heathenism

[ hee-th uh-niz-uh m ]

/ ˈhi ðəˌnɪz əm /

a belief or practice of heathens; idolatry.

barbaric morals or behavior; barbarism.

Nearby words

First recorded in 1595–1605; heathen + -ism

Then follow earnest admonitions to shun the vices of their former state of heathenism, and cultivate all the graces of the Spirit.
Companion to the Bible|E. P. Barrows
Mr. Taylor laughs cheerfully over Alfred Challis's heathenism.
It Never Can Happen Again|William De Morgan
We have seen how heathenism, with its unreasonable and wild vagaries, gave way to the early Christian Church.
A Danish Parsonage|John Fulford Vicary
They might begin to think meanly of others, even of their own husbands, if they were still content to abide in heathenism.
The Expositor's Bible: The Epistles of St. Peter|J. Rawson Lumby

On the hypothesis that these descriptions had come down from the days of English heathenism all is easily explicable.
The Heroic Age|H. Munro Chadwick