How Is Wicca a religion and not all just Hocus Pocus? Although some refuse to acknowledge that Wicca is a religion, it is one because it meets what we generally accept to be the major characteristics of a religion. There are groups of people who believe it is a religion, there are those who do not.
Wicca is thought to be from the old English Wicca meaning Wise One. The definition meaning a “religion influenced by pre-Christian beliefs and practices of western Europe that supports the existence of supernatural power/ magic and both male and females deities who inherent in nature, and that highlights a ritual ceremony of seasonal and life.”
In 1950, Gerald Gardner publicly introduced Wicca. Its ritual and initiatory structure consists of elements from Masonic ritual and other occult and ceremonial magic systems, and regional witchcraft. At first he was originally going to name his new religion “Wica”, but and extra c was added later.
Most Wicca’s worship two deities, the Goddess and the God, or sometimes known as the Horned God. Wicca can be monotheistic, meaning that some Wiccans recognize a single supreme being, sometimes called “The All” of “The One”. Wicca can also be duotheistic meaning Wiccans often worship a female goddess sometimes known as the Lady. The male god is known often as the Lord. Wicca’s can be polytheistic, meaning Wiccans recognize the existence of many ancient Gods and Goddesses. Like for example Pan, Diana, Dionysius, Fergus, etc. Finally, Wicca can be atheistic, meaning some Wiccans view the God and Goddess as symbols, not living individuals.
Wicca’s believe that the source of good and evil rests within each person. Their rule is “if it harm none do what you will”.
Some Wicca’s join groups called co...
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...alled witches. Wiccans follow the Wiccan Rede in the same way that Christians follow the Bible. Wiccans believe that each person’s path is valid and no one path is better than any one else’s path. Although some refuse to acknowledge that Wicca is a religion, it is one because it meets what we generally accept to be the major characteristics of a religion. There are groups of people who believe it is a religion, there are those who do not.
Works Cited
Smith, Diane. Wicca and Witchcraft for Dummies. Indianapolis Indiana: Wiley Publishing, Inc, 2005
Author Unknown. Blessed Be. Online Wicca Resource Center, publisher unknown date of resource creation unknown. Publication unknown. Sept. 30th 2011.
Steiger, Brad. Gale Encyclopedia of the Unusual and Unexplained. by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. 2003
Witchcraft is the most illogical and despised practices involving the supernatural power. “It implies the ability to injure others. A witch usually acquires his power through an inherent physical factor or through the power of another witch. Witch possess a special organ called mangu, located somewhere behind the sternum or attached to the liver.”[11] Woman/man may become a witch through the influence of another witch or contact with another witch. Witches do not intend to do harm; they are as much the victims of witchcraft as those upon whom they practice it. They have innate power and often don’t know what they are doing. The belief in witchcraft helps people explain the causes of illness, death and misfortune experienced by a person or a group when no other explanations can be found. Most of the time when witches create injury and calamity, they were punished by death, sometimes by exile. They also were forced into admission of guilt by torture, fear, or the hope for lighter punishment. “Most witches work by night, are capable of covering long distances very rapidly, tem...
Witchcraft is a term which sprouts many different meanings. As stated above, it is attributed to witches. But what is a witch? Probably an evil haggish-like women who has signed a pact with the devil if we think of it in the English sense. So witchcraft must be evil doings; putting curses on people to make their life miserable, using wicked spells to transform humans to frogs etc. But does this hold true to everyone's idea of what witchcraft is.People's believes on the subject of witchcraft might differ between different cultures.
Wicca and Hinduism are very monotheistic believing that everything is one in creation. In these two religions there are thousands and millions of deities that they worship. It is not possible for a person of one these religions to worship all of them none the less know them. Both Wiccans and Hindus have personal gods or goddess that they pray to either it’s a family god or coven god being worshipped. Also as well as having personal gods or goddess Wiccans and Hindus most of the time worship at home and have home shrines or altars. Also both religions believe that after death the soul gets reborn through reincarnation. In most religions time moves in a straight line from past present to future. In Wicca and Hinduism time moves in a cycle. In Wicca the movement of the circle is spiral. Everything in the universe changes or goes up on the spiral of the circle reaching a new level each time (Dragonsong). This is similar to the Hindu truth about achieving moksha. Moksha is the the end of samsara or reincarnation. It is when something or someone is one with Brahman (the universe) and out of the cycle of
Paganism is a belief system that holds to the ideology of the existence of gods and goddesses, which the Pagans believe affect and interact with one?s daily life. Most pagans hold to a polytheistic view of theology. Some pagans choose to worship a pantheon of deities, while other seek to have a more intimate and personal relationship with only one of their gods. They hold to the view that their gods embody certain attributes such as strength, love and intellect. Some modern Pagans define their spiritual beliefs and practices as being ?Earth-based.? You will often hear the
Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. “Wicca.” The Encyclopedia of Witches, Witchcraft & Wicca. 3rd ed. 2012. Print.
