Wicca and All That Witchy Stuff
Well, I came back to my coven tonight for the first time in a long while. I was on sabbatical for a while, which means I was only going to holidays instead of class every week. Now I am back on everything. It felt good to have a class. I really missed the place a lot. It makes me happy when I'm there because no one judges and you can do whatever you want and not be embarrassed (like being nude, lol, no, seriously!...But we're not a bunch of nudists all the time, and you don't have to get naked if you don't want to, but expect to see other people that way, lol.)
Yeah, Wicca is definitely an open-minded thing. You have to be open to a lot, especially people; from everyday wiccans who are like me who have a somewhat normal life compared to the rest..., I've met people who practice voodoo (no, voodoo is not all bad and stuff like that...just like witches aren't evil Satan worshipers), nudists (you should have seen it at Free Spirit...a mini woodstock for wicca), stoners, hippies, bisexuals, homosexuals, swingers....and lots more.
Then again, there are always the solo practitioners who go at it on their own, and don't get too much into the "gathering type often" which is cool, but you always want someone around who shares your beliefs, well, at least I do.
The cool thing about paganism (a more general name for those outside of christianity) is that you only have to share a couple of beliefs:
1.) That there is at least a mother goddess and a father god and/or believe in many gods and goddesses.
Personally, I believe in a goddess and a god. The goddess is represented as the moon, and the god, the sun. There's a whole story on it which will make more sense, but I'll post that at a later time.
2.) That there is energy around us in nature, including the universe.
This energy people call different things in paganism. I and all other wiccans call this magick. (Your probably thinking, "Oh, it's magic not magick!" but that's how we tell the difference between religious magick and stage magic.) Magick isn't like casting evil spells on people at all. We have a creed as well; and ye harm none, do what ye will (from the "Witch's Wrede") and also the belief that anything you do will come back three times back to you (ooh rhyming...). Magick is simply pulling energy from around you and using it to make the possible a "probable" event.
Example: Mike's friend is in the ER because he was in a car accident. His friend has a 50/50 chance of living. Mike does a spell to give him health and life. His friend now has a better chance of making it.
Yep, and that's all that us pagans have in common. Everything else is up for grabs. You follow what you feel is right in your heart. For instance, my friend believes in faeries, but I don't. Everyone's belief is pretty unique to a certain degree. Now, people follow different paths in paganism, and mine is wicca (Just as a Christian would be United Methodist). So, I tend to agree with the majority of wicca's practice. You'd be surprised how accepting others are if you do or don't believe in something. When I told my friend, "I don't believe in faeries, but I can see how their can be concentrated energies all around," she said, "Oh, that's cool." Some people may argue over silly things sometimes, but we respect each others personal beliefs (now if we could get that attitude in the Middle East!!!).
Well, I'm going to quit writing about wicca so this post doesn't become a book! But I promise I'll write on the general beliefs of wicca and the whole god and goddess thing in more detail in a future post.
Yeah, Wicca is definitely an open-minded thing. You have to be open to a lot, especially people; from everyday wiccans who are like me who have a somewhat normal life compared to the rest..., I've met people who practice voodoo (no, voodoo is not all bad and stuff like that...just like witches aren't evil Satan worshipers), nudists (you should have seen it at Free Spirit...a mini woodstock for wicca), stoners, hippies, bisexuals, homosexuals, swingers....and lots more.
Then again, there are always the solo practitioners who go at it on their own, and don't get too much into the "gathering type often" which is cool, but you always want someone around who shares your beliefs, well, at least I do.
The cool thing about paganism (a more general name for those outside of christianity) is that you only have to share a couple of beliefs:
1.) That there is at least a mother goddess and a father god and/or believe in many gods and goddesses.
Personally, I believe in a goddess and a god. The goddess is represented as the moon, and the god, the sun. There's a whole story on it which will make more sense, but I'll post that at a later time.
2.) That there is energy around us in nature, including the universe.
This energy people call different things in paganism. I and all other wiccans call this magick. (Your probably thinking, "Oh, it's magic not magick!" but that's how we tell the difference between religious magick and stage magic.) Magick isn't like casting evil spells on people at all. We have a creed as well; and ye harm none, do what ye will (from the "Witch's Wrede") and also the belief that anything you do will come back three times back to you (ooh rhyming...). Magick is simply pulling energy from around you and using it to make the possible a "probable" event.
Example: Mike's friend is in the ER because he was in a car accident. His friend has a 50/50 chance of living. Mike does a spell to give him health and life. His friend now has a better chance of making it.
Yep, and that's all that us pagans have in common. Everything else is up for grabs. You follow what you feel is right in your heart. For instance, my friend believes in faeries, but I don't. Everyone's belief is pretty unique to a certain degree. Now, people follow different paths in paganism, and mine is wicca (Just as a Christian would be United Methodist). So, I tend to agree with the majority of wicca's practice. You'd be surprised how accepting others are if you do or don't believe in something. When I told my friend, "I don't believe in faeries, but I can see how their can be concentrated energies all around," she said, "Oh, that's cool." Some people may argue over silly things sometimes, but we respect each others personal beliefs (now if we could get that attitude in the Middle East!!!).
Well, I'm going to quit writing about wicca so this post doesn't become a book! But I promise I'll write on the general beliefs of wicca and the whole god and goddess thing in more detail in a future post.