Monthly Archives: December 2009

Witchcraft

Witchcraft In Old English this word was ‘wiccecræft’. ‘Wicce, being the feminine origin of ‘Witch’ and cræft, which means ‘power or skill’. Basically then, Witchcraft, is a Woman’s practice of magic. For example, In the Laws of Ælfred (c.890), witchcraft was specifically singled out as a woman’s craft, whose practitioners were not to be suffered to live among the Saxons. In English law, Witchcraft was first declared a crime, in 1542; trials there peaked in 1580s and 1640s but fell sharply after 1660. The last, in 1717, ended in acquittal. The Witchcraft Act was repealed 1736.

Around the time of Gardner’s first works, Witchcraft went from being a word for a woman’s practice of Magic, to encompassing both sexes, and being a word that is simply, the practice of magic. Many people today, who’s beliefs and practices of a magical nature are eclectic will refer to themselves as a ‘Witch’.

An Overview of Wicca

This overview is from the perspective of Wicca, the initiatory religion with the acknowledgement of the other forms available.

Wicca is an earth-based mystery religion, which was formed from various sources (Thelema, Golden Dawn, The Goetia and Clavicula Salomonis, as well as native British and European religions, such as Celtic practice) by Gerald Gardner in the 1930′s – 1940′s and brought into the public eye with the publication of his “fiction” work, High Magic’s Aid in 1949, published under the pseudonym of Scire. In 1954, following the repeal of the Witchcraft Act in England, he published a further work, namely Witchcraft Today. Thus the religion was brought firmly into the public eye.

Wicca in it’s original form (what is now known as British Traditional Wicca/Witchcraft or Gardnerian/ Alexandrian Wicca) is an initiatory religion, which is oathbound, practiced in a coven and is essentially a priesthood. With the rise in popularity of Wicca through popular culture and the increase in publications on the subject, it is now fair to say that there are two forms of Wicca. The first remains the initiatory form and the second comprises those paths inspired by the first form, which are not necessarily initiatory but are often solitary or eclectic and often involves a self-dedication ritual by the practitioner to their chosen deities.

Initiatory Wicca is a coven based practice. Dedicants or seekers to this path will undergo a basic training period, which works in two ways. Firstly it determines whether Wicca is for them and whether the coven they are training with is the right group for them, and secondly it determines whether the coven themselves are comfortable with the trainee. Once this has been determined, the dedicant or seeker may ask the group for initiation. The coven will generally never push this issue and it is up to the individual to ask for this. When initiation has been asked for there is usually a slightly more indepth training period, designed to provide more knowledge and also for the individual to change their mind if they so wish. This period is usually set at a year and a day by default but is more often tailored to the needs of the individual. Some may take longer to be initiated, others just a few months.

Theinitiation itself is a rebirth and is effectively opening the doors to the mysteries beyond. It is up to the individual to follow the path through those doors. Initiation requires that the individual take an oath of secrecy, that is to say that they must not reveal certain information gained beyond initiation save to a verified brother or sister of the Craft. The person is also given the title of Priest/ Priestess and Witch and thus begins their training as a full coven member with access to the information within, though obviously only as far as their degree allows.

There are three degrees within Wicca and it is following your second degree initiation, when you become a High Priest or Priestess that you are able to teach, to lead rituals and in some traditions, to hive off and form a separate coven. At this level of training you are considered competent enough to work with the material under your own steam, though it goes without saying that it is a constant learning process and your spiritual development always be ongoing.

The religion of Wicca itself is split into two halves; that of the religion and that of the practice of witchcraft. Individuals within Wicca practice both to a greater or lesser extent.

In it’s basic form, Wicca is an earth-based fertility religion, encompassing the concepts of divine masculine and divine feminine and the balance inherent in this (i.e. dark/ light, male/ female, life/death etc). The deities are approached in the forms of a tri-une Goddess (being three in one, Maiden, Mother Crone) and a di-une God (being two in one, Lord of Light and Life and Lord of Death and Resurrection). The God and Goddess follow the seasonal cycles, from birth to death to rebirth and so on, as well as following our own life cycles. Wiccans see life as cyclical and the seasonal festivals reflect this. The following post will give details of what the seasonal festivals and what they mean to Wiccans.

