Something Wiccan This Way Comes

Open-Mindedness

Irishscribbler — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 11:44:43 GMT

I received a comment on one of my articles after I posted about how helpful a book by Scott Cunningham was to me. The comment recommended that I read the Bible.

I've read the Bible. I was raised in Christianity. And when I began to feel that my spiritual life was lacking, the church was the first place I turned. I prayed and read the Bible and devotionals and tried to learn more about my faith to answer the questions I had.

And the answers weren't there.

So I began to extend my reach a little to find the answers I need, and that's how I came to Wicca and Paganism.

I don't hate Christianity. Not by any means. But Christianity is not the best path for me. There are things it claims that I can't reconcile, and there are things that "Just have faith" doesn't answer.

I recognize that there are things that are beyond human understanding, but when there are things that go against what I believe and what I know in my heart to be true, I just can't sit in services and pick and choose what aspects of the faith I believe.

I know some of you who read this will think I just haven't prayed hard enough or I haven't read the Bible enough, but that's not the issue. I'm not a Satanist or a Devil-worshipper. I don't believe in the Devil. I do believe in God. I just worship in a different way.

And, no offense to people, but the religion I practice is quite a bit more accepting of people than nearly all denominations of Christianity I have ever met. I know it doesn't speak for everyone, but there are many many many people who don't accept different kinds of people just because their preacher tells them these people are "evil." Or doesn't let people participate in certain aspects of worship because of their gender.

Sorry, but the God I worship loves everyone equally, no matter what.

My Apologies

Irishscribbler — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 11:00:26 GMT

I've been gone for a long time. I'm sorry. There was quite a bit going on in my personal life, and though I'm still getting things to where I want them, it's better than it was.

I can hardly believe it's nearly Thanksgiving! I don't know where the year has gone! It'll be Yule before we know it, and then I'll need a new Van Gogh calendar for my wall.

I hope the rest of the year goes better than the past couple of months have!

We honor you...

Irishscribbler — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 02:33:20 GMT

My SIL came over a while ago and we did the animal-honoring ritual. I was a bit nervous, to be honest, but I feel it went really well.

It was actually my first time (ever) casting a sacred circle, but SIL said she could feel the circle's energy during the ritual, so yay! She really enjoyed it, and even Hubby said he enjoyed it.

Now I just have to write my ritual for the night of Samhain.

Samhain Animal Ritual

Irishscribbler — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 05:34:34 GMT

I finished writing the ritual to honor animals. The way I wrote it makes it VERY easy to adapt for solitary practice or for a group ritual.

I think everything's ready for tomorrow now. I picked up candles to cast the circle today (I chose to get a very light blue candle for Air instead of yellow), and the altar is already set up (except for the animal-honoring mementos, which will be placed tomorrow just prior to the ritual). All I have left to do is clean my house!

My sister-in-law is excited about it. Hubby is a little less excited, but still wants to participate, and still intrigued by Wicca.

This will be my first ritual. I'm a little nervous, but I know the intent is the important thing, so I'm sure it'll be great!

Blessed Be!

Book of Shadows

Irishscribbler — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 04:51:57 GMT

I'm working on creating my Book of Shadows after having finished both of Cunningham's texts. I'm excited about it, and I'm enjoying gathering information, determining how I want to adapt practices to fit me, and putting it all together.

Once I've finished it, I'll post a picture of my BOS.

Happy Birthday, Sister-in-Law!

Irishscribbler — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 23:40:53 GMT

Samhain is a time for honoring animals, remembering those who are no longer with us, and showing our love and appreciation for those who are.

My sister-in-law's birthday is Saturday, so she'll be home from college for the weekend.

She's been showing great interest in Wicca--like me, much of the teachings echo her own values--and she has always had a love of animals. So as part of her birthday gift from my husband and myself, we're inviting her over for a animal-honoring ritual that I'm creating.

She's really excited about it. I told her about it last night so we can plan for her to come over and so she can bring over mementos of her dogs to add to the altar.

