alt.religion.wicca.moderated FAQ (v.1.8)
Last revision: 1 November 2008 Newsgroups: alt.religion.wicca.moderated, alt.answers, news.answers Posting-Frequency: As close to the first of the month as possible See reader questions & answers on this topic! - Help others by sharing your knowledge Alt.Religion.Wicca.Moderated FAQ (v.1.8) 1 November 2008 In recent years Wiccan communities have seen the development of many new resources. Through the internet in general and usenet in particular, Wiccans and pagans have been able to share ideas and information with an unprecedented ease. Alt.religion.wicca.moderated (arwm) is a usenet newsgroup that extends this tradition by offering a structured central forum for the beginner and expert alike. This FAQ (frequently asked questions) explains some of the more common ideas behind arwm and Wicca in general. As with the newsgroup, this FAQ is a product of many dedicated individuals. Modstaff would like to thank Rain of Teleport for allowing us to use parts of the alt.religion.wicca FAQ as a basis for our own. Our robomoderation software is designed and hosted by Igor Chudov, and we offer him our deepest gratitude for his support. Modstaff would like to extend thanks to Dove for compiling and maintaining the arwm FAQ. In addition, we would like to thank the members of the original steering committee that spent eleven months creating our Charter. With the help and effort of these people, arwm has become an example of what a concerned community can accomplish. ___________________ 1. Introduction 1.1. What is alt.religion.wicca.moderated? 1.2. What is Wicca? 1.3. What is a moderated newsgroup? 2. Basic Orientation 2.1. How is Wicca related to Paganism? 2.2. How old is Wicca? 2.3. What are the basic beliefs of Wicca? 2.4. What were "The Burning Times?" 3. Wiccan Beliefs and Practices 3.1. What god(desse)s do Wiccans worship? 3.2. What are the major traditions in Wicca and where do they come from? 3.3. What are Wiccan ethics, the "Wiccan Rede" and "three-fold law?" 3.4. What are "dedication" and "initiation" in Wicca? 3.5. What is the Wheel of the Year? 3.6. What tools do I need to perform a ritual? 4. General Questions about Wicca 4.1. Is Wicca the same thing as Witchcraft? 4.2. Is a Warlock a male witch? 4.3. Do all Wiccans practice magic/k? 4.4. Where can I get a Book of Shadows? 4.5. What is a coven and how do I join one? 4.6. How do I learn more about Wicca? 5. Newsgroup Guidelines for alt.religion.wicca.moderated 5.1. General Newsgroup Guidelines 5.2. How does the moderation system work? 5.3. What does being a 'member' of alt.religion.wicca.moderated mean? 5.4. Why did I not get an automated acknowledgment? 5.5. I can't see my post in the Group. What happened? 5.6. Alternative Usenet Access 6. ARWM Community 7. Resources 7.1. Introductory books on Wicca and Magic 7.2. Other Usenet Newsgroups 7.3. Wiccan/Neo-Pagan Umbrella Organizations 7.4. Other Organizations 7.5. Established Wiccan/Neo-Pagan Periodicals 7.6. Contact/Networking Publications 7.7. Other Internet Resources ____________________________ Questions: 1. Introduction 1.1 What is alt.religion.wicca.moderated? Alt.religion.wicca.moderated is a Usenet newsgroup, created on 15 May 1998. The newsgroup caters to a diverse group of people of all ages and backgrounds who are interested in the Wiccan religion and Traditions. It provides a forum to hold discussions and exchange ideas in a moderated environment. 1.2 What is Wicca? Wicca, (pronounced Wick-ah) is a nature based religion which celebrates and venerates nature and life and worships the Goddess and God in their various forms. There are many different "Traditions" in Wicca, but the religion as a whole has no central authority or ruling body, and it is without strict dogma. There is an emphasis on individuality, as each person is essentially responsible for their own actions and free to follow their own paths and beliefs. This is not to say that Wicca itself is structureless. Many Wiccans work with like-minded others to form covens which do have an internal hierarchy, but covens often differ from one to another as to their practices and beliefs. 1.3 What is a moderated newsgroup? A moderated newsgroup offers a particularly structured environment for participation in discussions by its members and guests. The environment is administrated by Moderators who uphold the newsgroup's Charter for the benefit of all participants and readers alike. The moderating body of alt.religion.wicca.moderated is known collectively as Modstaff. 