Neo-Paganism is making a comeback. The reasons are intriguing – and encouraging for us all. Does it signal a re-awakening or confirm that the Old Gods never really left us?
And everybody’s being Saved! Everybody’s bending a knee and praising Chay-sus!!!!
Tucker Carlson – and all his guests! Even plump Neocon Mike Pompeo! And Diddy! Beyonce! Everybody on Johnny Cash’s “Sooner or Later God’s Gonna’ Cut You Down” video.
And best of all – Russell Brand. Russell’s done been saved by the Man from Galilee. Yes-Sir-Ree-Bob! Russell’s been washed in the blood of the Lamb. Say Hallelujah and pass the Ammunition. Praaaise Gowwd!
Smack dab in the middle of Tucker Carlson’s Phoenix Arizona Town Hall roadshow, a barefoot and bearded Russell Brand jumped up and asked Tucker to “Pray” with him. Brand then belted out a barn-burner of a revivalist exhortation to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to rescue the Soul of the Country (he’s British – so, what country?) and all who abide the “Word”. I suspect his years of drug addiction and alcohol abuse has cleared the scales from his eyes and revealed the true path – like Saul on the Road to Tarsus.
I’d have preferred crusty-McBrand to liberally partake of some soap and water before he took to the stage, but that’s just optics. The real point here is: Jesus Saves! (Old Joke: “Jesus Saves – but Moses Invests!”)
America is in the throes of an Election Season New Testament Conversion. Jesus is here, there and everywhere. Trump is kneeling. Fundamentalists are beating their breasts about the “Soul of the Country”. There’s talk of The Rapture. I’m even told that The Bible teaches me things I never read in it – but don’t question. It’s the Word of God! Don’t question anything. Don’t be a heathen Blasphemer! Praise Jesus and jump in. The water’s fine. I said jump, Sheepee. Bahhhhhhhhh.
Rule #1: Whenever somebody invokes religion to get you to do something, run like Hell.
Actually, statistical data shows that mainstream religion is losing it’s appeal with large numbers of our world population. That’s why there’s a Hard Sell going on. The Old Religions and Old Gods are slowly starting to gain traction. And our Governments absolutely hate the trend. One remarkable success story is Asatru.
What is Asatru?
Asatru is Pre-Christian Norse spirituality. Asatru means “belief in the Gods” – that is, belief in the Old Norse Gods. A central tenent of Asatru is the interconnectedness of all beings and the sacredness of nature. It is a form of contemporary Paganism – sometimes called Neo-Paganism – a religious movement influenced by pre-modern peoples’ beliefs across Northern Europe.
Defining Asatru is not as simple a matter as Wikipedia’s attempt: “Asatru is a religion that involves the worship of ancient Germanic and Scandinavian Viking spirits and Gods”. That’s a Marvel Comic-book-grade explanation.
Asatru is best defined by explaining what it is not. That is, using a fimiliar construct – like Christainity – as a yardstick to measure it up against, belief for belief. First off, Asatru is a Chthonic Religion. Its Gods are Chthonic Gods.
The word Chthonic is derived from the ancient Greek word for events which originate at, in or beneath the Earth. Chthonic Gods are concerned with Earth and Earthly rituals – reverential events, devotions and worship that exclusively address man’s struggle and existance on Earth.
The Judeo-Christian “Abrahamic” construct is all about one celestial and divine God of the Universe who orchestrates and micro-manages mankind’s destiny. Mankind is “God’s” creation – to do with what he pleases and be directed to where he wills.
“Thy Will be Done” is the familiar Old and New Testament refrain, Chapter after Chapter and intoned by Prophet after Prophet.
“Asatruar” (believers in Asatru) gather in local worship groups they call “Kindreds”. Kindred assemblies are not necessarily related by blood or marriage; they are more analogous to Clans. Their relationships are defined by shared experiences, economic ties and security concerns. A “Kindred” ceremony is presided over by a Godar (or Gdar). He’s a spiritual “Chieftain” or Priest and takes on the role of addressing the Gods on the community’s behalf.
