| What is Celticism | |What is Paganism | |Paganism v. Wicca |
There is a big difference between having a Celtic Ancestry, living in a Celtic country, being a Celtic Reconstructionalist, or worshipping Celtic deities as a Pagan or Wiccan. They can be incorporated if one wishes, but being a Celt or having a Celtic Ancestry does not require you to be Pagan or Wiccan. If you don't believe me take a trip to a Celtic country to find out just how many Celts are Xtian. You need not be a Celt to be Pagan or Wiccan and worship Celtic deities.
Furthermore, being Pagan and having a Celtic ancestry does not require me or anyone else to write in Ogam script, dress like a Celt, speak Gaelic, Welsh or any other ancient Celtic language, or cook ancient Celtic recipes. Therefore, you will not find any of those things listed on these pages, because I am not a Celtic Reconstructionalist/Pagan. I do have some information on what the ancient Celts believed or what was part of the mythical lore, which is all that is necessary. If you are looking for more about the ancient Celts, there are Pagan/Celtic Reconstructionalists with webpages on the internet. Check my links section to find those websites.
Moreover, Celtic cooking goes against every healthy eating guideline established by the American Heart Association, The American Cancer Society, the National Diabetes Foundation, Cornel and Harvard University School of Medicine, Covert Bailey, Ph.D, and Weight Watchers to name a few. If I cooked like the ancient Celts I would need to make airline reservations for two and wouldn't be able to walk accross the room. Their diets were high in fat, cholesterol, and low in fiber. If you want to weigh 900 lbs., have clogged arteries and high blood pressure that's your business. I on the other hand, plan to live a long and healthy life.
In addition, walking around speaking in an ancient tongue and dressing in ancient dress would just get me tagged as a freak. I am a businessperson with a professional career. I have a son in High School, I live in a Yuppie neighborhood and must be accepted by the community as a credible person. Being a freak living in a make believe world doesn't buy anyone credibility.
Magick: The manipulation of energy to bring about a specific cause of action.
Pagan: Not Judeo Christina (this is from the dictionary).
Religion:The worship of deity, and following a set of man-made beliefs within a "specific" religion. A Cult.
There is another misconception on the internet concerning what being a pagan really is. Let's get this straight....being Pagan does not mean a person is Wiccan or even believes in the Earth Spirituality Religions. Pagans consist of many different belief systems that do not include wiccan beliefs. A Witch isn't necessarily Wiccan, because you can do magick and witchcraft without being the member of a religious group, such as wicca. Many Witches choose to distance themselves from Wicca, I myself am one of them. In fact I am so outraged by the misinformation on the internet, many so called Pagan groups and unscrupulous authors, that I refuse to call myself Pagan or a Witch, but a Sorceress. I do not care what you are reading on the internet. I've read all the useless garbage churned out by Llewellyn Publishing' most popular "modern" authors, and not one of them anywhere states that being Pagan or a Witch makes a person Wiccan. I can guarantee that you'll end up with a hex put on you or a bloody nose if you dare to call a Hoodoo practitioner or a Ceremonial Magickian a Wiccan!
The American Heritage dictionary' defininition of Pagan is straight and true; "anyone who is not christian." Today that has expanded to include anyone who is not Judeo chrsitian." This includes Buddhists, Muslims, Voodoo, Hoodoo, Santeria, Egyptian deity worship, Ceremonial Magickians, Goth, Vampirism, and Satanism. If you are one of those idiots saying "how dare you call Satanists Pagan", then you haven't read this, you are closed minded or are just plain stupid. Take your pick.
In 1985 the United States Supreme Court established a set of guidelines to determine what constitutes a religion. These guidelines are: (in laymans terms) 1) There is an organized group of individuals with a set of established beliefs and rules. 2) A belief in deity (to Satanists, Satan is a deity, whether you like it or not!) and 3) In order to establish a church the group must have an ordained minister. That's a simple task. The Universal Life Church does not close their doors to anyone seeking minsitrial credentials no matter what their beliefs are.