2. Basic Orientation 2.1 How is Wicca related to Paganism? Wicca is one specific religious branch of the various religions and practices which fall under the umbrella of Neo-Paganism today (Neo meaning new). Paganism covers such belief structures as Druidism, Shamanism, Nordic and Celtic beliefs to name just a few. Paganism often involves many of the Old (pre-Christian) Gods. A way to summarize the relationship between Wicca and Paganism is that all Wiccans are Pagans, but not all Pagans are Wiccans. Paganism & Wicca offer a way of worship of the sacred as immanent in nature & focuses on attunement and understanding of the forces of nature and our involvement and interaction with these forces. While alt.religion.wicca.moderated emphasizes the Wiccan experience, there are similar usenet newsgroups devoted to paganism. For more information, see alt.pagan and soc.religion.paganism 2.2 How old is Wicca? This question is often a matter of debate among Wiccans, and opinion will differ depending on who you speak to. The modern Wicca movement, and the coining of the term "Wicca", is credited to Gerald Gardner who revived Wiccan practices in the mid to late 1940's from various sources. These practices became the basis for many modern day Wiccan traditions. There are certain traditions that have been passed on by word of mouth, in secret covens, or through families (called 'FamTrad'), that have survived through the ages to become part of Wicca today. Others feel that their tradition and inspiration comes directly from the gods. Whatever its origins, modern Wicca is a constantly evolving and vibrant religion. 2.3 What are the basic beliefs of Wicca? There are a couple of main principles that are commonly accepted by Wiccans. This includes love for and a kinship with nature, recognizing that everything in nature contains a spark of the Divine, and that we are also divine creatures, who have a personal link with the divine life source. Wiccans accept the reality of the polarity of the Divine; Goddess and God, female and male principles and many find Wicca more welcoming of women than other religions. Wiccans as a whole accept the cyclic nature of life, phases of the moon and changing seasons. Although many Wiccans may believe in some sort of reincarnation, they may distinguish themselves from Buddhists in seeing life as a journey or adventure without any desire to "leave the wheel" of return. Like Hindus, Wiccans may pride themselves on their tolerance for other paths, like Buddhists they may value personal insight and like Taoists they may seek to align themselves more perfectly with nature. Some Wiccans may separate themselves from the "New Age" in their value for both "light" and "dark" aspects of existence, a do-it-yourself attitude and a distrust of money or hierarchies of "enlightenment" which seem to place spirituality up for sale. 2.4 What were "The Burning Times?" The term "The Burning Times" is commonly used to refer to period of the Witch Hunts and inquisitorial trials in Europe, roughly between 1550 and 1750, during which time somewhere between 20 and 100 thousand executions were documented and an unknowable number of undocumented deaths occurred. The term itself is a somewhat inaccurate reflection on this period of fear and religious persecution. It does not illustrate the many thousands of people, predominantly women, who were hanged, drowned, pressed, beaten and tortured to death whether or not they had undertaken any practices which would be understood as witchcraft. Whatever the method, type or number, however, the victims of the Witch Hunts are perceived by many Wiccans today as martyrs, with the lessons of social intolerance and religious terror being clearly highlighted. 3. Wiccan Beliefs and Practices 3.1 What god(desse)s do Wiccans worship? Although some Wiccans focus on particular gods from specific world mythologies, Wiccans may worship many Deities by many different names. Most worship some form of the Goddess and God. Such duo-theistic forces are often conceived as embodying complementary polarities, not opposites. In some traditions worship of the Goddess is emphasized, although in others the Goddess and God are seen as complementary co- equals. The Goddess and God may be seen as associated with certain things (such as the Goddess with the earth or moon, God with sun and wildlife, etc), but there are no hard and fast rules. Some traditions worship the Goddess alone while others see Divinity as essentially beyond human understanding, with "Goddess" and "God" simply a convenient shorthand. 3.2 What are the major traditions in Wicca and where do they come from? Aidan Kelly argues that all of Wicca derives from Gerald Gardner, with some crucial editing and revision by his initiate Doreen Valiente. Alex Sanders is widely thought to have acquired a Gardnerian book of shadows, with which he started his own "Alexandrian" tradition, initiating Janet and Stewart Farrar. Other well-known traditions include Raymond Buckland's Seax Wicca, Victor and Cora Anderson's Faery Wicca and feminist Dianic Wicca, which emphasizes the Goddess as put forward by such authors as Zsuszana Budapest. There are also branches of Wicca identifying themselves with various ethnicity's and traditions such as druidism, shamanism and so forth. 