Recently, witchcraft has become almost solely thought of as the domain of Pagans and Paganism. Many people think of the Earth-based Neopagan religion Wicca when they hear the word witchcraft. This all started in the 1950s when Gerald Gardener proclaimed the Wiccan religion as The Olde Religion and started calling it Witchcraft. Both of these alternative names are incorrect. The Olde Religion speaks of Paganism, traditional Pagansim, as a whole and Witchcraft is a very old craft that includes many things. Practices such as divination, herbal healing, and alchemy are all under the subject of Witchcraft and the domain of witches. These things, like reading tarot cards, crystal gazing, and using herbs to heal are not associated with any religion.
Many people seem to think you cannot be Christian and a Witch, however you can. Christians have many systems of magick nearly custom tailored for them. You do not have to be of a certain religion to meditate, practcie divination, or any other sudject of witchcraft and nor must you worship the Wiccan God and Goddess. Should you wish to Christianise a certain ritual or spell you can substitue the God or Goddess names for the name of a saint or simply with God or Jesus or Mary. You do not have to be a Pagan to practice witchcraft. |