The first thing most people do is blame me or say "How dare you call Satanists Pagan!" Get this straight right now...I'm not the one who defined the word "pagan". This was defined centuries ago, and I'm not the one who came up with the guidelines for what constitutes a regligion, nor the one who defined Satanism as a religion. Before we go any further you need to remember what the basic tenets of belief among all Earth Spirituality Religions are: 1) To accept the beliefs of others, or their right to their beliefs whther you agree with them or not. and 2) Every person is an individual and therefore we encourage freedom of thought. If you are one of those people saying to yourself haw dare she, or one that believes that Satanists, Voodoun, Santerians and Hoodouns do not have a right to their beliefs and practices then you have no right to call yourself a member of the Earth Spirituality Religions. Thinking that way is just Xtian dogma, and you are dangerous to the existence of Earth Spirituality and freedom of thought! I've even had one person write to say that I should contact the Witches Voice to have a warning label next to my page that I am spreading lies, I am hostile, etc. Sorry, but the Witches Voice does not support or engage in "CENSORSHIP", especially when the person is telling the truth. You had better go over there to read their mission statement and their "Witch Wars" page. They support anyone or group that follows "The Law of Three or any similar belief system" I never said I do not believe or practice otherwise. Nor did I ever state that I condone some of the practices in certain belief systems such as blood drinking, animal sacrifice, torture, orgies, hate or fear as a means of control or as a means of directing raw power for magickal use. In fact some of the things are just plain sick! But at least I take the time to find out what the true practices of some of these groups are, not just accept what a few closed minded individuals say about it or what the government says about it. To those who are against the truth, are closed minded, and unable to think or believe for themselves, anyone who tells the truth is hostile. Truth is always the first casualty in any war, or in a society where one group or person choses to seize control and power. Right now Llewellyn Publishing has power and control over you as long as you chose to let them, unless you are a free thinker. If you are not, then you cannot call yourself a member of the Earth Spirituality religions. Once again free thinking is one of our basic tenets of belief. That's what separates us from just being a "Cult" instead of a religion.
If you want to be wiccan then you need to do some homework. Learn what "Wicca" is, what their history is and what their beliefs system really is, not what Silver RavenWolf, or DJConway told you in their book. Furthermore, Scott Cunninham has never said that Paganism is Wicca or that to be a Witch you must be Wiccan, or that Pagan means Earth Spirituality religion. In fact Scott even tells you that Wicca is a "NEW" religion in his books.
If you are truly interested in learning about Wicca then you are lucky enough to have run into someone with a webpage who is old enough to have lived through the 1960's and hasn't developed "selective amnesia". I was raised by parents who were ordained and initiated Alexandrian Wiccans. Although I choose not to be wiccan, that doesn't mean that I do not know what I'm talking about or that I forgot what their "true" tenets are. You are not going to get inner circle secrets from me, but you will get a history lesson.
I am going to let you in on one secret however. If you think that those silly Spells Silver writes or repeating "any" spell or ritual written in any of the books (that includes rituals in Golden Dawn, Regardies, Crowleys or even Knights books) will actually work....well you are sadly mistaken. In Silver's case they are just a bunch of made up make-believe hodgepodge rhymes, and in the latter case the authors deliberately set up blinders leaving out important inforation to keep idiots from hurting themselves or anyone else. If you believe that there are such things as special people with witch powers, you do not need to develop your mental concentration through meditations, that you can just pick up a book and go to it, you can't use magick for evil or to harm another...you have been watching way too many episodes of chramed. Wake up, get a life and start learning!
Just to Clear things up, here are some guidelines you should be following:
1. You can't be xtian and Wiccan at the same time.
If you want to be xtian, then so be it, but you can't be wiccan at the same time, our beliefs are diametrically opposed to each other.
2. You cannot mix and match religions or beliefs. If you want to mix and match, then don't call yourself Wiccan. You don't have a religion. You are an ecclectic practitioner with your own set of beliefs.
3. Whoever told you you could do any of the above just wants your money, or read a book by someone who wants your money!!
4. Who are the "sell-outs" to the Pagan religions who lie just to get your money? Llewellyn Publications, Silver Raven Wolf, DJ Conway, "most" of the authors at Llewellyn Publications, and the relatives of Scott Cunningham (who passed away some time ago).
