CANCELLATION -- MABON RITUAL IS CANCELED

CANCELLATION -- MABON RITUAL IS CANCELED -- My sincere apologies and regrets. I have so looked forward to this but I am ill with an upper respiratory infection which as I understand it can be very contagious... The medication I am taking is making me drowsy and dysfunctional -- I dare not drive to ritual and I am in so shape to perform ritual. I am so very very sorry.

Witchcraft vs. Wicca and Witches, Wiccans and Wiccan Witches...

If you are heading down the witchy trail, you will trip over this issue soon enough: Witchcraft versus Wicca. And boy what a hot bed of coals it can be depending on who you bump into. In fact, Witch, Witchcraft and Wicca are all heated topics depending on where you look.

First off, let's talk about Witches -- some readily state "only a Witch can make a Witch". These are usually Witches that follow a tradition and are referred to as "Trad Witches". It is their beliefs that only someone within a coven can train and initiate a Witch. Under their beliefs, all others are simply posers. However, highly respected authors like Scott Cunningham supported the idea that an individual can designate themselves a Witch and self dedicate and initiate themselves to the Goddess path. These Witches are usually referred to as solitaries or eclectic Witches because they are weaving their own web -- they don't have traditions passed to them by a coven or family members.

Now let's get down to the Witchcraft vs. Wicca issue. Witchcraft is a practice of magick that does not require any underlying belief system -- so you can actually have people of any religion doing witchcraft and spells. These individuals are referred to as Witches because they practice Witchcraft.

Wicca on the other hand is a religion that may or may not include the practice of Witchcraft. That's right, not all Wiccans practice magick -- some just follow the religious aspect of Wicca. So, in a manner of speaking you have Wiccans (spiritual only) and Wiccan Witches (those who practice spiritual Wicca AND Witchcraft). Another defining point of Wiccans is that they follow some form of the Wiccan Rede and believe in the Threefold/Tenfold Law.

Oh but let's muddy the waters a little further. What is a Wiccan? Well, I said above they follow the Wiccan Rede and believe in either the Threefold or Tenfold Law. However, there are those that will argue that a *TRUE* Wiccan would be Witches that were initiates of Gardnerian Covens -- Gerald Gardner being the founder of Wicca. It is argued that any others that take up the name Wiccan are NOT Wiccans.

So, which Witch is which? Using the definitions above we can now define Witches, Wiccans and Wiccan Witches as follows:

Witches -- any person who practices the art of Witchcraft regardless of their underlying spiritual beliefs.

Wiccans -- a person who follows the spiritual beliefs of Wicca, follows the Wiccan Rede and either the Threefold or Tenfold Law; AND/OR is an initiate of a Gardnerian Coven.

Wiccan Witch -- a person who follows the spiritual beliefs of Wicca, follows the Wiccan Rede and either the Threefold or Tenfold Law AND practices Witchcraft.

And be aware that this doesn't even remotely touch all the subsets of Witches, such as Hedge Witch, Kitchen Witch, Ceremonial Witch, Satanic Witch, Celtic Witch, Eclectic Witch, British Traditional Witch, Alexandrian, Gardnerian, Dianic, Pictish, Hereditary, Caledonii, Pow Wow, Strega Witch, and Solitaries. Wow! And there are many more...

So, with all this dilemma and controversy surrounding Witchcraft, Wicca, and Witches, what is a Witch to do? Carry on of course, using the terms as you wish. Just be prepared for the arguments you may encounter. Or do what I did -- create and name your own path. That is how I came to follow the path of WiseCraft Wicca.

Harvest Moon -- September 19, 2013 #Harvest Moon