Book of shadows

Altar

You do not need an altar to be Wiccan. You do not need a cauldron, a broomstick or a wand. In fact, you do not need anything whatsoever to be Wiccan. These items do not have anything to do with the spiritual aspect of Wicca; they are simply material props that help us with our magical workings. You do not need to be a part of a coven and you do not need to be initiated into Wicca, even though many covens or groups follow that procedure. If you believe and hold the God and Goddess in your heart, if you are at one with nature and the elements and if you believe there is magic in everything, then you are Wiccan. It really is as simple as that.

It is true that some branches of Wicca insist upon initiation into a coven to their secrets; examples of these are Gardnerian Wicca, named after Gerald Gardner, and Alexandrian Wicca, named after Alexander Sanders. This is all fine if you wish to join one of the many Gardnerian or Alexandrian covens around the world, but in modern Wicca the majority of Wiccans don't belong to a coven and instead practice their Wiccan faith in their own way. Wicca has many different branches to its tree and it's up to you to choose what feels most right for you.

Wicca is a nature based religion, a peaceful and empowering religion with a proud history. We worship nature, the seasons, the elements and the universe. Our deities are ancient Gods and Goddesses that predate other religions by thousands of years. Most modern things in today's society were built and invented by Pagan civilizations, including architecture, roads, lavatories, the wheel, wine making, language, writing and even religion. In fact the concept that there is a God or Gods was also Pagan notion. Wiccans today still live by numerous Pagan ideals such as using a calendar. Pagan civilizations invested a lot of their time sky watching and season watching and built their lives around the cycles they observed. It helped them survive and prosper. It helped them turn into us, a modern society that, with the help of newer and more oppressive religions, now believes humans are more important than the rest of mother earth. It's time to turn the clock back. Wiccans believe earlier people on earth had a closer relationship with the divine. We want to learn all we can from ancient civilizations and their peoples as well as their Gods and Goddesses.

Every day 'ordinary' people live by Pagan ways without even knowing it. Many People call themselves 'spiritual' but would not admit to being Pagan because of negative connotations fostered by an oppressive Church and an ignorant media looking for an easy stereotype or cutting cliche'. And yet, look around and you will see Paganism everywhere. The days of the week are named after our Gods and Goddesses. The twelve months of the year are named after Pagan Gods, as are many stars, glalaxies and constellations.

Many holidays that modern religions observe were once Pagan, such as Christmas, which is Yule when the Sun is born in the Winter Solstice. These holidays predate Christianity by thousands of years. Easter used to be known as Ostara which was celebrated in Spring when the Sun had risen again after a long Winter. It is the time of the earth being fertile, which is why it is represented by rabbits and eggs - fertility symbols. Samhain (Halloween) became All Saints Day. When the Christians were trying to convert Pagans to Christianity they kept many of the holidays Pagans celebrated to ease them into being Christian, but they changed the name and meaning to represent Christianity instead. Pope Gregory understood that the Britons and Angles in these lands were steeped in a Pagan way of life and that conversion by force and the destruction of Pagan festivals and holidays would be foolhardy and only cause resentment. His letter to St Augustine, dated 12 July AD 594, tells him "not to destroy the pagan temples, but rather to replace the idols with the relics of saints; to sprinkle the old precincts with holy water and rededicate them, because people come more readily to the places where they have been accustomed to pray. At festivals the people shall be allowed to build their booths of green leaves and to slay their bulls."

Of course, this holistic, non-judgemental approach didn't continue; it was simply a way of enticing the people in a slow and careful way. Before long the Christian Church was demanding the destruction of sacred groves and insisting the worship of trees and stones was in fact demonic. Next came the persecution of the wise or cunning women, those who understood the healing power of plants, yet were killed for being 'evil witches'.