WICCA
IS IT A REAL WORD? IS IT WITCHCRAFT?
IS IT A CULT?
IS IT A RELIGION?
1. Wicca is a generic word used by many
practitioners of paganism in place of the word witchcraft. The general
populace has never accepted the word or subject of witchcraft, and even in
non-Christian countries the word has a negative connotation. It is thought in various cultures that
witches are capable of grisly supernatural acts to children, animals, people,
crops or society. Some modern Wiccans
have chosen to drop the word witch or
witchcraft from their vocabulary to
avoid that caricature. Others believe
the word to be empowering. Many prefer
to define themselves simply as ‘Craft’
2. Actually the words witch, wicca, wicce,
witchcraft, etc. Today all mean
essentially the same thing. Some
Wiccans believe that Wicca is derived
from the old English word wita which
means councilor, or wis, which means,
wise. In fact Wicca is an old English word for ‘witch’ as is the old English
term, wicce. Wiccian means to
‘work sorcery’ and to ‘bewitch’. Still
another old English term, wican, means
‘to bend’. The root word is wic such
as in wicker. In the sense that witches
use magick to influence events, Wicca and
Wiccan are therefore appropriate
terms.
The Rede of
Witchcraft
3. The creed of modern neo-pagan witchcraft is
expressed simply:
“
Eight words the Wiccan rede fulfill:
An’
it harm none, do as ye will”
The rede
acknowledges the right of all people to choose their own paths, as long as
their choices no not bring injury to another. The term Wiccan rede is derived from the old English terms wicca (witch) and roedan (to guide or direct).
The exact origin of the Rede is uncertain. According to Gerald Garner, the Rede is derived from the
legendary good King Pausol, who declared, “Do what you like so long as you harm
no one.” It is also possible the rede
has more recent origins dating from the 1940’s and 50’s which were the early
years of Gardnerian Witchcraft.
Druid/pagan HP, and author Isaac Bonewits theorizes that Garner borrowed
from the writings of Aleister Crowley and composed the Wiccan rede by modifying
Crowley’s ‘Law of Thelema’. “Do what ye will shall be the whole of the
law” Crowley believed that if people knew their true wills and followed them,
they would attune themselves to a harmony with the universe.
4. Most Wiccans believe it is unethical to use
magick to harm or manipulate: Even a
love spell is manipulative if it is an attempt to sway affections against free
will. Rather than cast a love spell
aimed at a particular person, a witch casts a spell directed at attracting the
right and perfect love. (This is and
idealistic concept, not always adhered to).
However, some Wiccans believe that violators of this interpretation of
the Wiccan Rede will suffer a karmic boomerang effect and bring negativity or
evil upon himself or herself. This
interpretation of the rede seems extreme to some in the Craft, for it means
that spells should not be cast against wrongdoers: A witch could make no effort to stop a crime magically, because
that would be manipulation of the criminal’s free will. Those who favor this conservative
interpretation argue that they can cast spells to protect victims, instead. Other witches get around the issue by
casting ‘binding’ spells that stop or prevent evil. Some witches feel the interpretations of the Wiccan rede have
become to convoluted and have stripped witches of their magickal effectiveness
reducing them to a harmless level of ‘bambi magick’. Bonewits argues that if it is morally responsible to stop a crime
physically, it is morally responsible to stop it magically. Some witches will do a whammy when they feel
it warranted, but are quiet about it.
The entire issue is an integral struggle neo-pagan
witches have to
be accepted by mainstream society. In
other cultures where witchcraft plays a different role, the issue would simply
not exist: a magician or shaman who refused to curse an enemy would be useless
to their tribe or society.
Despite occasional allowances for
‘white witches’ in popular lore, the witch universally been perceived
throughout history as one who uses supernatural forces and powers, especially
for evil. Neo-pagan witches have
defined themselves differently — as healers, and agents of good.
Magick
5. Magick, simply put, is a technique using
among other things, creative visualization — a familiar term coined by New Agers. Part of magick is thinking or willing
something to be — the difference between creative visualization and magick is
that magick is often practiced within sort of religious rite or ritual. Witches are trained in a distinct way, use
ritual tools, and practice some techniques and rites that New-Agers do
not. Witches do not ordinarily charge
large sums of money for their training or help. If they charge at all, Wiccan teachers charge only enough to
cover their expenses.
It has been said that ‘New Age’ is
witchcraft with a decimal point, and that is not far from the truth. Fundamentalist Christians are not far off
the mark when they call certain New Age practices witchcraft. Many New Age self-empowering, herbal and
healing methods have their roots in the Craft.