5. If you want to know what the "real" wiccan religion is about, do a booksearch for out of print books by Gerald Gardner, and Alex Sanders. Purchase the Alex Sanders lectures, or pick up some of William Gray's books.
Stating that you are Pagan means that you are not christian or jewish. Because you are Pagan does not mean you are Wiccan or a Witch. Being Wiccan doesn't make you a witch. Some people who are traditional craft are more on the side of Sorcerers, and they do not believe in "Karma". This does not mean witch, dark side magick or wiccan!!! You need to learn the differences.
Second, the term "witchcraft" is an incorrect and misused term which was created by Leland in his ultimate ignorance of old English root-words. The actual term should be "Wiccraft" which means "Craft of the Wise. The incorrect term of "Witchcraft" actually means "Craft of the Wicked" in Old english terminology. If you are calling yourself a witch you are incorrect!
Karma is not a tool of retribution, nor does it have any place in Wicca or most Pagan beliefs. Karma is a belief of the Buddhists and the Hindus which simply means that your spirit must reincarnate until it attains perfection. It has nothing to do with punishment in this life for something you did or didn't do whether magickal or otherwise. The belief is that your spirit in between lives, decides what lessons you must learn in the next life in order to attain spiritual perfection. Until that time your spirit must continue to return to this earth.
What I find most appaling is the fact that most people who say they believe in karma or have bought into this "fluff bunny" garbage being hukstered by the new modern authors are the natiest, meanest people on the internet. They are the very first people to send a flaming email or post to a message board. I find this very interesting. The truth is, if these people actually believe in karma then they would not be sending nasty emails or demanding that people accept "their" point of view. I wish you people would learn what karma really is! Instead you want to throw around your made up ignorant version of karma. A Buddhist would laugh at you, while telling you you can't be taught until you empty your head! So if you actually believe your made up version of Karma, you would just let it go, then move on. By not doing so they have just broken their own rules, and have brought the laws of karma down on their heads.
If you are Wiccan or rather want to be Wiccan, you should also learn the history of Wicca, which I have listed at the bottom of this page. I have listed the "Wiccan Tenets of Belief for those that wish to explore them. These tenets are "suggested" Ways to live by. They are NOT Laws! Please pay careful attention to the phrase "Prosteletyse". This is very important, and it is something that the average Wiccan forgets!! When you go around demanding that "all" pagans, or Earth Spirituality religions follow what you incorrectly, but ignorantly believe to be "the laws of wicca" that everyone must follow, you are prosteletysing! STOP IT!!! If you actually believe that this is the way you should live as you run around touting "HARM NONE, HARM NONE" you had better learn what that really means. It doesn't mean that someone can't protect themselves magickally, nor does it mean that you are only allowed to use the white light of love, nor does "Karma" have anything to do with the "original" Wiccan beliefs. So if you are demanding that people do things "your" way, or that they follow "your" interpretation of the Wiccan reede, you are actually breaking (2) Two tenets of Belief: (1) Prosteletysing (2) Harm None. Why Harm none? Because you are projecting "hatred", "disdain", intereference with the progression or life of another, as well as being a 'BIGOT"! And "THOUGHTS ARE THINGS, WHICH MANIFEST IN THE PHSYICAL REALM."
Furthermore, if you actually knew anything about the "true" traditionalist Wiccans such as the Georgians, Gardnerians and Alexandrians you'd know that they do believe in the law of three. This means whatever you do comes back to you three times. If you believe that one of the trad Wiccans won't put a hex on you for something you did to hurt them or someone else, then just go ahead and take that chance, mess with one of those trad Wiccans and see how dramatically your life changes! If your life is good it will get very bad, and if your life is not so great it will go from bad to worse. Don't say I didn't warn you.
Misconception number 1: Wicca/Witchcraft has been in existence 11,000 years. FALSE! Shamanism and Folk Magick has been around 11, 000 years. Witchcraft is the practice of magick, it is NOT a religion. Wicca is NEW religion, and you will find that definition in Scott Cunninghams Book; Wicca: For the Solitary Practitioner!!! Paganism is the worship of deity and that of the environment, (ie: Moon goddess, Sun God, Fertility deities, elemental Gods/Goddesses), without aligning yourself to any particular "religion" or belief such as Wicca or Witta. The pagan people lived off the land, they depended upon fertile soil, enough rain for the crops and plenty of children to help them work the land. Don't forget that the life expectancy in the early centuries was not all that high. Previous to the 18th century a person was considered elderly if they lived past their 30's. Previous to that a person was lucky to live until the age of 30.
