Shapiro's Rise of the Pagans?

Can the soul truly flourish when confined by the dogma and conditioning of institutionalized religion, such as Catholicism?

From the little I’ve seen of his online content, Ben Shapiro no doubt has a sharp mind—a keen intellect. His interest in “God” (at least in a certain narrative about God) and in a certain version of “Jesus the Christ” is also without question. I am also interested in God, in Jesus, and in the Christ (the spiritual anointing or awakening of the human soul). In the video this article refers to (below), Shapiro also shares similar values to my own when it comes to many societal matters. Yet I find it challenging to listen to his take on the world. In my experience, his worldview appears deeply constrained by religious conditioning and a rigid adherence to dogma. This seems to be a common issue among followers of various fundamentalist and institutionalised religions. I am sharing here some thoughts on the matter.

A Fundamentalist Worldview

Today after watching a completely unrelated video, I came across Shapiro’s live broadcast called Rise of the Pagans. The title piqued my interest, mostly because I find the word “pagan” (a Catholic pejorative) is typically misused. So I listened to the first 20 minutes or so. If interested, you can watch the video here:

Another Perspective

Shapiro’s broad use of the word 'pagan' in the title and content of his presentation is misleading and reflects a limited understanding of the human spirit and humanity’s rich array of spiritual traditions. What exactly is being classified as “pagan”? All spiritual systems, traditions, and beliefs that are not approved by one particular interpretation of the message of Jesus Christ—otherwise known as traditional Catholicism?

Paganism, historically, is not a singular belief system but an umbrella term encompassing diverse pre-Christian and non-Abrahamic spiritual traditions, ranging from animism and polytheism to nature-based philosophies. The term is often flattened into a vague, catch-all bogeyman for anything non-Catholic, which is both historically inaccurate and intellectually lazy.

Framing any deviation from Catholicism as “paganism” is a textbook straw man argument. The decline of Catholic influence does not equate to a rise in any one opposing ideology—it simply means more people are thinking critically about spirituality beyond institutional control. The non-Catholic worldview isn’t “rising”—it has always been here. A wide spectrum of spiritual views and associated religions existed for aeons before Catholicism, and they have continued to exist in the ~1,700 years since it took shape. What we are witnessing now is not the rise of paganism but rather the gradual demise of Catholicism’s stronghold over popular spiritual beliefs. If “demise” is too strong a word, let’s simply say the popularity of Catholicism is waning.

Ironically, much of Catholic tradition and what it holds so dear is built on the bones of so-called “pagan” practices—Christmas, Easter, saints, and even the concept of the Holy Trinity have syncretic origins, many of which are rooted in a metaphysical relationship to astrological and seasonal cycles that predate Christianity. The timing of major Christian festivals often aligns with solstices, equinoxes, and other celestial events, reflecting ancient traditions that recognised the rhythms of the cosmos as sacred. The Church didn’t replace paganism; it repackaged it. So if anything, Catholicism’s very structure contradicts rigid categorisations of “pagan” and “non-pagan.” It is arrogant and blind to assume that this shift is not due to inherent shortcomings within Catholicism itself but is instead the result of a rising takeover by whatever is broadly labelled as “pagan.”

A prime example of this repackaging is the concept of the “Holy Spirit,” which appears to be a patriarchal rebranding of the Divine Feminine—a force deeply revered in many pre-Christian spiritual traditions. Some of the oldest known religious artefacts are female figurines, often referred to as "Venus figurines," dating back to the Upper Palaeolithic period, approximately 35,000 to 20,000 BCE. These figurines are widely believed to represent fertility, motherhood, and the sacred feminine, reflecting an ancient recognition of divine feminine power on Earth—one that was later subsumed within Christianity as the more abstract and gender-neutral “Holy Spirit.” Even linguistically, this shift is evident: the Hebrew word ruach (spirit) is feminine, and in early Christian Gnostic texts, the Holy Spirit was often described in explicitly feminine terms, sometimes identified with Sophia (divine wisdom) or the Shekinah (the feminine presence of God in Jewish mysticism). Rather than preserving this reverence for the sacred feminine, Catholicism stripped it of its identity or transformed it into a male persona altogether. While aspects of the Divine Feminine were later funnelled into veneration of the Virgin Mary, this was done within a strictly patriarchal framework, maintaining male dominance over spiritual authority.

Shapiro’s perspective also overlooks contradictions within his own argument. He claims that a so-called “new paganistic religion” sees no value in life, referencing modern attitudes towards abortion and euthanasia as evidence of moral decay. Yet these cultural shifts have taken place predominantly in societies where the majority still identify as Christian—often under the leadership of those who also claim Christian values. Moreover, many non-Catholics—who would fall under Shapiro’s broad “pagan” label—oppose abortion and euthanasia as well. In reality, most non-Christian traditions, particularly indigenous and ancient spiritual systems, hold an extraordinary reverence for life—especially for the holism and living intelligence of Mother Earth. Across these traditions, humans are seen as caregivers of the Earth and the cosmos at large, responsible for maintaining balance and honouring the sacredness of all life. These perspectives stand in stark contrast to Shapiro’s claim that “paganism” inherently disregards the value of life. Rather than a monolithic “pagan” influence overtaking Christian morality, the trends he decries reflect fractures and evolving perspectives within Christianity itself.

