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Germanic neopaganism

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Germanic neopaganism is the modern revival of historical Germanic paganism.

Reconstructions of the Germanic pagan traditions began in the 19th century Romantic movement. Later in the 1960s, various Neopagan groups emerged, who based their beliefs on the pre-Christian Germanic faiths.

The terms Ásatrú ("Æsir faith"), Odinism, Forn Sed ("Old custom", Anglo-Saxon fyrnsidu), Heathenry, Germanic Heathenry,Wodening, Swain (2003) pp.13-14Coulter, Hjuka (2003) Theodism and other terms are used as descriptors for those who adhere to the belief system encompassed by the term Germanic neopaganism. Use of terminology varies by region as well as intent, much like religious denominations in other religions.

Contents

Terminology

Ásatrú

Ásatrú is an Old Norse compound derived from Ása, the genitive of Áss, which refers to the Aesir, (one of the two families of gods in Norse mythology, the other being the Vanir), and Trú, literally "troth" or "faith". Thus, Ásatrú is the "Æsir's faith." The term is the Old Norse/Icelandic translation of Asetro, a neologism coined in the context of 19th century romantic nationalism, used by Edvard Grieg in his 1870 opera Olaf Trygvason. The Icelandic form of the word is first recorded in 1945 in Heiðinn siður á Íslandi ("Heathen traditions in Iceland") by Ólafur Briem. Ásatrúar, sometimes used as a plural in English, is properly the genitive of Ásatrú.

Use of Ásatrú for Germanic paganism preceding 19th century revivalist movements is therefore an anachronism. Likewise, use of Ásatrú as a synonym of Germanic Neopaganism, while widespread in the USA, can be misleading. Organizations self-describing as Ásatrú cover a wide spectrum, including left-wing or alternative New Age, tribalist or reconstructionist, folkish, and neonazi (e.g. Artgemeinschaft) movements. In the strict sense, the term refers to reconstructed medieval Norse or Icelandic paganism and in particular to the Íslenska Ásatrúarfélagið.

Heathenry

Heathen (Old English hæðen, Old Norse heiðinn) was coined as a translation of Latin paganus, in the Christian sense of "non-Abrahamic faith". In Icelandic Sagas, the terms heiðni and kristni (Heathenry and Christianity) are used to parallel each other, as straightforward descriptions of the older and newer faiths. Historically, the term was influenced by Gothic *haiþi, appearing as haiþno in Ulfilas' bible as translating gunē Hellēnis, "Greek (i.e. gentile) woman" of Mark 7:26, probably with an original meaning "dwelling on the heath", but it was also suggested that it was chosen because of its similarity to Greek ethne "gentile" or even that it is not related to "heath" at all, but rather a loan from Armenian hethanos, itself loaned from Greek ethnos. Some Germanic Neopagans narrow the sense of the word to Germanic paganism in particular, and prefer it over pagan as a self-designation.

Odinism

The term Odinism was coined by Orestes Brownson in 1848, in his book A revival of Odinism, or the old Scandinavian heathenism. The term was re-introduced in the late 1930s by Alexander Rud Mills in Australia with his First Anglecyn Church of Odin and his book The Call of Our ancient Nordic Religion. In the 1960s and early 1970s, Else Christensen's Odinist Study Group and later with the Odinist Fellowship brought the term into usage in North America. In the UK, the Odinic Rite has specificallay identified themselves as "Odinists" since the 1970s, and is the longest running group to do so. Odinists do not necessarily focus on the worship of Odin and most honour the full pantheon. The term Odinism is often dropped in favor of Ásatrú or Heathenry, although many will use these terms interchangeably. Despite a general decline in the use of the term its use is on the increase amongst incarcerated adherents.[[Citing sources citation needed]]

Forn Siðr

Old Norse Forn Siðr, Anglo-Saxon Fyrnsidu and its modern Scandinavian analogues Forn Sed, all meaning "Old Custom", is used as a term for pre-Christian Germanic culture in general, and for Germanic neopaganism in particular, mostly by groups in Scandinavia. Old Norse forn "old" is cognate to Sanskrit purana, English far. Old Norse siðr "custom" (not to be confused with sīðr "late"), Anglo-Saxon sidu, seodu "custom", cognate to Greek ethos, in the sense of "traditional law, way of life, proper behaviour". In meaning, the term corresponds exactly to Sanskrit sanātana dharma, the native term for Hinduism. In contradistinction to Ásatrú, inn forni siðr is actually attested in Old Norse, contrasting with inn nýi siðr "the new custom", and similarly Heiðinn siðr, contrasting with Kristinn siðr, and í fornum sið "in old (heathen) times" [link].

