Being a Pagan: Druids Wiccans and Witches Today

Description

Who are the pagans and what do they stand for? Why would some of the members of the best educated most materially comfortable generation of Americans look back to mystical traditions many millennia old? During the last few decades millions of people have embraced ancient philosophies that honour Earth and the spiritual power of each individual. Ways of worship from sources as diverse as the pre-Christian Celts ancient Egypt and Native American traditions are currently helping their followers find meaning in life while living in the Information Age. In this book Pagan leaders and teachers describe in their own words what they believe and what they practice. From Margot Adler an NPR reporter and author of Drawing Down the Moon to Isaac Bonewits ArchDruid and founder of a modern neo-Druidic organisation those interviewed in this book express the rich diversity of modern Paganism. Hopman's insightful questions draw on her own experiences as a Pagan and Druid as well as on her extensive research. With co-author Lawrence Bond she examines how Pagans address such issues as parenting organized religion and politics. The resulting dialogues illuminate the modern Pagan revival. * Addresses how Pagans view parenting organized religion and politics. * Introduces the wide range of possibilities within the neo-Pagan movement.

Ellen Evert Hopman was vice president of The Henge of Keltria, an international Druid Order, for nine years. She is a founder of The Order of the Whiteoak (Ord Na Darach Gile), also an international Order of Druids, and a professional member of the American Herbalists Guild. She is also the author of A Druid's Herbal for the Sacred Earth Year and Walking the World in Wonder: A Children's Herbal. She lives in Massachusetts. Lawrence Bond is a teacher, storyteller, designer, and illustrator who specializes in art and tales from the Celtic pantheon. He is also the art director of the Folk & World music magazine Dirty Linen.

"This book should appear on the suggested reading list given to any student on a Pagan path." * PanGaia: Living the Pagan Life * "Being a Pagan is well researched and offers a panoramic outlook on a growing spiritual movement offering hope for our Earth." * New Age Retailer * "The collection is refreshingly unlike other spiritual self-discovery books because it is not a how-to, but instead an oral documentation of actual practice, thus providing an extremely valuable historiography of paganism." * Small Press * "Hopman and Bond are evenhanded in their treatment of each individual expression of paganism, never setting one against the other. Their biases never show, which in itself is quite a feat. The questions asked are pertinent and probing. If you are not a pagan, this book is definitely for you. It does not seek to convert, only to inform and challenge your own faith, or lack of it. For both pagan and non-pagan, if nothing else, it will change your understanding of what it means to call oneself 'pagan.'" * Brigit's Feast * "I cannot begin to describe how much I enjoyed this book! Being a Pagan made my December Top Ten list, and I firmly believe that this is a volume every witch should own. Containing dozens of interviews with every major leader of the modern Pagan movement, representing an equal number of paths, Traditions and perspectives, Hopman and Bond have created an invaluable resource for anyone interested in Earth-Based Spirituality." * Stefani Barner, The Pagan Activist, Feb 2007 * "In my personal journey through Being a Pagan I find many of the dimensions of those interviewed in this book relevant to my own journey. The stories/interviews of this book helped me define myself as a pagan/shaman. It is an important read for others in helping them find their place in the world of the coming New Age and in their relationship to paganism and witchcraft." * Nick Brink, author of The Power of Ecstatic Trance *