Asatru has nothing to do with White Supremacy or racism. It is s “collective identity” that embraces certain beliefs in the Old Gods and Old Ways. Does Asatru incorporate in it’s belief system the concept of racial pride? Tribal pride? Of course it does. Heritage is all-important to a Kindred community. Do they apologize for this? Not at all.
What about original sin? Asatru entertains no concept of original sin and reveres children. All are born pure and equal in the eyes of the Gods. What one does with their life determines what destiny their lives will take. While a mans’ “skein” of life is woven at his or her birth, their deeds – if honorable enough – can transcend their birth map. Nothing is written in stone.
Is Asatru anti-semitic? Asatruars consider this question absurd. SInce Asatru doesn’t concern itself with the Judeo-Christian belief system and its Old Testament antecedents, it is incongruous to ask if they are anti-semitic. Asatru has no reason to contemplate or reach any conclusions about Abrahamic religions – ergo Asatruars have no opinion about it all one way or another. Asatru is, quite simply, oblivious to the “Big Three” Abrahamic faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Is Asatru fascist? Asatru is not a political ideology – it is a spiritual ideology. It is not a racial ideology, either. It is a spiritual commonality that binds certain devoted followers together. Quite literally, Kindred souls.
Who are the Asatru Gods?
They’re a simple assortment of known characters, each with their own purpose and function. One is a father, one is a mother, one is a protector, one is a feminine muse and the other is a master of chaos. That’s it. They aren’t a panoply of Gods as much as a family that exist to protect the family of mankind. Simple, rational and accessible. No bells or whistles.
Asatru Gods are role models, guardians and watchdogs of humanity. They demand no esoteric dogma, no occult smoke and mirrors – just concern themselves with right, wrong and action. They require no ponderous “top down” religious hierarchies of Popes, Bishops, Cardinals and Priests. No real estate portfolios of magnificent cathedrals or abbeys. No temporal, earthly seat like the Vatican, festooned with priceless art treasures and housing forbidden libraries of secrets only their consecrated “elect” and initiates share. Asatru sacred places are forests, fields and grottos. Asatru rituals are the natural expressions of people who express humble gestures of gratitude to their dieties. These venerations are quiet, respectful and dignified.
Of course, not having a “Top Down” hierarchy of formal religious adminsitration on Earth, believers in Asatru can’t make sweeping political deals with Governments, Kings and other influencers. Asatru is a solitary faith – not given to backing or opposing anything or anyone – governments or otherwise. A Christian Fundamentalist or Jewish Lobby would have no use for Asatru followers. Asatruars could care less about their pet peeves and projects – and eschew any politically motivated effort to control or influence them. Most don’t even publically identify themselves as Asatruars. They keep their faith hidden. This is why governments hate them. They are not a “monolithic” bloc that can be manipulated for political gains. Control is the golden prize that governments crave. Asatruars can’t be used or controlled. They’re as amorphous and uncapturable as water. They’re everywhere – and nowhere. Their faith is deeply personal….and jealously guarded.
– Odin is known to Asatruars as the “All Father”, ie. the “Father” of us all. Neopagans make no distinction of any child’s race or origin. Odin is the Father of all Mankind.
– Odin did not “make” the Universe or man like the Christians believe their God to have done. Asatruars believe the Universe was an “organic” creation event – an event out of time and space. As was the advent of man. Old Norse legends say that the Universe grew out of a great tree – a living, vibrant and natural thing. They believe Life begets Life – hence their universe (and mankind) was an organic happening. Odin is the caretaker – a wise overseer of the firmament, seas, skies and all that lives in and on it.
– Odin lives in his realm – Valhalla – with his wife, Frygg. Frygg is Goddess of the Household. She watches over all married women, families and harvests. Odin and Frygg listen to mortal prayers and oftimes intervene in our affairs if our abilities are insufficient to overcome a particular challenge.
– Thor is the Son of Odin. He’s the God of Thunder who wields a divine, powerful hammer called Mjolnir. It is his weapon. Thursday is named after Thor. Thor is best described in the same context as Saint Michael in Christianity. Unsurpassed in strength, a General in his father’s host and the defender of the realm. Most of the attributes of Saint Michael originated with Thor. The Slavic peoples called him Perun.
