Wiccan Book Reviews

Everything You've Ever Wanted to Know About Tarot

All About My Goddess, Arianrhod

About The Creator of This Page (StarArianrhod...who is she?)

Other Kewl Wiccan Pages

Because (sadly) Wicca has become a very secluded and misunderstood religion, I have had several (ok, more like many...or maybe millions would be more like it =)) people come up to me saying things like, "Wow, you're a Wiccan! How cool! Ummm...what exactly IS Wicca, anyway?" which is OK with me, cuz I love to share it with anyone who wants to know. So, here goes...

Wicca is one of the few (if there are any others) Nature-based religion still existing on our Planet. There is believed to be a Mother Goddess- a spiritual life-force that encompasses and loves everything in existance, regardless of personal beliefs of any individual organism, a Fatherly God- basically the masculine counterpart of the Goddess, and individual other Gods and Goddesses that help to make up life on Earth (for example, Arianrhod is the Goddess of rebirth, death, and of the Borealis). In the Wiccan faith, our Gods and Goddesses do not control us nor punish us for doing something that someone might not agree with (we are "punished", if you want to put it that way, by personal consequences- for example, the Wiccan creed which says whatever you do will come back to you 3fold. It might not be something physical, but whatever we do does come back to us, good or bad). We love the Earth as our Mother, the Prime Creator, and seek only to live harmoniously with Nature and not harm her nor any of her creatures.

According to The American Council of Witches' Principles of Wiccan Belief, the "official" beliefs of Wiccans are:

1. We practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the Moon and seasonal quarters and cross-quarters.

2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility toward our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in ecological balance, offering fulfillment to life and consciousness within an evolutionary concept.

3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than is apparent to the "average" person. Because it is far greater than ordinary, it is sometimes called "supernatural", but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all.

4. We conceive of the creative power in the Universe as manifesting through polarity- as masculine and feminine- and that is this same creative power that lives in all people, and functions through the interaction of the masculine and feminine. We value neither to be above the other, knowing each to be supportive of the other. We value sexuality as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of life, and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practice and religious worship.

5. We recognize both outer worlds and inner, or psychological worlds- sometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconsciouness, the Inner Planes, etc.- and we see in the interaction of these two dimensions the basis for paranormal phoenomena and magickal exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other, seeing both as necessary for our fulfillment.

6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, respect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom, and acknowledge those who have couragously given of themselves in leadership.

7. We see religion, magick, and wisdom in living as being united in the way one views the world and lives within it- a world view and philosophy of life, which we identify as Witchcraft or the Wiccan Way (**NOTE** the word "witchcraft" has been twisted by society to mean something other than it is ["black" magick, "evil" forces, etc..]- it has nothing to do with these things, as is better explained in Belief #11 and #12)

8. Calling oneself "Witch" does not make a Wiccan- but neither does heredity itself, or the collecting of titles, degrees, and initiations. A Wiccan seeks to control the forces within her/himself that make life possible in order to live wisely and well, without harm to others, and in harmony with nature

9. We acknowledge that it is the affirmation and fulfillment of life, in a continuation of evolution and development of consciousness, that gives meaning to the Universe we know, and to our personal role within it.

10. Our only animosity toward Christianity, or toward any other religion or philosophy of life, is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be "the one true right and only way" and have sought to deny freedom to others and to supress other ways of relgious practices and belief.

11. As American Wiccans, we are not threatened by debates on the history of the Craft, the origins of various terms, the legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We are concerned with our present, and our future.

12. We do not accept the concept of "absolute evil," nor do we worship ANY entity known as "Satan" or "the Devil" as defined by Christian tradition. We do not seek power through the suffering of others, nor do we accept the concept that personal benefits can only be derived by denial to another.

13. We work within Nature for that which is contributory to our health and well-being. We are not bound by traditions from other times and other cultures, and owe no allegiance to any person or power greater than the Divinity manifest through our own being. As American Wiccans, we welcome and respect all life-affirming teachings and traditions, and seek to learn from all ad to share our learning. We do not wish to open ourselves to the destruction of Wicca by those on self-serving power trips, or to philosophies and practices contradictory to these principles. In seeking to exclude those whose ways are contradictory to ours, we do not want to deny participation with us to any who are sincerely interested in our knowledge and beliefs, regardless of race, color, sex, age, national or cultural origins, or sexual preference.