What is Wiccan?

Question

I read it briefly in a book and it definetly sparked my interest...although some people say it's witchcraft, other people say it's just enhancing energy. What is it, how do you practice it and even though I am a Catholic, is it morally right to practice it?

Sorry I meant Wicca.

Answer 1

Wicca is a henotheistic religion, which recognises its own specific gods, while not denying the existence of gods and goddesses from other pantheons. Wicca itself is a 'hard polytheistic' religion, meaning that Wicca see their deities as specific individual beings. The gods of Wicca are known as the Horned God and Great Mother, these are outer court references meant to be used as place holders for the real names of their gods until the Seeker is initiated and taught those names.

Wicca was founded by Gerald Gardner in around the 1930's, although the exact date is open for discussion, also open for discussion is whether Gardner founded Wicca entirely or whether it was an already existing spirituality which he merely re-introduced and re-invented, either way he is considered the founding father of Wicca. Gardner brought together Paganism with influences from many sources including the rituals and teachings of Freemasonry and Golden dawn resulting in a unique orthopraxic religion. Wicca embraces it's early Pagan roots in history, the history of Pagan faiths and the gods whom they followed and worshipped, Wicca also introduces eastern philosophy into it's primarily western path, along with this possibly one of Wicca's best known features, that of religious witchcraft.

Wicca is gaining much attention due to a change in peoples approach to religion and the increase in public awareness of the religion through media attention and with this attention there has come much change to the face of Wicca with many forms:

Wicca is an initiate only mystery tradition, or more precisely a priesthood, where one can trace their lineage back to Gardner. Initiation is the only way into Wicca, and is carried out by a Wicca coven, initiation into a coven requires formal training after which initiation and a system of degrees is followed.

Wicca follows a strong set of doctrines, one who takes on the name 'Wicca' is also taking on these doctrines as well as practices and beliefs of Wicca, the title of 'Wicca' implies more than that you are a member of Wicca, but also that you have worked long and hard to earn that title.
Seekers are those who wish to become Wicca however have yet to find a Wicca coven. Wicca covens can be hard to find let alone become a member of, often those whom are without a coven continue to study Wicca and surrounding subjects while seeking a Wicca coven to join.

Often Wicca is described as 'Traditional Wicca' or 'BTW:British Traditional Wicca'.

Neo-wicca is a new phenomenon, which is usually wholly eclectic, however like Wicca there are various different traditions. Neo-wicca often learn on their own terms, from books and other sources, but have little or no formal training and no initiation into Wicca. The beliefs of Neo-wicca are generally similar to that of Wicca however the details can often vary greatly as it follows the new age idea of personal belief/spirituality over formal religious doctrine. Neo-Wicca have varied views of the divine, either following soft-polytheism seeing all gods and goddesses as one god/goddess, polytheism working with gods and goddesses from various pantheons or pantheism working with a single divine present in all.

The 'Neo' in Neo-wicca refers to the New Age approach taken by Neo-wicca that puts emphasis on personal spirituality or belief over the organized religion of Wicca. It also refers to a new take on Wicca, this has less to do with the age of the religion but the idea that this is a belief system which may have come naturally from Wicca if it was allowed to evolve in it’s own time, media influences have brought about Neo-wicca, it develops paralleled to Wicca, but is not part of Wicca.

Often Neo-wicca describe themselves as 'Eclectic Wicca' or 'Solitary Wicca', although not actually Wicca.

Although Wicca is heavily influenced or based upon witchcraft it is not the main belief behind Wicca, the terms 'Wicca' and 'witch' are not interchangeable. The practice of witchcraft fits well with the Wicca way of prayer and ritual, which often involves a highly personal relationship with the divine, the witchcraft of Wicca also works well with how Wicca views the universe as working, however it should be noted that witchcraft can be practiced by many religions as well as by Atheists and Agnostics.

Wicca is not dogmatic, much of the morality and ethics of Wicca are in fact determined by the individuals take on a given situation. Often followers of Wicca will incorporate utilitarianism, which means that an act is carried out for the greater good or elements of their own morality rather then seek to find suitable behavior based on Wicca doctrine.

The rede plays a large part in the morality and ethics of Wicca, there are many takes and much documentation on the rede that can be found in many places, the rede however in itself can be clearly understood by the quote below given by Gardner himself.

"[Witches] are inclined to the morality of the legendary Good King Pausol, "Do what you like so long as you harm no one". But they believe a certain law to be important, "You must not use magic for anything which will cause harm to anyone, and if, to prevent a greater wrong being done, you must discommode someone, you must do it only in a way which will abate the harm." Gerald Gardner, The Meaning of Witchcraft, p 127 in the 1982 and 1999 printings

Another aspect of the Wiccan ethical philosophy is that of the 'law of return' often known as the 'three fold law' which is similar to that of western karmic philosophy, that anything you do either good or bad will come back to you. Law of return is often more closely associated with magic ethics rather than the everyday ethics covered by the rede or other Wiccan ethical beliefs, however is often thought of as cause and effect. This is also often referred to as the 'rule of three' or 'law of three'.

You CANNOT be Wicca and Catholic at the same time, they are two very different religions with totally different beliefs, practices and doctrines.