Wicca: "A contemporary (READ: NEW) Pagan religion with spiritual roots in Shamanism and the earliest expressions of reverence of nature. Among it's major motifs are: reverence for the Goddess and God; reincarnation; magic; ritual observance of the Full Moon; astronomical and agricultural phenonema, spheroid temples, created with personal power, in which rituals occur."
Wicca was brought to the United States in the 1950's by an Englishman named Gerald Gardner. The beliefs of wicca were taken from the Gardnerian Book of Shadows, which was co-written by Mr. Gardner and Aliester Crowley. Aliester Crowley established the O.T.O (Ordo Templi Orientis) in the United States with the help of a man named Grady McMurtry whom he met in WWII, while Mr. McMurtry was serving his country in the U.S. Army. The Alexandrian tradition was started by Alex Sanders. Mr. Sanders based his tradition upon the writings of Gerald Gardner, as well as his background in ceremonial magick or what is often thought of as "Thelema, Golden Dawn, Babylonian magick and Qaballah.
Misconception #2: The term and "Harm None" means that you will have "bad Karma" if you do anything to "bind" another from harming you, or if you use "poppets and image candles".
Karma is an eastern term from India which has no place in Paganism or Wicca. The term Karma was never heard of until the mid to late 1960's. Those who speak of karma have not been properly educated as to their religion, nor have they ever been part of any "formal or organized" Coven/Trad, etc. The originators of Wicca never considered karma or the use of it in the belief system of Wicca. They did consider terms such as the "Law of Three" and the "Laws of cause and effect". Although some traditions believe in Karma. That's their business and their right, but don't push it on me!!!
What does the Law of Cause and Effect mean? You had better be certain that the person is guilty of the works you accuse them of or you "will" pay the price! Let me just say one thing about love spells...you are bending someones will. The mundane term here is "be careful what you wish for", you may end up with something that you do not want, then you must do a binding to get rid of the person. In that case you are in the wrong. It's better for you to just ask the Lady and the Lord to bring the right person to you. Your life long mate will arrive when the time is right and not before then. It's better to spend your time learning communication skills, reading up on what it takes to have a successful partnership, how the mind of the opposite gender works, and learning the art of compromise. There's no place for selfishness or dishonesty in a relationship, each side must learn to give and take. I'm not going to say it's easy either.
The term and "harm none" was taken from the O.T.O.' Book of The Law, that was changed around a little by Mr. Gardner. The correct phrase was "Do what though Wilt is the Whole of the Law, Love Under Law, Love Under Will." This does not mean that you do not have the right to protect yourself from those who wish to cause you harm, which includes slander! You have the right to use whatever means necessary. Our Criminal Law system gives a person the right to use "whatever force necessary" to defend yourself against an attacker who means to cuase you harm. If our Criminal Justice system allows this, then why shouldn't you be able to protect yourself magickally? The use of magick will not cause anyone "physical harm" it will just keep them from engaging in a particular harmful action. It all depends upon your state of mind when you perform your ritual as well as your words or request of the deity. Therefore, you should put a lot of thought into how you are going to word your binding spell as well as keeping a lid on your anger. I do not suggest using a deity of "Justice" unless you are totally innocent of "any" wrong doing in this case. Justice is exactly what you will get, especailly if you have done anything wrong in the past or present. This means if you lied to someone about anything, or were not totally truthful or did something that was borderline, etc. the God/Goddess of Justice will make certain that you pay for your acts.
