviving the positive aspects of ancient forms, is a contemporary expression of pre-Christian belief systems now found in modern day Wicca, Druidry, and Ásatrú. (2)

Pagans generally accept three components as representative of all Pagans. First is the inherent divinity of the natural world. Accordingly, magical and ritual practices emphasize the intersection of the sacred world with humanity and humanity with the sacred. Second, all Pagans reject any dogma that prescribes the manner in which one should conduct life, except one: “And let it harm none.” This common mantra governs much of a Pagan’s life. Third is the acceptance of female, as well as male, deities. Gods, goddesses, and humanity live codependently in a mutually beneficial relationship. Ronald Hutton, member of OBOD and professor of history, comments, “Pagans today are people who hold those tenets and turn from symbolism, kinship, and inspiration to the pre-Christian religions of Europe and the Near East.” (3)

The People of Paganism

Pagans are people who come from various backgrounds similar to most in Western society. They are academics who hold appointments in some of the world’s most prestigious universities. They are scientists contributing to our understanding of the world, as well as business people engaged in a global economy. They are high school and college students and moms and dads who are trying to help their children navigate a world that is increasingly hostile, as well as people you might encounter in your neighborhood.

The realization is that Christianity often falls short of meeting the spiritual needs of people. How then should the church respond?

The Church’s Response to Paganism

What would compel an individual to leave the faith of her family and friends? We might be accustomed to shifting affiliations from one Christian group to another. Yet, in a religiously diverse society, Christianity is increasingly thought of in terms of fundamentalism, anti-intellectualism, and authoritarianism, even as a means of social control and oppression. For some, disillusionment with any form of Christianity precipitates such a decision. As one Druid put it, “Since I was raised as a ‘Christian,’ I can say with certainty that Christianity as a ‘Formal Religion’ is the most perverted, corrupt, despicable excuse for a religion I have ever heard of.” While it would be easy to take offense at such a comment, the realization is that Christianity often falls short of meeting the spiritual needs of people.

How then should the church respond? Simply put, the church must be the church—to all people. Let me make two suggestions.

First, the church must care for people more than programs. It is difficult for Pagans to believe that Christianity is a caring religion. A couple of years ago I received an email forwarded from a professor of sociology, who is also a Pagan. It was apparently a chain email, and he was on someone’s mailing list. The email read, “Jesus loves you and shares your hatred of homosexuals, Arabs and Hilary Clinton.” Unfortunately, all Christians bear the stigma of such commentary, resulting in the minority defining the majority. However, Christian care must be demonstrated by our treatment of others.

Second, an aspect of caring for people is helping them understand the uniqueness of Christianity. Many sitting in the pews of American churches practice religious beliefs that are incongruent with Christianity. For example, nearly half of those who believe that the Bible is inspired by God also believe that their horoscope affects the future. The church must be able to help those in the pews who search for relevance to their faith in other religious expressions find that relevance in their relationship with God. This cognitive bargaining is often a precursor to a move away from one religion to another that shares similar beliefs. Simply put, we must do better at making disciples who are devoted followers and learners of Christ.

Conclusion

A person I interviewed summed up the Pagan perception of Christianity in this manner: “Christianity today: I think much of it is not Christ-like. I truly think Jesus would be very ashamed of what ‘his’ people have been doing in his name over the centuries. This is not to say that ‘every Christian’ is like this. I know there are true Christians, and they have my utmost respect.” Time and again Pagans would suggest that the message of Christ was not bad in and of itself; Christ’s followers corrupted it. Christianity has much to offer Western society, although at times Christians struggle to communicate the message of Christ’s love and hope. We should continually rediscover the message for ourselves as we also communicate it with others through our words and deeds.

(1) Rodney Stark, “The Rise of a New World Faith,” Review of Religious Research 26, no. 1 (1984): 22.

(2) Prudence Jones and Nigel Pennick, A History of Pagan Europe (London: Routledge, 1995).

(3) Ronald Hutton, The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), 390.

Michael T. Cooper (PhD ’04) is the Director of the School of Biblical and Religious Studies and Assistant Professor of Biblical Studies and Christian Ministries at Trinity College. Before coming to Trinity, Dr. Cooper was a missionary in Central and Eastern Europe for thirteen years, ten of which were spent church planting in south-central Romania. He is a member of the American Academy of Religion and the Evangelical Missiological Society, as well as a research fellow of the Western Institute for Intercultural Studies and editor of Sacred Tribes Journal.

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