3.3 What are Wiccan ethics, the "Wiccan Rede" and "three-fold law?" Wiccan ethics are seldom codified in a legalistic way, but may be informed by some common expressions such as the "Wiccan Rede" and the "three-fold law." According to most versions of the three-fold law, whatever one does comes back to one thrice-multiplied, in amplified repercussion. One short, rhymed version of the Wiccan Rede states "Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill: An it harm none, do what you will." Often "none" is interpreted to include the doer themself in analogy to the "golden rule" of other faiths. There are no universal proscriptions regarding food, sex, burial or military service and Wiccans, as a rule, discourage proselytization (attempts to convert others to a different religion). 3.4 What are "dedication" and "initiation" in Wicca? These things mean different things in different traditions. Usually "dedication" ceremonially marks the beginning of Wiccan study, while "initiation" may mark full membership in a coven/tradition. Initiation commonly takes place after an extended period, frequently spoken of as "a year and a day" that is devoted to the study of the religion and reflection upon its “rightness” for the individual, or may indicate elevation in skill or to special clergy status. Some traditions look on all initiates as co-equal clergy, while others have grades or "degrees" of initiation, which may be marked by distinct sacramental ceremonies, duties or expectations within the tradition. Some people claim that "only a Witch can make a Witch," whereas others say that only the Goddess and God or demonstrated skill can make a witch. Doreen Valiente was initiated by Gardner himself, but slyly asks "who initiated the first witch?". Valiente and others assert that those who choose to "bootstrap" a coven into existence (by an initial initiation) or to use self-initiation may do so, citing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Self-dedications are also quite common among new practitioners and solitary Wiccans ("solitaries"). 3.5 What is the Wheel of the Year? Wiccans speak of the year as a wheel, signifying the cycle of the seasons which turn endlessly. During the Wiccan year, there are eight holidays known as the 'Sabbats'. Four of these are considered 'minor' Sabbats and are celebrated on the solstices and equinoxes. The remaining four, known as the 'major' or 'high' Sabbats marking the beginning of a new season, on or about the first of February, May, August and November of each year. The names of the major Sabbats may vary between traditions, but are generally known as: Northern Hemisphere Samhain (Winter) : 1 November-31 January Imbolc (Spring) : 1 February-30 April Beltane (Summer) : 1 May - 31 July Lughnasadh/Lammas (Autumn/Fall) : 1 August-31 October Southern Hemisphere Samhain (Winter) : 1 May-31 July Imbolc (Spring) : 1 August-31 October Beltane (Summer) : 1 November-31 January Lughnasadh/Lammas (Autumn/Fall) : 1 February-30 April Many Wiccans also celebrate the "Esbats", rituals for worship in accordance with a given moon phase (such as the full moon), the dates of which vary from year to year. 3.6 What tools do I need to perform a ritual? This varies, depending on the tradition and individual belief, and what the ritual is for. Rituals may be held at Wiccan "Sabbats" or "Esbats" or to mark life transitions such as births, coming-of-age, marriages/handfastings, housewarmings, healings, deaths or other rites of passage. Some ritual items are common to almost every Wiccan tradition, such as the athame (ritual knife) and chalice (ritual cup). Others may be used by some traditions but not others: bells, brooms, candles, cauldrons, drums, incense, jewellery, special plates, pentacles, scourges, statues, swords, staves, wands and various robes and cords. Usually a Wiccan ritual will involve some sort of creation of sacred space (casting a circle), invocation of divine power, sharing of dance/song/food or wine and a thankful farewell and ceremonial closing. 4. General Questions about Wicca 4.1 Is Wicca the same thing as Witchcraft? The short answer is no. Many cultures have a word which has negative connotations like "witchcraft," often viewing it as a malevolent, supernatural tool used by the weak, old or malicious. Some people use the term "witchcraft" to cover more general skills, such as counselling, the occult and herbcraft. Some Wiccans call themselves "Witches", capitalizing it as a gesture of solidarity with the victims of the Burning Times, but this is a personal decision. Although many Wiccans today may cast spells and practice magic/k, these are not considered an integral part of Wicca by all Wiccans. Wicca is not traditional folk magic and all magic is not necessarily Wiccan, anymore than all people who pray belong to any particular religion. 