The Wiccan Religion: Witchcraft
The Wiccan Religion
Rough Draft
Mikki Dandreano
September 3rd, 2010
Wicca is a common and older name for witchcraft; the term witchcraft has been defined in many different ways – in past times it was mostly referred to as a human harnessing of supernatural powers for the purpose of practicing black magic. For this reason, magic, witchcraft and sorcery has been associated with Satanism. Not all withes worship Satan; in fact most of them do not have a belief in Satan – nor is there a belief in hell, original sin or evil. During the Middle Ages, witchcraft experienced a huge revival. The supernatural world became very popular. If someone wanted to become a witch, there was an initiation process; the first would be that the witch must join of their own free will and the second requirement was that the prospective witch must be willing to worship the devil – Modern day witches are typically not Satan worshipers. Wicca is considered a New Age Movement, and with that Wiccans do not believe and accept that there is good or evil, they say that there are only forces that must be balanced. Most Wiccans support a neo-tolerance for politics, meaning that there is no absolute truth, what is true for one many not be true for another, so everything is true – just pick one. They are also strong supporters of women’s rights and matriarchy, sexual freedom; including polyandry, non-monogamy, homosexuality, and sexual activity among the teenage community. In the past few years there have been lawsuits filed by Pagans against things such as ‘In God We Trust, student led prayer, Christian symbols (such as the Cross), The Ten Commandments in many cities. Many Wiccans are active in getting schools to teach Wiccan holidays, like the Winter Solstice and Halloween, to honor pagan elements such as Earth day and Pagan symbolism. The United Nations are trying to introduce pagan earth worship into the schools by promoting Earth Charter in education; this is a document that
Rough Draft
Mikki Dandreano
September 3rd, 2010
Wicca is a common and older name for witchcraft; the term witchcraft has been defined in many different ways – in past times it was mostly referred to as a human harnessing of supernatural powers for the purpose of practicing black magic. For this reason, magic, witchcraft and sorcery has been associated with Satanism. Not all withes worship Satan; in fact most of them do not have a belief in Satan – nor is there a belief in hell, original sin or evil. During the Middle Ages, witchcraft experienced a huge revival. The supernatural world became very popular. If someone wanted to become a witch, there was an initiation process; the first would be that the witch must join of their own free will and the second requirement was that the prospective witch must be willing to worship the devil – Modern day witches are typically not Satan worshipers. Wicca is considered a New Age Movement, and with that Wiccans do not believe and accept that there is good or evil, they say that there are only forces that must be balanced. Most Wiccans support a neo-tolerance for politics, meaning that there is no absolute truth, what is true for one many not be true for another, so everything is true – just pick one. They are also strong supporters of women’s rights and matriarchy, sexual freedom; including polyandry, non-monogamy, homosexuality, and sexual activity among the teenage community. In the past few years there have been lawsuits filed by Pagans against things such as ‘In God We Trust, student led prayer, Christian symbols (such as the Cross), The Ten Commandments in many cities. Many Wiccans are active in getting schools to teach Wiccan holidays, like the Winter Solstice and Halloween, to honor pagan elements such as Earth day and Pagan symbolism. The United Nations are trying to introduce pagan earth worship into the schools by promoting Earth Charter in education; this is a document that
References: http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/False%20Religions/Wicca%20&%20Witchcraft/history_of_wicca.htm http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_hist.htm http://www.wicca-spirituality.com/wicca-symbol.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Shadows