Paganism

 https://www.christianity.com/wiki/cults-and-other-religions/pagans-history-and-beliefs-of-paganism.html

The information is from a Christian website. 

Pagan Definition

Pagan; Paganism: "a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions; a religion other than one of the main world religions, specifically a non-Christian or pre-Christian religion."

According to Merriam-Webster, the term “Pagan” comes from the Late Latin word paganus, which was used at the end of the Roman Empire to identify those who practiced a religion other than Christianity, Judaism, or Islam. Early Christians often used the term to refer to non-Christians who worshiped multiple deities. 

In Latin, paganus originally meant “country dweller” or “civilian;” it is believed that the word’s religious meaning developed either from the enduring non-Christian religious practices of those who lived far from the Roman cities where Christianity was more quickly adopted or from the fact that early Christians referred to themselves as “soldiers of Christ,” making nonbelievers “civilians.”

Origin and History of Paganism

According to patheos.com, Paganism represents a wide variety of traditions that emphasize reverence for nature and a revival of ancient polytheistic and animistic religious practices. Some modern forms of Paganism have their roots in 19th century C.E. European nationalism (including the British Order of Druids), but most contemporary Pagan groups trace their immediate organizational roots to the 1960s and have an emphasis on archetypal psychology and a spiritual interest in nature.

Paganism is simultaneously a prehistoric and postmodern religion-it is as ancient as the fertility symbols associated with the veneration of gods and goddesses tens of thousands of years ago, while its newest forms have emerged as recently as the mid-20th century. Broadly speaking, Paganism encompasses two key characteristics: 1) religious and spiritual practices concerning the worship of, or devotion to, the earth, the natural world, and/or the manifest physical universe; and/or 2) belief in spiritual beings: goddesses, gods, nature spirits (fairies, elves, power animals), and ancestral spirits.

Pagan Beliefs

Wikipedia.com lists the following two primary elements of pagan beliefs.

Polytheism: One principle of the Pagan movement is polytheism, the belief in and veneration of multiple gods or goddesses. Within the Pagan movement, there can be found many deities, both male and female, who have various associations and embody forces of nature, aspects of culture, and facets of human psychology. These deities are typically depicted in human form and are viewed as having human faults. They are therefore not seen as perfect, but rather are venerated as being wise and powerful. Pagans feel that this understanding of the gods reflected the dynamics of life on Earth, allowing for the expression of humor.

Animism: A key part of most Pagan worldviews is the holistic concept of a universe that is interconnected. This is connected with a belief in either pantheism or panentheism. In both beliefs, divinity and the material or spiritual universe are one. For pagans, pantheism means that "divinity is inseparable from nature and that deity is immanent in nature".