Wiccans celebrate eight seasonal rites per year relating to the cycle of the God and Goddess and these are known as sabbats. Where possible they will also celebrate moon rites (usually held at either full moon or dark of the moon but not exclusively) known as esbats. Although Wiccans can do magical workings (spells/ spellcraft) at seasonal rituals, this type of work is often saved for the esbats unless the working has a purpose relating to a seasonal ritual.

Within traditional covens, rituals are usually held with the members being skyclad (naked) and this is for a number of reasons. Many people believe that being unclothed allows the person to feel nuances in energies, something that Wiccans work with a lot. It is also an expression of “Perfect Love and Perfect Trust” amongst the members of the group and with other Wiccans who may be visiting that group.

Although Wicca does have specific beliefs, tenets and practices, it does not have any rules, besides those which are common sense. Two aspects of Wicca are often mistakenly given the title of rules or laws, and these are the Wiccan Rede (“And it harm none, do as thou will” – this was taken from a law within Thelema – “Do as thou wilt shall be the whole of the law. Love is the law, love under will”), and Threefold Return, the idea that whatever action you take will return to you threefold, good or bad. Both of these are guidelines and are there to give the individual cause to ponder their actions and to take responsibility for any repercussions. They are not there to say you must never do anything bad, after all, it was Doreen Valiente herself who said “a witch who can’t curse, can’t cure”. This again ties in with the concept of balance within Wicca. It is not to say that unless you curse someone or take an unpleasant course of action, you won’t be able to do good, it is simply saying that the willingness to take a course of action, good or bad, must be there in order for you to balance yourself.

Wicca is also a fertility religion. It places a large amount of importance on the concepts of fertility and life within the natural world and of the relationship between God and Goddess, and thus there is a large amount of importance on intimacy between men and women. This is not to say that Wiccans hold orgies or are promiscuous people, but that sex is a sacred act and is a celebration of the joining of God and Goddess as well as being a powerful magical act in it’s own right. This is of course one of the reasons that Wiccan covens do not initiate under 18′s.

Spunky Brewster (aka Goddess of Pimpsmack) 2nd degree Gardnerian initiate.

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A brief history of Paganism

According to Oxford University, the modern meaning of the word “Pagan” would be ‘ a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions’. However, in my opinion, any serious “Pagan” should understand and educate themselves on the fact that Pagan/ism isn’t a religion in and of it’s self, but more over has become something of an umbrella term as Oxford would suggest. For example, a Wiccan would be a Pagan, a Druid would be aPagan, and a “Heathen” would be a Pagan according to modern Etymology.

However, where does the word it’s self originate and how did it become what we as “Pagans” understand today? Basically, a Pagan is someone who doesn’t follow a Christian or Jewish religion. The Word Pagan is actually Latin, and denotes a country dweller. It originates from the word “pagus” (or paganus) and actually means “rural district” Roman soldiers would used the term “Pagan” as some would use the term “hick, redneck, or bumpkin”. Much later, after Rome started to become more of a Christianized culture, the use of the term Pagan shifted some what into and used by city folk to describe someone who continued to worship the old Pagan Idols, this being how the word came to denote one who worships Pagan Gods.

Itwasn’t until the reign of Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus (Constantine I), as it was this reign which would be the turning point for early Christianity from a simple religion, to a state power within the Empire, and from there, from minority, to majority around the year 313 C.E.. Anyone who followed the literally hundreds of the old Pagan Religions of the old Roman Empire werepersecuted by Constantine I relentlessly. The persecuted Pagansincluded the non-Christians of North Africa, the Middle East, andEurope – the area often called the “oikoumene” or the “known world.

