Federazione Pagana
The Federazione Pagana is a religious association which strives for “organizing and structuring the religiosity of paganism, polytheism, witchcraft and in general of all non-monotheistic religions.
The association has only a religious purpose.
The association strives for realizing the religious dimension of paganism, polytheism and witchcraft in every way and area” (extract from art. 2 of Federazione Pagana’s statute)
Index of this summary presentation:
· Name
· Phases of Federazione Pagana’s birth
· Ways the Federazione Pagana acts
· Federazione Pagana’s religious rites
· Federazione Pagana and christianity
NAME
The name Federazione Pagana had been used in Italy by Zoe Red Bear during first ‘90s. With that name, Zoe tried to gather around her various Pagan expressions that were emerging in Italy. She and her group decided later to abandon that name (according to her, there could be some confusion with the Pagan Federation, with which the present Federazione Pagana has no relation, neither religious nor organizational, while it takes actively part to WCER’s activity ) and adopted the name “Sacre Radici” (Sacred Roots) until their dissolution when Zoe left to USA.
At the end of
Then Francesco Scanagatta, of Istituto Mediterraneo di Studi Politeisti (Mediterranean Institute of Polytheistic Studies), and Claudio Simeoni took on the name and started the path which lead to present Federazione Pagana.
The name “Federazione Pagana” was enormously important for us, because we were aware that Pagan Religion is not characterized by principles of truth, but by principles of freedom. So, every Pagan is the bearer of a particular vision and truth, but Pagans find their “least common denominator”, their unity, in removing the obstacles between man and the surrounding infinite.
PHASES OF FEDERAZIONE PAGANA’S BIRTH
The
first public definition of the Federazione Pagana can be found in a declaration
of 29th June
In 2002 the Federazione Pagana’s foundation meeting took place and ten people made themselves warranters and became founder members.
On 7th December 2002 the Constitutive Act and the Statute of the Religious Association “Federazione Pagana” have been registered.
On 3rd March 2003 the first members meeting took place, a Pontifex was elected and the first place of worship was chosen: the Sacred Wood, in Jesolo (VE). This place of worship has been brought to the attention of authorities, to preserve it from contempt.
Every year the Federazione Pagana has its ordinary meeting; in August 2006 the Pontifex has been rielected, an initiative about the “European Pagan Memory Day” has been taken, and the participation to the Veneti’s Fest in Cittadella, as a religious association, was discussed and approved.
RELIGIOUS THOUGHT
The Federazione Pagana doesn’t put an ancient prechristian religion before another, because it doesn’t identify the Ancient Religion with the form under which it has been presented by different peoples, but with the meaning that peoples gave to it, apart from form and culture of their representation.
The institution of INTEPRETATIO was applied in Ancient Religions and it’s still valid. Though they are different, Jupiter and Zeus ended up representing the same divine force and continued their changing in peoples’ culture.
The Federazione Pagana doesn’t discriminate people calling themselves pagans for their beliefs or predilections, but asks them to fill beliefs and predilections with meaning, in order to apply the institution of the interpretatio.
SPREADING OF PAGAN RELIGION
The Federazione Pagana thinks, rightly or not, to be a depository of divine and religious meaning of Ancient Religions both Italics and Roman, Greek, Etrurian and Babylonian one.
This is why Federazione Pagana’s members express their religious principles using names of ancient GODS as a reference point.
The religious practice of Federazione Pagana passes through the definition of religious thought, of the GODS’ nature, of Pagan social principles and through the Sacred way along which the Human Being faces its life. These definitions allow Polytheistic Pagans of Federazione Pagana to organize their religious rites as a moment of collective interaction between Human Beings and divine “object” of the surrounding world.
The Federazione Pagana doesn’t proselytize.
Because of its religious features, the Federazione Pagana applies the article 19 of the Constitution of Italian Republic, since it claims “the right of free professing one’s own religious faith in every form, be it individual or associate, of publicizing it and of exerting, in public or in private, the practices of cult…”; according with the second paragraph of article 4 of the Constitution of Italian Republic. The Federazione Pagana doesn’t accept mass subscription of people, but allows subscription only to those very few people who assume the legal responsibility to represent the Federazione Pagana.
The Federazione Pagana is persuaded that the spreading of Pagan Religion will start not because many people will subscribe the Federazione Pagana, but because many people will feel the need to make the religious, social and existential principles manifested by the Federazione Pagana their own principles. In this moment there are ten people in charge in the Federazione Pagana, and they are very different one from another for personality and religious path, but all have in common the need of freedom in religious situation of this country. People following the Federazione Pagana’s activities are many and put themselves in touch both through internet and radio broadcasting.
The
Federazione Pagana has one person in charge called the “Pontifex”,
elected every three years: s/he represents the Federazione Pagana towards external
society and no member of Federazione Pagana has to obey him/her acritically. This
forces the Pontifex to achieve members’ approval every time s/he starts
an initiative that affects the Federazione Pagana.
