Pagan Research Papers Samples For Students

Periodically throughout the last two millennia or so, Pagans, or followers of classical polytheisms found themselves facing oppression or persecution. As the influence of Christianity grew, the term “pagan” was used to broadly describe any non-Christians. Attempts to suppress Paganism successfully erased many Pagan rituals and demolished or covered sacred sites, but early Christianity was far from uniform between different regions and different blendings of Paganism and Christianity occasionally emerged. Examining varied pagan traditions and beliefs and understanding the interaction between Paganism and Judaism and Christianity and Paganism when Christianity was a young religion allows greater insight into some traditions ...

Early Christianity adopted many of the Pagan rituals as it evolved. The influences of Paganism can be found in the symbols Christians use as proof of their faith, the buildings they worship in and the ceremonies they participate into the holidays they celebrate. John H. Newman the author of Development of the Christian stated, "The use of temples, and these dedicated to particular saints, and ornamented on occasions with branches of trees; incense, lamps, and candles; votive offerings on recovery from illness; holy water; asylums; holy days and seasons, use of calendars, processions, blessings on the fields, sacerdotal vestments, ...

Introduction to Wicca

Wicca is a common and ancient term for witchcraft, which refers to the efforts of humans to develop supernatural powers for the malicious use of black magic. Because of this, the terms magic, sorcery, and witchcraft can be considered synonymous (“History and Background of Wicca”).

Wicca is based on pagan nature worship systems and is similar to other humanist religions where “everything goes as long as it doesn’t oppose their claim to being god/goddesses or hold them to a higher power” (“Wicca Beliefs and Practices”).

Origin of Wicca

There is no authoritative source that traces the roots of Wicca in ancient times (Slick). ...

In the history of human civilization, stories always had educative role. In the literary works of fiction, authors use diverse images and symbols in order to trigger a particular reflection from the audience. On the other hand, some authors use traditional images in new contexts in order to stimulate a different reaction and challenge the audiences’ perception of traditional images. In other words, authors often argue that the same images can have different meaning and perception in different cultures and different times. The best example of this is a perception of monsters in different times. The aim of this paper is to ...

In our modern, sophisticated and highly secular world, the concept of witchcraft might seem ridiculous and anachronistic. Yet, even today there are many people in the world who believe strongly in the supernatural, including the power of witchcraft to influence the world around them. Despite 19th century mysticism and Romantic period interest in the Druids, Europe has largely abandoned any such traditions. However, belief in witchcraft is still quite common in much of Africa. However, even in Africa witchcraft has changed significantly from what it was in the distant past. The following essay will examine both European and African ...

- The purpose of this ethno-profile of the Crow Nation is to gain an in-depth awareness of some human group different from the one in which we live.
- I chose to write about the Crow Nation people because although more than one-half of all Native Americans in the United States live outside the reservation the Crow Nation is concentrated on their reservation. This makes them unique and interesting to write about.
- The physical environment
- The Crow Nation has a reservation south of Billings, Montana. They also live in several cities, mainly in western America.
...

Beowulf is amongst the most famed poems in old English. Beowulf consists of about three thousand lines and was drafted in England in the late 800’s AD. It was published in the Anglo-Saxon epoch from 449 AD to 1066 AD. During those days the theme fate, death, and afterlife were so trendy in British literature works. In the poem, a war lord from Geats rises to the salvage of Hrothgar, the ruler of the Danes whose territory is under siege by a monster, Grendel. Beowulf sails through and conquers Grendel. To demonstrate his proficiency, he even slays Grendel with his ...

The Pax Romana is distinguished in history as a roughly 200-year period of progress and growth separating the civil strife of the 1st century B.C. and the onset of marked decline that began with the third century A.D. Roman military power had pacified subject populations from the Euphrates River in the east to the uplands of northern Britain in the far west, while Roman law established a cohesive civilizing influence throughout the empire. The absence of strife in all parts of the empire made it possible to travel safely virtually anywhere in the known world and a highly competent and relatively benign ...

Analysis of biographical similarities of Jesus and Zeus made scientists think about their identity. In accordance with some contemporary sources Zeus could be a prototype of Jesus. Other researchers argue that Zeus’ biography was copied from the Jesus’ one or even vice versa. This paper objective is to reveal if there is any resemblance between Jesus and Zeus if there is any.
Zeus (Jupiter) was a supreme god who ruled in Olympus and ranked high in the pantheon. Zeus was the son of Chronos and Rhea. His siblings were swallowed by his father Chronos to remove the threat of his ...