– Freyja is the Goddess of love, beauty and sexuality. She makes certain that Mankind is fruitful and multiplies.
– Loki is the God of Chaos – the source of all disharmony, discord and conflict among humans.
There’s much that’s familiar here. Asatru has a Father Authority figure like “God the Father” in the Abrahamic religions; a strong Protector like God’s General, Saint Michael; A Mother who protects families and nurtures the harvest like Mary; a spirit, muse or Demiurge who keeps an eye out for human procreation (no Christian analogue); and – a bad guy version of Satan who foments Chaos. Chaos equates with evil in everybody’s language.
You say – “What? Is this a serious Religion….. Odin and Thor? You kiddin’ me?”
Putting aside the unfortunate comedic representations of these characters portrayed in the Marvel universe – it’s a pretty solid bench of talent that anyone can find common cause with or, at the very least, admire.
Is this all tenable? Rationally fathomable to human beings? Can we mentally swallow it as a Religion?
To be brutally honest, let me ask the question another way – are old Norse beliefs (as opposed to the exaggerated legends told around Viking campfires and at feasts) any more incredible than:
– Burning Bushes;
– Partings of the Red Sea;
– Magic tablets of stone carried around in a gold-sheathed box that shoot lightning bolts against enemies and crumbles walls;
– An old man who curses the Egyptian pharoah and population with seven plagues to extort the demands of a celestial power whose name can’t be spoken or written down;
– Vaporization of an entire city by seemingly atomic explosions because its occupants were immoral;
– People turning into stone;
– A Diety that commands one “Chosen” Tribe to eradicate a laundry list of other indigenous Levantine populations to engineer a land grab of staggering proportions, effectively making the “Chosen” ones and their offspring Masters of the region;
– A Virgin birth;
– Raisings of the dead;
– Loaves and fishes for 5000;
– Miraculous healings of the blind, sick and disabled;
– Exorcisms on command;
– Holy Spirits and “Angels” coming and going;
– A Three day Resurrection;
– Apparitions and “Divine Visions” who convert and inspire armies to adopt the Greek letters “Chi Rho” or Cross;
– Statues that bleed;
We can go on and on. The Bible is full of mysterious things set down by Middle Eastern peoples centuries ago. We must ask: What does this all have to do with Northen European peoples and Northern European belief systems? Why are Middle Eastern legends more sacred or solemn than Northern European ones? Why does a religion based on Middle Eastern beliefs offer more “salvation” for my soul than one based on my own belief systems and geographic experience? Don’t I have a say? What does this all have to do with me?
We’ve been relentlessly programmed from birth: “If it’s in the Bible don’t question it!” We know as a scientific fact that the Flood Myth is real (the Younger Dryas climate shift). But how much of any ancient Abrahamic records can we truly embrace as literal fact? There are many Bibles – and many interpretations of them. It all comes down to blind faith. But is not one “sacred” belief as valid and sacred as another? Or do beliefs that originate in the Middle East carry more weight?
Why do Mainstream Religions and Governments Oppose Neo-Paganism? It’s all about Control.
Practitioners of modern Neo-Paganism – Asatru – are largely “solitaries”, ie. they practice their faith by themselves or in small groups called “Kindred”. Since their worship focuses on nature, their rites generally are held in a forest or some other natural setting, such as a field or grotto. Asatru is a “decentralized” form of worship, far from judgmental eyes of others and restrictive social norms. Self-determination, unburdened by the doctrines of original sin, guilt and divine punishment for esoteric biblical infractions is a foundation of neo-paganist worship.
In many ways, pagan beliefs never died – but were hidden and preserved in secret rites through to the present. Northern European – and especially, Slavic – blood never rid itself of the Old Ways. Private household rituals always paid respect to the powers of Perun, Thor and Odin. Difficult birth deliveries often saw old women making silent prayers and leaving plates of bread, salt and fruit to Frygg and Freyja (or their “local” names) as midwives got down to business. Peasants were practical people – why not appease the Old Gods, too? A healthy baby was worth bending Christian rules. These are deep secrets and are respected even today in certain remote Eastern European locations.