Answer 2

Wicca is a Neopagan religion and a religious movement found in many different countries, though most commonly in English-speaking cultures. It was first publicised in 1954 by a British civil servant named Gerald Gardner[1] after the British Witchcraft Act was repealed. He claimed that the religion, of which he was an initiate, was a modern survival of an old witch cult, which had existed in secret for hundreds of years, originating in the pre-Christian Paganism of Europe. Wicca is thus sometimes referred to as the Old Religion. The veracity of Gardner's claims cannot be proven, as Wiccan theology began to be compiled no earlier than the 1920s. Various related Wiccan traditions have since evolved, or been adapted from, the form established by Gardner, which came to be called Gardnerian Wicca. These other traditions of Wicca each have specific beliefs, rituals, and practices. Most traditions of Wicca remain secretive and require members to be initiated. However, there is a growing movement of Eclectic or Solitary Wiccans who claim to belong to the religious movement, but do not believe any doctrine or traditional initiation is necessary in order to substantiate the claim.

Answer 3

I could give you some info on it....but you really aren't going to get a lot of "straight" answers on it...it means different things to different people...and if that little bit has sparked your interest...you should also consider researching paganism in general (or neo-paganism)...there is a lot more to it than just wicca (although wicca is the most widely practiced form)....there are many other paths....the best thing to do is search for it online

Answer 4

Wicca is an Earth-based religion that worships the forgotten Gods and Goddesses and the Elements Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Spirit. Wicca is not evil in any way! We believe in the three-fold law which is to harm none and what you give comes back on you three times good or bad. Our spells are like Christian prayers only using nature as our guide. As for is it morally right for YOU to practice it? If you think that this is your path, then yes, it is morally right. It is for me, I know this for a fact! Just listen to yourself and choose for yourself! Good luck!

Answer 5

It is not easy to define because Wiccans can have different beliefs. The Catholic church would not want you to practice Wicca, as they teach that Wiccans are devil-worshipers.

I'm not really a Wiccan, more of an eclectic, but Wicca tends to be more animistic (communing with spirits throughout nature). they also tend to worship many gods and goddesses instead of just one, male god.

Answer 6

Their is alot of different verisions of it....But mainly its "worshiping" the elements...Fire, water, wind, earth and spirt..that is where the pentagram comes from, and it also represents the five points where god was hurt at while on the cross... Its a balence of good and bad witchcraft but if you do it to harm someone it will come back at you x's three. The power comes from the earth. Their is different sites about it and the different spells, the gods and about the book of shadows....they made a movie about it called The Craft its relly intresting. Wicca takes a lot of concertrating and its all natural.

Answer 7

I think you'll find that Catholicism and Wiccans are mutually exclusive. Ask your priest about them to understand the Catholic point of view, and then either find a practicing Wiccan to learn the other point of view. Thus informed, choose which way is best for you.

Answer 8

Wicca is the study of the metaphyical magickal arts. The arts consist of the use of the Elements (air, fire, water, earth), Deity Worship, Energy Work & the use of Catalyst (candles, incense, holy water, cakes & wine 'communion', herbs, stones & others) for prayers, rituals or spells.

YES You can be Catholic & Wiccan at the same time. I'm living proof. And here some more proof that there is thousands of us

http://www.allabouttheoccult.org/christi...

http://www.covenofchristministries.org/s...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thechristi...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thechristi...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/unitedinte...

In defensive of all paths-

Jesus ate supper with non-believers & pagans. He even complimented a PAGAN for his RIGHETOUSNESS & FAITH.

NEWS FLASH: Yep a pagan can be RIGHTOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

EVERYONE- READ IT YOURSELVES:(Matthew 8:10-12) (yeah, this is the RED lettered part)

Jesus Christ, having noted the faith and righteousness of a Roman centurion, a Pagan, proclaimed:

"Assuredly I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 8:10-12)

It is clear that heaven will contain many who are 'not' Christians, and hell will contain many who are!

Pagans worship the SAME God as you, no matter the name. Don't believe me.

READ IT YOURSELF:(Acts 17:22-23)

"Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, `Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, The One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you" (Acts 17:22-23)

Many bible scholars have noted that in the original Hebrew the word "M'khasephah' means- "someone who 'malevolently' uses spoken curses to 'hurt people'. This did not include people who were mystics & studied the magickal arts & natural phenomenon. The 3 Wise Men that came to visit Jesus were Astrologers & Mystics. (The Magi-Matt 2:1) And the Hebrew word 'Pharmakeia', is properly translated as the practice of malicious use of drugs as in poisons.

In our society, anyone who is using poisons or drugs to harm is anyone is a MURDERER, not neccessarily a MYSTIC or PRIEST/PRIESTESS OF THE CRAFT OF THE WISE.

I know LOTS of Christians that say HORRIBLE things about people. Curse them, cuss them out & turn to violence.

For a Christian to even speak illy of another person's choosen path or religion, if they start issuing out curses, threats or ill will, you too are a WITCH...........

Most Wiccans are magickal mystics and don't practice the harming of others by spoken curses or the use of poisons. It is against their creed of rules. Most are peaceful loving individuals.

Answer 9

Somethings are meant to be left alone. I would leave the Wicca practice alone.

Answer 10

There's absolutly nothing wrong with practicing it. There are many forms and branches of Wicca. I would suggest further research.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/witchcra.htm