What
is all this witchcraft stuff, anyway? Does being a witch mean you can
point your finger and make things happen? Does it mean you can learn to
fly on a broom and turn people into toads?
Well,
not quite. Witchcraft, or WICCA, is a religion. Wicca is not primarily
about magic, though it does use it. Wicca is about your place in the
Universe and your evolution as a spiritual being. Wicca is about moving
forward on your personal spiritual journey - about learning, growing,
and becoming the most you can be.
Wicca
is a religion. Wicca is a way of understanding and interacting with
Deity and the Universe. It is a life-affirming path of growth and
expansion. Wicca is based on reverence for Nature and Her cycles,
respect for the Earth and all Her creatures. Wicca reveres the natural
forces of the Universe and sees them reflected in the world around us,
and in every person and thing. Wicca has great reverence for Deity, Who
for us has both a Mother and a Father aspect. Wiccans approach Deity
through many names and forms, both masculine and feminine, drawn from
all over the world and from every age. We often compare Deity to a
diamond with many facets; each name or image for Deity is like one
facet on the diamond. Each facet may be considered separately and all
are beautiful in themselves, but all are aspects of the single stone.
Wicca
believes that Deity comes to each person in the way that is best
understood by that person, and that this is different for different
people. Wicca believes that the relationship between a person and Deity
is highly individual, personal, and subjective. Not everyone will have
the same understanding of Deity, because not everyone is in the same
place, or able to understand from the same level or perspective.
Because of this no one has a right to judge another persons
relationship with Deity, because each person is different.
This
is why we respect all the names and forms that have been used to honor
Deity through the centuries -Deity needs them all in order to come to
all people in the way they can best understand. The most common way for
Wiccans to approach Deity is in the form of the TRIPLE GODDESS, Whose
three forms are Maiden, Mother, and Crone, and Whose symbol is the
Moon. Her consort is THE GOD, Who rules the cycles of the solar year
and is called among other things Lord of the Dance. His symbol is the
Sun. They are viewed as Polarities, opposing but complimentary powers,
like the Eastern concept of Yin and Yang.
Wicca
has a very strong moral base. By 'moral' we mean treating each other in
an honorable and loving manner. Wicca has only one law which all
traditions agree on; DO AS YOU WILL, BUT HARM NONE . In other words how
you dress and who you sleep with is not our business -those issues are
not what we mean by 'morality'. But a moral person doesn't hurt other
people, and this is the criteria for all moral action; 'Am I harming
anyone?' If you are, you are acting wrongly.
Wicca
is a Pagan, or Native, religion. The word Pagan means 'from the
countryside' and reflects the fact that Pagans follow indigenous,
native religions rather than the Book religions. Pagan religions are
built up over millennia as a result of peoples observations and
experiences - they are living, growing religions which can and do
change when change is needed. Pagan religions revere the natural forces
and cycles of life, and it is from observation and interaction with
these that their beliefs developed
Wicca
is wholly unrelated to the Book religions; Judaism, Christianity,
Islam, and Satanism. The Book religions are all descended from the
supposedly historical bargain between Abraham and Jehovah, which is
recorded in their Bible. The Book religions all share common elements;
belief in a final Day of Judgment, in a jealous and vengeful God, in
the basic sinfulness of humanity (called Original Sin), the superiority
of the male sex, and the idea of Hell; a place of eternal torture. Most
of all the Book religions believe in the infallibility of their Book,
the Bible (and it's related books the Talmud, the Q'uran, the Satanic
Bible). Though these books were written by humans, the Book religions
claim they were written by God - this is the hallmark of the Book
religions. Absolutely NONE of these ideas are shared by Wicca. The Book
religions have a totally separate origin from the Pagan religions, and
a very different history.
WHAT
WILL YOU GET FROM THESE LESSONS
If
you complete this course of 12 lessons, you will be eligible for
initiation into the First Degree of Correllian Wicca. The First Degree
is the lowest degree of full membership in a WICCAN TRADITION. Wicca is
composed of many traditions most -but not all- of which recognize each
others initiations. If you choose to take the First Degree initiation
-and you are not obligated to- you will become a member of the
Correllian tradition. The Correllian tradition is a synchretic and
highly philosophical tradition of Wicca, which stresses the inherent
unity of all Pagan traditions and the synchronicity of all spiritual
paths. We believe that Deity is in all things, therefore all paths can
lead to Deity.
Wicca
is not an exclusive religion. Because we believe all paths lead to
Deity, we do not believe that one must belong to any given faith or
tradition to be a good person or to grow spiritually. Nor is it
necessary to belong to only one. Being a Correllian initiate does not
mean you can not also be an Isian, Druidic, or Dianic initiate as well
-or any other tradition you might wish to study or join. You must
however respect our tradition as a member and follow Correllian
practices in Correllian temples -but what you do other places is your
own business. Your private beliefs and conscience are your own business
and we have no desire to dictate them to you. Wicca is about learning
to make your own choices, and the Wiccan traditions exist to provide a
framework in which to learn and grow. Wicca seeks to open your
thinking, not to limit it.
SO
YOU WANT TO BE A WITCH?
You
want to be a Wiccan.
To
be a Wiccan is to move at one with Deity.
To
be a Wiccan is to honor Nature and all that is in Her. To acknowledge
the life in all things, and be in harmony with it.
To
be a Wiccan is to work with the seen and the unseen. To learn the
magical secrets of stones, of plants, and animals - to speak to the
faeries and the spirits and to hear their replies.
To
be a Wiccan is to use every tool available to grow, to learn, to become
the best that you can be. To use magic, meditation, and ritual to
overcome all limitations, all fears, all imperfections, and to move
always in harmony with Deity, always to the good, always in accordance
with your highest self.
This
is what it is to be a Wiccan.
If
knowing these things you still want to be a Wiccan, then these lessons
will help you make a good beginning.