Christianity, Judaism and Islam – the “Abrahamic”, Levantine religions – failed to completely eradicate all pagan traditions and beliefs. In fact, many Christian churches and Mosques were built on the ruins of pagan temples. Abrahamic religions, however, are by necessity and at their core, “Middle Eastern” faiths that have little – if any – cultural affinity and commonality or relevence to Northern European peoples.
“Conversions” of European peoples to Christianity were frought with violence and brute force. St. Vladimir of Kiev issued an infamous edict: Convert or Die. The reasons European countries became Christian had more to do with politics than spirituality. Think about it: Northern Europeans adopting a faith venerating a Levantine Judean prophet whose culture was completely alien to the Northern European belief system is truly a case study in human sociological re-wiring on a grand scale. How did Northern Europe succumb to this? Cui Bono? Who benefitted most from this mass conversion event?
Christianity made the majority of Europeans subject to a hierarchy of religious “influencers” across all state boundaries. It made them accepting of and compliant with a lifestyle that benefitted a wealthy, influential strata – laying the foundation for what we now know as Feudalism. The Vatican’s hierarchy meshed seamlessly with Feudal hierarchy. It was a marriage made in Heaven – the ultimate paradigm to control and manipulate mankind, spiritually and economically. The majority of (the mostly illiterate) people’s souls were the property of a Christian Ecclesiastical Mafia. These acolytes were privy to arcane mysteries of worship and doled out “Salvation” laden with heavy doses of guilt and the ever-lurking menace of sin. Priests, Bishops and Popes – lodged in imposing, breathtaking temples of stone – regulated access to the Godhead and liberally issued threats of excommunication, brimstone and Hellfire to keep everyone in line.
In a mirror-image of the Church, temporal society was ruled by Feudal Lords – Dukes, Barons, Viscounts, Princes and Kings – all of whom possessed a “Divine Right” to Rule over the masses. The Church made sure to drive this point home at every juncture. Shoring up all civil authorities was where their (extremely profitable) bread was buttered. Organized Christianity and Feudalism were symbiotic brothers of the same mother. Theirs was a relationship that anchored its legitimacy and power in mutual identity. One couldn’t exist without the other. Modern Europe today is the dysfunctional, ill-begotten offspring of this union: Medieval Christianity and Feudalism.
Ask yourselves: Was there anything more restrictive and controlling in all human history than Feudal society in the Middle Ages? Was this control by design? The answer is a resounding: Yes.
And what do all mainstream organized religions have in common today? Answer: Control.
Mainstream religions are all, basically, “Top Down” organizations. They’re all managed by a human hierarchy who have their own agendas, politics and axes to grind. Mainstream religions are overseen by Clerics who have exclusive access to secrets and reveal them in fragments to the sweaty masses. They have their own Canons (laws) and governments complete with legislative bodies, ecclesiastical law courts, police “enforcers” and factotum leaders.
“Organized Religion” is just another straightjacket of societal regulations that has less to do with your immortal soul than your every day compliance with and conformity to their dictates. Mainstream religions execute Treaties with Governments in return for their turning a blind eye to world events – or supporting them. Ukraine? Hamas? Israel? Islamic Fundamentalism? The fix is in. When was the last time the Pope of Rome marched into a war zone clad in his expensive outfit and hand-made slippers, fish-hat perched high on his head and brandishing his jewel-encrusted bespoke crozier, yelling: “Enough! Stop In the name of Christ!”
Asatruars reject all of this. Nature is their focus. Their Gods stand for honor and honesty – but strength and will is equally as important. Many people today are rightfully disappointed with much of what their religions have done in the names of Christ, Yahweh and Allah. Perhaps mens’ souls are starting to crave spirituality that is private and resonates more with their sense of being – and nature itself – rather than the personages and mythologies of ancient Levantine tribes.
This is why Asatruars are are so measured when asked for their views about the Abrahamic mainstream faiths.
They readily respond (with amusement): “It’s none of my business”.
Amen to that.
