13 Principles of Wiccan Belief
(as per The Thirteen Principles of Wiccan
Belief drafted by Gnosticus)
(my words)
(as per Teen
Witch by Silver RavenWolf)
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1. We practice rites to attune ourselves with
the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the Phases of the Moon and Seasonal
Quarters and Cross-Quarters. (Notice that there are cycles to all
things in the Universe—life, time, space—and that it is in the understanding of
these cycles we can understand how best to govern ourselves and our
environment.)(Teen
Speak: Witches celebrate God through religious services, commonly called
rituals. A rite is a segment within a
ritual. Most of our church services correspond to set days throughout the year. Some celebrations follow the phases of the
moon, where other services match the seasons of the planet. Rather than wasting space and building a
place to hold church services that will remain vacant for most of the week,
Witches often meet in their homes and have their church services there.)
2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us
a unique responsibility toward our environment.
We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in ecological balance offering
fulfillment to life and consciousness within and evolutionary concept.(Selected
to be gifted with a higher intelligence and mind for abstract thinking, it is
up to us to maintain homeostasis. The human mind is capable of invention, and
this inventive ability puts us in a position to use it to benefit our
environment rather than create new ways to destroy it.) (Teen Speak: God has given us the
ability to know right from wrong. Since we stand at the top of the food chain
(well, at least most of us) we have the responsibility to make sure that the
planet doesn’t get gummed up because we are so damned “smart.” The best way to
protect the planet and all the creatures on it is by living in harmony with all
our bird, bee, and animal buddies. In
essence, we need to be ecologically conscious of our actions at all times.)
3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater
than is apparent to the average person.
Because it is far greater than ordinary, it is sometimes called
“supernatural,” but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential
to all.(Just because not everyone has uncovered deeper levels of the Power, this
does not mean they are incapable of finding the power within themselves. Most people just accept the average power to
be all there is and look no further, but there is more power available that one
could fathom.)(Teen
Speak: Over the centuries, humans have managed to suppress many of their innate
talents. The power of the mind truly is
an incredible thing. Did you know that
we don’t bother to use a huge portion of our mind power? We’ve become lazy, and access only what we
think we need. It is from this unused
mind that wondrous abilities unfold, such as clairvoyance, telekinesis,
clairaudience, ESP, remote viewing—call it what you will. Everyone has these abilities, but most don’t
use them, and some people fear these powers.
Witches and other enlightened souls strive to strengthen these natural
gifts. In the eyes of the Witch, everyone and everything stands equal.)
4. We conceive of the Creative Power in the Universe
as manifesting through polarity—as masculine and feminine—and that this
Creative Power lives in all people and functions through the interaction of the
masculine and feminine. We value neither
above the other, knowing each to be supportive of the other. We value sex as pleasure, as the symbol and
embodiment of life, and as one of the sources of energies used in magical
practice and religious worship.(For every action there is an equal and
opposite reaction; for every right, a left; for every up a down. In a whole, there are both polarities and
things are not possible without one meeting the other, because at some point a
right must turn to left; a North must turn to South; it is in the union of these polarities that
the Whole is formed.)(Teen
Speak: Just like any other religion, Witches believe in God. We see God as having two sides—masculine and
feminine. Together, these two sides mix
to create the whole of God. Witches
respect both men and women, and male and female properties of everything. We agree that men aren’t better than women,
and that women aren’t better than men.
Witches believe that having sex with another person is not a “bad
thing,” though we do feel that sexual acts and interests carry a heavy
responsibility.)
5. We recognize both outer worlds and inner,
or psychological worlds—sometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective
Unconscious, the Inner Planes, and so on—and we see in the interaction of these
two dimensions the basis for paranormal phenomena and magical exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other,
seeing both as necessary for our fulfillment.(This one speaks for itself. The physical world is not the boundary of the
Universe, the Ethereal realm is always present and always influencing us. Don’t ignore it!)(Teen Speak: We know that energies exist
in the world, seen and unseen. We value
the world of the mind as much as we value the world around us. The Collective
Unconscious means the psychic connections between people, plants, animals,
insects, and Spirit. We call the powers
of the mind the Inner Planes. Witches
realize that the techniques known as paranormal phenomena and magickal
application begin in the mind and manifest in the Universe. We pay attention to what we think and what we
do. We believe that to think a thing is to create a thing.)
6. We do not recognize any authoritarian
hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, respect those who share their greater
knowledge and wisdom, and acknowledge those who have courageously given of
themselves in leadership.(Respect, honor and acknowledgement are
to be earned in the eyes of your peers, not to be taken for yourself.)(Teen Speak: Unlike other churches that
feel the need to have a central government that dictates the rules and
activities of its followers, the Wiccan religion does not have a central
government. We do have teachers and
leaders that we honor for their wisdom and the time they have donated to the
Wiccan way. Each Wiccan organization,
church, coven, group, or open circle governs itself.)
