Wiccans? What's it like? Lives?

Question

Kay well I'm a Buddhist in my own right and some call me an athiest but that's tehri opinion not mine. Recently I've decided to try the Wiccan religion/sphilosphy/lifestyle whatvr u want 2 call it. I would like to know about their values, beliefs, practices and philosophies if anyone has any info on it. I would also like to know where to find books and people that are also Wiccans. I'm soon going to be living in the Seattle area so anywhere around their would be good. I would also like to know how Wiccan people live their lives and why Christians think they're apparently "evil"?

If you are someone totally negative on the Wiccan religion DO NOT ANSWER because I didn't ask for your opinion on the religion I asked for information on the religion. So if you are a bible worshipping hypocrite and just want to be all powerful then seriously get a life. You are alloud to ahve your opinions and religions just as I am allowed to have mine.

Answer 1

The following is somewhat long, but I think it will answer most of your questions.

Wicca is a very complex faith which embraces widely varying practices and many different Traditions. The following, however, is what I consider to be "the basics".

Wicca is about 60 years old, with roots in Masonic practices, ceremonial magic, and the Romantic era's ideas of classical religions. Its founder was a British civil servant named Gerald Gardner.

http://www.geraldgardner.com/essays.php

It is in many ways a postmodern faith, embracing religious relativism, and one that resonates powerfully for increasing numbers of people.

The central tenet of the Wiccan religion is the Wiccan Rede: "If you harm none, do what you will." This is a deceptively simple "commandment" which can take a lifetime to contemplate and to master. Many Wiccans also believe in the Law of Threefold Return, sometimes called the Rule of Three: “Whatever you do, for good or ill, will come back upon you three times over.”

Wiccans honor Deity as both male and female, God and Goddess -- or at the very least as Goddess. Many Wiccans believe that the universe is the body of God/dess, and therefore that all things contain Divine energy and that the world itself is sacred. Some Wiccans are polytheists (many God/desses); others are duotheists (God and Goddess, of whom all other Gods and Goddesses are simply aspects); others are monotheists (God and Goddess Themselves are simply aspects of an unknowable Source).

Wiccans generally do not believe that God/dess is separate from the world; therefore, we have no concept of salvation, since God/dess is present to all and always. Many Wiccans believe that God/dess is too big to fit inside one religion -- all religions/spiritual paths are ways of reaching the same goal, and atheism and agnosticism are honorable perspectives on the mystery of life.

Each Wiccan operates as their own priest/ess. We do not have a distinction between clergy and laity. Therefore, each Wiccan is responsible for their own personal development and for forging their own relationship with God/dess. Some Wiccans practice in covens, which are generally initiatory and require a long period of study (traditionally a year and a day) before entering. Others practice in loosely affiliated groups of solitaries, which are Wiccans who practice outside of traditional coven structure. Others simply practice alone.

Wiccans do not usually have churches. We create sacred space as and where needed, by casting "circles" of energy which function as temples. When inside those circles, we invite the spirits of the four Platonic elements (air, fire, water, and earth) to join us, as well as the Goddess and the God (or at minimum the Goddess).

Wiccans have celebrations which are timed to both the solar and lunar calendars. The solar festivals -- held at the solstices, the equinoxes, and four points in between them -- are called sabbats.

http://paganwiccan.about.com/library/basics/blsabbats.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheel_of_the_year

The lunar holy days are called esbats, and are held at the full moon each month, and sometimes at the new moon as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esbat

Many Wiccans practice witchcraft, which we see as working with the Divine energy that permeates the world to bring about change. In accordance with the Wiccan Rede, the vast majority of Wiccans will not curse or perform magic to bring harm upon anyone else.

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

An explanation of the religion by a Wiccan:

http://www.uri.org/Wicca_Portrait.html

And the US Army Chaplains Handbook excerpt on Wicca:

http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_usbk.htm

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

You can find Wiccans in your area through the Witches of the World section at Witchvox:

http://www.witchvox.com/xvn.html

Just use the pull-down menus on the left to find local individuals, groups, shops, and events.

Best of luck to you on your path.

Answer 2

So many questions... it would honestly take volumes to answer them all completely.

I'm too lazy to explain everything to you so I'll do what all Wiccans do when they're lazy and suggest a book. A Witches Bible by Janet and Stewart Farrar is a really good (though somewhat outdated, with references to the "olde religion") book, explaining not only rituals and holidays, but ethics, rationale, and a lot of other stuff you'd be interested in.

As far as Christian hate... well there are a few reasons. First off, the Christian Bible clearly says "suffer not a witch to live". There's some other stuff in there about not practicing magic and so forth. Plus unfortunately, the pentagram has obtained some sort of bad reputation- everyone thinks it's satanic, and everyone thinks Satanists are evil... so they put two misconceptions together and voila. Of course there are tons of Christians out there who use their brains a bit more, and they don't judge other religions in such a way, which is good.

Answer 3

Heya! Some good basic books to start with are Amber K's "True Magick", Raymond Buckland's "Complete Guide to Witchcraft" and "Wicca for One" and pretty much anything by Scott Cunnigham. There are lots of different traditions (denominations) of Wicca, so you'll have to look around a bit to find things that apply specifically to what you're interested in. A really good website for networking and finding Wiccans in you area is Witchvox.com. Also, for some basic belief info, check out The Coven of the Crystal Moon's Yahoo group. They have the 13 Principles of Belief, The Charge of the Goddess and The Wiccan Rede along with lots of other good stuff. Be careful when searching the Internet, you'll find lots of bs based on D&D, Charmed and the Craft movie. Good Luck on your journey and Blessed Be!

Answer 4

they are like any other person, just these people like to question without being told to stop asking

usually most wiccans are at least Nature, Mother Earth or Goddess admirers, some have "the lord and lady" deity and usually involve a plethora of many ancient religions that typically have more than one deity

Answer 5

Wicca is unfortunately a false religion. They do not recognize Jesus dying for our sins. While they do not exactly worship "Satan", many of their gods are actually demons, same with the ancient religions of Egypt. If you want the Truth, read the Bible.