Average age of Church of England churchgoer is 61.

[Óttar]

I read that paganism is growing, but let's hope it's not that god awful sappy "neo-druidry." They want to respect their Celtic ancestors? How about learning some Welsh or Gaelic?

[Liffrea]

Originally Posted by Óttar
I read that paganism is growing,

Some 200,000 people in the UK are classed as “Pagan” I believe. As for “growing” all religions claim that, even the Church of England.

I can expect to see more people take up some kind of eclectic mix of beliefs but I don’t expect a faith like Odinism to grow substantially, then again we have a saying everyone can be an Odinist but not everyone should be Odinist, we don’t advertise.

but let's hope it's not that god awful sappy "neo-druidry."

“Pagan” is too broad a term. It makes it sound as if they are denominations of one faith rather than the fact that they are separate faiths entirely. As a Folkish Odinist I have about as much in common with a Wiccatru or a New Age Druid as I have with a Muslim or Roman Catholic, I’m not making a negative judgement of those faiths, each to their own, just making the point we share fundamentally different philosophies.

There are probably only a few thousand Odinists/Heathens in the UK, although there are no figures that I am aware of for it.

They want to respect their Celtic ancestors? How about learning some Welsh or Gaelic?

It’s more than that, cosmetic changes don’t really apply. I moderate on an Odinist board and the question of holding ceremonies in Old English or Old Norse comes up a lot, my answer is why? Do we think we are more “in touch” because we speak a certain tongue rather than the one we use normally? Becoming Odinist, for example, is a long transition, I’ve been in the faith for the last six years and I believe your growth is never over, the Odinist outlook is utterly different from what passes as the norm in society today. This isn’t a weekend hobby or something to do because you want to be “special” it’s a complete change in perspective and insight. As I say everyone can be Odinist but not everyone should. If you believe, and I’m not saying you personally do, it’s simply a matter of exchanging deities and language you’re not even on the right path yet.

[Óttar]

Do we think we are more “in touch” because we speak a certain tongue rather than the one we use normally.

Emphatically yes! I pray in Latin and sometimes in Sanskrit depending on the context. I do believe that languages carry a spirit within them, and one can feel mental processes differently. In Vedic Hinduism vac or speech is a goddess, each character in the varnamala or Sanskrit syllables has a certain spiritual power. It is said in the Upanishads that the one who has a melodious voice to intone the hymns is blessed by the gods.

I find it absolutely flabbergasting that anyone can seriously consider themselves Celtic pagans when they haven't even made an attempt to develop the most rudimentary knowledge of a Celtic language.