Wicca is a spiritual path, a way of seeing the world and Divinity, and our relationship to it. They believe that Goddess is imminent in the world around us. Goddess permeates every living thing, and most of them define rocks, soil, water, air, fire, and the plant herself as living things. "The God of Wicca is the Horned God, the ancient God of Fertility: the God of the forest, flock, and field and also of the hunt." He is Lord of Life, and the Giver of Life, yet he is also Lord of Death and Resurrection. http://www.interlog.com/~spawn/gods.html
Does Wicca mean evil? Is Wicca a witch? These are just a few descriptions and questions of what people believe Wicca represents. When I hear the word “Wicca”, I right away think of a witch. There is witches and witchcraft in Wicca but it is not about Hocus Pocus and spells. Wicca is a religion and not just a religion with one God but the belief of many Gods. Wicca is an earth based religion. I believe Wicca’s beliefs is similar to that of the Hinduism religion. There are three topics in Wicca that stood out to me the most. The first topic that stood out to me was the Wicca’s belief in how creation came to be, the second topic is the many Gods and deities that the Wiccan religion believes in, and the last topic that was the most interesting
The controversies that surround Wicca start with its exact origin. There are some who believe that it has its origins in Witchcraft due to the similarities between the two. Witchcraft itself is a Pagan practice [polytheistic and non-Christian, Muslim and Jewish in origin] that began with the Celts around 700 B.C. As the movie The Burning Times depicts, the region during this time period was primarily a rural culture so the Celtic traditions were based completely on Nature. Their months were even named after trees and their festivals revolved around the solstices and equinoxes (Steiger). A polytheistic religion, they worshiped a host of female and male deities and are most notably associated with the concept of Goddess worship, a strong belief in the divinity of the female (Burning Times). These paganistic beliefs and rituals gradually over the centuries combined with other European religious practices, such as magic, potions, and ointments for healing, to form what we call in modern times Witchcraft. Groups who did not hav...
One first hand account is that of someone that could be said to have been born into Paganism, Daphne B, a 49 year old, who feels she is not Wiccan nor technically a Witch, but more Episcopagan,considering herself as a nature based but starry eyed mystical type stated, “ I come from a long line of traditional wise woman healers and herbalists from Appalachia.My ancestry are mixed from the British Isles, France, Germany, Shawnee and Cherokee, my personal motto pretty much sums up my attitude,,hold all sacred”
What images come to mind when you think of witches? Many people immediately imagine a black pointy hat, bubbling cauldron, green warty skin, and Halloween. Usually the image that comes to mind is something scary and evil. Real witches do exist. Most modern witches go by the label Wiccan now. Wiccans practice Wicca, which is a nature-based religion with many different branches or denominations. The basic tenant of all Wicca is called the Three Fold Law. The Three Fold Law states that whatever you do will come back to you times three, good or bad, so do not cause harm or, in other words, “harm none”. It is kind of like the concept of karma in one lifetime. There is debate over how old the religion actually is with some saying that it is an ancient religion that pre-dates Christianity and some saying it is more modern, starting in the 1950’s with Gerald Gardener. Regardless of how old the religion is, Hollywood’s portrayal of witches often does have some kernel of truth, albeit sometimes it is hard to find.
For hundreds of years, Wicca and witchcraft has been considered the practice of the Devil. In result, many witches throughout those hundreds of years have been tortured, burned, hanged, and killed outright. Although the “witches” from the infamous Salem Witch Trials were not actual witches, it is the thought that counts. The assumption that witchcraft involves summoning the devil and sacrificing animals is extremely inaccurate, as well as a little insulting. Wicca and witchcraft has been misunderstood throughout the time it has existed, and it is actually a very beautiful practice.
WITCHCRAFT: The word witchcraft comes from the word “Wicca.” Wicca means the wise one. Witchcraft is to be believed as a pagan worship and or religion, a stereotype as a “magical phenomenon. In 1000 A.D., the practice of witchcraft became a threat to the Christians and their beliefs. They believe that wit...
Holland, Eileen, and Raymond Buckland. The Wicca Handbook. San Francisco, CA: Red Wheel/Weiser, LCC, 2008.
In general witchcraft is sorcery, the magical manipulation of the supernormal forces through the use of spells, and the conjuring or invoking of spirits. Wicca is the most common witchcraft. During the middle ages and the renaissance, it was defined as evil magic. This is the very reason Joan of Arc was burned at the stake; she was accused of being a witch. Although many think that it is a religion that worships the devil, Wicca does not have anything to do with worshiping the devil or Christianity. The most common form of witchcraft is done with the use of spells. To set a spell, the person doing it will set up an altar/table in which to place the candles and symbols on. The spells consist of words that can either be chanted or inscribed in something. The candles are used to direct the spell towards a specific purpose, such as: pink-love, white-healing and peace, and black-death. These colors can be used for different meanings; however, these are the standard meanings. There are many other colors out there with their own unique meanings, like if a spell was being set on a person; a candle that was their favorite color could be used. The symbols used consist of charms, pictures, flowers and belongings depending on the spell being set. These symbols must represent the spell and they cannot just be anything done quickly without thought. For example, if the person were trying to make their friend heal from a sickness a picture of the person or something that represents them would work.
III. Smithson, Jayne. “Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion.” Class lectures. Anthropology 120. Diablo Valley College, San Ramon 2004.