Fact or Fiction? (for Pagans)?

Question

If you were watching a television show about the myths surrounding Pagan religions (primarily Wicca and Witchcraft) which myths would you MOST hope that they would discuss and disprove?

(I am actually designing a segment on a public access show for this and am wondering what people would most like to see)

Or, for those who aren't Pagan, what myths about witches and Wiccans most scare you, or would you like to know more about?

Thanks for all your help in advance!

Blessings and Light!

(*Note: All bashers and negative comments will be promptly reported!*)

The entire rest of the show is about Paganism in general... and I'm sure the 'Satanist' issues will be one of the first addressed, LOL.

How is this a stupid question?

Epona ~ There are 8 shows a year, each one centered around a Sabbat. So I could do sabbat specific myths, but the next show I could submit for would be Imbolc. So each show is already about our holiday observations. :-)

Answer 1

I just came across this and haven't read the other posts...so probably some of these have already been mentioned.

Mythes and Misconceptions about Paganism and Witchcraft that I would love to see dispelled:

1. The big, easy lie: that we worship Satan. But, I'm sure you've already had a hundred folks say that one. We don't even believe in Satan.

2. That we can be categorized as anything resembling a monolithic culture. You get a group of pagans and/or witches together and, once you get past some of the main concepts, you might go for some time before finding any particular belief, practice, or ritual that any two of them would agree upon. That is precisely our strength: DIVERSITY AND FREEDOM OF THOUGHT.

3. That all rituals involve groups of naked people and that said rituals always devolve into orgies. I suspect that the vast, semi-silent majority of us tend to be solitary. I also feel pretty confident that very few of us actually participate in groups "skyclad." And, even of those groups, one could probably go a decades or longer before witnessing anything remotely similar to an "orgy." On the other hand, our bodies, our sensuality, and our sacred sexuality: these are things to celebrate. Those of us who don't do these things would be wise not to arbitrarily condemn those who do practice skyclad or some form of sexual magick.

4. That we are either all "love and light" or all "darkness and terror." Neither light nor darkness can exist without the other. It is not our place to judge those who specialize in one particular form of practice, be it light or dark. Most of us are somewhere in the middle, probably leaning more towards the light, but occasionally exploring that which we call darkness.

5. That we are intrinsically immoral just because we don't cling to some dogmatically rigid moral code. Some of us do; many of us don't. Because we consider ourselves blessed to live in this world of senses and sensuality, we honour them by exploring them in ways that some might not. That is our choice. It's still a free country, no matter how hard they try to remake it in their image.

6. That we are somehow silly or stupid just because we revere nature and celebrate the gifts of nature. This is no more silly or stupid than all the indigenous peoples around the world who do the same. I honour the earth because without Her, none of us, including myself would be here.

7. That we all do animal sacrifice. Most pagans and witches in the US and Europe are appalled by the concept altogether and would never consider such a thing. Animal sacrifice as a devotion is more likely to be found in some indigenous cultures around the world. In these cultures, the animal is killed much more quickly and humanely than our slaughterhouses butcher cattle, and the end result is the same: the deities invoked get the "essence," and the people get the meat for supper.

I guess that's all I can think of for now.
Blessed Be.

Answer 2

I'd personally like to see less myth, more false reality debunked, namely that of Wicca being a 'make-it-up-as-you-go-along' religion. I think the biggest thing within the Pagan community today is that of ignorance, not from external sources but from within our own ranks, so to speak. There are far too many people coming into Paganism from an interest in Wicca, which itself is fine however there are countless number of people who call themselves Wicca when they not only do not follow Wicca themselves but do not know what the religion is about.

There is no bigger argument than the Wicca verses Neo-wicca debate, not only does it support ignorance and disrespect towards Wicca it is something that prevents real knowledge and open discussion about either Wicca or Neo-wicca – for example if I go into a Pagan community and ask 'What do Wicca think about …..?' I will get a plethora of answers, very few if any from people who are actually Wicca or people who know about what Wicca believe.