Superstitions in American culture

Superstitions refer to belief in magic and fear of the unknown, which leads individuals to adopt irrational behaviors. The influence of superstitions on individuals has remained strong throughout human history, but this influence has been declining with increased urbanization and education of the masses. The Halloween superstition reflects a fear of some power by human beings, which is beyond their understanding and control. However, some superstitions remain prevalent in American culture and other industrialized societies. During Halloween it is traditionally believed that it is a period that common myths, omens and folklore have more weight for the people who ...

Kaaba, the ancient stone architectural structure, is the center of the Islamic world, the unifying historic monument which every Muslim desires to visit at least once in life. This is required by one of the Five Pillars of Islam. The pilgrimage to Kaaba is called the hajj. Kaaba is called the house of Allah. It is located inside the Grand Mosque in the ancient city of Mecca (or Makkah), in Saudi Arabia. During their prayers, Muslim all over the world face the direction of Kaaba. This direction is called the Qibla.
The wall adjacent to the Kaaba’s entrance ...

Despite the fact, that both meditation and prayer are the methods of obtaining the religious experience. However, those are not the same despite the fact that many scholars and mystics claim that meditation and prayer are of the same matter.
The word "Meditation" (Meditatio) is of a Latin origin. It didn`t come from pagan religions, but from the Christian West. It correlates with the verb "meditor" or "to meditate", ponder and means the deep concentration associated with a detachment from external objects and individual inner experiences. The Christian West gave it two meanings. On the one hand, it means ...

The Christian movement begins in Jerusalem as a minor sect of Judaism that gradually separated from the beliefs of Judaism to spread quickly in the Roman world. Eventually, Christianity emerges as a formidable religion compared to other religions in the day long before the emergence of Constantine. Christianity is the first religion to receive support from the state (Barnes, 2010). This enables the religion to become a crucial force in the barbaric period. The role of historical Christianity in the first seven centuries is to absorb elements of ancient civilization and channel them to the middle Ages (Stark, 2006).
Christianity expresses a ...

Religion is the most common universal belief in which its importance lies on the moral values that guide people in life in following the path to righteousness. For some, it provides answers in their quest for meaning and purpose in life while others view it as a way to achieve their hopes and aspirations. In some cultures, religion arises out of a major phenomenon that symbolizes their history of political and social struggles which contributes a huge part of their culture and way of life. One example is the phenomenon of La Virgen de Guadalupe in Mexico which influenced cultural, social and ...

Charlemagne, born on the 2nd of April 742 was the first Holy Roman Emperor and the first emperor in Western Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire three hundred years before his coronation. While his date of birth is relatively unknown, it can be calculated from numerous sources and with the help of the Lorsch Abbey calendar .
Charles the Great was also said to have been born in eastern Frankland, specifically in a district known as Moingewi (modern day Belguim). He was the oldest son of his father, Pepin the Short and his mother Bertrada of Laon. ...

Introduction

Vigil and Dante are main characters in the Divine Comedy poem of the 14th century. Its first part is the inferno followed by Purqatorio and Paradiso in that order. The poem is the author’s allegory of the journey through hell. In the poem, Virgil acts as a guide to Dante’s vigil journey. The poem portrays hell as having nine circles where suffering and torment goes on earth. Symbolically, the divine comedy is a representation of the soul’s journey to heaven. Describing rejection and recognition within the Inferno is the theme of the entire poem. Virgil’s presence in ...

Burma, or Myanmar, which is its new name, is a country where ancient and splendid Buddhist temples are spread out placidly over a country that is desperate for change. The Tatmadaw, an infamous repressive military government, have ruled the country for the past thirty years. It is a rather vexed moral question whether an individual could financially succeed in Burma, and this is the question this paper will answer based on comprehensive research.

Location

Burma is a Southeast Asian sovereign state that is located between Thailand and India. In the north, the country is bordered by China and India, and in the south, the ...

How did the church’s way of presenting the good news about Jesus to a wide audience change and not change between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages?

Proposed Answer:

The time beginning in the 2^nd and 8^th centuries, A.D., is historically tagged as the Late Antiquity. Early Middle Ages were between the 5^th and 10^th centuries. These were also known as the Dark Ages. It was a time during which in Europe, specifically the Roman Empire, was faltering. There were peculiar happenings dealing with Roman Emperor Constantine. He was ...