To all Wiccans - how do you veiw the religeon and the inclusion of Witchcraft as part of the practice?
I'm of the British Traditional Witchcraft line, ie initiated into a Coven. I'm seeing a lot of 'Wicca is the religeon and Witchcraft is the practice' type comments from the many excellent Wiccans on here. Don't get me wrong I agree with you but many of you say that you can be 'Wiccan' and not practice witchcraft, within BTW the actual craft is a thread that runs throughout the system, we cast using magic, we celebrate using magic and we draw down using magic and that's before anything else is done, so it's a huge part of our rites.
I'm curious about the non magical Wiccans out there, how do you split the magic from the Wicca? Do you never practice any magic? How do you feel about being 'wiccan' if you are not practicing as it was originally intended by Gardner. (a controversial comment to be sure but I'm all for debate)
Anyway, go to it :)
?2011-11-16T14:02:02Z
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I have been practicing eclectic wicca for more than 25 years now and I began hearing large numbers of wiccans deny that the practice of witchcraft was involved in their religious practices only relatively recently. I believe part of this new trend is one of the side effects of wicca going "main-stream" and is an attempt to divorce the worship of non-christian gods from practices that are often regarded as suspicious superstitious mumbo-jumbo by the uneducated populace. While these "nouveau" wiccans are sincere in their worship, their recantation of all magical practices implies a different and more limited understanding of what magic is and what it does than previous generations have understood it to be and do. That is their prerogative however and though IMHO this substantially reduces the beauty of our magical ritual to something bordering on pantomime and jest, if it substantially fulfills their spiritual needs I don't believe I have the moral right or duty to nay say their choices or their understanding.
When Gardner first started BTW, it was under the belief that there was an ancient surviving Witch cult. Since the 70s, we've known there is not. Murray's theories were debunked.
Gardner wasn't the only person who was establishing groups or practicing "Wicca" or "Witchcraft" at the time; he just got the most attention for it and his model is what took off. The movement was growing out of ceremonial magic (granted, a large part of it was based on Victorian fabrications about Paganism & Witchcraft, but still). We know no one group ever owned Witchcraft and there are many definitions of Witch, most of which have very little to do with religion at all, least of all Wicca.
Gardner set wheels in motion... but like most religions that have meaning, it evolves and grows. What Gardner intended is irrelevant. He was one of the springboards; he was a pioneer who started something bigger than himself.
Wicca was not even a term BTWs really used-- the term Wicca was more readily adopted by American eclectics as the movement spread over here. To me, that means Wicca is to BTW as Protestantism is Catholicsm. The Popes can't tell Southern Baptists what to believe & do. Same thing here.
Definitions of magic and what constitutes Witchcraft vary. Most people who claim not to practice Witchcraft simply mean they do not cast spells and such. That doesn't mean there is no spiritual magic in their rituals.
As a nonwiccan Witch I use the Craft in a purely secular context. This gives me a different take on this controversial subject, I'm "outside looking in" so to speak. I think that most Wiccans that do not practice Witchcraft are "passive participants". There is nothing wrong with this position, it is just another facet of the religion. When taking part in the celebrations, rites and rituals of their coven they are part of the Majick and they benefit from it, as it is intended. Everyone should benefit from every working of the whole group. They give their own energy just by being there and adding their positive experience and feelings. In other words, it's all good.
Sue, I am in agreement, but I think that many of the people who separate the practices and feel that Witchcraft can be excluded from Wicca have a VERY different idea from most initiates as to what constitutes "Wicca" and what constitutes "Witchcraft".
In my practice, I have always (even prior to initiation) built the temple, consecrated the altar, established a cone of power, etc. in my "wiccan" rituals. I consider these to be acts of Witchcraft, and without them I would be hard pressed to recognize a ritual as "wiccan"...eclectic or otherwise.
My tradition differs from BTW in a few practical respects, and many BTWs do not even consider the tradition I practice "Wicca". (This is fine with me. I use the term because a) it was used in my initiations and b) my BTW upline considers me "Wicca".)
I personally don't understand how it is possible to practice Wicca *properly* without practicing Witchcraft, but I also believe that those who find a Wicca-like religion fulfilling are entitled to their version of things.
ETA: What a wonderful question! Thank you!
ETA: The idea that Wicca can be "passive participants" is interesting. The Wicca are supposed to be the priesthood, which indicates to me ACTIVE participation. One does not call the congregation of kneelers and standers at a Catholic Mass "Priest" do they? That honor is reserved for the ones who are properly prepared to transubstantiate the Body of Christ....another act that could be construed as "magic".
I am, for all practical purposes, a "Philosophical" or non-magic-practicing Wiccan, at this stage in my life.
I've cast spells, and practiced magic, and I don't have anything against it, but I don't see it as integral to my faith. My faith has to do with the relationship I have with my Gods and my place in Nature.
I prefer to accomplish many things with hard work and perserverence, rather than magic. If I formally cast any spells these days, they are spells on myself for clarity or health or calm, etc.
Now...having said that, I'll note that some small forms of magic are common in my house and my life, even today. Totems for luck, certain tea recipes, the way I stir a pot, even they way I and my family clean house are, I suppose, witchcraft in the minor sense.
I don't disgaree with you regarding Gardner, but neither do I feel any need to slavishly follow what he or any other specific writer on Wicca have said. Wicca is an experiential religion, and as such is adaptable and individual. Much of what Gardner wrote about does not fit my ideas about my Gods or my place in the world, nor does it fit the practices of our family coven. In many ways, I lean more towards Cunningham's ideas about Wicca, and even then, I would say I think he relied to heavily on the Craft for my tastes.
Ultimately, I suppose it depends a great deal on how you define magic, and what actions you feel constitute magic. Is closing the circle magic? If so, then I suppose I use magick weekly, even daily. Is mixing your herbs to make the perfect cup of tea magic? Then I'm guilty again. I tend to see magic or witchcraft as the more formal, more deliberate acts of casting a more complex spell.
Who knows? I am concentrating, these days, on understanding my Gods and how I fit into the world. There may come a time again, in the coming years, where I shift my focus again to magic and re-incorporate witchcraft into my everyday practice of my faith.