The Truth About The Wiccan Religion

OUT OF THE BROOM-CLOSET:

TRUTH ABOUT WICCAN RELIGION

By Trevor K. McNeil

Wicca?

What comes to mind when you hear, or read, the word “Wicca”? Wiccans are often the subject of fascination, conjecture and fear. Those belonging to the Wiccan religion are some of the most maligned and misunderstood groups of people on the planet. Wicca has become short-hand for “otherness” if not outright evil. Neo-paganism or pagan witchcraft is a contemporary religious movement that attempts to recenter the spirit of humanity on nature and the shared duality of divinity.

Hundreds of Thousands Executed

The Witch hunts in Europe between the 16th and 18th century led to the murder of an estimated 100,000 people, mostly women. Natural events including the devastating Black Plague contributed to near hysteria. Many Christian followers believed the Black Death was an organized effort by Satan and his witches against the Christian Church. From the Salem Witch Trials of 1692-1693 to the Cult Scares of the late 1980s and early 1990s, those who have strayed from the established theological line of Christianity (or Islam)(or Judaism) have faced intense hatred and abuse.  The dominant religious doctrine of the community requires that the dominant religious force must squash those who profess another belief system. It has nothing to do with finding out who these “others” are and what it is they believe. The backlash seems particularly violent when a religion promotes women and encourages their power.

Feminism

Gerald Gardner and then Alex Sanders and his wife Maxine introduced a new paganism in the mid-twentieth century. Despite its relative modernity, the roots of Wicca go back to the time of Celts and Druids. This “new paganism”  believes humanity’s religious life should “center on ritual nature veneration, natural cycles and magical and spiritual learning”. A distinct difference between Wicca and the other world religions is the concept that divinity is both male and female. In fact, when questioned many Wiccans noted their attraction to the non-patriarchal world view of the Wicca religion. In Wicca the two genders complement and strengthen one another. Feminism has always been an integral feature of the religion. The Wicca religion has an innate gender equality view.

Definitions

Simply put, people who practice the Wiccan religion are nature worshippers. Not in the literal sense of praying to trees, but in that they see every part of nature, including humans, as being part of an interconnected, sacred whole. As with most other pagan faiths, Wicca has many deities associated with it. There is a pantheon of gods and goddesses, some emphasis on goddesses, from which Wiccans pick and choose according to their personal preference. Unlike other faiths, these deities are entirely optional, not only in terms of which one you can choose to associate with, but whether you choose to believe in them at all.

Anthropomorphic Personification

It is not a matter of a personal relationship so much as connection to various aspects of life though anthropomorphic personification. Anthropomorphic is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities; similar to the figures of Catholic Saints. The historical roots of the modern day Wicca religion are ancient. Through arranged marriages and royal decree Christianity became the only authorized religion of western culture. The Catholic Church and their religiously aligned governments denounced polytheism and outlawed it across Europe.  As the dominant Christian culture worked ceaselessly to destroy all vestiges of pagan worship practitioners went underground.

The Meaning of Magic

A term often used to describe the Wiccan religion is “occult”.  According to various dictionaries, occult is a specific term referring to any non-monotheistic belief system which has either as its basis or as a major part of its structure, magic-based rituals or practices. The number of pagan belief systems that have occult factors as part of their tradition is relatively low. In terms of magical practices, often called “spell-casting”, a bit of context is needed.

Laughable

Even the most devout, practitioners of Wicca will openly admit that there is no such thing as zapping someone and making them fall in love with you. It does not work that way. What can be done is an “attraction potion.” A compound of natural elements including water and plant spices, to create a particular smell designed to trigger a pheromone response. Something closer to chemistry or herbalism than sorcery. What magic is for most Wiccans is not a way to control reality or “play god” but rather a means to connect with the sacred natural whole.

Witch Versus Wicca

Surprising as it may be, not all Wiccans practice witchcraft. Witchcraft is a magical practice  encompassing many, sometimes over-lapping systems. Witchcraft and magic have been used by different groups in many cultures over multiple millenia. There are Voodoo “Witch Doctors” there are Native American Shamans there are Atheist Witches and even Christian Witches. Yep, that’s right, Christian Witches. It is also possible for someone to adhere to both the Christian and Wiccan religion at the same time; this notion not actually being as contradictory as a ‘Black Klansmen’. There is actually very little overlap between pagan and monotheistic belief systems and those that are parallel are more similar than contentious.