Theodism

Theodism, or Þéodisc Geléafa seeks to reconstruct the beliefs and practices of the Anglo-Saxon tribes which settled in England. þéodisc is the adjective of þéod "people, tribe", cognate to deutsch. As it evolved, the Theodish community moved past simply Anglo-Saxon forms and other Germanic tribal groups were also being reconstituted; Theodism, in this larger sense, now encompass groups practicing tribal beliefs from Scandinavia and the Continent, following in the model set forth by the Anglo Saxon theods founded in the 1970s. Theodish aetts include, Norman, Frisian, Angle, Saxon, Jutish, Gothic, Alemannic, Swedish, and Danish tribal cultures; in this wider sense, Theodism thus becomes synonymous with other terms generically for Germanic Neopaganism, such as Asatru and Forn Sed.

History

The first modern attempt at revival of ancient Germanic religion took place in the 19th Century during the late Romantic Period amidst a general resurgence of interest in traditional Germanic culture, in particular in connection with romantic nationalism in Scandinavia and the related Viking revival in Victorian era Britain. The last traditional pagan sacrifices in Scandinavia, at Trollkyrka, appear to date to about this time.

Organized Germanic pagan or occult groups such as the Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft emerged in Germany in the early 20th century. Several early members of the Nazi Party were part of the Thule Society, a study group for German antiquity. The connections of this movement to historical Germanic paganism are tenuous at best, with its emphasis lying on the esoteric as taught by the likes of Julius Evola, Guido von List or Karl Maria Willigut. While occult elements played an important role in the formative phase of Nazism, and of the SS in particular (Nazi use of runes has its origin in these early times), after his rise to power, Adolf Hitler discouraged such pursuits, to the disappointment of Nazi mysticists like Rudolf Hess and Alfred Rosenberg, and Neopagan societies were even exposed to some amount of persecution, with at least one member of List's Armanenschaft killed in a concentration camp, although Heinrich Himmler remained actively interested in Ariosophy and related concepts throughout the war, incorporating the Ahnenerbe into the SS in 1940.

A second revival began in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Ásatrú was recognized as an official religion by the Icelandic government in 1973, largely due to the efforts of Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson.

At about the same time, Else Christensen began publishing "The Odinist" newsletter in Canada. In the United States, Stephen McNallen, a former U.S. Army officer, began publishing a newsletter titled "The Runestone". He also formed an organization called the Asatru Free Assembly, later renamed the Ásatrú Folk Assembly (AFA) [link], which held annual "Althing" meetings. These early societies went through a series of reformations and splits in 1987/88, resulting in the Ásatrú Alliance [link], an offshoot of the AFA headed by Valgard Murray, publisher of the "Vor Tru" newsletter. In 1987 the Ring of Troth (now just called the Troth) was founded by former members of the AFA. [link]. In the United States, the most prevalent form of Heathen organization is in small groups called Kindreds, sometimes also known as a Hearths, Garths or Steads.

In 1976 Garman Lord formed the Witan Theod, the first aett within the Theodish community, as an apostasy of Seax Wicca; striving to cleave to a more organic and accurate reconstruction of Anglo-Saxon religiosity. Shortly thereafter, Ealdoraed Lord founded the Moody Hill Theod in the same area of upstate New York, Watertown. Unlike the other major Heathen organization of the time in America, the Asatru Free Assembly, which concentrated on the Viking Age, Theodism was focused on Anglo Saxon lore, beliefs, and all its attendant social structures, particularly the concept of thew (customary law). Theodism was founded strictly to be a reconstructionist “retro-heathen” belief, now known as Theodish Belief, theodisic Geleafa or simply Þéodism. The Angelseaxisce Ealdriht was a confederation promoting Anglo-Saxon Theodish Heathenry from 1996 to 2004, founded by Swain and Eric Wodening and Winifred Hodge. Since the Anglo-Saxon society was based on sacral kingship, American Theodist Neopagans saw it necessary to elect an Aetheling; this position, king of Winland Rice has been occupied by one Garman since 1995 [link]. Theodism now encompass groups practicing tribal beliefs from Scandinavia and the Continent, in addition to following in the model set forth by the early Anglo Saxon peoples. Theodism places emphasis on oaths and allegiance between members.