Witches attune to the *masculine and feminine principals nature during
their healing rituals. (*Archetypes whose aspects are commonly called gods and
goddesses).
There are those who believe that
because American witches charge little or no money for their healing assistance
or training, they are of little value.
It is not a conscious assessment, but it exists, and is the result of
any culture which measures; performance in terms of price. Some witches are simply dubious about
combining money and religion. However,
there is a saying. “When you don’t have to pay anything for something quite
valuable, you do not have the impression that it is valuable.”
6. Is Wicca a cult? A cult implies a quasi-religious group, not of the mainstream, so
in some way it is — however there are differences. Cults usually have a charismatic leader who demands total
control— i.e. a guide defining him/herself selected by God or some other
deity. The intent is to find weak
minded or disturbed individuals they can manipulate for their own personal aggrandizement. Frequently, dangerous cult leaders isolate
their followers, convincing them that they must leave familiar guideposts in
order to go to heaven or something for humanity. They many live in compounds or communes. Followers rarely know what is going on
within the leadership, because there is considerable secrecy. It is also not unusual to find child/adult
abuse and/or mental and physical coercion acceptable. Deprogramming may be required to pull someone out of a cult. In a dangerous cult, paranoia is often the
rule, as we observed in the recent Waco incident, or the Elizabeth Claire
Prophet sect. Sometimes, cults expect
their followers to raise or collect money for them. i.e. the Unification
Church or the Hare Krishna’s. The
Unification Church (Moonies) led by Reverend Moon, is a quasi-Christian
religion, and was once an anathema to the conservative religion right. The outcome, however, was that Reverend Moon
collected so much money from his working fold, he was able to buy, among other things,
the conservative Washington Times newspaper.
Sometimes new religions are simply labeled
cults — for example, the Mormons were once classified as a cult. In pagan Rome, Christians were labeled as
cults, etc.
Some cults go to the other
extreme—such as the Oregon fiasco in the 1980’s, involving a quasi-Hindu
free-love cult. Promiscuity and
love-ins were the rule. In 1987, it’s
leader, Rajneesh, was deported and his fleet of Rolls Royce’s confiscated for
his failure to pay income tax. Many cults define themselves as churches so they
do not have to pay income tax. Some TV
Christian evangelical cults fall into this category.
Today, the large
networking Wiccan groups are attempting to structure their organizations as
non-profit religions, so that when they collect funds, they won’t have to pay
taxes. This leads one to believe that
some Wiccans would like to become an organized religion — but isn’t that a
contradiction in terms?
Pagans as Cults?
7. How is neo-paganism different? Pagans should be the antithesis of a cult,
but because their spiritual path is not the mainstream, they are often
classified as one. The difference
between paganism and most cults is that pagans can be tricky to organize. Many practice solitaire or in pairs. A common thread perception of the power of the muse and a nature spiritual path
they have chosen, connects most pagans.
Pagans do not, or should not try to convert or manipulate anybody
(though some do). They may post fliers
or network, but they should proselytize.
However, when covendoms hive off, new groups are usually small, and
often compete with other groups to recruit members. As in some cults, Wiccans may also have a ‘charismatic like’
leader. Most Wiccan groups are fairly
singular — that is each group, network of groups (covendoms) or traditions have
their own special energy wraith and rites and are generally autonomous.
Unlike some cults, children of Craft
members are not supposed to be coerced into the Craft, though they may
occasionally attend a ritual. At one
time, pagans taught that children should choose their own spiritual path, but
that is changing. Pagans do not believe
in the idea of salvation through any belief system, dogma, exalted man, guru,
cult or religion, and many pagans are agnostic. Some pagans also feel quite comfortable still practicing certain
selected elements of their birth religion.
Membership
8. Craft groups do best when they stay small,
usually not more than sixteen nor less than six. Larger groups fracture (and bicker). Smaller groups generally
break up. Craft structure is extremely
diverse. For instance, some groups seem
to attract pagans who are lonely and seek emotional support. Such groups often have strong hierarchical
aspects with firm boundaries and limits and validate themselves by espousing a
mysterious hereditary tradition. On the
other end, a loose coven (more accurately classified as a grove) may attract
pagans who want little or no commitment or leader. Membership in the latter is weak, and obviously changes
frequently. Still other groups my
rotate leaders and attracts strong, committed and independent individuals. These groups may be formidable to organize,
but are ultimately more powerful when they stay together. The secret to a successful and powerful
Craft group is not the number, but when each member is willing and able to lead
as well as follow. Craft frequently
attracts spiritual seekers, artists, poets, mystics, clairvoyants, herbalists,
musicians, intellectuals, scientists, environmentalists, occultists,
therapists, and a mélange of techno-pagans!
