Wicca and Neopaganism Thread

[Israelite9191]

Though I am not a Neopagan, nor a Wiccan, I consider myself a well informed layperson. I have done quite a bit of research into the movements, and should be able to answer most of the questions that should come up in this forum. There are obviously a lot of misconceptions here about Neopaganism and Wicca, and I hope that myself and anyone else here who has knowledge of the topic can help clear these misconceptions up. So, start asking!

 

[JonnyB]

They seem to be very generic terms for a type of belief system.
Is there a particular doctrine or common set of beliefs that constitute what a Wiccan or Neopagan is?

 

[Mr. Dictator]

haha, the MTSU Wiccan society set up a booth outside on Halloween.

it ended up raining and they all had to hurry up and pick up their Magic cards and run inside.

apparently they couldnt summon the spirits to stop the rain.

oh, and they mispelt magic. they spelt it "magick"

haha, wish people would stop trying to piss their parents of so much.

 

[GenMarshall]

Neopagan = Revival of old Classical Era Mythological Gods that the Greeks, Romans, Norse, Egyptian, Celtic, and Germanic civilizations and tribes worshiped. Native American Religion is difficult to place in due because it is seen as a form of Animism. Mesoamerican Cults/Religion is also difficult to classify as pagan.

Wicca - Witchcraft, demonic worship, magic.

 

[JonnyB]

Neopagan = Revival of old Classical Era Mythological Gods that the Greeks, Romans, Norse, Egyptian, Celtic, and Germanic civilizations and tribes worshiped. Native American Religion is difficult to place in due because it is seen as a form of Animism. Mesoamerican Cults/Religion is also difficult to classify as pagan.

Wicca - Witchcraft, demonic worship, magic.

So the main difference between the two is the ones your/my ancestors used to follow aren't as evil.

 

[Israelite9191]

Wicca is a syncretic modern religion based on pre-Christian religious traditions. The main doctrine is the duo-theistic nature of divinity, with one Holy Mother and one Holy Father. The Mother is emphasized more than the Father, but both play important roles. Magick (often spelt with a "k" to distinguish it from party magic and common modern associations with the word) is really a mere ritual, similar to the Catholic mass or other rituals.

There is NO SUCH THING AS DEVIL WORSHIP in Wicca. Wicca emphasizes the loving nature of divinity, in much the same way as modern Christianity does. Again, Wicca has not such thing as devil worship. It is a real religion with very strong precepts regarding morality, and, again, NO DEVIL WORSHIP.

Neopaganism is pretty much as CivGeneral said, a revitalization of ancient, pre-Christian (primarily European) religion. However, do not for one second believe that it is a true and perfect recreation of ancient religion. For the most part Neopaganism is revisionist and syncretic, combining various pre-Christian religious traditions and looking at it from a modern perspective that is heavily influenced by the Victorian romantics. This has caused a reactionary movement, called Reconstructionism. Reconstructionist Neopaganism strives to use compartive religion, archeology, anthropology, etc. to accurately reinvigorate ancient religions. For instance, Ár nDraíocht Féin strives to revive Indo-European religions accurately and on a large, global scale.

 

[Ingvina Freyr]

So, are there a lot of Wiccans or Neopagans where you live, are they organised, and are they being disliked or persecuted by others (considering your bolded statements above)?

Can you tell us more about their beliefs?

 

[GenMarshall]

There is NO SUCH THING AS DEVIL WORSHIP in Wicca. Wicca emphasizes the loving nature of divinity, in much the same way as modern Christianity does. Again, Wicca has not such thing as devil worship. It is a real religion with very strong precepts regarding morality, and, again, NO DEVIL WORSHIP.

Then why is it that there are symbolisms related to the Devil (such as a pentagram) used in Wicca? I just see Wicca as just playing in devil's water by practacing Magic. I can honestly say that I have not ran into any Wiccas (Unless they are the ones that hide in the bromb closet).

I would like to see some good defense from the Wiccans or from other people. Because as of now, see them as devil worshipers but yet neutral on the stance (Meaning that I am sway able in this one based on the defense (Polite mind you) I see in this thread)

 

[Stylesjl]

What kind of fool beleives that Wiccan is devil worship? It's like saying atheism is devil worship. Utterly unfounded

 

[mdwh]

haha, the MTSU Wiccan society set up a booth outside on Halloween.

it ended up raining and they all had to hurry up and pick up their Magic cards and run inside.

apparently they couldnt summon the spirits to stop the rain.