Meanwhile, the vast spectrum of spiritual beliefs Shapiro lumps together as “pagan” have endured far longer than Catholicism—many for tens of thousands of years. Even today, Christianity carries remnants of these traditions within its own structures and celebrations. Despite roughly 1,500 years of active suppression and attempted eradication of non-Christian and indigenous spiritual traditions, many of these traditions have persisted, demonstrating resilience that contradicts the claim that Judeo-Christian morality has “stood the test of time” unchallenged. In Quebec, for example, where Shapiro references abortion and euthanasia, the proportion of people identifying as Catholic dropped from 84.2% in 2011 to 59.8% in 2021. Meanwhile, the category of “No religion and secular perspectives” rose from 12% to 29.5%. If Catholicism were truly standing the test of time, why are so many leaving it behind?

Throughout Rise of the Pagans, Shapiro repeatedly points to issues he sees in modern society—moral depravity, a loss of sacred values, and a breakdown of natural order—all of which he blames on the rise of “paganism.” Ironically, many of these same concerns are shared by people who do not identify as Catholic or even Christian. Why is it that Christian fundamentalists tend to separate themselves from the rest of humanity? Are we not all created by God equally? The notion that only Catholicism upholds morality does a disservice to the many non-Catholics who live with deep integrity, respect for life, and alignment with the sacred. Shapiro’s framing dismisses the possibility that a moral, spiritually attuned life can exist outside the boundaries of his specific religious ideology. In doing so, he falsely discredits vast numbers of people who, like him, see modern society as increasingly unmoored from natural and spiritual order—yet do not subscribe to his narrow, dogmatic view.

There’s an amusing bit of irony in Shapiro’s video—his advertising plug for Balance of Nature seems to reflect a certain disconnect from, well, balance with nature. He starts with, “Let’s talk about maintaining a healthy lifestyle,” then proceeds to call vegetables “garbage”—“nature’s garbage,” “just the worst”—a sentiment likely shared by fans of the now trendy carnivore diet. Yet, in the same breath, he acknowledges that we need the essential nutrients they provide: “But we must eat them, because if we do not eat them then you will die sooner, because they make you healthy.” So which is it? Are they worthless, or are they vital to human health? It’s a funny contradiction—rejecting a fundamental aspect of our place within nature and God’s creation while simultaneously promoting its benefits in a convenient, artificial form. Sound familiar?

In case that point is lost on some of my readers: From my perspective, part of the harmful shadow of Catholicism was that it spread and perpetuated a worldview in which humans are disconnected from the natural and living Earth—the realm that, according to Christianity (and pretty much every other spiritual tradition I’m familiar with), “God” created for human beings to dwell within and to be the guardians and caregivers of. In exceedingly brief terms, through roughly 1,500 years of religious violence—including military crusades, inquisitions, missionary-driven conversions, and colonial conquests—Catholicism enforced the belief that the Earth and nature are not inherently spiritual or worthy of care and instead converted our creator into an abstract and disembodied figurehead that exists in some kind of imperceptible and nebulous concept named “heaven.” This, arguably and rather ironically, has played a major role in fuelling the rise of abject materialism in recent centuries, which has led to profound disharmony within modernised humans and a widespread turning away from the human spirit and spirituality in general.

Perhaps this shift in consciousness—the so-called “rise of the pagans”—is not a rejection of God and Christ Consciousness but rather a deeper return to the divine wisdom inherent in all humans and in nature itself, including the very elements of creation that sustain life, such as the plants and foods that Shapiro dismisses as “garbage.” Catholicism, in its attempt to transcend the material world, has too often neglected this sacred connection, severing human spirituality from the very creation it claims was divinely ordained.

I will close by sincerely wishing Shapiro well on his soul’s journey towards greater consciousness and self-realisation. Despite my critique of the religious perspective and worldview he goes to great lengths to proselytise, I recognise that his intentions are genuine. My wish for him, as for all human beings, is that he may one day recover his conscious union with the Divine—as Jesus himself conveyed in the words, “The Father and I are one.” A declaration deemed blasphemous by the Judaic religious institution he was born into, rejected, and which ultimately conspired with the Roman government to have him crucified.

I therefore propose that this realisation—the ultimate goal of Man—is far more likely to occur outside the artificial construct of a dogmatic religious institution, as was the case for Jesus—one that was fashioned nearly 400 years after his time, primarily for political rather than spiritual purposes—than from within it.