True Wiccans?

Question

Does any other wiccans out there find it offensive in the R&S section? I mean first we have to deal with christians saying the wicca is the work of the devil and so on. now we have to deal with people pretending to be wicca because its "whats popular" or because they want to conjure a demon or some other hollywood thing? am I the only one that feels it is an insult to the RELIGION of Wicca?

I just wanted to add in that I apologize if it sounded like I was saying I was more wiccan than anyone else that was not what I was getting at.
I am a solitary Wiccan myself so do not follow the Gardnerian veiw.

robin_ofthe_woods I would agree that pagans of all sorts have to deal with this. and yes I would also agree that because Wicca seems to be the forfront of the pagan religion at the moment everyone seems to talk about the "trendy" things and know really nothing about the religion.

WOW i have really gotten some great comments on this in just the few moments that it has been posted. I kinda typed this out of annoyance as I was reading some questions and answers regarding it so I apologize for the slight hostility in it. I have definately calmed down since posting and really appreciate all your answers. Im going to leave it open for another day or so just to see what other answers I get and then I have no clue how im going to choose a best because there are so many good ones on here. =) thank you very much to all you whether Wicca or Pagan I appreciate it.
Blessed Be

Again all these answers were great. I had to choose one so I did. but I appreciate all answers =) thank you all

Answer 1

I would not use the phrase True Wiccan, but I've been blocked by a bunny for pointing out he was wrong, just dead, dead, dead wrong....got a nasty email, too. Yeah, whatever.

For those of us with 5,10,20, 30 years invested in Wicca it's [sarcasm]just great[/sarcasm] when a 13 year old tells us what our religion is REALLY about....because, you know, we grown ups don't know.

It wouldn't be so bad if the bunnies all grew up to be Wiccans. Unfortunately, some of them grow up to be fundamentalist Christians who parade their "ex-Wiccan" status around proudly, even though they were the least of Wiccans to begin with.

If no one ever objects to their goofball version of Wicca when they call themselves that, they, quite correctly, counter all discussions about their past with "I met plenty of Pagans and they all agreed with me."

Wicca does not mean Gardnerian, but there are limits to what Wicca is.

Answer 2

Once upon a time, I was once very concerned with Wicca. One factor is specific, you do not NEED to be facet of a coven to be a Wiccan. There is a as a substitute recognized booklet available in the market known as "Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner" (see hyperlink under). Of direction, over the years I grew to be critically upset with neo-paganism by and large on account that the entire neo-pagans I met desired to show intercourse into a faith, and permit's now not omit their overly-common use of medications. You'd believe I'd discover a few exceptions, however no. I'm speakme dozens of folks, I'm now not kidding. Also, I might in no way receive magick as truly. Another traumatic factor was once the tendancy to bear in mind NEO-paganism faith(s) as "historical" although virtually all versions had been only some a long time historic. Last, however now not least was once the raving self-righteousness that permeated each degree in their idea methods, attitudes that I as soon as anticipated to discover simplest in fundamentalist monotheistic religions. So briefly, there was once no success in it for me in any respect.

Answer 3

Ah, it depends on the day, and my mood, and how many idiotic emails I've gotten from kids who say proudly that at the age of 17 they have been "Wiccan" for ten years, and that I am just a "mean" person who's power hungry and bitter.

*chuckle*

Whatever.

First, I'm not Wiccan, though I'm married to one, and I *am* a Witch and have been so for over 25 years. (And, BTW, that "true Wiccan" thing made me shudder - let's PLEASE not start that crap. You either are Wiccan or you're not. You may be a neo-wiccan, or a Witch, or a non-differentiated Pagan...or, dare I say it, a dilettante fluffy bunny)


Yeah, there ARE times when I'd like to go back into time and give Scott C. a HUGE smack on the head. And buy out Llewellyn Publishing at it's start to prevent the publication of some pretty idiotic books.


I do my best to not let the intolerant fundies get to me, and to also not lump ALL Christians into the same category. I've had varying levels of success in doing that.

Answer 4

I really dislike the "More Wiccan Than Thou" attitude that some folks seem to have. "If it ain't Gardner, it ain't Wicca" sort of thing.

I also dislike those who think that Wicca is all about "magic and spells and zapping demons and making roses float and changing the color of your hair or eyes with a magic spell because it's all about doing magic".

I think if people did a little more learning before they labeled themselves as "Wiccan" it would solve both of these issues. I can understand the BTWs getting upset with the number of Fluffies who are the "all sweetness and light and shiny fairy" type calling themselves Wiccan, because they think that Buffy or Charmed or The Craft actually gave a realistic representation of what Wicca is.

But on the other hand, I think the word "Wicca" has moved beyond "Initiatory religion that traces its lineage back to Gardner" and into a broader term that covers many Traditions - including Solitary. I think the word "Wicca" nowadays is more akin to the word "Christianity". It gives a broad overview of the beliefs and the way of looking at the world, but does not give the specific details like "Gardnerian Wicca" or "Dianic Wicca" or "Lutheran" or "Southern Baptist" do.

And then there are of course the Harry Potterites who want to go to Hogwarts and want to be Wiccan because of that, even though the magic in HP has absolutely nothing to do with the religion that is Wicca...

Sorry, soapboxing now. I'll stop.

Answer 5

I tend to get annoyed with those who join it just because it sounds "cool", buy up a bunch of jewelry/crystals (so much that if they were to fall in the river, they would drown) and talk about all the trendy stuff without really studying it. It is insulting, but it seems to me that, as far as the trendy thing goes, that is finally fading out because people are being called to answer for what they say. (Finally)...

I'm not Wiccan, I'm just a "dirty" Pagan, but as Wicca is the main, modern face of Paganism, it affects many of us on different levels.

Answer 6

I have found that it is not all Christians that we have problems with, the ones who have read the teachings of Jesus and try to live by them are quite decent and loving people.

When it comes to BTW/traditional Wicca, would that the young self proclaimed Wiccans would stop acting like children at the dinner table who grumble about something they say they don't like when it hasn't even been put on the table yet and they have not tasted it.

There is a reason that initiates in BTW are 18 and older, it has to do with maturity and accountablity, neither of which is needed for something you make up on your own.

Answer 7

Here in R&S I find very little to actually be offended about. I have far bigger issues in the real world.

Yes the Christians and fluffy bunnies who can't (or don't want to) see out of their narrow little box can be annoying. I've given up on the fundies--they will not learn, so I can't teach them.

The fluffies are a bit of a different story. In a way, it's obscurely flattering. ("Look Ma--they wanna be like me!") And a lot of them grow out of it--usually when they try something that they just KNOW should work because they've watched too much BtVS and it doesn't--or it backfires. Either way, they look silly, they feel embarrassed, and they either give it up or they start actually trying to figure out where they went wrong. Which leads to thinking. Which, ultimately, leads to learning.

Answer 8

Wicca is only a sixty year old religion. You can't expect a lot of people to know what it is all about, or not be influenced by Hollywood.

My suggestion? Just ignore it, and focus on your faith.

Answer 9

When you've been in the game as long as I have (fourteen years and counting), you learn to shrug it off. I try to deal civilly with the Christians, and to educate the fluffies, but if they don't want to listen to me it's really no skin off my nose.

There will always be ignorance out there. I try to look at it as a challenge and an opportunity rather than as an annoyance.

Answer 10

I do find it immensely irritating.
It is a definite insult to Wicca.
If people come across one wiccan who say they worship Satan or whatever then they think all Wiccans are like that.

Wiccan's don't even believe in Satan so how can we worship him/her?

It's ridiculous.
Fake Wiccans give us true Wiccans a bad name :(