Re: Pagans, Wiccans, Heathens, and Witches. Have you ever tried the leprechaun test? It's easy.
Choose some supernatural deity, some entity that is the object of worship then see if you can distinguish it from a leprechaun. Try an angel for example...
It comes and intervenes in the affairs of people, like a leprechaun. It can do tricks/miracles/magic like a leprechaun. There's no direct evidence but anecdotal accounts - like a leprechaun. There are some written texts which are used as sources of verification, much like leprechauns. The question becomes, why support one set of ideas when the others are irrationally thrown out?
It's fun inventing stories of supernatural powers and magic and all that stuff and it might be fun to pretend to believe in it, but I doubt that any of them would rely on magic to fly an aeroplane, power a car, operate a lift, boil a kettle, etc.
In the fanciful world of make-belief it's all good fun but in the real world where evidence matters, splitting magical hairs to create a classification of beliefs in the supernatural is a bit like stamp collecting. |