Is there something wrong with being Wiccan?

Question

Last night I responded to a question about going to church. I said that I didn't go to church because I'm Wiccan, and there's not that many Wiccan churches. But I also said that I might be joining a Wiccan church here soon when I move.

I received two thumbs down for this answer.

What I want to know is why?

Not everyone is Christian. Why can't people just accept that? Instead you have to give me thumbs down just because I admitted to being Wiccan.

Can someone explain this to me?

Wiccans are not satanists! Why is this so difficult to understand? We do not believe in a satan, so how can we worship one? As for worshipping grass, that's more of a Druid thing. And we can have a church because it's our right to have a place to gather and worship. I put this in Parenting, not Pregnancy. And I did this because I am refering to a question that was posted in here last night. I'm truly sorry that most of you are completely ignorant about Wicca. That just means you'll never understand why we believe something different. I myself have done plenty of studying in other religions. I believe this is necessary when decided whgich religion you wish to be. I grew up in a Christian home. I am so tired of people thinking I'm evil. If you think we worship the devil you need to do some research! And don't give me thumbs down just for stating that my religion is different from yours.

Answer 1

I'm a hedge witch and don't practice Wicca however I follow many of the wiccan ways....rede, esbats and sabbats etc.
You openly show yourself as being Wiccan so be prepared to be attacked. It's obvious that you are comfortable being who you are and have no trouble stating it. Paganism of any form is making it's way into the mainstream as more people are looking for alternatives. But, there is still so much bad connotations put with these beliefs. Just try to be patient with out attack even to those who attack you and realize that these people have a lack of understanding on the issues and have grown up with fears of anything out of the norm .....or the out of the "box" so to speak.

Answer 2

This belongs in Religion & Spirituality, not Parenting but of course there's nothing wrong with being Wiccan. As a pagan you should know the narrow minded people out there aren't going to accept anyone different than they, and many won't bother to do any research on paganism of any sort, but prefer to accept the common fallacy that pagans honor or worship a xian diety (Satan).

If someone crosses your path with misinformation about your religion, it's okay to correct them...but realize many won't listen because they are happier thinking you are evil and misled than acknowledging that not only is it okay for you to believe as you will, but you may also be right!

Feel sorry for the close minded people who know nothing about your beliefs and would rather see you as someone wicked. You know better and that's what matters. Follow your path and your beliefs to the best of your ability. And in your hopes/wishes/prayers for humankind, include open-mindedness and acceptance from all (toward those who mean no harm).

May your path in '07 bring you much happiness.

Answer 3

I wish I could explain it. But I'm guessing that if the thumbs down were listed together with their profiles, people would be apt to do it less or at least give it a good think first. Anonymity is sometimes just an excuse. On the other hand, I have seen some really awful answers that deserved many thumbs down. I wish those answerers would get a clue.

Answer 4

The "religion" area of Yahoo!Answers has some awareness of Wicca & other types of paganism (even though it does get regular questions about "just what do pagans believe?"); the other areas have almost no concept of non-monotheistic religions.

A while back, I asked a question about pagan homeschooling resources. A couple of the answers surprised me--I forget, sometimes, how acceptable religious ignorance and bigotry are, in some places.

Expect "thumbs down" votes any time you say something other people might not agree with. There are people who spend their whole time on Y!A just giving TDs to answers they don't like. It doesn't mean anything; you don't lose points for it and they don't gain points for it.

Answer 5

I think your two thumbs down comes from a place of fear and long standing religious bias.
I can tell you from my own personal experience with fundamental Christianity that Wicca means witches, witches mean evil; evil spell casting, evil intentions, and a loyal following of demons and Satan.
The bible has many examples of the demonic and teaches those who read it to be aware of and fearful of anything having to do with the “dark side” least it overtake you and govern your life.
If eternity is about paradise or torment it really isn’t hard to understand why there is a negative reaction to anything that has a supposed association with the “leader” of this place they call Hell.
Christianity in and of it’s self is exclusive; meaning there is a mentality of “my way or the highway”… to hell of course, and it began in the beginning when the church was starting out. Christianity came up against what is sometimes referred to as the Old Religion (modern day Wicca). This is when Christianity began adopting Pagan holidays, renaming them and attaching those holidays to the Christian doctrine. Christian holidays were layered on older Pagan festivals. The central reason is that as Christianity was struggling for acceptance in Europe, the country-folk would not give up their age-old traditions. By blending the old with the new, it was easier for the Church to convert the locals. Hence we have Christmas which was the celebration of the Winter Solstice, Easter which was the Pagan holiday in celebration of the Spring Equinox and of course there are others. In order for the church to grow they had to connect evil to the Old Religion ways. It is evident that still today these newer Christian beliefs about Wicca are alive and well.

