Paganism Information

I was raised pagan, in Celtic Reconstructionist tradition, as a Druid, by a Druid High Priestess.  I've been involved in pagan gatherings and a Druidic Grove all of my life.  I spent eight years in Private Catholic School which gave me an interesting inside look at Christianity, and I've taken several theology and philosophy courses in college.  So, I know a little bit.  Just a little bit.

I'm often asked what Druidism and Celtic Reconstructionism are.  ReligiousTolerance.org isn't the best source, but it's got the basics on Druidism, whereas this site has a bit on folklore and mythology of several pagan religions including Celtic Paganism.  A very complete list of sites compiled by a reputable source is found on Witches-Tutorial.com.  The very informative DigitalMedievalist has a list of books for Celtic Study, and there's always my own personal essay on Modern Druidism.  Other basic pagan information can be found on WitchVox.

Despite what some people calling themselves pagan think, as pagans in America (and most of the Western world) we are not persecuted.  Heck, the military even recognizes Wicca as a valid religion.  A few cantakerous Bible-thumpers does not mean everyone is out to get us.  And a historical note: the Salem Witch trials had nothing to do with pagans, nor real witches.

Another individual preference often noted in the pagan community is the distinction between "magick" and "magic", which has been made to distinguish between real magic and stage magic, and some have continued this practice, as well as altering the word more, substituting "j" for "g" and "que" for "ck".  Ultimately, in a pagan setting, it is likely "magic", "magick", "majick", "magique" and any other variant of the word is probably referring to the same practice of witchcraft.  I've been involved in it all my life, and I only spell it one way: magic.

For pagans seeking a community, there are pagan communities on several sites, on Yahoo, Livejournal, Belief-net, and of course several pagan-oriented sites such as Witchvox.

Beware young pagans of Silver Ravenwolf and her publisher (Lewellyn).  She gives misinformation and promotes teens lying to their parents.  For more about her, this site's got some good detailed points: The Problem With Silver RavenWolf, as does this one.

Finally, I'm working on compiling a list of general handy pagan-related sites.  What I consider to be pagan is stuff that may come up in a paganism chatroom or message board, and includes stuff on psychic abilities, as well as religion and more.  My list is constantly growing and I ask for people to send me any links they may have.

Druidism

• Neopagan.net
  

• Digital Medievalist
  

• Witches-Tutorial linkage
  

• Modern Druidism
  

Wicca

• Gerald Gardner
  

• Keep Wicca Traditional Campaign
  

General Paganism

• Smiling Panther's Den
  

• Mythography
  

• Encyclopedia Mythica
  

• Pantheism (just wanted it in here)
  

Spellwork

• The Thaumaturgy Project
  

• Ludwig's Tower
  

• Cantrap
  

Psychic Abilities

• Active Psy
  

• Playful Psychic
  

• Psionics
  

• Psychic Ability Book List
  

• Parapsychology
  

Hellenism

• Living Hellenic Reconstructionism
  

• Hellenion
  

• Biblioteca Arcana
  

• Theoi Project
  

• Hellenic Polytheism
  

• Hellenic Ethics
  

• Frequently Asked Questions on Hellenism
  

• Hellenismos/Greek Reconstructionism
  

• How the Greeks Worshipped
  

• Dodecatheon
  

• Cheiron
  

• Threskia - Greek Magic
  

Regarding Fluffy Paganism

• The Problem With Silver RavenWolf
  

• Why We Despise Silver RavenWolf
  

• Why I Don't Recommend Silver RavenWolf
  

I've collected these links over a long period of time and I don't know who all to thank for them, but Kali from the AOL Teen Wicca Board definitely deserves a thank you, because I know I got the Hellenism & Psy links from her.  Also NicAine and a few others from the same place.  Thank you!