4.2 Is a Warlock a male witch? The use of the word 'warlock' to describe a male witch has been the source of much debate in the Pagan community. The term "warlock" is taken to mean "oathbreaker" and relates to an individual who has broken the oaths that he/she has undertaken during initiation within their coven. The etymology has been traced to an old English term w'rloga meaning oath breaker, from w'r oath + -loga liar, from leogan to lie. As such, referring to a male witch as a warlock can cause great offence. It is not acceptable to call someone a warlock, unless that person has explicitly chosen to identify themselves by that term. 4.3 Do all Wiccans practice magic/k? That depends on what one means by magic. The occultist Aleister Crowley helped re-popularize archaic spellings such as "magick", terming this "the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will”. Others may think of magic as folk parapsychology or see the changes wrought as primarily changes in consciousness. Ceremonialists may distinguish between the "high magick" of ritual observance and the "low magic" of practical spells (such as for protection and health). Almost all Wiccans, however, have some sort of ceremony or psychological practice to better attune themselves with divinity, encouraging insight and a sense of efficacy. Others may cast love spells or other curses but no, we don't do it for strangers on the net and no, we don't confuse this with stage magic. 4.4 Where can I get a Book of Shadows? The Book of Shadows (or "BoS") is sort of a customized reference book for Wiccans, containing useful information such as myths, liturgical items, one's own writings or records of dreams and magical workings. According to Gerald Gardner, such a book should be handcopied from teacher to student but in practice not every Wiccan has a "book of shadows" and few are exactly alike. Sometimes only initiates are allowed access to a tradition's book, or it may be called by a different name, such as "mirror book," "magical diary" or classically, a "grimoire." There are many "books of shadows" available in print and on-line (leading to the "disk of shadows" or even "directories of shadows" several megabytes large). If you'd like to copy from these sources for your personal use, you may assemble your own book, but please observe copyright laws as applicable. 4.5 What is a coven and how do I join one? The coven is the basic, cellular "congregation" for some Wiccans, but is often very formal, selective and closed, aiming for an ideal of "perfect love and perfect trust" among members. Most Wiccans begin in less formal ways such as attending festivals, public rituals, classes or more open groups (often called "circles"). Many Wiccans probably begin and continue practice as "solitaries," whether before, after or while a member of a coven. Solitary practice is a valid "tradition" in the Craft, but some good places to find other Wiccans are on the net, at public Pagan events or through occult, political or "new age" bookstores. 4.6 How do I learn more about Wicca? Reading is a great way to glean more information about Wicca and its various traditions and practices. Visit your local book store or library and see what they have available. If for some reason you have trouble obtaining books through local shops, there are mail order bookstores around which you can purchase via the internet or by mail. There is a recommended reading list and mail order companies listed at the end of this document. Unfortunately, books can't answer questions that might arise, which is where resources like this newsgroup come in very handy. You may also like to get in contact & get involved with groups in your area and attend gatherings or festivals to meet like- minded others. This is generally known as networking. 5. Newsgroup Guidelines for alt.religion.wicca.moderated The moderating board of alt.religion.wicca.moderated is made up of an odd-numbered group of volunteers and members of the newsgroup who uphold the newsgroup Charter. The Charter of alt.religion.wicca.moderated can be found as posted to the newsgroup once every few months. Questions or concerns regarding moderating policy or general newsgroup issues should be directed to: arwm- bo...