The Odinic Rite was established in England in 1972, and in the 1990s expanded to include chapters in Germany (1995) [link], Australia (1995) [link] and North America (1997) [link].

In Germany, Nazism was replaced with Neo-Nazi currents after World War II, with the Artgemeinschaft operating from 1951. A non-political revival began in the wake of the New Age movement, with the Heidnische Gemeinschaft (HG) founded by Géza von Neményi in 1985. Von Neményi in 1991 re-activated the Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft (GGG) and split off the HG. The movement further diversified during the 1990s: In 1997 the Nornirs Ætt was founded as part of the neopagan network Rabenclan and in 2000 the by-now largest group, the Eldaring, inspired by the US Troth. Hostility between factions remains pronounced in Germany, with even Nornirs Ætt and Rabenclan, two expressedly anti-racist organizations, discontinuing their collaboration in 2005.

In the 1990s and 2000s, a variety of Scandinavian associations and networks have formed. Swedish AsatruSociety (since 1994), Norwegian Åsatrufellesskapet Bifrost in Norway (1996) and Foreningen Forn Sed (1999), recognized by the Norwegian government as a religious society, allowing them to perform "legally binding civil ceremonies" (i. e. marriages), Danish Forn Siðr (1999) and Swedish Nätverket Gimle (2001), an informal community for individual heathens, primarily living in Sweden with no connection to any formal organisation, and Nätverket Forn Sed (2004), a network consisting of local groups (blotlag) from all over the country. It was recently founded by members from other Forn Sed societies. The network is against racism, sexism and homophobia.

Distribution of adherents

Today, Germanic Neopaganism is practiced primarily in Scandinavia, Germany, Britain, North America, Australia and New Zealand. Small communities are also found in many other countries, mostly in Western Europe (Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Italy,Spain, Portugal ) and Russia.

The number of adherents worldwide is unknown, partly because of the lack of a clear definition separating Asatru from related currents. Those organised in some sort of organization number perhaps several hundred in North America, about 700 in Iceland, and a few hundred in both Scandinavia and Germany, with smaller groups scattered world wide, adding to a total of a few thousands.

As of 2001, the City University of New York estimated that some 140,000 people in the USA self-identify as "Pagan" [link] (excluding Wiccan (134,000), New Age (68,000), Druid (33,000), Spiritualist (116,000) and aboriginal religions (4,000)). The total number of Neopagans worldwide is estimated at roughly one million [link] [link], of which about a third each are located in the UK, the USA, and over the rest of the world.

Celtic Neopaganism is more widespread than Germanic traditions in the UK, so that including individuals not organized in societies, the worldwide number of people identifying in some way with Asatru or Germanic Neopaganism may range at roughly a hundred thousand.

Factions

Besides the Norse/Germanic mythology at its core, Heathenry has regional varieties of emphasis, often from the subjective interpretations of influential local practitioners. Thus, in Germany and the USA, some movements have racial, white supremacy or Neo-Nazi ideologies, while in Iceland, on the other hand, Ásatrú has left wing associations.

Some Neopagan organizations in Germany in particular have a relationship to Ariosophy, Occultism and Neo-Nazi ideology, such as the Armanen-Orden in the tradition of Karl Maria Willigut. Other organizations, like the re-founded Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft or Odinic Rite are not clear in their associations, while the Rabenclan has a reputation of anti-Nazi criticism in German Neopaganism. In the USA, notably Else Christensen's Odinist Fellowship was influenced by National Socialism, while other organizations emphatically reject any such leanings. The official policy of the more liberal Troth takes no stance towards ethnicity or race, although their members are allowed to believe anything they choose.

A simplistic description of the various factions in North American Asatru [link], are: Universalist, Tribalist and Folkish Asatru. Universalist Asatruar practice a cultural and moral relativism to the point of syncretism, while Folkish Asatruar emphasize Northern European heritage and ancestry for the adherents of Asatru. Tribalist Asatruar take the middle approach between these two perspectives, and emphasizes Germanic cultural identity and history without an emphasis on heritage or ethnicity. However, these division semantics are seen as increasingly redundant and irrelevant as the movement grows. Membership overlaps in groups which were formerly solely "folkish" like the Asatru Folk Assembly and groups which were solely "universalist" like The Troth, brings into question the adequacy of this paradigm.

