the god and goddess? the goddess being mother earth maybe? i understand that this religion is about worship and loving the earth and surroundings, but does it also belive in Jesus Christ and the story of the Bible? to me this is a very interesting religion and i would love to learn more about it.
2007-09-16 15:11:56 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The Goddess is the Divine embodiment of the female principle, and the God is the Divine embodiment of the male principle. The Goddess is generally associated with the Earth, while the God is associated with the animals and plants that the Earth sustains. But you must understand that we do not worship the Earth: to many Wiccans the universe is the living body of the God and the Goddess, and we honor the Divine presence as manifest in the world around us (not rocks and trees as such).
We do not worship Jesus as the Savior of the human race; we do not believe that the human race ever "fell", so there is nothing to be "saved" from. Some Wiccans might believe that Jesus was a wise man and a teacher, but the worship of Jesus is simply not part of our religion.
A relatively objective (non-Wiccan) set of articles on what Wiccans do and believe:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/witchcra.htm
Another useful article:
http://www.religionfacts.com/neopaganism/paths/wicca.htm
A good site by Wiccans:
http://wicca.timerift.net
If you're looking to do some reading, I'd recommend "Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner" by Scott Cunningham, and "The Triumph of the Moon" by Ronald Hutton. I advise you to stay away from anything by Silver Ravenwolf, for reasons outlined in the following essay:
http://wicca.timerift.net/ravenwolf.shtml
If you have any further questions, please feel free to email me.
2007-09-16 15:16:29 · answer #1 · answered by prairiecrow 7 · 6⤊ 1⤋
In Gardnerian Wicca the god and goddess appear to be a goddess associated with agriculture and the moon, and the god is a horned figure associated with hunting, the sun, and the underworld. Their names are secret, available only to those who are initiated into a Gardnerian coven.
Other Wiccan groups therefore follow different gods. For solitary eclectics, they often feel a distinct call from a god and goddess who become their patrons. Therefore, my patrons are different from the patrons of other Wiccans. We are polytheists, so while I only deal with two deities, I accept the possibility that other deities exist.
Wiccans do not believe in the Bible. In fact, the only people who believe in the Bible are Christians. Many Wiccans believe Jesus was a real person, and many respect his teachings on charity and goodwill, but they do not view him as divine, nor do they see him as Savior, since Wicca does not hold that we are born spiritually tainted and, thus, in need of saving.
2007-09-16 15:21:24 · answer #2 · answered by Nightwind 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
For a lot of information on various Wiccan beliefs I would recommend going to http://www.witchvox.com. The God and Goddess of the Wiccans represent the Male and Female Divine Principles and can be represented by ANY male/female deity pair the Wiccan feels drawn to.
In a lot of cases, Wiccans identify the Goddess as Mother Earth, but that is by no means universal.
And yes, a "Christian Witch" is NOT an oxymoron in the beliefs of many Wiccans....
2007-09-16 15:20:23 · answer #3 · answered by Anne Hatzakis 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
The God and Goddess are two polarities of "The All". Polarity is not the same thing as duality, and this is a concept that you will have to research on your own to come to a personal understanding of it if you really want to learn about it. The Goddess *can* be "mother earth", or she can be the moon. Or she can be both. There are as many perceptions of the Goddess as there are Pagans. Wiccans are not the only Pagans btw. I am myself Pagan, but not Wiccan.
In general, Paganism itself does not ascribe to belief in Jesus or the Bible. However, this is going to get complicated... Wicca is a religion, where Paganism is not (just like Catholicism is a religion but Christianity is not). Witchcraft is not synonymous with Wicca, and there are many who practice witchcraft but are not Wiccan. Witchcraft is not a religion... recall I just said Wicca is. This is where it can get rather confusing and controversial for some... there *are* those who practice witchcraft and Christianity... because witchcraft is *not* a religion, it does not interfere with the religious precepts Christianity adheres to. However, trying to practice Wicca and Catholicism for example will be difficult to do, as both are religions and will clash and conflict. However, again, there are some I've encountered who do call themselves Christian Wiccans, or Wiccan Christians, etc. If it works for them, then so be it, but I still have trouble seeing how that can work myself, lol.
