Legal Information Regarding this site.
|
|
||
|
|
Site Search
|
Wicca is not Witchcraft!
Let me first start off with this: Wiccans may practice magic as part of their religion and may call that magic witchcraft. This is not to say, however, that we have an exclusive to that name. Witchcraft has been practiced in many forms all over the globe for millenia. Wicca was founded in the 1950s thus we're really the newcomers.
It is frustrating that some writers, even some with a great deal of credibility and some with lesser credibility seem to use Wiccan and Witch interchangeably. Gerald Gardner didn't title his book "Wicca Today" rather he titled it "Witchcraft Today" and likewise Doreen Valiente published "Witchcraft for Tomorrow."
I think it is important, however, to separate magical practice from religious belief. Wicca is a religion whereas witchcraft is a practice. One does not, however, have to believe in the tenants of Wicca to practice witchcraft. One may be atheistic and still practice witchcraft.
To put it in different terms it would be like Catholics calling themselves "Communionists" because they partake of communion. (which is, in a manner of speaking, magic in itself [transubstantiation]).
Still, however, some people seem to like to call themselves Witches rather than Wiccan and consider their religion to be Witchcraft. To each their own.
To some degree, I think, this is understandable. Witch is a more provoking term than Wiccan. When I started on this path I liked the term Witch because of that. In examining my motives, however, I realized that I was using this term simply to be confrontational.
The term witch is based on the old english word witch but its origins are much older and etymology is difficult given the sparse written record of pre-Christian Europe.
Some modern pagans, or Neo-Pagans, use the word to describe themselves as well. These men and women may not identify at all with being Wiccan and yet some Wiccans seem to think they have some sort of trademark on the word. We do not.
Wiccans and other Neo-Pagans who practice magic should understand the concept and value of using ones words precisely. When using an incorrect term in place of a correct one both terms become diluted; They lose their power.
There is another reason, in my opinion, that we should not use witch in place of Wiccan. This reasoning is socio-political. There is tons of historical baggage behind the term witch. It is, in some minds, paritcularly conservatives, synonymous with evil and satanism. In a proper world this prejudice would not exist. We do not, however, live in a perfect world and while I agree that prejudices should be eliminated and replaced by facts this is a slow process and while this process is happening these same people who think ill of us "witches" will project their misinformed beliefs to us and continue to call us devil worshipers and worse!
Socio-political concerns notwithstanding, I believe that we should be precise in our self identification. Claim your religion for what it is and, if you're like a lot of "witches" I have met, stop trying to shock and rebel and be the Wiccan you have worked and studied so hard to be.
Disclaimer: As I discuss Wicca as a religion on this site I describe the Wiccan religion with respect to my personal viewpoint, or, perhaps my "tradition". Different traditions describe things differently and those traditions may hold different concepts, beliefs and codes.