Glossary - exWitch Australia (formerly 'Born Again Pagan')

ORPHISM

Orphism is the teachings of an ancient Greek philosophical cult which exerted great influence on Greek culture, and later on Western mysticism and occultism. It began in the 6th century BC, and is attributed to the mythical Orpheus. The chief teachings are of Reincarnation, a Greek version of Karma, a history of the universe which was formed by Cronus who formed an egg and created the first king of the gods -- whom Zeus supplanted and fathered Dionysus -- the divine child.

Other teachings are that the body is the prison of the soul, animals were not to be killed or eaten, the good were to be rewarded while the evil were to be punished in Nether World, and teachings of self-denial and seriousness in religious matters. Apollo was the kindered god who demanded purification and righteousness. Orphism had a great impact on alchemy.

PLEASE NOTE:
One of the major problems with 'defining' Paganism and/or its beliefs and practices is that it is an 'organic' movement, in that it is undergoing constant change and re-evaluation from within, and as such any 'one-size-fits-all' approach to understanding Paganism will be found wanting.

Due to the very 'organic' nature of Paganism, and the many differing Paths and Traditions within it, in many cases no one definition may be universally accepted by all Pagans. Therefore, where such cases of possible conflicting and/or contradictory meanings of certain terms occur I have endevoured to give not only the generally accepted meaning, but also any major 'variations' in belief and/or practice.

Christians who believe this difference in meaning of certain key terms, beliefs and practices to be unique to Paganism need to remember that such conflicts also arise within the Body of Christ - the Church. Take for instance the differing practices amongst Christians concerning Baptism and the different attitudes towards women in the clergy.

- Jean-Luc