True, though at least they don't claim that their spirits are all-knowing, all-powerful and all-loving.

 

[silver 2039]

Then why is it that there are symbolisms related to the Devil (such as a pentagram) used in Wicca?

A Chrstian smear campagian against non-Chrstian religons.

just see Wicca as just playing in devil's water by practacing Magic. I can honestly say that I have not ran into any Wiccas (Unless they are the ones that hide in the bromb closet).

I would like to see some good defense from the Wiccans or from other people. Because as of now, see them as devil worshipers but yet neutral on the stance (Meaning that I am sway able in this one based on the defense (Polite mind you) I see in this thread)

You don't know any Wiccans and you know nothing about them yet you feel that you can make unfounded sterotypes about them even though others have told you otherwise? Honestly your incorrigable. Why don't you do some resarch on your own rather than waiting to run into a Wiccan and asking them to defend themselves as though they owe you anything.

 

[IglooDame]

Then why is it that there are symbolisms related to the Devil (such as a pentagram) used in Wicca? I just see Wicca as just playing in devil's water by practacing Magic. I can honestly say that I have not ran into any Wiccas (Unless they are the ones that hide in the bromb closet).

I would like to see some good defense from the Wiccans or from other people. Because as of now, see them as devil worshipers but yet neutral on the stance (Meaning that I am sway able in this one based on the defense (Polite mind you) I see in this thread)

My ex-wife is Wiccan, and I can say for certain that she doesn't worship Satan, nor do any of her fellow believers that I met. That aside, two central tenets of Wicca are "As you harm none, do what you will" and the Threefold Law - that whatever you do to others (good or evil) comes back to you three times greater. Neither of those sound very satanic or evil to me.

 

[Azash]

Wicca - Witchcraft, demonic worship, magic.

Oh, wow, didn't see that one coming. And what's with the hostility towards underground faiths?

Edit: So now pentagrams are satanic symbols? And what is a "bromb"?

 

[Masquerouge]

Just because witches and pentagrams have been demonized, in no small part due to Christianism, doesn't mean that witches and pentagrams are instrument of the Devil.

 

[Azash]

Hey, small OT thing. Did you know, "evil" spirits are called Demons, or rather vice versa, to slander old religions?

For Greeks and Romans, daemons ("replete with knowledge", "divine power", "fate" or "god") were not necessarily evil. Socrates claimed to have a daimonion, a small daemon, that warned him against mistakes but never told him what to do or coerced him into following it. He claimed that his daimon exhibited greater accuracy than any of the forms of divination practised at the time. The Hellenistic Greeks divided daemons into good and evil categories: eudaemons (also called kalodaemons) and kakodaemons, respectively. Eudaemons resembled the Abrahamic idea of the guardian angel; they watched over mortals to help keep them out of trouble. (Thus eudaemonia, originally the state of having a eudaemon, came to mean "well-being" or "happiness".) A comparable Roman genius accompanied a person or protected and haunted a place (genius loci).

 

[Shawnosaurus]

I read this interesting point once that clarified the Wiccan viewpoint on satanism and devil worship quite clearly for me. The devil and Satan are biblical characters and since Wiccans are not Christians of any denomination they do not believe in the existence of the devil. The biblical train of thought is so deeply ingrained in our culture that we miss the point that a non-biblical religion doesn't even believe in the devil, let alone worship it.

 

[rysingsun]

yes, wicca is nature worship / neopaganism / magic / devil worship. they regard christianity as their adversary and seek to subvert it. honestly i don't care what most people on these boards choose to do, but to the christians i say, you want to stay away from it.

 

[IglooDame]

yes, wicca is nature worship / neopaganism / magic / devil worship. they regard christianity as their adversary and seek to subvert it. honestly i don't care what most people on these boards choose to do, but to the christians i say, you want to stay away from it.

If I had to pick any religion that was an adversary of Christianity, I'd have to pick Islam, not Wicca. Near as I can tell, Wiccans are generally more interested in being free of Christian badgering (and the occasional shocking of Mrs Grundy) than in trying to 'subvert' it.

 

[JollyRoger]

I just see Wicca as just playing in devil's water by practacing Magic.

Is turning water into wine magic?

 

[Reno]

Being friends with a Wiccan, I can definately say that Wicca has nothing to do with Devil Worship.

As for the 'demonization' of pagan religions and pagan symbols. It was done by the Catholic Church during the Middle Ages to keep the simple common people obedient and fearful of the Church, lest the Papacy lose power over them.