- jack0fhearts
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- Honorable Member
"Where ere thou hast been, here or in yon world manifest? Canst thou tell what is, or what was, or what is to come? No thing shall last. Yet there are some things that will never change. History is written in blood, yet are battles really lost on the battlefield? Canst thou tell me where thou comest, and where thou goest, and what is, or what was, or what will be? For everything remains, AS IT NEVER WAS."
Posted by: oSAINT94o
I dont see how the fact that these tribes worshipped nature spirits rather than a divine entity really has any bearing on whether or not there is structure in their society
Religion is also defined as specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices. The problem you're encountering in trying to apply this to Pagans is that we don't really have a single set of practices. Not even in the past did they have such structure. Let's use the Greeks as an example. They had their Parthenon, yet within that belief system, there were cultists of Zeus, Artemis, Athena, etc etc. Within Greek Paganism, there is no clear set foundation of beliefs. You're also running into the issue of trying to lump all Pagans together under the umbrella term "Pagan." We are not all the same, even within the same traditions.
That being said, there is equal structure found in the UNSC, the Insurrectionist Rebel Front, and the various civilizations of the races from the Covenant. As the Covenant is a highly religiously structured organization, they seem to reflect Organized Religion - specifically Catholicism. I see those parallels very starkly, especially with the Prophet's lavish appearance and Gregorian Chant-like speech.
Also, were these people not constantly at eachother's throats, with much of it due to social differences caused by differing belief systems?
Not really, no. Again, look at the Greeks. While one may not have been a follower of a particular Deity, they still respected those figures and - for the most part - tried not to tread against them. Even today there is a vast variety of believers, even within a specific Tradition. Wicca, for instance, has such differences yet a surprising amount of unity. One may be a Priest or Priestess of Gaia, yet still respect a Priest(ess) of Isis. While we may not agree with the chosen Parthenon or Traditional beliefs, rituals, etc, we do not hold that against the individual.
[Edited on 10.15.2011 11:55 AM PDT]