What Is Wicca?

Wicca is an Earth-based, nature centered religion drawing on the ideas of pantheism, gnosticism, ceremonial magick, witchcraft and the pagan religions of our forefathers. Although the words "Wicca" and "Witchcraft" are often used interchangeably, they are not the same thing. The term "Wicca" is purported to be a modern version of the term of "Witchcraft", though even the etymology of the word Wicca is somewhat circumspect. Nevertheless, what we do know is that Wicca is a modern revivial of the old, Pagan religions, using magick, nature and a female Deity along with Her Consort, the Horned Lord, as its central core.

The term witchcraft literally means the craft of the wise. In its original usage, witchcraft was practiced by those persons, generally female, who had knowledge of herbal lore, the law, psychology and physiology. It is important to note that not all Wiccans consider themselves witches, and not all witches are Wiccans.

Wicca is centered around the use of positive thought, positive action and love of nature to create an atmosphere of positive energies which are then used for our own benfits. Wicca teaches that there is certainly a higher power, namely the Goddess and God, often refered to solely as the Goddess, but that the Goddess is always attainable, for She is everyhwere: in the tree, in the leaf, in the ant, within ourselves. In this sense, Wicca is a pantheistic religion. (Pantheism is the belief that God can be found in all things: "pan" meaning "Everything" , "Theism": having to do with Deity) Wicca teaches that there is much more in our universe than we can see or understand. The central law of Wicca is: " An It Harm None, Do What Ye Will" which means exactly what it says: as long as you don't do anything that will hurt anyone (including yourself) it is allowed. Many people use this rule as it applies strictly to magick, but I believe that the rule applies to every aspect of the Craft and to every aspect of life. This would include doing unto others as you would want done unto you, abstaining from drugs, alcohol to excess and smoking, learning not to hate and learning tolerance. This rule is reinforced by a second major aspect of Wicca: Everything you put out comes back to you Three fold. This means that every good deed you do, every terrible thing you do, every good spell you cast, every harmful spell you cast will come back to you thrice what you put out. Therefore, the punishment for breaking the law of Harm None is a threefold return of whatever you did.

The difference between Witchcraft and Wicca is, for many, a fine line. I think the two are best differentiated by the idea of religion vs. practice. Wicca is a religion which involves communion with the Earth, communion with a God/Goddess (or several of them if you're a polytheist), living in peace with yourself and others, and giving to those that gave to you. (Sounds kind of like Christianity, doesn't it?) Witchcraft, however, is what we practice. Witchcraft is the art of magick, the art of energy manipulation, the art of altered states of consciousness. This is not a religion in and of itself. In fact, not all people who practice witchcraft are Wiccans. Witchcraft may be practiced in many different forms, and admittedly, not all of them are positive. Satanist practices come to mind as an example of negative magick. A Witch in the Wiccan religion is someone who has studied very hard, committed the Pagan ways to memory, and has given his/her life over to the Goddess for protection and guidance. The term Witch for us is a high title--just because you are Wiccan does not make you a Witch. (Sort of in the same sense that being a Christian does not make you a priest) A Witch in other religions is anyone who practices magick. I use the term, however, to mean the former.

And it is important to note: there is NO DEVIL in the Craft.

Because Wiccans believe in a Horned Lord, many people believe that we worship Satan. The truth is that the Horned God represents the animal side of nature, (get it? horns... animals... ahhh it all makes sense now...) and the Horned God has existed long before Christianity--in other words, long before Satan was ever "invented". The flaw of modern times is to think that Paganism and Witchcraft/Wicca are the same things as Satanism. This is entirely untrue. Satanism is a highly egotistical religion, focused around greed, hedonism, social Darwinism, self worship and indulgence. The most important person in the Satanist religion is the individual, and by doctrine their relationship with the most hedonistic character of all religions: Satan.