What are your views on Paganism/Wicca?

Question

I'm talking about neo-Paganism. Wicca, Witchcraft, etc. Do you think it is a religion or a cult? Do you practice this religion? (I only say religion there because I believe it IS a religion and not a cult.) Do you at least appreciate the beliefs of those who belong to this faith, or do you consider it bogus. (For the record, I am Pagan/Wiccan.) PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't be rude with your answers. If you would like too quote the Bible, Torah, Qoran, or Book of Rigatoni, go right ahead...just use it to explain YOUR PERSONAL BELIEFS...not why I'm going to go to Hell. I really don't want to hear it, and that's not what this question is about.

I will be adding comments to this, asking about other aspects of this topic. If you would like, please come back and edit your posts to answer those parts, too.

If you are Pagan/Wiccan, I would love to get an email from you!

If you'd like, could you also include you response to this:
- In the bible, it says: "Thou shall not suffer a Witch to live." When being translated from the original text, the word was changed from "poisoner" to "Witch", because both the words and the people could be similar. (Witches were the rural healers, who had knowledge of herbs, as a poisoner could.)
- How did Pagans get such a bad press? My answer is this: when the Catholic Church was trying to gain power (this was entirely political, it just had a religious "front"), they tried to convert the Pagans, also known as heathens, meaning "country-dweller". When that failed, they gave the pagans a bad press, trying to turn others against them. After all, if people have a common enemy, they will, of course, be one group. Then came the Inquisition, followed bay centuries of scary fairy tales and more bad press.

toosense - First, I think you need to learn to expand your mind. It seems to me that you are ignorant (not stupid, but ignorant means uninformed) on the subject of religion.
what I think you don't understand is that most Wiccans DO believe in God - just not as you do. Many of us believe that there is just one God, with many different facets (like a diamond). in this magnificent, beautiful diamond, there is Jesus, Mars, Venus, Freya, Allah, and countless others. Each god (or goddess) is merely one facet of this extraordinary diamond.
I'm not saying that I believe in God as a diamond, but I'm using an analogy.

Answer 1

To answer part of your question, the Bible was not mistranslated , but infact the word in Hebrew was kashawf meaning literally a person who whispers a spell. This however is not aimed at Wiccans since their religion didn't exist until the 1950's.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AhU3APMDMy3JSWiLuyb6vR_sy6IX?qid=20060915145049AAkDSCG

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http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AsJPtqbU7SQfe63s8aZ1kmfsy6IX?qid=20060918191343AA1dAL3

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AiPNdQz1cyOLeB7iTkvU9R7sy6IX?qid=20060920141547AA0e3fT&show=7#profile-info-79401d523b04ee9784e7438998679c4daa

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AtY0mxKoZHtpI56Zxm67CtHsy6IX?qid=20060922162423AAcU9lu

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AjJ7TpnKS_XXcZfDiK0CpNTsy6IX?qid=20060904163917AAcBiEQ&show=7#profile-info-AA11725587

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AgXeuUT6PMwvqlnBRPezIfvsy6IX?qid=20060915145049AAkDSCG&show=7#profile-info-AA10929287

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http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=An.v6DF_RGP.oG2FNsRshDzsy6IX?qid=20060924212214AA8bflE&show=7#profile-info-8c76be37c6da788dc5d6e0fe923aaef1aa

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AgXeuUT6PMwvqlnBRPezIfvsy6IX?qid=20060918191343AA1dAL3&show=7#profile-info-f49ad034abd28a4bd6e30b7088b096a3aa

Answer 2

I am a Wiccan. It is a good religion cause it is very nature based.

And that is what we need today. We need more help to save nature and natural species than we have ever needed before.

Also, the belief in The God and Goddess is very good. There is still One over all. Which many people don't know or understand.

Making it a religion that does believe in One diety. Just also, that this one is in everything. And that is represented by gods, goddesses, spirits, and elementals.

All together we are never without somebody, when you add all of the above together.

Which can give you're life a great sense of mystery, magick, and wonder. And that it's good to never lose.

I think a good goal can also be to rise above the need for any religion at all, and just be a spiritual person, too.

But it is still a Kool thing to be a part of Wicca. I would recommend visiting www.witchvox.com Very good site for networking, too.

Of course, if you use common sense, they should be able to help you keep you're real email safe.

I like to be solitary, I would be very careful of almost any group. As there are many people who just want the name, and they are into a whole different game!

Drugs, etc., or they are ignorant and think it is satanism, which it is not. And ya don't need that. Even from the ones that look safe, etc., still be careful, k? Blessed Be!

Answer 3

I am a very eclectic pagan so no I have no problem with Wicca, Witchcraft or Paganism. I do know they all are religions, not cults. There's a lot of admirable things about each on of them. My personal belief is that there is no one religion out there that fits every single person in the world, everyone must choose their own path in life and what is right for them. I really do appreciate the beliefs of some people that belong to this faith because some people are true to their religion and to their deity(ies). Everyone can find their own way to deity. ^_^ Blessed Be! )O(

Answer 4

I am a Witch with Wiccan 'leanings' as I call it, and I have never felt so settled in myself as I do now. I was Wiccan when I first started, but have now become more eclectic.