@stump.algebra.com. 5.1 General Newsgroup Guidelines Alt.religion.wicca.moderated is an ecumenical and diversified news group accepting posts from authors of any race, sex, sexual orientation, age, or religious creed so long as the posts are relevant to Wicca and follow the rules for posting to the news group. The terms "Wicca" and "Paganism" are elusive at best, and there will be no discrimination of posts due to differing opinions of what these terms actually mean. While posts should be Wiccan orientated, those non-Wiccans who post to the newsgroup on spiritual and magickal matters are welcomed as long as their posts are Wiccan relevant. Each post should include a subject line that is relevant to the post's message. A message that is commercial in nature and Pagan orientated should contain the prefix [AD] in the subject line, denoting an advertisement. Notices and decisions of general decisions regarding the running of arwm by Modstaff will be posted on the newsgroup with the [ADMIN] tag, within one week of their occurrence. Certain types of posts are not appropriate, and will not be tolerated. Inappropriate posts include (but are not limited to): spamming, commercial advertisements that are not relevant to pagan interests, Ad Hominem attacks (generally known as 'flaming'), Intolerance and religious preaching (including superiority of one path or tradition over another), and trolls. These posts will be rejected, and will not show up on the arwm newsgroup. It should be noted that if an article that is cross-posted is rejected by a moderated newsgroup, this article will not show up in any of the groups that it has been cross posted to. 5.2 How does the moderation system work? All posts to arwm sent by a user (members and guests) will be received initially by the robomoderator, an automatic moderation center. The robomoderator will do one of two things with the post: if the post is from a pre-approved address it will be then forwarded to the newsgroup. If not pre-approved, an automated acknowledgment notice (auto-ack) will be posted back to the user advising them that their post has been received, and their post will then be forwarded to Modstaff for hand-moderation. It will then be approved or rejected, and either way, a second message will be sent to the user advising the status of their post. If their post is approved, it will then be launched into the usenet system and end up on the newsgroup for viewing and discussion. The robomoderator is responsible for weeding out posts that contain binary attachments, are heavily cross-posted (more than five cross postings) repeated posts, and posts from banned users. It is also responsible for logging posts that are rejected and the reasons for rejection. 5.3 What does being a 'member' of alt.religion.wicca.moderated mean? All new users of alt.religion.wicca.moderated are considered guests. Anything that is posted to the newsgroup by a guest is 'hand- moderated', that is, individually reviewed by Modstaff in accordance to the newsgroups Charter guidelines before being submitted to the newsgroup. Membership is not automatic, and the guidelines for membership approval will be reviewed every so often by Modstaff and posted to the newsgroup. At present the minimum requirements are if a guest has posted several (seven +) on-topic posts over a period of several days, and fulfilled all the guidelines of the Charter they will be considered for membership. Being a member means that posts will not be sent to the moderation queue by the robomoderation software, but will be forwarded directly to the newsgroup. Modstaff reserve the right to rescind the membership status of any user, with a majority vote. Grounds that will be considered for loss of membership are improper posting, not honoring Modstaff requests and not following suggested guidelines. Improper posting means posting a message that does not follow the rules of posting as outlined in the Charter, which constitutes abuse of member privileges. 5.4 Why did I not get an automated acknowledgment? The robomoderator will send an automated acknowledgment (auto-ack) to the reply address that it is given. If this address has been changed to avoid spamming (ie: munged or false return address) the automated acknowledgment will probably never reach you. It is possible to turn this function off so you don't keep getting replies. Instructions on how to do this are included in the acknowledgment. 5.5 I can't see my post in the Group. What happened? Once your article has been received by the robomoderator, messages are queued until Modstaff logs in to do the actual moderation. This may result in a short delay in the actually processing and moderation of messages. Generally, if you received an automatic acknowledgment for a post your article will appear, assuming the article does not violate the Charter in some manner, in which case it will be rejected usually with a brief note explaining why. When your post has been approved it is injected into usenet from the moderation site and propagated to the rest of usenet from there, and is susceptible to all the rules of the way usenet operates as a whole. 