As persecution spread around the known world, often Pagans wouldpretend to be Christians as a means of escaping, such as the PaganEmperor Julian for example (who ruled from 361-363), who was borninto a Christian family, and later (no one knows exactly when)converted back to Paganism. Pagans had already begun to practicetheir religions in secret in the mid and late fourth century. Totake this a bit further, there was a famous fellow Pagan authorcalled Libanius who lived at the same times as Emperor Julian andduring his time in power. Libanius also reported in his work “Forthe Temples” that by Julian’s death, there were Pagan’s who notonly pretended to be Christian, but would pray to Pagan gods as theworshiped in the church.

Now let’s fast forward a bit to the Dark Ages, which lasted from about 600 AD to about 1000 AD. Well let’sjust say they’re not called the Dark ages for nothing. Now Pagans not only have Christians to worry about but other Pagans as well. Christians fought Christians, Pagans fought Pagans, Pagans fought Christians, and Christians fought Pagans. Something that was common was the burning of scrolls, books, and other forms of knowledge andancesteral ways of the defeated armies. Very little would ever survive invading hordes and Crusades. However thankfully there were strongholds, places which were from Rome and Athens, such as cityof Timbuktu in central Africa, Irish monasteries, and by Islamic scholars in centers of learning as Baghdad.

Fast forward again to the Middle ages, so much has been lost to “Paganism” already, it is now between 1000 C.E. and 1500 C.E. It is during this time that we begin to see some of the first Inquisitions, known as the Medieval Inquisitions around 1184 C.E., this is the term historians use to describe the various inquisitions which occurred around this date such as the Episcopal Inquisition which raged from 1184 to sometime in the 1230′s, however just as the Episcopal ended, the Papal Inquisition began.

Not a good time to be anyone, Christians, as well as Pagans would be tortured and killed, though more Christians would die than Pagans, it was a dark time for everyone.

Bydefinition an Inquisition is is the judgment of heresy by the Roman Catholic Church. During this time Wicca and Wicce (Male and female practitioners of sorcery and magic O.E.) would become interchangeable with “Pagan”. Fear and sometimes hate would drive priests to focus much of their attention to women, thus the word “Witch” soon evolved from Wicce. This being why much of modern Bible translations focus on women. For example the word from which “Witch” is taken is “Chasaph” which actually means “poisoner”. King James I according to Reginald Scot in his book “The discovery of Witchcraft” had purposely mistranslated the Bible to target women. Some translations saying Witch, some saying Sorceress, I have even heard of one translation which said Woman.

Then there was the Malleus Maleficarum which was first submitted to the University of Cologne on May 9th, 1487 and is translated by Montague Summers to mean “The Hammer of Witches” is the most infamous of all witch hunting instructional books. Written by James Sprenger and Henry Kramer, it remained in use for three hundred years and It had tremendous influence in the witch trials in England and on the continent. This book, should serve as a terrible reminder of what can happen when intolerance is allowed to run rampant. Literally thousands of people were tortured and killed in the name of eradicating Paganism, primarily Christian women. Whether Witch Hunts Driven by King James I or Roman Emperors like Constantine I who was bent on making the world Christian, it should always be remembered that religion is only an excuse for one culture to rule over another. It isn’t religion which teaches us to reign over others, but how we twist said religions. Paganism, like Christianity has endured it’s share of hardships down through the ages.

We as modern Pagans and Christians alike must remember our history, as to never let it be visited back on us. You can no more change what a man holds sacred, than you can change the color of his skin. This is why Paganism has endured, this is why the legacy endures. Let the many paths be opened, let us hear the calling of the ever hidden, let us go to the gathering, and meet at the great Crossroads. Power of the Ancestors be within you!

Coyote

http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/mm/
http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/index.htm
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=witch&searchmode=none
http://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/courses/details.php?id=O07P742THW
http://www.experiencefestival.com/a/PAGANISM/id/182360
http://www.egregores.org/

Past and Present journal No. 136 (Aug., 1992), pp. 186-205 Oxford University Press by “The Rise of Magic in Early Medieval Europe” by Valerie I. J. Flint