WAYS THE FEDERAZIONE PAGANA ACTS
The Federazione Pagana expresses its religious thought through public debates, from 1996 until 2008 a little local radio in Veneto (Radio Gamma 5), and through internet and by taking part to conventions and initiatives of its region.
On the web you can easily find and read about the Federazione Pagana’s thought.
Since 1996, the Federazione Pagana has undergone many harassments especially by those Mayors who were incited by catholic bishops to prevent Federazione Pagana’s members to express publicly their religious thought. The Federazione Pagana has also been denigrated on internet, so hardly that its members had to report it to the police.
Recently
there was also an attempt of violation of the Federazione Pagana Sacred Wood in
Jesolo, stopped by the intervention of Provincial Police.
After that, a Provincial policeman suggested to apply for
excluding hunt from that territory, according to a recent Regional law proclaimed by the Region Veneto which allowed to ask for stopping hunt in places used for social purposes.
The owner of the Wood, on behal of the Federazione Pagana, applied
and Provincial Police attested that the place: "is a place where the members of the religious association called "Federazione Pagana"
periodically gather to celebrate religious Rites. There's also an altar made by a stone statue and other tools."
The Provincial council of Venice recongnized the place as a Worship Place and forwarded
the request for protection to the Regional council.
The protection was refused because of the catholic integralism to which local authorities
draw inspiration, in spite of Constitutional laws. So the owner had to appeal against the refusal and the Regional Administrative Court, with sentence n.
3966 in 2007, condemned the Regional council to recongnize the right of Polytheistic Pagans. Even though the deed hasn't finished yet, we can say that a growing
number of authorities recognize the right of the Pagan Religion, represented by the Federazione Pagana, to exert the cult and other activities allowed by the Constitution.
We think that there will be other violent acts towards the Constitution of Italian Republic by the Catholics and their illegal occupation of Democratic Institutions,
but the results we got until now encourage us to go on.
In the meantime, on the 30th April 2009, the Provincial office of the Agenzia del Territorio (Agency of territory)
notified to the Wood's owner that the place where the Pagan Altar lies was identified in the land register in the category E7 "worship buildings".
The way we began as Federazione Pagana is the only way in Italy that allows to be recognized as a Religion according to the current Constitution of Republic and laws.
RELIGIOUS RITES
Until 2006 the Federazione Pagana has been celebrating four public rituals per year. Three of them in the place of worship called the Sacred Wood in Jesolo, via Ca’ Gamba, 7th traversa, and one on the Asiago’s upland.
The three religious rites by the Sacred Wood take place on the saturday nearer to the equinoxes and to summer solstice and celebrate: the birth (spring equinox), knowledge (summer solstice), the worlds of silence (autumn equinox). The rite by the Asiago’s upland has been celebrated for more than ten years and it is a Devotio, a rite calling the GODS to witness and support aims of life of those who take part to the rite.
FEDERAZIONE PAGANA AND CHRISTIANITY
The Federazione Pagana considers christianity, for its religious, ethic and moral principles, an expression of ABSOLUTE EVIL.
It’s not an abhorrence for what christianity did, but for what christianity is and leads to do.
Following the direction showed by sentences of the Court of Cassation, the Federazione Pagana adopted the method of analyzing doctrinal principles that are the basis of social and religious present and opposing to them the principles of Pagan Polytheistic Religion. The Federazione Pagana adds to the religious thought of Ancient Religions the concept of ABSOLUTE EVIL as it manifested itself during last two thousand years through christian doctrine. Following the direction showed by the Court of Cassation the Federazione Pagana is always ready to debate its observations and conclusions.
The concept of ABSOLUTE EVIL could not be assumed by Ancient Religions because its appearance under the form of christianity destroyed Ancient Religions calling them “paganisms”. Because of this, Paganism can be a religion only considering christianity as and expression of ABSOLUTE EVIL.
This is not a political dislike, like someone would like to give to understand, but a religious need.
In Pagan Polytheistic Religion Human Being is a subject of right, both in society and before the GODS. In christianity the man is submitted to the truth revealed by his god. In Pagan Religion the Human Being became a species in Nature to which s/he belongs; in christianity the Human Being has been created in his god’s likeness!
These two stances are absolutely incompatible and fix not only different religious choices, but also the development of antagonistic social principles.
This characteristic qualifies (together with the effort of elaboration of the Western Way to Knowedge called the Sorcerer’s Crucible) the Federazione Pagana and gives distinctive philosophical and religious features to it .
Many people who call themselves “pagan” often throw the self-definition “Keeper of the Antichrist” back at one of founder member of Federazione Pagana. Some people calling themselves “pagan” use this self-definition to impute religious aims which are different from the Polytheistic Paganism to the Federazione Pagana. But these people wouldn’t ever dare to impute to king Numa aims different from his, because of the relation between him and the Nymph Egeria; they prefer playing with misunderstanding allowed by the word instead of facing the Federazione Pagana’s religious thought as it has been developed and presented through internet, public debates and ten years of radio broadcasting.
Edited by the Federazione Pagana
All rights reserved
GO TO FEDERAZIONE PAGANA’S OFFICIAL WEBSITE