Sacred Nature

The main source of discord with Christianity tends to originate with the commandment about having other gods. Except that the exact wording is “thou shall have no gods before me”. Not “thou shall have no gods except me.” Examples of people who have mixed their sacred nature with their god include T.S. Eliot, Blaise Pascal and Sir Isaac Newton. None of them stupid or evil men, all of whom subscribed to belief systems that combined monotheism with elements of veneration for the natural world.

Speak of Evil

Speaking of evil, the assumptions conflating the Wiccan religion with devil worship are entirely  fraudulent. There is no analog for Satan in pre-Christian pagan traditions. Some have tried to conflate  Hades the Greek Lord of the Underworld to Satan but it is not a good fit. There are also several elements of philosophy that distance Satanism from pagan traditions, particularly Wicca. Most Western occult pagan traditions have the “Rule of Three”.

Three

The rule of three asserts whatever you put into the universe will come back to you three-fold. So, if one does evil they will live with evil three-fold. Not good for Satan.  The Wiccan religion holds all life as sacred. To cause death or harm to any living thing would go against everything they believe in. I believe to be a Satanist someone would have been raised in the monotheist tradition, believed in it all and then for some reason decided: “I’m going with the other guy”; and in such a case the person would not become a Wiccan.

Symbolism

To add to the confusion both Wiccans and Satanists use the pentagram as a primary symbol. Almost any reference to the Wiccan religion, though particularly those in the negative sense, feature either a pentagram (a drawn image) or a pentacle (a physical object).  The pentagram is a favored symbol for many occult pagan belief systems, Wicca in particular. The symbol has become inextricably associated with evil, even though the real history of the pentagram is long and complicated.

Symbolism Vilified

Symbols of Pentagrams have been found on pottery in 5,000 year old tombs. The meaning varies depending on time period and geographic region. In terms of Western  culture the pentagram has symbolized every thing from the five limbs (arms, legs, head) to the five senses and the five wounds of Christ. In the context of Western pagan revivalism, the pentagram is used as a religious symbol, similar to the cross or the Star of David. The demonization of the pentagram is really no different from the bastardization of the Swastika. The Swastika was long a symbol for good fortune and well-being, now tainted beyond recognition due to its association with Adolph Hitler and the Nazi Party.

Sacred Sex

Something of a touchy subject in the Wiccan religious community is the assumption of sexual promiscuity and required ritual nudity. Despite how it might seem, human sexuality is sacred in the Wiccan religion. Participation is a matter of personal choice and is not done in a sexual context, the purpose being to form a closer connection to the natural level, as well as the natural elements being worked within the context of the ritual. Ritual nudity, known as going skyclad, tends to exist in neo-pagan groups with an occult element such as Wicca, particularly those who also practice the “green” form of witchcraft and believe that they derive their power directly from nature, particularly the forest.

The Sacred Whole

There is also something called “sex magic” which is not nearly as dirty as it sounds. Basically the use of sexual energies to amplify connection to the sacred whole, this practice is not common to all sects of Wicca and almost always occurs, and is in fact most powerful, in the context of loving, committed relationships.

In the Shadows

The image of evil, irreverence, violence and sexual perversion is why the Wiccan religion has long been  vilified. Despite fantasy-based representations in current popular culture such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Sabrina, Tabitha, Harry Potter and Charmed, the perception of real Wiccans hasn’t improved. The torture and burnings have (mostly) ceased which is definitely a plus but Wicca is still a minority religion going by any criteria and its practitioners still face some severe consequences even in the 21st century.

Face Harassment

When young Wiccans “come out” to their families they are often rejected and disowned by their families. Street harassment is not uncommon particularly for those who openly show symbols of their faith such as Celtic crosses, crescent moons and pentacles. Authorities are less likely to be sympathetic to known Wiccans when they are targets of violence. I have heard of one disturbing case in which a young Wiccan woman was beaten, raped, doused in high-proof alcohol and threatened with being lit on fire. Witch burning. Get it?

Like You And Me

Wiccans are in no way evil or dangerous and they are just like you or me and they deserve understanding and support in this season of joy and throughout this coming new year.