The Witch
Many people think that witches are made up, some think they are evil people, some think that they worship the devil and some believe that witches just don't exist.
Well, here is what is real. Witchcraft/Wicca/Paganism: Witchcraft is not Satan worship. The very concept of a supreme evil spirit is alien to Witchcraft. In fact, most Witches do not even believe in Satan. The devil is a Judeo-Christian construct and as such, it has nothing to do with Witchcraft. The notion that witches worship Satan was propounded by the Roman Catholic Church as it made its way across Europe, in an effort to suppress the native earth-based religions prevalent at the time. They succeeded to the extent that they drove the practitioners of these religions underground where much of their knowledge and traditions were lost. Through the work of the Golden Dawn, as well as anthropological and archeological research, many of these traditions have been rediscovered and incorporated into Neo-Paganism, an umbrella term for most modern earth-based and shamanistic religions.
Well, here is what is real. Witchcraft/Wicca/Paganism: Witchcraft is not Satan worship. The very concept of a supreme evil spirit is alien to Witchcraft. In fact, most Witches do not even believe in Satan. The devil is a Judeo-Christian construct and as such, it has nothing to do with Witchcraft. The notion that witches worship Satan was propounded by the Roman Catholic Church as it made its way across Europe, in an effort to suppress the native earth-based religions prevalent at the time. They succeeded to the extent that they drove the practitioners of these religions underground where much of their knowledge and traditions were lost. Through the work of the Golden Dawn, as well as anthropological and archeological research, many of these traditions have been rediscovered and incorporated into Neo-Paganism, an umbrella term for most modern earth-based and shamanistic religions.
Because Witches believe in a Horned Lord, many people
believe that they worship Satan. The truth is that the Horned God
represents the animal side of nature, (get it? horns... animals...) and the Horned God has existed long before
Christianity--in other words, long before Satan was ever "invented".
The flaw of modern times is to think that Paganism and Witchcraft/Wicca
are the same things as Satanism. This is entirely untrue.
Witchcraft is not a cult. A cult presupposes blind faith in a central figure whose every word is regarded as ultimate truth, and the utter conviction that no other way or philosophy will lead to this truth. You would be very hard pressed to find a Witch anywhere who would blindly follow anyone else. Witches are historically very independent people who seek truth from within through rituals, meditation, magic, study and communion with nature. Witches respect the right of everyone to worship in their own way. Witches do not feel that Witchcraft is the only way -- only that it is their way.
Witchcraft is a widely misunderstood religion. Witches worship the sacred as immanent in Nature, often personified as Mother Earth and Father Sky.
Witchcraft is an Earth Religion, borne of Pagan and even Druid ancestry. Wicca is commonly called Witchcraft. It includes the use of magic, which is, simply, calling upon the power of divine forces to manipulate our material world. In other words, it is working with the Goddess (or other chosen deity) to change something in our lives.
Witchcraft is centered around the use of positive thought, positive action and love of nature to create an atmosphere of positive energies which are then used for our own benefits. Witchcraft teaches that there is certainly a higher power, namely the Goddess and God, often referred to solely as the Goddess, but that the Goddess is always attainable, for She is everywhere: in the tree, in the leaf, in the ant, within ourselves.
The terms Wicca and Witchcraft can be used interchangeably, but there is a subtle distinction. Wicca is a contemporary Neo-Pagan religion and Witchcraft is the practice of natural magic. Not all Wiccans are witches, and not all witches are Wiccan.
Witchcraft is not a cult. A cult presupposes blind faith in a central figure whose every word is regarded as ultimate truth, and the utter conviction that no other way or philosophy will lead to this truth. You would be very hard pressed to find a Witch anywhere who would blindly follow anyone else. Witches are historically very independent people who seek truth from within through rituals, meditation, magic, study and communion with nature. Witches respect the right of everyone to worship in their own way. Witches do not feel that Witchcraft is the only way -- only that it is their way.
Witchcraft is a widely misunderstood religion. Witches worship the sacred as immanent in Nature, often personified as Mother Earth and Father Sky.
Witchcraft is an Earth Religion, borne of Pagan and even Druid ancestry. Wicca is commonly called Witchcraft. It includes the use of magic, which is, simply, calling upon the power of divine forces to manipulate our material world. In other words, it is working with the Goddess (or other chosen deity) to change something in our lives.
Witchcraft is centered around the use of positive thought, positive action and love of nature to create an atmosphere of positive energies which are then used for our own benefits. Witchcraft teaches that there is certainly a higher power, namely the Goddess and God, often referred to solely as the Goddess, but that the Goddess is always attainable, for She is everywhere: in the tree, in the leaf, in the ant, within ourselves.
The terms Wicca and Witchcraft can be used interchangeably, but there is a subtle distinction. Wicca is a contemporary Neo-Pagan religion and Witchcraft is the practice of natural magic. Not all Wiccans are witches, and not all witches are Wiccan.