But … it also attracts lots of
plain old ordinary people!
The Downside
9. Craft is not a panacea, nor is it for
everyone who disagrees with traditional religion. Though some teachers or
practitioners may speak of paganism as the ‘elixir of life’ that could be very
misleading. Because of it’s magickal nature, Wicca frequently
attracts non-conformists, immature adults, mavericks and malcontents. Many pagans live alternative life styles,
others do not and the rest are somewhere in between. This sometimes leads to misunderstandings, which influence any
eclectic society, and why it is preferable for Wiccan groups to remain small,
manageable and independent. It is also
important that one find a path and group that works well for them. The reverse is also true. Groups should only dedicate students who
share their common goals and expectations.
For instance, some groups follow a celebratory path along with a
contemplative one; others follow only one type or the other. Each group practices their magick and rites
in different ways.
Some pagans may switch groups along
the way if they discover another more to their liking. But a student who continually moves from one
group to another might simply have difficulty working with others. Such a person would probably be more content
practicing as a solitaire or running his or her own group (if they can remain
in one long enough to become properly trained.). Though starting your own pagan group may appear relatively easy
(from some of the pagan books you have read) without training and experience it
is difficult to achieve success.
Religion?
10. Is Wicca a religion? Yes — it is a spiritual path with ritual —
so according to Websters’ that makes it a religion, yet not all pagans think of
Craft as such. Since many pagan groups
have little formal organization, most do not stay together very long. Therefore, in order for a group to exist for
any extended period, it must have reasonable structure, training and committed
members — and that is the dichotomy — the trick of holding the group intact and
bonded, yet free at the same time.
Craft (and also Wicca), like Christianity, is really a generic label and
includes many different varieties of
pagan practices, beliefs, structure and perceptions much the same as Christians
have their own variety of beliefs and practices.
11. Another Craft path is called Pantheism. That is a path which neither claims nor accepts
any particular hereditary lineage (ex. Celtic, Egyptian, Greek, etc.). Although in the United States, since most
people are a through mixture of different cultures. Leading to the It is
genetic memory in the guise of fairy tales, myth, poetry, dreams, and folklore,
which supplies the follower with various ideas and symbolism. The language is that of the artist in search
of beauty and truth, and the training is designed with the view of bringing
consciousness into complete harmony with all parts of nature. This may be accomplished alone or by bonding
together with others in ritual. A
pantheist searches for the inherent image of the divine by the harmonization of
inspiration and feeling. It is
comparable to Wicca, in that most pantheists empower themselves by honoring and
connecting with seasonal festivals, lunar phases of the moon, and groups
celebrate rituals within a circle.
However pantheists do not aggressively network or become actively
involved in recruiting or interconnecting with webs or other witch groups. Their fellowship is responsive mainly to the character, balance,
magickal and spiritual development of each member. Pantheistic groups do not ordinarily hive off, nor compete with
other pantheistic groups. Their group,
like any other, will lose members from time to time and train new ones. Many self-proclaimed Wiccans may, if fact,
really be pantheists, yet not familiar with the nomenclature of the term. Some pantheists may think of themselves as
witches, (not Wiccan) — however mystic and/or occultist would probably be a
more definitive term.
Dion Fortune, (author, occultist and
founder of the society of Inner Light) classified the mystic and the occultist
under the term Illuminism. She
separated the mystic into two paths.
Relgion: which she classified as service and adoration, and Pantheism:
which she identified with power and beauty.
She identified the occultist with magick (good and evil), psychology,
cosmology (universal laws of space and time) initiation, seer ship, words of
power, and ceremony. A pantheist may
also be an occultist if s/he seriously studies the path of magick. In some esoteric circles different spiritual
paths, are called various colored rays.
The pantheistic path is called the green
ray.
12. It is said.
If you are Craft; you are Craft.
When practitioners are in ritual they often comment they feel a
spiritual high or healing and while difficult to explain, it is non-the-less indisputable. This awareness of deja vu sensation is an
illusive experience — perhaps instinctual (which is linked to genetic
memory.) One cannot truly perceive or
understand the Craft from reading books or attending classes, (though you may
find out if the ideas appeal to you.) That
is why Craft is correctly labeled a mystery
religion. You must practice and
embrace it to grasp the experience, and if you do — you will know — one way or
the other.
