Semitic Neopaganism
Encyclopedia
Semitic Neopaganism is the revival, mostly US
based, of religious traditions deriving from Ancient Semitic religion. In practice, there are a number of minor Neopagan movements that revive Iron Age
Canaanite religion
.
The polytheistic mainstream religious practice in Canaan, and especially in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah during the 10th to 7th centuries BCE, is evident from the writings of the biblical prophets
(even though these texts are written from the point of view of the Yahwist
faction). The notion of historical Israelite or Jewish polytheism has been popularized in the 1960s by Raphael Patai
in The Hebrew Goddess
, focusing on the cult of female goddess
es such as the cult of Asherah
in the Temple of Solomon.
During the 1970s growth of Neopaganism in the United States
, a number of minor Canaanite or Israelite oriented groups emerged, mostly containing syncretistic
elements from western occultism. Thus, Ordo Templi Astartes (OTA) merged Hermetic elements taken from rituals of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
with Phoenician and Canaanite and Israelite themes.
Jewish Neopaganism specifically remains associated with Jewish feminism
, focusing on the goddess cults of the Israelites.
Since the early 1990s to early 2000s, some Canaanite Neopagan groups have formed online.
The most notable group today is known as Am Ha Aretz
, "Amha" for short. This group grew out of Ohavei Falcha, "Lovers of the Soil", a movement founded in the late 19th century.
Elie Sheva, according to her own testimony an "elected leader of AMHA" reportedly founded a US branch of the group, known as "Primitive Hebrew Assembly".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
based, of religious traditions deriving from Ancient Semitic religion. In practice, there are a number of minor Neopagan movements that revive Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
Canaanite religion
Canaanite religion
Canaanite religion is the name for the group of Ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries of the Common Era....
.
The polytheistic mainstream religious practice in Canaan, and especially in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah during the 10th to 7th centuries BCE, is evident from the writings of the biblical prophets
Nevi'im
Nevi'im is the second of the three major sections in the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh. It falls between the Torah and Ketuvim .Nevi'im is traditionally divided into two parts:...
(even though these texts are written from the point of view of the Yahwist
Yahwism
Yahwism may be*the historical worship of Yahweh/Yahu in the Levant during the Iron Age, see Yahweh*the faction in modern Christianity or Judaism which insists on using the name "Yahweh" instead of the conventional "Lord", see Sacred Name Movement...
faction). The notion of historical Israelite or Jewish polytheism has been popularized in the 1960s by Raphael Patai
Raphael Patai
Raphael Patai , born Ervin György Patai, was a Hungarian-Jewish ethnographer, historian, Orientalist and anthropologist.-Family background:...
in The Hebrew Goddess
The Hebrew Goddess
The Hebrew Goddess is a 1967 book by Jewish historian and anthropologist Raphael Patai. In this book, Patai argues that the Jewish religion historically had elements of polytheism, especially the worship of goddesses and a cult of the mother goddess...
, focusing on the cult of female goddess
Goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....
es such as the cult of Asherah
Asherah
Asherah , in Semitic mythology, is a Semitic mother goddess, who appears in a number of ancient sources including Akkadian writings by the name of Ashratum/Ashratu and in Hittite as Asherdu or Ashertu or Aserdu or Asertu...
in the Temple of Solomon.
During the 1970s growth of Neopaganism in the United States
Neopaganism in the United States
Neopaganism in the United States is represented by widely different movements and organizations. The largest Neopagan religion is Wicca, followed by Neodruidism. Both of these religions were introduced during the 1950s from Great Britain. Germanic Neopaganism and Kemetism appeared in the US in...
, a number of minor Canaanite or Israelite oriented groups emerged, mostly containing syncretistic
Syncretism
Syncretism is the combining of different beliefs, often while melding practices of various schools of thought. The term means "combining", but see below for the origin of the word...
elements from western occultism. Thus, Ordo Templi Astartes (OTA) merged Hermetic elements taken from rituals of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a magical order active in Great Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which practiced theurgy and spiritual development...
with Phoenician and Canaanite and Israelite themes.
Jewish Neopaganism specifically remains associated with Jewish feminism
Jewish feminism
Jewish feminism is a movement that seeks to improve the religious, legal, and social status of women within Judaism and to open up new opportunities for religious experience and leadership for Jewish women...
, focusing on the goddess cults of the Israelites.
Since the early 1990s to early 2000s, some Canaanite Neopagan groups have formed online.
The most notable group today is known as Am Ha Aretz
`Am ha-aretz
The term "the people of the Land" is a term found in the Hebrew Bible which, when singular "the people," and where "the land" refers to the land of Israel, refers to Jews. When plural "the peoples of the land " would refer to non-Jews, and when both words are plural The term "the people of the...
, "Amha" for short. This group grew out of Ohavei Falcha, "Lovers of the Soil", a movement founded in the late 19th century.
Elie Sheva, according to her own testimony an "elected leader of AMHA" reportedly founded a US branch of the group, known as "Primitive Hebrew Assembly".
See also
- CanaanismCanaanismCanaanism was a cultural and ideological movement founded in 1939 that reached its peak in the 1940s among the Jews of Palestine. It has significantly impacted the course of Israeli art, literature, and spiritual and political thought. Its adherents were called Canaanites...
- Elohim
- Jewish Buddhist
- Kemetism
- Polytheistic reconstructionismPolytheistic reconstructionismPolytheistic reconstructionism is an approach to Neopaganism first emerging in the late 1960s to early 1970s, and gathering momentum in the 1990s to 2000s...
Further reading
- Engelberg, Keren (October 30, 2003). "When Witches Blend Torah and Tarot" reprinted in The Jewish Journal (July 21, 2008)
- Hunter, Jennifer (July 1, 2006). Magickal Judaism: Connecting Pagan & Jewish Practice. Citadel. ISBN 0806525762, ISBN 978-0806525761.
- Jacobs, Jill Suzanne. "Nice Jewitch Girls Leave Their Brooms in the Closet" in The Forward, Oct 31, 2003
- Michaelson, Jay (Decembdr 0, 2005). "Jewish Paganism: Oxymoron or Innovation?" in The Jewish Daily Forward.
- Raphael, Melissa (April 1998). "Goddess Religion, Postmodern Jewish Feminism, and the Complexity of Alternative Religious Identities". Nova Religio, Vol. 1, No. 2, Pages 198–215 (abstract can be found at: Caliber: University of California Press)
- Various authors. "Jewish Paganism" in Green EggGreen EggGreen Egg is a Neopagan magazine published by the Church of All Worlds from 1968 through 1976 and 1988 through 2000, and restarted in 2007. It was created and edited for most of its existence by Oberon Zell-Ravenheart....
, Winter 1994 (Volume 27, #107). - Winkler, Rabbi Gershon (January 10, 2003). Magic of the Ordinary: Recovering the Shamanic in Judaism. North Atlantic Books. ISBN 1556434448, ISBN 978-1556434440.