There are a lot of terminology with paganism. If you're new to it, or if you've been reading about the subject for a while, sometimes new terms come up, and you learn a little something new every time you read. I have been into paganism for over five years, and I have never heard the term Eclectic Neo-Paganism until a few months ago. Now, I'm sure I'm going to receive a few eye rollings for my previous sentence from people who are more knowledgeable about paganism than I. I will say this much, I'm only human, which means that I don't claim to know everything. I didn't know about Eclectic Neo-Paganism, or that this is a specific group within the pagan world. Forgive me for saying, but terms like this aren't exactly common, and misunderstandings are bound to happen. Certainly, there are a lot more information on the subject now, rather than when I started my pagan path.
So, what is Eclectic Neo-Paganism then? Let's start by looking at the word Eclectic. Eclectic means deriving ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources. Neo-Paganism on the other hand, means modern paganism Instead of following traditional pagan religions, the religions have been modified to mesh with the modern era. Most Neo-pagans share a combination of the same beliefs. Basically, Neo-Paganism takes old concepts of pagan religions of old, and turn them into a more contemporary religion, related to a pagan movement in the 19th century, which helped influence modern pagan religions, like wicca.
Now, if we put Eclectic and Neo-Paganism together, we get a category for people who are involved with paganism, but don't follow a certain pagan religion. Because in most pagan religions (like wicca) one has to be initiated (among other prerequisites), which means that most people fall into the Eclectic Neo-Paganism group. It's not a bad thing to be incorporated into this group, nor does it mean that you are any less pagan than anyone else. Actually, an advantage to being in this group, means that you can branch out and learn anything you want to. You can take bits and pieces from wicca and other pagan religions of interest, and write your own pagan path that fits your needs. You don't have to be initiated, you can believe anything you want to, and you don't have to be oathbound about what your practices are.
I myself, happen to be Neowiccan. Neowiccan (AKA Eclectic Wicca) simply means that I take most of my teachings from wicca (non traditional, but from books like ones from Scott Cunningham) . Because I don't have any wiccan lineage, am not initiated into a coven, or the like, I can't be considered wiccan. However, since I convert wiccan teachings to my beliefs and write my own pagan path, I can be considered a Neowiccan. Now, this doesn't mean that I can't take other interesting information from other pagan religions. I can very well do that, but as I stated before, I prefer to learn wiccan based beliefs, because my core beliefs match the closest to the wiccan way (as far as the outer teachings go).
Like any religion, it's all about what you are most comfortable with. You might never become part of wicca, or any other specific pagan religion, but that's ok. You can always write your own pagan path to what best suites you, and you not being a pagan religion, or whatever shouldn't stop you from being interested in paganism. Don't let anything like religious status, or disappointment in never being able to be part of a religious group get you down. If you do have an interest in paganism, then I would do the research before hand, and really think about your core beliefs. If you still feel that you want to be a pagan, then write your own path and learn about everything, and anything you can.
Sources:
Neo Wicca
Eclectic Wicca (Neo Wicca)
Neo-Pagan Witchcraft and Solitary Wicca
So, what is Eclectic Neo-Paganism then? Let's start by looking at the word Eclectic. Eclectic means deriving ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources. Neo-Paganism on the other hand, means modern paganism Instead of following traditional pagan religions, the religions have been modified to mesh with the modern era. Most Neo-pagans share a combination of the same beliefs. Basically, Neo-Paganism takes old concepts of pagan religions of old, and turn them into a more contemporary religion, related to a pagan movement in the 19th century, which helped influence modern pagan religions, like wicca.
Now, if we put Eclectic and Neo-Paganism together, we get a category for people who are involved with paganism, but don't follow a certain pagan religion. Because in most pagan religions (like wicca) one has to be initiated (among other prerequisites), which means that most people fall into the Eclectic Neo-Paganism group. It's not a bad thing to be incorporated into this group, nor does it mean that you are any less pagan than anyone else. Actually, an advantage to being in this group, means that you can branch out and learn anything you want to. You can take bits and pieces from wicca and other pagan religions of interest, and write your own pagan path that fits your needs. You don't have to be initiated, you can believe anything you want to, and you don't have to be oathbound about what your practices are.
I myself, happen to be Neowiccan. Neowiccan (AKA Eclectic Wicca) simply means that I take most of my teachings from wicca (non traditional, but from books like ones from Scott Cunningham) . Because I don't have any wiccan lineage, am not initiated into a coven, or the like, I can't be considered wiccan. However, since I convert wiccan teachings to my beliefs and write my own pagan path, I can be considered a Neowiccan. Now, this doesn't mean that I can't take other interesting information from other pagan religions. I can very well do that, but as I stated before, I prefer to learn wiccan based beliefs, because my core beliefs match the closest to the wiccan way (as far as the outer teachings go).
Like any religion, it's all about what you are most comfortable with. You might never become part of wicca, or any other specific pagan religion, but that's ok. You can always write your own pagan path to what best suites you, and you not being a pagan religion, or whatever shouldn't stop you from being interested in paganism. Don't let anything like religious status, or disappointment in never being able to be part of a religious group get you down. If you do have an interest in paganism, then I would do the research before hand, and really think about your core beliefs. If you still feel that you want to be a pagan, then write your own path and learn about everything, and anything you can.
Sources:
Neo Wicca
Eclectic Wicca (Neo Wicca)
Neo-Pagan Witchcraft and Solitary Wicca