5.6 Alternative Usenet Access There has been an interesting flaw noted among users that, depending on their internet service providers news server, they may simply be able to see some, but not all, replies in a thread. In cases like this, it is not actually any persons 'fault', just part of the way usenet operates. There are web sites which allow access to Usenet newsgroups posts and subscribing will give you posting privileges. http://news.interbulletin.com/ and www.google.com allow viewing and posting to newsgroups. Archive searching of newsgroup posts can be undertaken through http://www.google.com/. Registering with www.news2mail.com allows newsgroup messages to be sent directly to your email account. To post a message to the newsgroup via email, submissions can be sent to a...@stump.algebra.com. 6. ARWM Community Often members share with the newsgroup works of poetry, crafts, book reviews and experiences at events and gatherings. Discussion regarding pagan books and authors is sometimes identified in the newsgroup via the subject line prefix [Book Review]. These reviews are valuable sources of information for those who wish to expand their studies and would like some background on reading material before buying or borrowing books. If a post is thought to contain information for a specific section of the community, such as a country or local political topicality, it is recommended that a subject line prefix is included to aid in thread identification. For example, information on a circle gathering in Norfolk, England might be given a [UK] prefix, or a post with a predominantly political nature be given a [POL] prefix in the subject line. 7. Resources 7.1 Introductory books on Wicca and Magic * Margot Adler - Drawing Down the Moon * Doreen Valiente - Witchcraft for Tomorrow * Starhawk - The Spiral Dance * Scott Cunningham - Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner * Silver Ravenwolf - To Ride a Silver Broomstick * Raymond Buckland - Complete Book of Witchcraft * Janet and Stewart Farrar - A Witches' Bible * Vivianne Crowley - Wicca - the Old Religion in the New Millenium * Rae Beth - 'Hedge Witch', or in some countries ie: the USA - 'The Wiccan Path' * Will Roscoe - Queer Spirits * Michael Howard - Practical Magic * Don Kraig - Modern Magick * Ronald Hutton - The Triumph of the Moon * James Frazer - The Golden Bough 7.2 Other Usenet Newsgroups alt.religion.wicca alt.pagan alt.pagan.contacts soc.religion.paganism (moderated) alt.magick alt.religion.shamanism soc.religion.shamanism (moderated) alt.mythology alt.divination alt.satanism alt.folklore.herbs alt.tarot alt.religion.triplegoddess 7.3 Wiccan/Neo-Pagan Umbrella Organizations * Covenant of the Goddess (CoG): PO Box 1226, Berkeley, CA 94701 USA http://www.cog.org/ * Pagan Alliance (Australia) http://pagan-alliance.org/ * The Pagan Federation: BM Box 7097, London, WC1N 3XX United Kingdom http://www.paganfed.org/ * Pagans for Peace: PO Box 2205 Clearbrook BC V2T 3X8 Canada * The Witches Voice Inc: PO Box 4924, Clearwater, Florida 33758-4924 USA http://www.witchvox.com * Church of All Worlds (CAW) - has "Nests" around the world http://www.caw.org/ * Wiccan Church of Canada-Toronto Temple, PO Box 73599, Toronto Ontario M6C 1C0 Canada - also has temples in Hamilton http://www.wcc.on.ca/ * Pagan Awareness Network (PAN) Australia http://www.paganawareness.net.au/ 7.4 Other Organizations * AREN - Alternative Religions Educational Network PO Box 1346 Lexington, KY 40508-1346 USA http://www.aren.org/ * ACLU - American Civil Liberties Union - many affiliates in USA http://www.aclu.org/ 7.5 Established Wiccan/Neo-Pagan Periodicals * Pagan Dawn (Pagan Fed, UK) BM Box 7079 London WC1N 3XX United Kingdom http://www.paganfed.org/pdawn.php * Pagan Times - The Editor, PO Box 26, North Hobart, Tasmania, 7002, Australia http://pagan-alliance.org/pt.html * Circle Magazine: PO Box 9, Barneveld, WI 53507 USA * Quest: BCM/SCL Quest, London WC1N 3XX UK * PanTheology: PO Box 300 ACT 2601 Australia 7.6 Contact/Networking Publications * Ace of Rods: BMC Akademia, London WC1N 3XX United Kingdom * GRAIL Directory: GPO Box 1444, Canberra City 2601 ACT Australia 7.7 Other Internet Resources http://www.ecauldron.net/newpaganfaq2.php soc.religion.paganism FAQ http://www.dmcom.net/bard/arwfaq2.txt alt.religion.wicca FAQ http://www.paganmusic.com/ Pagan Music Links (commercial) http://q7.com/~rain/1996.html - The Rain Puddles +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ User Contributions:
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