noun

paganism

PAY-gun-iz-um/ˈpeɪɡənɪzəm/

Religious beliefs or practices outside major monotheistic traditions, especially those honoring nature or multiple gods.

The household shrine's offerings to Athena and Poseidon illustrate ancient Greek paganism.

A small ancient Greek household shrine with statuettes of Athena and Poseidon and modest offerings, illustrating one concrete example of polytheistic religious practice rather than suggesting that all pagan traditions are alike.

Etymology

paganLatinvillager; civilian; pagan

+ismLatinbelief or practice

The suffix turns pagan into a name for religious beliefs and practices. The base's religious meaning probably developed from paganus as ‘civilian,’ contrasting outsiders with Christians imagined as soldiers of Christ.

In context

ANCIENT NATIONS24:59

The Pope orders his missionaries to use a ritualistic tool, water basins, that is heavily associated with pagan temple purification to cleanse a building of its paganism.

Stolen Rituals? How Pagan Rome Shaped the Modern Church | History Podcast

More examples

The course explores paganism in ancient Greece and Rome.
Some forms of paganism honor many gods and goddesses.
For him, paganism includes rituals that mark the summer solstice.

Forms

paganism

pagan noun — A person who practices a pagan religion.

Similar words

polytheism: Specifically means belief in multiple gods, not necessarily nature worship.
animism: Emphasizes spirits in nature rather than worship of multiple gods.