Crypto-paganism is the secret adherence to

paganism Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

while publicly professing to be of another faith. In historical context, a crypto-pagan (from the Greek ''kryptos'' – , "hidden") was most likely to maintain the pretense of believing in an

Abrahamic religion The term Abrahamic religions is used to group together monotheistic religions revering the Biblical figure Abraham, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The religions share doctrinal, historical, and geographic overlap that contrasts them wit ...

, while continuing to observe their own religious practices in private. Hiding one's true religious faith may be in response to a perceived danger of rejection by society, or else to formalized persecution by an established government or religious organization.

In antiquity and the early Byzantine Empire

Anthemius Procopius Anthemius (; died 11 July 472) was the Western Roman Empire, Western Roman emperor from 467 to 472. Born in the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, Anthemius quickly worked his way up the ranks. He married into the Theodosian dyna ...

, one of the last Roman emperors of the West who ruled from 467 to 472, surrounded himself with prominent pagans such as Messius Phoebus Severus and was believed to hold pagan views. According to

Damascius Damascius (; ; 462 – after 538), known as "the last of the Athenian Neoplatonists", was the last scholarch of the neoplatonic Athenian school. He was one of the neoplatonic philosophers who left Athens after laws confirmed by emperor Jus ...

, Severus and Anthemius had a secret plan to restore the Pagan cults. The murder of Anthemius (by

Ricimer Ricimer ( , ; – 19 August 472) was a Romanized Germanic general, who ruled the remaining territory of the Western Roman Empire from 456 after defeating Avitus, until his death in 472, with a brief interlude in which he contested power wit ...

) destroyed the hopes of those pagans who believed that the traditional rites would be restored. Anatolius (Osroene) (died c. 579/580) was a Byzantine official, active in the reign of

Tiberius II Constantine Tiberius II Constantine (; ; died 14 August 582) was Eastern Roman emperor from 574 to 582. Tiberius rose to power in 574 when Justin II, prior to a mental breakdown, proclaimed him ''caesar'' and adopted him as his own son. In 578, the dying ...

(r. 574–582). He was accused of being a crypto-pagan and consequently executed. Acindynus, a Byzantine governor of Carrhae (

Harran Harran is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Şanlıurfa Province, Turkey. Its area is 904 km2, and its population is 96,072 (2022). It is approximately southeast of Urfa and from the Syrian border crossing at Akçakale. ...

), was accused by his scribe/secretary Iyarios (elsewhere called Honorius) of secretly practicing paganism. Stephen, Bishop of Harran, had Acindynus executed in 602, either by

impalement Impalement, as a method of torture and execution, is the penetrating trauma, penetration of a human by an object such as a stake, pole, spear, or hook, often by the complete or partial perforation of the torso. It was particularly used in respon ...

crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross, beam or stake and left to hang until eventual death. It was used as a punishment by the Achaemenid Empire, Persians, Ancient Carthag ...

. The deceased governor was succeeded by Iyarios. Tuomo Lankila of the

University of Jyväskylä A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". U ...

argues that the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'', an ostensibly Christian text attributed to

Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (or Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite) was a Greek author, Christian theologian and Neoplatonic philosopher of the late 5th to early 6th century, who wrote a set of works known as the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'' ...

, was in fact written by

, the last head of the pagan Neoplatonist school of Athens. Lankila claims the work was written "in order to resurrect more easily the polytheistic religion in better times".

In the Middle Ages

The Christianization of Europe typically involved Christian missionaries managing to convert a king or other ruler who then proclaimed his kingdom to be Christian. It took several generations for Christianity to become truly established in the whole society, with many people – especially in rural and outlying areas – clinging to their ancestral religion, deemed "Pagan" from the Christian point of view. With the Church establishing its hierarchy and a network of parish priests, such practices were increasingly driven underground. Alternately, the Church in some cases gave some widespread practices a Christian guise, for example attributing annual processions or rites, dedicated to a local deity, to a Christian saint instead. The Byzantine philosopher Gemistus Pletho (c. 1355/1360 – 1452/1454) secretly advocated polytheism in his book ''Nomoi'', which he only circulated among close friends. After his death it came into the hands of the

Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople () is the List of ecumenical patriarchs of Constantinople, archbishop of Constantinople and (first among equals) among the heads of the several autocephalous churches that comprise the Eastern Orthodox ...

Gennadius II, who eventually burned it, although Gennadius' summary of its content survives in a letter.

In the modern world

Wicca Wicca (), also known as "The Craft", is a Modern paganism, modern pagan, syncretic, Earth religion, Earth-centred religion. Considered a new religious movement by Religious studies, scholars of religion, the path evolved from Western esote ...

, as presented by neo-pagan theorist Gerald Gardner, traditional laws instruct practitioners to conceal their practices and religious paraphernalia by using innocuous substitutes which could easily be explained away in case of discovery:

"To void discovery, let the working tools be as ordinary things that any may have in their houses. Let the Pentacles be of wax, so they may be broken at once. Have no sword unless your rank allows you one. Have no names or signs on anything. Write the names and signs on them in ink before consecrating them and wash it off immediately after. Do not Bigrave ngravethem, lest they cause discovery. Let the colour of the hilts tell which is which. Ever remember, ye are the Hidden Children of the Gods."

Among modern guides, ''City Magick'', an urban pagan's manual published in 2001, gives examples of how to hide a pagan altar at your home or at work, using items such as letter openers, paper weights, and coffee cups and relaxation candles in the place of the traditional sword, stone, goblet and candle.

References

External links

Jones "The Roman Economy"
– Section with crypto-pagans and neo-platonic faiths {{Paganism Paganism

Paganism Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

In antiquity and the early Byzantine Empire

In the Middle Ages

In the modern world

See also

References

External links