Ok... again, Wicca is a religion, but it is not about worship. It is about respecting powers and energies. These powers/energies are not placed "above" or "beyond" the practitioner. These energies are intimately interacted with at a personal level, not placed up on a pedestal. That is, Wicca, like all Pagan belief systems, allows spirituality (personal experience and understanding) to control how the religion (group agreement to third-party understanding) is practiced.
This is far from a general overview, just answering the questions you addressed thus far. To learn more, one good website to surf is:
http://www.witchvox.com/
2007-09-16 15:30:14 · answer #4 · answered by 'llysa 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
As far as who is the God and Goddess, would depend on whether you ask initiated Wiccans or non-initiated, Neowiccans.
Initiated Wiccans will not tell you, as those names are given only to those who become initiates. As far as Neowiccans, they will pick and choose what ever God and Goddess they wish, thus are free to answer as they wish.
Does Wicca believe in Jesus the Christ? You mean as the "only begotten son of "God"" and such? No, we do not. As I was taught, there is a bit of the Divine spark in all things, thus we are all the "Children of God".
As far as the story of the Bible being all true ........................... That would be a no. The Bible is full of allegories and parables that teach about right and wrong as defined by Yahweh, desert survival, the perceived roles of men women and children and such, but do we believe that every word in the bible is "true", that would be a no.
We are not bound to the rules that were set for a religion we do not practice.
2007-09-16 16:07:26 · answer #5 · answered by Black Dragon 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The Goddess in Wiccan religion is the Earth, yes, as well as the moon, and well, She is basically everything. The God is the lord of fertility, of the woods, of the underworld, and the hunt. http://wicca.timerift.net has some more information on them.
Most Wiccans do not believe in Christ or the Bible. There are a small number of people who erroneously refer to themselves as "Christian Wiccans" or Christian Pagans, but I personally can't see how they make it work since to me the two religions are kind of incompatible.
2007-09-16 15:20:52 · answer #6 · answered by Abriel 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Okay. So.
Wiccans don't worship the Earth and Nature. They Honor it.
You sound like you're looking for a Christo-Wicca.
Christo-Wicca makes the Lord the Christian God, and the Lady the Virgin Mary. In Wiccan beliefs, the God dies and is reborn in another form, so, you can just place that as Jesus. Which case you're free to follow the Bible as you want.
Wiccans usually believe in reincarnation, though. They don't believe in Heaven and Hell, though, I don't know too much about Christo-Wiccans.
Wikipedia will have something for you, I'm sure.
- 17 yo Pagan
2007-09-16 15:19:22 · answer #7 · answered by Lady Myrkr 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
the God and Goddess are generic terms for male and female devine. it is often simpler to say God and Goddess then try to explane Luna, Heastia, Freaha, or Lugh, Calagh, or Zues, or any of the other God and Goddess.
2007-09-16 15:20:31 · answer #8 · answered by slo18 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
The God and the Goddess, yes.
Jesus and the Bible no. They are pantheistic/polytheist. Chech out witchvox.com to read up on it.
2007-09-16 15:16:30 · answer #9 · answered by ~Heathen Princess~ 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Wicca is not a religion, anymore than Christianity is a religion. Wicca is a group of religions, some of which do not even believe in a god.
Some Wiccans belive in Jesus, most do not. Personally, I have difficulty reconciling Wicca and Jesus.
Wicca generally is polytheistic, believing in gods and goddesses. Some take these as real beings, some as archetypes, and some as personifications of energies.
If you would like to understand at least a bit of Wicca, check out http://www.magickaschool.com, where there is a free course that you can go through.
2007-09-16 15:21:41 · answer #10 · answered by Deirdre H 7 · 2⤊ 6⤋