The people that have worked the "Light & Love" garbage into their practices are not real wiccans or witches, they're either Christian or practitioners of the eastern traditions. What is the meaning of "New Age"? People who practice the "New Age" beliefs are actually christian. They believe in God, or correctly stated the christian God Jehovah. You can't you be Wiccan and Christian at the same time. Our views, practices and beliefs are diametrically opposed. To state that xtians can be wiccan is like saying that Nazis are being accepted into the Jewish faith, or a black man has been appointed as head of the KKK! But does this mean you should use greed, anger, hate & lust to guide you? Absolutely not!!! You should first learn the spiritual side of magick. It is a "medical fact" that anger, hate, greed, fear and lust will make you ill & can kill you. The point I am attempting to make is that there are many different beliefs, and it's not your right to demand that someone believe or think as you do. Leave it alone!!!
OK, so what's the difference between Pagans and Wiccans? What's the difference between a Catholic and a Baptist, or an Orthodox and a Reformed Jew? There's a big difference! Even though the Catholic and the Baptist are both christians they both have different religious beliefs, you will never get them to agree that either one is correct. The same with the Orthodox and the Reformed Jew. To put it all in a nutshell, the Christians, Jews, Buddhists and the Pagans all have different "sects" within their belief structure. Within Paganism we have Asatru, Druidery, and Wicca. Although we do not believe in Satan the US Supreme Court recognizes the following religions which the xtians categorize as pagan: The Church of Goth, the Church of Satan, and the Church of Vampirism. Just a note: there are two different categories within Goth and Vampirism. Most people do not make this a religious belief. To them it is a "lifestyle". However, there are Gothic and Vampire churches forming and they do believe in deity. I'm not an expert, but if you wish to learn more go over to darksites.com and do a page search. There are a lot of pages put up by weirdos and nut cases, but you will find some written by intelligent people who know what they are talking about.
Wicca is only a very small part of the Pagan religions. Even within Wicca there are different "sects". There are Alexandrians, Georgians, Gardnerians, Temple of Isis, and many more. We are not against the wiccans, no more than we are the xtians. We are only against those who prostelitize that their belief or their sect's belief is the only way, and everyone must follow what their sect believes, and in doing so deny our "freedom of choice". Many wiccans have become just like the xtians in their prostelizing of anti-choice".
A word about ecclectic practices: You can be Pagan or Wiccan and use different types of magickal practices or systems (magick not religion), there's nothing wrong with that. Just remember that terms such as Celtic, Dianic, etc. is a "cultural definition" not a separate religious practice. And although these different societies/cultures used different names for their Gods and Goddesses it still does not make them a different religion. You can be Alexandiran and use any deity you wish. Or you can practice Kaballah as part of a magickal ceremony without it deviating from your "religious" beliefs. So do not come back and say, "Well you say that we can't mix and match religions, but I'm eclectic so does that mean I can't use other sytems?" That's not what I said. What I said was you can't mix religions...you can't be xtian and Wiccan, or Wiccan and Druid or Asatru, or Wiccan and Jewish. But you can be Wiccan and use Odin or Cerridwen in a rite, you just can't mix and match religious beliefs. You CAN be a non-denomination Pagan if you wish to set your own "belief and worship" standards. Which is what the term "Pagan" means - non-denominational (and don't say that means you're wiccan-it has nothing to do with wicca). Or you can use any type of magickal system "Kabbalah, Golden Dawn, Hoo-Doo, Folk Magick, etc. and be any one of the above mentioned religions. And if you still don't understand this, or insist that it's all still Wicca, then you are either really dense or just plain stupid!
And one last thing. If you do not like what I have to say about Wicca, Paganism, the history thereof, or xtians....tough, go somewhere else!!! There are millions of "fluff bunny" pages out there put up by total idiots like yourself, go find one!!! Furthermore, I really don't care what your opinion is, nor do I care to hear it. Your emails will be ignored and deleted, and you can email me till the earth turns flat it really doesn't matter. I've even been told by the truly ignorant that Shamans are new age and practice love & light and are not xtian (ha. ha. ha.!!!!!!). "REAL" SHAMANS ARE NOT NEW AGE NOR DO THEY BELIEVE IN LOVE AND LIGHT!!! You must be talking to one of those 'WANNA BE" Shamans. If you want to know what a real Shamans believe, thinks or practices read the writings of Carlos Castaneda or The Way of the Sahaman by Harner. Stay away from the makers of fine fluff like DJ Conway, and Susan Gregg!!