7. We see religion, magic, and
wisdom-in-living as being united in the way one views the world and lives
within it—a worldview and philosophy-of-life that we identify as Witchcraft,
the Wiccan Way.(A combination of different aspects
forms Witchcraft, for it is not a religion alone.)(Teen Speak: Wiccans believe that
religion, the power of the mind, magickal applications, wisdom, and faith in
Spirit do not function separately, but together. We try not to wear blinders to what goes on
in the world, and to keep an open mind as much as possible.)
8. Calling oneself “Witch” does not make a Witch—but neither
does heredity itself, or the collecting of titles, degrees, and
initiations. Witches seek to control the
forces within themselves that make life possible in order to live wisely and
well, without harm to others, and in harmony with Nature.(You
cannot truly be born into something you don’t believe. You can’t be something simply because of a
title or a rank. It is the way you feel,
believe and govern yourself and your life that defines you.)(Teen Speak: Putting down this book [Teen Witch], going to school, and
proclaiming to one and all does not make you a Witch. Wearing black clothing and lots of gaudy
jewelry and threatening people with the silly nonsense of cursing them puts you
far away from the path of the real Wiccan.
Joining a coven and taking an initiation and collecting status within
that group also doesn’t make you a Witch.
How you live, how you deal with others, how you incorporate Wiccan laws
into your life—these all determine whether you are or are not a Witch.)
9. We acknowledge that it is the affirmation
and fulfillment of life, in a continuation of evolution and development of
consciousness, that gives meaning to the Universe we know, and to our personal
role within it.(Even if you don’t believe in any other
point, this one is important. Naturally,
people do not remember a life before birth and have no natural, solid concept
of a life after physical death. And
perhaps this place is the one chance to enjoy life on a physical plane, so
enjoy it. You are here now. Be here.
Try things. Experience as much as
you can.)(Teen
Speak: Witches respect all life, whether that life belings to a bug, a weed, a
beautiful tree, a tiger, or a rude man who lives down the street from you. All must survive to evolve.)
10. Our only animosity toward Christianity, or
toward any other religion or philosophy-of-life, is to the extent that its
institutions have claimed to be “the only way” and have sought to deny freedom
to others and to suppress other ways of religious practice and belief.(Human
life seeks to find a reason, and a source of all things, because we were given
the concept of something more than ourselves.
There have been numerous ways of understanding that source, and behold
the ones to survive ages and gain acceptance are the ones that center on karmic
laws, and the idea of kindness and being a good person (doing things that will
not interfere with others’ ability to live happily). These ideas have remained
and must mean something, so it should not matter what form of worship a person
chooses. They have chosen to acknowledge
the Spirit, and that’s that.)(Teen Speak: Witches are sick and tired of people in other
religions passing judgment and spreading lies about our belief system just
because they are either insecure in their own faith or don’t recognize that
many paths to God exist in our Universe.
These unenlightened people think that hurting us is better than
admitting that people should be free to believe as they want to believe. Witches do not hate Christians, or Jew, or
followers of Islam; however when people from these structured groups try to
hurt us with lies, gossip, or physical force, they can expect the Witches to be
upset and to fight back.)
11. As American Witches, we are not threatened
by debates on the history of the Craft, the origins of various terms, the
legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We are concerned with our present, and our
future.(Grudges are heavy and will wear you down. You can’t climb over a mountain if you gather
up every rock on the way. Lighten the
load and focus on the road you’re on.)(Teen Speak: There is no one right way to practice the
Craft. The religion is what you make of it.)
12. We do not accept the concept of “absolute
evil,” nor do we worship any entity known as “Satan” or “the devil,” as defined
by the Christian Tradition. We do not
seek power through the suffering of others, nor do we accept the concept that
personal benefit can be only derived by denial to another.(While
we realize that the world is not a place free from evil-doing, we see that evil
is a costly means and that doing good is much more effective. The idea that we worship “the devil” was a
Christian idea with ulterior motives.
There are some who choose deities that control war, death, and things
that would be associated with the Christian devil, but it is not advised to
follow those paths.)(Teen
Speak: We do not worship the Devil nor do we believe in the Christian
Satan. We believe that to give evil a
name is to give evil power. Witches do
not find an interest in working with, in, or through evil. We do not believe that a person gains power
by hurting, threatening, or killing someone—that would be evil.)
13. We acknowledge that we seek within Nature
for that which is contributory to our health and well-being.(Everything
a person needs to live well was placed on this earth. Find it, use it, renew it for generations to
come, and it will always be here for you.)(Teen Speak: Witches work with nature rather than against
nature. We believe that God is the
supreme power and that no human or group of people is more powerful than
God. Witches respect all religions in
the face of the planet, and respect an individual’s right to practice a
positive faith. We do not teach our
mysteries to fools, and we will exclude those people whom we feel are either
self-destructive or whom we feel have the potential, or the history, of hurting
others. Most Wiccan organizations screen
prospective members.)
Source: RavenWolf, Silver. Teen
Witch.