I love the idea of the Gods and Goddess being facets of the diamond, as I recently penned a blog on how I saw the God as one particular form, whereas others see him as other forms. To me, I think we simply feel more connected to certain facets and so it works well for us. I also had a brief idea that it may be the Gods choosing us rather than the other way round, as I had researched many Horned Gods, such as Herne, Cernunnos and many other Celtic and British Gods, but the God that I finally felt comfortable with was one I hadn't even considered.

Ok, that was a bit of a tangent, but it's just how I see it!

BB
)O(

Answer 5

I attended Catholic school and spent 20 years as a strict Protestant, and then slowly converted to Wicca for the next 10. People can disagree or thumb-down as they please, but IMO the church did some serious brain washing damage to our family.

The Wiccan religion has many great core concepts, such as respect for the environment and harming none. I do mostly ceremonial magic and am not at all interested at being initiated into a Wiccan tradition. But it's still nice to follow the Wiccan ways as a solitary and just live your life peacefully!

Answer 6

That's a lot of questions.
I see Wicca as a religion, Witchcraft as a practice which may or may not include religious beliefs, and neo-paganism as an umbrella term that covers a relatively modern revival of religious practices from pre-Christian cultures.

I grew up with neo-pagan beliefs/practices and have never followed a mainstream religion. I'm knowledgeable about Wicca but I've never practiced the religion. I appreciate and respect the beliefs of those who follow any faith regardless of whether or not I agree with it.

I can't answer your question concerning the bible because I've had no reason to read it. I've also never read the Qur'an or the Vedas.

I agree with your assessment of the reasons why pagans have received bad press, but I feel there are probably other reasons as well. People tend to fear what they don't know or understand. A thousand years ago if a person was in the country and encountered an unfamiliar pagan rite, they may have been afraid simply because it was unfamiliar to them. Even today we tend to fear the unknown. Also, in our modern world, there are enough people who wrongly portray pagan religions. Some do it for shock value or to rebel, others do it out of ignorance of the religion they claim to practice. Some unethical people set up websites and/or publish books to cash in on the "latest fad", not bothering to do any research into what (mis)information they are spreading. How can we expect those outside of our religion to take us seriously when many of us don't take our own religion seriously enough to learn about our religion and our deities in depth? Yes, those outside of neo-pagan religions have given us bad press but there are also those who claim to be neo-pagans who will do the same.

Answer 7

First of all your analogy of the diamond is BRILLIANT (LOL). Much like what I have been saying for years "God (or supreme being(s) is like the top of a mountain, there are many paths to get there) and none is 100% right or wrong. I am Pect-Wita (aka Hedge Witch, a solitary, not Wiccan). I suppose it would be legally classified as a religion, but for me it is more like a lifestyle. Definitely not a cult, since the definition of a cult is a group of people blindly following one leader (sounds like Christianity to me). It is something I live 24/7, for over 40 years now. So you can imagine that most of what I do is quite subconscious.
BTW you can actually go to Hell if you like, it is a town in Wisconsin (I think, might be Minnesota). And it actually froze over last year! Paradise & Utopia are in Texas (and they are freezing over right now)!! LOL I couldn't help it. The Goddess has seen fit to give me a warped sense of humor.
I have friends in every religion I can think of, even one Hindu, and we all get along fine. They understand what & why I believe as I do. I have also lost so called "friends" because I refused to convert to Christanity. There loss not mine.
It would do those who love to criticize & admonish Pagans, Wiccans, Witches etc well to do a little research other than just accept what their Holy books or what their particular Cult leader tells them. But I honestly don't think those people know how to actually think for themselves.
BB
)O(

Answer 8

Actually, it isn't poisoner in the original Hebrew: http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a=usxx&c=words&id=2601

Otherwise, while not Wiccan, I'm Pagan, and don't really have an issue with it. The only thing that bugs me is when folks make wildly inaccurate claims (such as the ancient Celts practiced Wicca, etc.)

Answer 9

IT IS NEITHER. its an ancient way of life that has evolved through the ages. a way of life that we all should take on as it is the most peacefull and most loving i have encountered.
i now teach wicca via email and since i became a pagan 8 years ago i have been a better person in almost every aspect.

understtand that we are not devil worshipers but are earth worshipers and tree lovers. we treasure nature above all things and most of us protect it in any way we possibly can, including protest.

so you make your mind up what you believe it to be, but i personaly know it is an ancient and wonderful way of life.

below are my two web sites that you can visit for more information

blessed be
magenta

Answer 10

Q: Are Witchcraft or Wicca cults?
A: A cult by definition is a group of people who blindly follow one leader. As Witches, Wiccans and pagans tend to be free-thinkers, there is no one person that we consider to be THE leader. Thus we cannot be called a cult.

So no, I don't consider it a Cult, it's my religion, too.

Answer 11

I'm an Ásatrúar (Norse Pagan.) :-) So obviously, I have no problem with Wicca or any other of the Pagan religions. (And yes, I do think they all are legitimate religions, not cults. ) There's a lot of admirable things about each on of them. I've always liked the Wiccan rede about harming none. My person belief is that there is no one religion out there that fits everyone, everyone must choose their own path in life.