What Is A Witch?

What is a Witch?


     "I'll get you my pretty, and your little dog too!”  The Wicked Witch of the

West...  One of the most notorious and stereotypical witches in all literature.

She had green skin, a big wart- covered nose, and a wide-brimmed black hat.  She

summoned a legion of monsters, stirred evil brews in her black cauldron, and

generally made life difficult for the fun-loving citizens of Oz.  She, and her

fellow “hags” tend to be seen in a rather comic light, despite their appearance,

and are usually seen around Halloween.  They are one of the two ideas that most

people hold of who witches are and what they do.  The other is that of the “

devil's whore” of Medieval Europe and Colonial Salem who were charged with

killing babies, celebrating “black masses,” and having sex orgies with Satan.

The modern Wiccan; a practitioner of the religion known as Wicca, Witchcraft, or

simply The Craft; resembles these “Witches” as much as a straw broom resembles

the Dirt Devil Upright.  The Craft is a religion based on the worship of a

supreme divine creator, the practice of magic, and a reverence for the earth and

all her inhabitants. Deity Concepts and Worship Practices

     "All religions are structures built on reverence of Deity.  Wicca is no

exception.  The Wicca acknowledge a supreme divine power, unknowable, ultimate,

from which the entire universe sprang,”  (Cunningham, 9).  This is a Witch's

concept of the Divine.  However, it is a distant, powerful image that is not

easily understood.  For the purpose of worship, the Wicca recognize the duality

of this power.  It is both male and female, good and evil, and therefore is

worshipped in the form of a Goddess and a God.  These are the primeval gods of

the ancient world, worshipped under names in many cultures:  Odin, Freya, Ra,

Ma'at, Zeus, Diana, Apollo, Kali, Shiva, Pele, and countless others.  Wiccans

believe that these are all, in reality, simply individual aspects of  one God

and one Goddess, rather than individual Deities.  Just as there are numerous

names for the Divine, so do Wiccans worship them in just as many ways.

     There are many different branches, called “traditions”, of The Craft,

most of which are based on the religious practices of one or more ancient

cultures.  There are Celtic Wiccans, Egyptian Wiccans, and Greek Wiccans.  One

of the newest traditions is a hybrid of Celtic Shamanism and the tribal

religions of Ancient America.  There is, however, a basic outline for conducting

worship services that is followed by all covens and solitaries.  A standard

Wiccan worship service, or ritual, which takes place on one of the eight yearly

sabbats (the solstices, equinoxes, and four Ancient Celtic agricultural

festivals) or at an esbat (full moon), consists of the creation of sacred space

(called “casting the circle;” this is done through visualization), prayers, and

offerings (these are usually material possessions, plants, or handmade items;

Wiccans never sacrifice animals or people), and a sharing of a simple meal with

fellow witches (if a member of a coven) and the Deities.  Worship services have

many important purposes, but the main reason Wiccans perform rituals is to gain

understanding of the energies of the divine and, ultimately, the energies

contained in the witch himself/herself.  The harnessing and directing of this

natural, personal energy is what witches call magic (or magick). Magic

     "Magic is a basic part of The Craft, but it does not have to be the same as

the religious aspect.  In other words, Wicca may be considered a religion with a

Goddess and a God
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