We are also seeing serious prejudice towards both religions – Neo-wicca are constantly referred to as fluffy bunnies and Wicca are constantly referred to as elitist, or at least it is implied – and those who try to educate others are always attacked with claims that we are trying to bash people's beliefs as those who are under the impression that anything you like can be called Wicca are in such a place where they cannot accept that they may be wrong or simply look at books, web sites or talk to those who are Wicca to find out what Wicca is. There is a lot of anti-Wicca attitude out there and whenever a new Neo-wicca or Seeker comes along it is also then assumed they follow the 'make-it-up-as-you-go-along' mentality that is frowned upon.

It would be nice to see mainstream media, more books and so on actually discuss what Wicca is, rather than back up the ignorance, misinformation and make-believe that sadly surrounds Wicca. I've always been of the mind that the integrity of Wicca is something to be cherished, hidden knowledge, knowledge that could be so easily lost when so many people are unwilling to nurture that knowledge.

We can easily say Pagans don't worship Satan [some of us are however Satanists – I detest that Pagans try to counteract the bad press/ignorance by putting down other religions like Satanism and totally overlooking some Pagan paths], we don't sacrifice children or animals, we are not all Goths [not that there is anything wrong with those who are], and so on – these are not so much myths as things only believed by fools, if they believe that then no matter what we say we are not going to change their minds.

Answer 3

Actually, I don't know if you have access to it or not, but you could go to the source. The Malleus Maleficarum, or in English, Hammer of Witchcraft. This was the book the Inquisitiion used to hunt down and persecute "Witches". Alot of the common misconceptions about Pagans and Wiccans stem from there. Beyond that, reading it will keep you up nights.
Add In: Since everyone is focused on Devil worship...
Witches float, Witches have birthmarks that when stabbed don't bleed, Black Mass, the traditional role of a Mid-wife, the Pagan roots of "Christian" celebrations, the idea of Magick as a prayer focus and the proper usage of a wand, I could go on for hours, and I'm not even a Pagan.

Answer 4

I would like to see a show that shows where most of the bad information about us comes from. I already know where most of it comes from, propaganda from the Catholic Church during that time... but most people of other religions do not realize this and continue to spread the information. "Witches" didn't dance naked around a bonfire and have huge orgies. These types of things are what the Church officials produced while they were trying to capture "heretics" (namely Witches/Pagans).

I would also like to see genuine information on the Inquisition so many Pagans call the Burning Times. Some claim that over 9 million women were killed during that, but don't realize that information has been debunked several times over by historians and scholars of the Inquisition. The number actually ranges from 20,000 - 100,000 and they believe the 100,000 is stretching it somewhat.

Answer 5

The myth about Wicca and other pagan faiths that I would like to see disproved the most are the ones concerning the worship of the Christian/Jewish/Islamic "Satan" or devil. I am not a expert on many pagan faiths, but what I do understand is that many of them simply don't feel there is one "God" or "Satan", so why would someone worship something they do not even think is real? While there are some pagan faiths that do have figures like "God" and "Satan" not all of them do, so this blanket that has fallen over many of these lesser known pagan faiths, that every pagan is a Satan worshiper, needs to be lifted.

Answer 6

I would like to see a segment that shows just how much the Pagan community gives back to society. I have heard many rumors that Pagans do nothing to help our society, when in fact we hold food and blood donor drives, etc.

I would also like the show to do a segment on Pagans in Uniform. There are many Pagans in the service of the military, firefighters, police, doctors, etc.

Answer 7

Wow, what a thought! Let me think, the obvious (and well commented on I see) dispelling that all of us are Satanists. Perhaps an explanation on just how old our religion is. How it was to be before anything else. How natural it is (natural as in the work with herbs etc). How there is nothing to be afraid of.

I wish your show was national, it would be so awesome to see!

Answer 8

Highlights on our honor of nature
How many Pagans are perfectly "normal" people such as dentists living in the suburbs
That theer are many Pagans who are in the military of thier country and some have died for thier country
That not all Pagans are teenaged feminist girls in black dresses
That we do not htink we are the One True Faith and are peacful towards other religions

Answer 9

I guess its definition of the divine would be nice. I mean it gets kind of annoying when people tell that you worship a being that you personally do not believe has ever existed in the first place.

Blessed Be to all.

24 y.o. Pagan College Student

Answer 10

I would hope that they would finally get rid of the myth that Pagans are Satanists. That's just ridiculous.