Answer 6

There is nothing wrong with it. Alot of people dont understand the religion and think it has to do with the devil. Also alot of people think that the only right religion is their own. What people don't realize is that NONE of them know what religion is right, they simply THINK their religion is right, but yet everyone is only following a story that is passed down through time, NO ONE has seen the real pages of the Bible in real life, NO ONE has seen God in real life, for all anyone knows, God could have been made up just to keep the world in line, to put fear into the bodies of humans that if they don't behave, they will go to a fiery depth and burn for eternity. Who are they to tell you that you are wrong? They are simply human just like you, they have no further knowledge than you do, and technically you could be just as right as they think they are. Believe in what you want, you have the right to do that, but never force your beliefs down on someone else, they have just as much of a right to believe in something else, unfortunately though, the Jesus freaks seem to be the ones who judge more people than anyone else, and the funny thing is, thier God tells them not to judge or they will be judged themselves, but for them being all up his butt on everything, following every rule he lays down upon them, they still seem to have no problem breaking that golden rule! Wiccan is a good religion and I have never seen more love and care come out of it in any other religion, not only does it teach you to love one another, but it teaches you to love and respect ALL forms of life, including nature, air, water and Earth, if anything, I believe the world would be a lot more loving and caring of a place if everyone was to cherish as much stuff as the Wiccans do! Don't let anyone bring you down, they are simple minded, and for some reason they think they have a higher authority than you because they simply read a story and are convinced it's true, though they have just as much proof as the people who believe that Harry Potter really exists!!!

Answer 7

hi
i'll get thumbs down for my answer here, but i'll stand beside you as a human being on his own personal journey.
We are all welcome to our own beliefs. You, me, everyone else.
(uh-oh,blasphemy)
now, i would say that if people can't handle things that are different than them, that's their problem, whether it's someone that you meet in person, or someone here on answers. the thing is that they are missing out on getting to know someone who can bring a different perspective, perhaps a larger perspective.
also these old beleife systems seem to teach people not to accept things or people that differ from what they are used to.
i thought we came here to grow, learn, evolve, etc. it's a bit hard to grow and move forward if everything is always the same.
no offense to anyone but most religions were created during a much more primitve time in history. for thousands of years, we've been doing this here, and we're not doing too great. anyway i have beliefs that are a bit different as well. i'm not very familiar with wicca but if you believe in things like Love,Unity,Equality,Peace,
Tolerance,and Compassion, then have faith in that.
and please lets all pray for our world, and each other, because we are all here Together. it's time for the blame to stop.
or do certain people hate themselves so much that they want this
to be the end of the world?
but then again it's only earth, there is much more than this.

Answer 8

If you are serious, I see no reason for the thumbs down. You people worship nature, and that makes a lot of sense. So many Christians want everyone to follow the bible as they pretend to do. They still think of Wiccan as evil, as they did witches were burned.

Answer 9

Because Western religion, meaning Christianity and Islam, teach that theirs' are the only "true" religion and the only "true" god. In the case of Christianity they are also told it is their duty as a Christian, to "save" all the heathens (non-Christians), hence the proselytize and send out missionaries door-to-door, or in many cases make life just really hard for those that are not Christian in the hope that eventually they'll break and convert just so the pressure is off them. It's like torturing to get a confession out of someone even if it isn't the truth. They just want the torture to end, so they say whatever their captors ask of them.

So it's not their fault. Those that give you a thumbs-down are the ones that would rather die than think for themselves and thus are brainwashed, because, well... it's just easier than thinking for yourself. It's easier to be told your opinion than develop your own through research of the subject.

Maintain your path. Stay true to yourself. And, don't let the bastards get you down.

Answer 10

Most people fear what they don't understand. Its nothing personal people are just narrowminded. Question dont wiccans worship nature? Sorry im not exactly sure what a wiccan is so my mistake if you take offence for me taking a guess.