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"We are not evil. We don't harm or seduce people. We are not dangerous. We are ordinary people like you. We have families, jobs, hopes, and dreams. We are not a cult. This religion is not a joke. We are not what you think we are from looking at T.V. We are real. We laugh, we cry. We are serious. We have a sense of humor. You don't have to be afraid of us. We don't want to convert you. And please don't try to convert us. Just give us the same right we give you--to live in peace. We are much more similar to you than you think." Margot Adler
The Wiccan roots come from old Pagan believes that pre-date Christianity.
The laws of nature, are the laws of life.
They do not believe in a "god" but in many gods (somthing like the Egyptians or American Indians), male and female gods. They believe we are all one with life, the animuls and all organic things and that there is not a supreme being. With thier spells, they believe different things have different amounts of nature energy and they draw on that. Like anything there are good and bad. They strongly believe in the "Three-Fold Law" (what comes around goes around) which normaly leads people to act on that.
Ok, most Wiccans & Pagans get offended when you say they are worshiping Satan. Satan belongs to the Christian religion. In Wicca there is no Satan.
Most Wiccans are ok with you calling them a witch, or saying that they are practicing Witchcraft.
The info below is from "Witchcraft: The Facts" by Rev. Norm Vogel.
1. Witchcraft means "Craft of the Wise Ones" and is also known as the "Old Religion". Its practices can be traced to Neolithic ("Stone Age" wink cave paintings. In early times, the Witch was the local lawyer, psychiatrist, and doctor. The field of modern medicine can trace its origins to the herbal medicines of the Witch.
Witchcraft is a nature religion, not unlike the shamanism of the Native Americans. As the concepts of male and female exist through-out life -- indeed, are necessary to create it -- most Witches perceive Deity as male and female: the Goddess and the God. Like the concept of the Trinity, these aren't "many" Gods; they are aspects of the ONE Creator.
The Goddess is seen as Mother Earth and Mother Nature, and is represented by the Moon. She is seen in the fertility of the plant, animal, and human kingdoms. Her power is at a peak in the "fertile half" of the year, from May until October.
The God is seen in the woodlands, the Sun, grain, & the hunt. Because most of the animals that prehistoric humans hunted had horns, He is usually depicted as the "Horned One". His power is at a peak in the "dark half" of the year, from October to May.
2. Witches don't do evil. They believe in the Wiccan Rede, which is "If It Harms None, Do What You Will". (In other words, "Dowhatever you want; just as long as it doesn't harm anyone -- including yourself " wink . But, Witches DO believe that it is moral to defend yourself against evil or physical (or psychic) attack.
Most Witches also believe in the "Three-Fold Law", which states that whatever you do -- be it good or evil -- comes back to you three times over, so (obviously) there is no incentive to do evil.
3. Witches do NOT believe in or worship Satan, and do not perform any sort of human or animal sacrifices. Satan is a relatively new concept that originated with Christianity & Zoroastrianism. Witches put the responsibility for our own actions squarely on whom it belongs: ourselves. Witchcraft teaches us to be responsible people who take responsibility for our own actions.
4. The Pentagram (a five-pointed star in an upright, one-point-up position) is the symbol of our religion. The top point symbolizes Spirit (the Creator) being 'above', or ruling, the Four Elements of Life -- Air, Fire, Water, & Earth -- which are the four lower points.
5. A male Witch is not a "Warlock". This is a Scottish term, meaning "traitor", or "oathbreaker". (A male Witch is a "Witch" wink .
6. Witchcraft is a legal religion protected under the First and Fourteenth amendments.
We are non-proselytizing; we don't seek to convert anyone. We feel you should be free to choose the religion with which you are most comfortable
"What is the difference between Wiccans & Pagans?"
Sure pick a hard question. Ok, lets see... Wiccans belong to the group of religious practices called Pagans. Pagans (with a capital P) have many earth centered religions in it. Like Asatru, Druidic, Wiccans, & Native American Spirituality.
Calling some one Pagan is sort of like calling some one Christian it's a general word for a grouping of similar religions.
Lots of Wiccans & Pagans belong to groups call covens. They help guide people along in their path. They don't really have a leader. Covens have elders in them. Covens are sort of like a group of church members. They get together to worship the god/goddess. It more like a family.
Most of us believe in reincarnation.
The Spiritual Growth concept of Re-Incarnation is in essence a training ground for the spirit. It allows the spirit to grow and learn so that it one day may enter the beautiful Summerland. A spirit will re-incarnate through just about all forms of different objects. This is done to allow the spirit to experience and learn that every object holds a value. Everything is a part of the creative life-force spirit. Should a spirit "fail" the lessons that should have been learned in any one stage, they will be reincarnated back into the same stage ... so that the correct lessons can be learned ... before it can move to the next stage.
"...Wicca is not related historically in any way other than literary inspiration to any aboriginal pagan religion. It is, in fact, a product of the 1930s and 40s, hugely influenced by the rituals of Freemasonry, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, and the Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO). It, in fact, is a errant direct descendent of an OTO encampment in London chartered by Aleister Crowley, then the OTO Grand Master General, and under direction of Crowley's direct student and would-be successor, Gerald Gardner...." - Allen H. Greenfield, Bishop in the Gnosis
A spell is not to dissimilar to a prayer... asking the gods to help you out its just we do it in a different way.
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