A number of years ago, we attended the wedding of a lady that worked in Claire\u2019s office. Unlike most weddings, I was very excited to attend this one, because Claire told me that the lady was a witch (for real) and members of her coven would be at the wedding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Needless to say, I was disappointed in the wedding\u2026 I would have been ok with a regular boring wedding, but I figured the reception afterwards would at the very least produce some witchcraft like black magic or spells or rituals of some kind \u2014 but no, it was pretty much just a regular reception.\u00a0
I guess my idea of witches has never been the same since that day.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Witches got a lot press the last few years \u2014 mostly in the form of the \u201cspoiled child\u201d cries of \u201cwitch hunt\u201d from our former President. I even read a story recently about a Christian group that was praying to protect Trump from witches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But if for some reason you may be thinking about becoming a witch, there are a few things you should know about witchcraft before you get too far down that road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Witchcraft is a pagan religion. Pagan religions worship multiple deities rather than a single god. Paganism is one of the oldest religions and includes all religions that are not Christian, Muslim or Jewish. That means Paganism includes Hindu, buddhist, Taoist, Confucian and American Indian religions as well as all other nature-oriented religions. I found one article that indicated that Paganism accounts for 50 percent of all religions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wicca is a (pagan) religion \u2014popularized by the so-called Father of Wicca, Gerald Gardner, in the mid-1900s. Witches are normally thought of as women, but many Wiccans are men and worship both a god and goddess. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The word \u201cwitch\u201d is a combination of two Old English terms: wicce<\/em> (\u201cwise one\u201d) and Wicca<\/em> (\u201chealer\u201d.) In ancient times, witches were admired and respected for their wisdom and ability to heal with herbs. But in the early 1300s, witchcraft was declared heresy \u2014 by the Catholic Church. That resulted in a widespread fear of witches and led to the witch hunts that took place between the late 15th and 18th centuries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In 2011 a British census found that 11,766 people identified themselves as Wiccan and 1.276 described themselves as practicing witchcraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the late 1960s, a number of women\u2019s activist groups named themselves using the acronym WITCH. There were many variations of the acronym, such as \u201cWomen Inspired to Tell their Collective History\u201d and \u201cWomen Incensed at Telephone Company Harassment.\u201d These \u201cwitches\u201d used their platform to fight for women\u2019s rights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Today, more than one million Americans identify as Wiccans \u2014 a religion whose practitioners often identify as \u201cwitches,\u201d and claim to be a nature-based, peaceful, spiritual practice that has nothing to do with Satanism. According to some things that I\u2019ve read, being a witch has become more mainstream, and in some circles, fashionable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So it turns out that you can\u2019t become a witch by being mean, wearing black or riding a broomstick \u2014 it just doesn\u2019t work that way. A number of years ago, we attended the wedding of a lady that worked in Claire\u2019s office. Unlike most weddings, I was very excited to attend this one, because Claire told me that the lady was a witch (for real) … Continue reading
Wicca, one of the major religions practicing witchcraft, is about the mind, body, and spirit, along with a code of ethics and a few principles that some witches share. Respect the earth, live in harmony with the seasons, find your own purpose, and create your own path. Poof!<\/em> You\u2019re a witch.
\u2014 30 \u2014<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"