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Monday, February 11, 2008

Wiccan Studies

When you say you are Wiccan, people look at you like you are possessed, you are the devil itself. So many people have tainted the name of Wiccans' that now people just believe it is bad. They get it mixed up with being goth, satanism and even a few emo. Although some Wiccans may be Goth or Emo (none are religions) we are not Satanic.

Wicca is about, in short, nature, karma, lunar cycles and your believing. We go by the rule that anything you do will come back to you three fold. That is the karma part. We treat others how we would like to be treated. We do believe in a higher power, some believe in God, some people in many Gods, like the Greeks did. There is nothing wrong with that since so many people before us thought that way.

Emo and Goth are not religions, so you can find some Wiccans that are these. Which is fine. But being Satanic is not the same as being Wicca. Satanism is another religion all together.

Satanism has several definitions. You can be the hardcore one, that does sacrifices, harming others, and living for Satan of the Devil. But a newer kind of Satanism is coming out which is less hardcore, it's living for oneself. Where 'Satan' means me. So Hail Satan would mean Hail Me. They belive that in fact, that the human being is a power all in itself and yet is nothing more than another form of animal.

As with any religion there are the good and bad Wiccans. Or Light and Dark magic. Light magic is anything from helping people, finding something, or anything that doesn't cause harm. Dark magic is anything that causes harm or goes against the person's will.

Wicca is dealing with nature, most of the spells we use are done outside, at a cleansed space (our altar). Some spells even go down to what day they are used at, or what lunar cycle it would be good at, whether on the full moon or the new moon, Monday or Friday. Even during Winter or Spring.
We also have our celebrations, Yule (which some say is the exact same as Christmas), the Equinox, and most are the same as our regular holidays. We thank Mother Earth for allowing such a good harvest for the fall, we thank the Earth for a good spring. We thank nature, which most people over look and take for granted.

We are not evil, we are not dark. We are one with nature, our energies, and Earth. We do believe in God/Gods, fairies and angels. And karma, so we do not do bad unless we want to to come back to us three fold.

Misconceptions
For two thousand years the image of the Witch has been associated with evil, the devil, and blasphemy. These ideas have their origin in Christian myths created to convert members of the Old Religion to that of the new. By making the Witch into a diabolical character of evil and action, the Christian missionaries were able to attach fear to a word that had once meant Healer, Wise One, and Seer.

Witches Do Not Worship Satan
To believe in Satan, one must believe and agree with the Christian dogma. We do not. Wicca does not have any belief in, nor do we worship a concept of evil incarnate. You can't worship something you don't believe in.

Witches Do Not Cast Evil Spells.
(Most)Modern Witches have a very strict belief in the Witches/Wiccan Rede. Whatever we send out into our world shall return to us. The spells that we do involve things like healing, love, wisdom, creativity, and joy. If you see a website, or meet someone claiming to be a witch yet they talk about casting evil spells and hexes, THEY ARE NOT REAL WICCANS.

Are Male Witches Warlocks?
No. There is no such thing as a warlock in witchcraft. This misconception is one of the most popular, it seems. In fact, a warlock is supposedly a "wizard" (according to the dictionary) and in fact, means a traitor, or a devil. It DOES NOT mean a male witch. A male witch is in fact, a witch--just like the female witches.

Rev. Sean Cooper

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The Universal Life Church is a comprehensive online seminary where we have classes in Christianity, Wicca, Paganism, two courses in Metaphysics and much more. I have been a proud member of the ULC for many years and the Seminary since its inception.

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