As American Witches,
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.
The
general public has only recently begun to openly warm up to the existence of
the modern Craft movement. It is no
surprise that many assume that Wicca is a “new” religion. Wiccans know that it is not the Craft that is
new, but rather the more open awareness of Wiccans in the community as
religious tolerance slowly increases. The
above principle is designed to not only challenge the misconception that the
Craft recently emerged, but also to remind Wiccans to keep perspective when
issues of our own heritage arise.
Contrary
reports of the legitimacy of Wiccan history have developed as a result of
periods of time when accurate record keeping was not possible due to oppression
from the Church. As a result, it appears
as if paganism was prevalent worldwide, then disappeared, then reappeared
centuries later with a new name. The
finer points of this controversy are beyond the scope of this article, suffice
it to say that there has been debate among Wiccans and non-Wiccans alike about
just how much of modern Wicca stems from these ancient pagan practices as it
was impossible to keep open records through centuries of persecution. There is additional controversy surrounding
research methods and anthropological studies that link Wicca to various ancient
pagan cultures.
Regardless
of the extent to which modern Craft practices stem from ancient cultures in
verifiable accounts, there remains a common thread weaving pagan religions with
basic principles and practices of Wicca and relating all of this back to
prehistoric polytheistic societies. Our
link is to our heritage and the Deities we serve, and while controversy arises
from terms like “neo-pagan” vs. “reconstructionist religion,” we acknowledge in
the Wiccan faith that we are not primarily focused on proving fidelity to
traditions practiced in prehistory. We
practice adaptations of pagan practices in America in the modern day. It is
Wicca’s ability to adapt and maintain pertinence to larger spiritual goals that
has allowed our faith to evolve through the centuries. We seek to explore our heritage and its
relevance in the present, but are not threatened by discrepancies among
traditions. We do not seek to invalidate
fellow Wiccans by focusing on such trivia. Our practice in the present will continue to
lead us into the future and with an increase yearning for wisdom and tolerance,
what better time to honor our differences with respect?
With
all that being said, let’s also consider that saying that we do not debate the
history of the craft does not mean we simply forget about what has happened in
the past as we move forward into our futures. Let us also say that to forget the past is to
risk repeating it. While we are not
threatened by debates regarding the history of the Craft, Witches are all too
aware of the prejudices and religious biases that led to the persecution and
death of thousands of people allegedly accused of witchcraft, even when many of
those who were accused were not practitioners of the Magickal arts at all. The Burning Times and the Witch Trials of the
past are not to ever be forgotten; they are a constant reminder of what can and
does happen when there is no religious understanding and tolerance. If we were to ignore such events, we would be
moving forward into our future blindly, perhaps dangerously, since the past can
and does shape future events, especially if it is repeated.
By
Angela Kaufman and Dayna Winters: the coauthor of Wicca: What’s the Real Deal? Breaking Through the Misconceptions, along with Patricia Gardner. You can find out more about the book at:
http://www.wwtrd.webs.com.
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