Posted by deirdrehbrt on April 18, 2006, at 22:01:03
In reply to Re: This is old, but I find many haven't heard of » Dinah, posted by TexasChic on April 15, 2006, at 15:20:14
-T,
Thanks for posting on that.I'm Wiccan, a Pagan by definition. I've had a real hard time with this administrations dealings with my religion. Right now, there are families of Wiccan service members who have been waiting and waiting for the VA to allow their emblem of faith (The Pentacle; a 5-pointed star, with one point facing up, surrounded by a circle) on the grave stones of fallen service members.
This administration has voiced outright hostility to our religion. Many of the religious right political leaders are saying that Wicca is Satanic, which is a (to be civil) gross misunderstanding. Satan is a creature defined by the Bible, and we wiccans, indeed most Pagans have nothing to do with either.
Wicca reveres nature. Some of us worship gods as well as goddesses. Some worship just the Goddess. Many of us have a number of different names for different aspects of the Gods and Goddesses. Some believe in a real God and Goddess, some believe that they are symbolic.Most Wiccans would identify as Witches, but not all Witches identify as Wiccan. Typically, a Witch is one who practices magick, but is differentiated from ceremonial magicians such as the Order of the Golden Dawn, etc. A Witch doesn't necessarily view the working of magic as a religion. To Wiccans, magick is a part of their spirituality.
Many in the religious right are speaking out against books and movies such as the Harry Potter series, saying that it glorifies Witchcraft. In truth, the books are pure fiction, and the representation of magic in the books is nothing at all like real magick. While it is possible that some reading the books would become curious about people who call themselves Witches or Wiccans, the truth of Wicca or Witchcraft are so different from the book that the passing interest generated by the book would usually fail when the amount of work, and the reality of spells and such was witnessed.
Silly truths: Witches don't fly on brooms. Witches can't turn people into toads. Witches don't poison apples. Witches can't induce a sleep that mimics death, though if you are having trouble sleeping, we can use herbs to help you sleep.
Many witches are quite good with herbal medicine. Witches cast spells to help people.
One of our guiding principles is this: "An it harm none, do what thoug wilt". While seemingly quite permissive, this simple statement embodies the full text of the last seven commandments. Possibly more. Wiccans aren't permitted to do ANYTHING that will cause harm to another or to ourselves. Though that is an ideal to which we strive, none of us are perfect, but it is a very high goal.
Coupled with that is the threefold law, which states that what we do returns to us threefold. Some take this alegorically, some literally, but in essence it means that what we do has repurcussions in our own lives. If we visit ill on another, we can expect to see it returned in our own lives.
There are some who claim to follow a "left-hand path", or to perform black or dark magick. These are not Wiccan.
Still, some Christian leaders would say that ANY magick is evil and of Satan. In truth, most evangelical Christians believe that anybody who doesn't accept Christ as their Savior, which includes all non-christian (some would exclude the Jews) are deceived and unwittingly following Satan.
Personally, I don't follow that belief. Wiccans don't claim to have the lock on any sort of Salvation, nor do they believe it necessary.
We are peaceful, but we will serve our country. We pray for our country and for the safety of troops at home or abroad. We hope for a leader who doesn't dismiss our religion as quackery or evil. We hope for a leader who can recognize that religions other than his are still valid. We hope for a leader who believes that honoring the truth and upholding justice are at least as important as political goals and motives.
We're a part of this country, and deserve to be recognized as such. Our soldiers deserve to have their emblem of faith on their gravestones just as much as do Christians, Jews, Muslims or any other faith. We don't deserve to have fear-based reactionary untruths told about us for political or any other reason.
Sorry, this topic gets me fired up all the time. I get a news feed from Witchvox, and every single day I read about the political and civil slander directed at my faith all around the world. We're implicated when a Goth teenager takes their life. We're denied custody of children because of our faith. Teachers who admit to being Wiccan have lost their jobs, as well as have even bus drivers. In a country that espouses religious freedom and tolerance, it certainly seems that that applies to the larger subset of society.
It's funny though; Native American spirituality is Pagan, but that seems to be met with a bit more acceptance. I don't mind that acceptance, but wonder why it is that it is better tolerated in our society. (I'm part native, and am personally glad that it is as accepted as it is).
Maybe someday, people will begin to understand that Witches and Wiccans and Pagans aren't any more prone to evil than are Christians or Jews or Ba'hai (Don't quite remember where to put the ') or any other faith. Just as a witch with impure motives might try to cast a spell to cause harm to someone who wronged them, so can a Christian pray to god for ill to befall one who wronged them. It's all about motives, and any of us can do something evil if we let our motives stray from that which we know is good or right.
Anyway, enough babbling. Time for bed.
--Dee
poster:deirdrehbrt
thread:632815
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20060417/msgs/634616.html