The great thing is that I finished reading Cunningham's Wicca, which has a guide for creating ritual, so I'll be using (part of) his framework as I create the animal-honoring ritual for SIL.

It's going to be a good week, I think!

New Reading Material

Irishscribbler — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 04:47:19 GMT

I love my hubby! He took me to Barnes & Noble today to pick up a couple of books to further my education on Wicca.

I decided on Wicca: a Guide for the Solitary Practitioner and Living Wicca: a Further Guide for the Solitary Practitioner, both by Scott Cunningham. They have both been recommended to me, so I'm excited about delving into the information.

I have quite a stack of books on my desk already, and next week sometime, I'll be adding to it with some Celtic myth and Irish history.

Tarot Deck and Book of Shadows

Irishscribbler — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 23:37:37 GMT

According to UPS's website, my Tarot deck won't be here until Monday. It makes me a little sad because I was hoping to spend this weekend getting familiar with the deck since I don't have to work this weekend. It's okay, though. I have a lot of reading to do this weekend, anyway.

I started my Book of Shadows using a scrapbook album I think is beautiful, and perfect for the purpose. Once I start getting the information in the scrapbook and I decide how I want to arrange it, I can start making the pages pretty.

Robin Wood Tarot

Irishscribbler — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 05:37:50 GMT

I ordered a Robin Wood Tarot deck for myself. I've been reading and reading, but I know I won't really start learning until I start incorporating what I'm learning into my daily life. I chose a Robin Wood deck because the imagery is Wiccan-friendly.

If I'm going to be Wiccan, I need to start practicing Wicca.

The deck should be here this week sometime (maybe as soon as tomorrow, though I doubt it). I'm looking forward to getting it!

Eclectic Wicca

Irishscribbler — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 03:39:49 GMT

In my reading, I'm finding I like eclectic Wicca. Not because I can mishmash things together, but because I could incorporate my Celtic heritage into it.

It would also give me the freedom to explore goddess worship, which intrigues me. So many spiritual paths sort of discount women, or even treat women as second-class citizens. It's frustrating to me.

If I choose to practice Wicca, I think I'd like to study Tarot and/or Rune-casting as forms of divination. There is also the Celtic Ogham that is similar to Runes that is interesting to me.

I'm going to start meditating. I tend to be active throughout the day (in mind if not in body), so meditation may not come easily to me. It's something I'm going to have to work at until it feels more comfortable.

There is still a lot for me to learn. Wicca is very broad, so as I'm reading, I'm thinking about where I want to go in my next step of research. I already have quite a few notes!

What is Wicca?

Irishscribbler — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 07:15:58 GMT

I'm beginning my exploration into Wicca, and I'm learning quite a lot about it already, thanks to the Internet.

I borrowed a book from the library this morning (see my Currently Reading section to the right), and I'm using it as a jumping-off point for information. The information I'm finding is pointing me in new directions including history, philosophy, psychology, and spirituality. I love learning about new things, so I'm enjoying my little independent study.

Having an Irish heritage is making me more interested in Wicca, I think. Not that Wicca is necessarily Irish, but I know there are Irish traditions in Wicca, and in eclectic Wicca, there would be the freedom to add elements of my Irish heritage into my practices.

I love the sacredness of self in Wicca. I grew up in a Protestant home, and many Protestant traditions focus on the sinful nature of humanity and what we do wrong because of our our propensity toward evil. Instead, Wicca instructs followers to love self so you can love others.

I'm looking forward to delving into Wicca deeper.

Wicca

Irishscribbler — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 04:04:42 GMT

The first practice I'm going to be researching is Wicca, mostly because I know so little about it.

I'm not talking about witchcraft or the glamorized Wicca found on Charmed, but true Wicca. I'm going to research both traditional (Gardnerian) and eclectic Wicca; I want to know about the history of Wicca, the modern practice, and decide how I would incorporate it into my life, should I decide to adopt it.

And, of course, I'll post my findings.