Mark Green's Atheopaganism Blog

Living an Earth-Honoring Path Rooted in Science

Ritual Technologies: Rhythm

The first musical instrument was almost certainly something resonant being struck: a hollow log, a dried gourd. In fact, percussive rhythm may predate humans as a species: monkeys have been observed beating on hollow logs in a call-and-response with other monkeys. Certainly the noises made while pounding…

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Developing a Focus

A Focus is an Atheopagan word for an altar. I use this word because “altar” seems to me to imply worship and/or sacrifice, neither of which are components of my religion. The Focus is: A curated collection of meaningful objects gathered together for ritual use and placed…

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Values and Self-Development in a World without Gods

Atheopagans don’t believe in gods. We don’t believe there is a Cosmic Plan beyond the simple unfolding of the Cosmos according to physical laws. We don’t believe in an afterlife. We believe that science tells us all that can reliably be known about the nature of the Universe. Many who do believe…

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Ritual Technologies: Light and Beauty

Imagine being in a cathedral. The hush, the dim light from stained glass windows and flickering candles, the faint scent of incense. The faint sound, perhaps, of sacred music through the profound silence. The architecture that sends the eye reaching up, up, to barely discernible vaults. Massive columns, larger-than-life statues of…

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Building Atheopagan Community

As I referenced earlier, Atheopaganism as a named path is new. That means that those of us who are a part of it are rare, and far-flung (the Facebook group has members from across the globe). That said, Atheopaganism has something precious to offer both atheists and Pagans,…

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Encountering Your Personal Atheopaganism

Through my essay and on this site, I have laid out Atheopagan Principles and values that work for me. They may work for you, too—I think of them as relatively universal ideals of a life well lived. But your mileage may vary; maybe you…

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