Mattias Gardell, reader for religious history at the University of Stockholm, distinguishes "militant racist", "ethnic" and "nonracist" groups, in North America in particular. In the militant racist position, Asatru is an expression of the "Aryan racial soul". The ethnic position is that of "tribalism", ethnocentric but opposed to the militant racist position. According to Gardell, the militant racist faction has grown significantly in North America during the early 2000s estimating that as of 2005 it accounts for 40 to 50 percent of North American Odinists or Asatruers with the other two factions at close to 30% each.[[Citing sources citation needed]]

Ásatrú also has connections with the black metal subculture, notably the infamous Varg Vikernes who was responsible for the burning of several Christian churches in the 1980s and 1990s in Norway, in an attempt to restore Norway to its pagan roots.

Tenets

Germanic Neopagan organizations generally favor democratic and republican forms of church government, as inspired by the parliamentary Things of the Viking era and subsequent parliamentary systems of Britain and the Scandinavian countries. They promote individual rights and freedom of speech reminiscent of the free jarls of Norse saga.

Solitary practice, or practice in small circles of friends or family is common. Neopagan societies have been formed since the 1970s, but most take the role of a loose federation and do not require committed membership comparable to a church. Consequently, there is no central authority, and associations remain in a state of fluidity as factions form and break up again.

Germanic Neopaganism is primarily bound together by common symbological and social concepts. Personal character and virtue is emphasized: truthfulness, self-reliance, and hospitality are important moral distinctions, underpinning an especially cherished notion of honour.

Heathenry notably lacks any discussion of redemption, salvation, or perfection, as well as their conceptual precursors. Although some adherents theorize an afterlife that involves a kind of rough justice, the Heathen moral system parts ways with other religions in its' egoist foundations. Heathenry does not formalize restraint on individual behavior. For example, it is inimical to lists of wholesale injunctions against specific behaviors.

Comparison of the Nine Noble Virtues of modern heathenry, which are loosely based on the Havamal can be contrasted with the Judeo-Christian Ten Commandments. Such a comparison shows that it is not the actual behaviour (such as "thou shalt not steal") which are prescribed, but rather an emphasis on character traits, such as "truth", "self reliance" and "honour". It is left to the individual to figure out that stealing in most contexts will be in violation of such ideals. Consequently, some actions which other religions condemn wholesale, may be considered virtues in Heathenry, as long as they are carried out shrewdly and in accord with personal honour, both in the eyes of the individual and the community. Individual pride is one such example.

Germanic paganism reveres the natural environment in principle; but, unlike some nature-oriented Neopagan movements, Germanic Neopaganism opposes neither technology nor its material rewards. More mystical currents of Heathenry may be critical of industrialization or modern society, but even such criticism will focus on decadence, lack of virtue or balance, rather than being a radical criticism of technology itself.

Wyrd is a concept of fatalism or determinism, similar to some Graeco-Roman concepts of destiny, and sometimes personified analogous to the Moirae (see Norns).

Rites

Artistic output and influence

Originally grown out of 19th century Romanticism, the Viking revival had associations with the Gothic novel and Romantic art such as the Pre-Raphaelites or the art nouveau. Also of note is the influence of Richard Wagner's "Ring Cycle." Artistic taste of adherents are often related to the High Fantasy genre based on Germanic mythology. New Age currents are another influence, although not necessarily related. These elements may blend with traditional Germanic folklore.

Symbolism

Popular symbols of Asatru/Germanic Neopaganism are the Valknut, Mjollnir, the Irminsul, Yggdrasil and various other historical Germanic symbols. Depictions of Odin and Germanic deities are also common. Runes are popular, in particular the Odal, Tyr and Algiz runes. The Odinic Rite additionally claims the Fylfot (Swastika) as an "ancient Odinist symbol". The Black Sun is a symbol used by Neonazi, occult and esoteric groups in sometimes related currents. Additionally, Armenan variants of historic runes, such as the "Gibor rune" and isolated uses of the "Sig" rune indicate a Von Listian and, subsequently, a possible Third Reich influence .

List of organizations

With the frequent renaming, merging and splitting of organizations, it is difficult to give a clear picture; the list below, sorted geographically, includes associations with a certain amount of structure and stability.

Notes

References

See also

External links

 

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