Questions (tradition, beliefs, myth, experience, pray)

[Jaiket]

I read the overview, and I'm curious.

Wicca appears 'girly' (for want of a better term) are there male wiccans?

Wiccans worship one God and one Godess, right? Does this follow from an older culture?

What is magic/majik/magick etc?

Spells?

Magic circles?

And a personal one, why do you follow this religion?

[Unedited]

It's hard to speak for all Wiccans, so I say what in my experience is most common.

I've met a lot of male Wiccans. I think the 'girly' feel may come from the media view of it. There is a Wiccan tradition that concentrates and the Goddess, and that may have something to do with it. It may also come from society telling men that some things that should be a natural part of life are girly. It may seem that worshiping a Goddess, or nature are girly. Whatever the reason, there are many male Wiccans.

The one God and one Goddess are more symbols. Many Wiccans believe that there are many gods that are essentially all one. I'm sorry I can't explain it better.

What is magic? Wow...that's different for every Wiccan. I personally believe that magic is a force that's everywhere. It's an energy that is in everything as a part of the Goddess, of the divine. Some prefer majik or magick so that it differs from the media view of it, I prefer to not use the word at all, and simply call it energy.

A spell is like a pray in which a Wiccan asks for something. It usually consists of casting a circle, lighting candles, calling the quarters, and doing and saying things specific to the spell.

A circle is used when performing a spell to protect those inside. You have to be careful when dealing with engery whether you believe in physical consequencies, or mental ones.

Of course all Wiccans are different, I'm hoping to hear some of the opinions of others.

[Circle_One]

I agree with Unedited in the reasoning behind Wicca seeming "girly" is because of the way the media portrays it. With all the movies and stuff that have come out in recent years that deal with Wicca, it seems that all the practicing characters are female, but this by no means makes it a "girly" religion. There are pretty much just as many male Wiccans as there are female Wiccans, only it seems to me that the majority of teens turning to Wicca are female and I believe this to is a result of the media-ized version of it. (For the record, and for those who don't know and are reading to learn, a male Wiccan is NOT called a Warlock or a Wizard or a Mage or anything else you may have heard. A male witch is called a witch, plain and simple.)

The main deities in the Wiccan religion are the God and Goddess however they are [usually] not the only two deities worshipped. Many different traditions woship many different deities. As for following from an older culture, that depends on who you talk to. There are many things in Wicca that come from older religions, some even argue that the aspect of the mother Goddess can be traced as far back as caveman times from cave paintings of their main deity: the Fertility Goddess. Wicca is a fairly new religion, but just like many others, it definitely has roots in older beliefs.

Magic/Magick/Majik are basically all the same thing. Unedited hit the nail on the head with her explanation. The only difference with the spelling comes from people (I believe it was Crowley who started spelling it Magick first) spelling it either Magick or Majik as a means of differentiating it from illusionists Magic.

[Master Vigil]

Well it is a goddess religion. But the male wiccans I have met worship both gods, while the female wiccan I have met "Usually" worship just the goddess. Also, I know a male wiccan is called a witch as well. I know ALOT of male wiccans who hate that (Because of its feminine nature), and prefer wiccan to witch. Just my opinion.

[Unedited]

Originally Posted by Master Vigil

Well it is a goddess religion. But the male wiccans I have met worship both gods, while the female wiccan I have met "Usually" worship just the goddess. Also, I know a male wiccan is called a witch as well. I know ALOT of male wiccans who hate that (Because of its feminine nature), and prefer wiccan to witch. Just my opinion.

I think most female Wiccans still worship or celebrate the God, but their patron god may be more likely female. I guess that depends on personal belief and tradition though, and my knowledge tends to be fairly limited to my own.

I've noticed too that males seem to prefer Wiccan to witch. It's important to note though, that the two aren't interchangeable, but it still usually works. I had a friend, or rather more of an acquaintance who was a "Christian witch" who called herself a Wiccan. But usually the two terms come hand-in-hand and in my experience, it's more likely to find a Wiccan who's not a witch, than a witch who's not a Wiccan.

The Goddess is emphasized, but I really hate that. I think there are a lot of Wiccans who grew up worshipping a male god, so that when they became Wiccans, they were eager to be able to worship the Goddess, and though the Goddess is inherently emphasized, it seems like the God completely disappears sometimes. I think I'm the only female Wiccan I know who has a male patron god. Of course I really don't know that many Wiccans.

[kreeden]

I think that Unedited pegged it when she said that the male aspect of God overshadows the female in most religions , so it is kinda natural for the female aspect to shine brighter in Wicca . But that doesn't mean there isn't one .

And yes C1 , it was Crowley who coined the Magick spelling .

[Prima]

I think you would like the 'Myth vs Fact' thread.

The media is ridiculous. Look at this: the number of Muslim females (girls worshiping what is generally considered a 'male' god)

Why should males worshipping the Goddess be any more 'wrong' or unusual?

[fabbers]

Wicca is in no way a girl religion. there are just as many male wiccans as girls.

no wiccans do not worship just one god and goddess. we worship many gods. from different pantheons.

the real word for magic.

they are rituals or bessings that wiccans do.

circles of energy enhancing spells and rituals

because i feel that it is better than christianity. christans try to destroy other religions, like wicca.

[Jaiket]

Originally Posted by fabbers

because i feel that it is better than christianity. christans try to destroy other religions, like wicca.

I read into it a little and as far as I can see Christians have never tried to destroy wicca or wiccans. Have I missed something?

BTW there are countless religions besides Christianity, what attracted you to wicca?

[Jaiket]

Originally Posted by Unedited

What is magic? Wow...that's different for every Wiccan. I personally believe that magic is a force that's everywhere. It's an energy that is in everything as a part of the Goddess, of the divine. Some prefer majik or magick so that it differs from the media view of it, I prefer to not use the word at all, and simply call it energy.

A spell is like a pray in which a Wiccan asks for something. It usually consists of casting a circle, lighting candles, calling the quarters, and doing and saying things specific to the spell.

A circle is used when performing a spell to protect those inside. You have to be careful when dealing with engery whether you believe in physical consequencies, or mental ones.

These answers seem quite consistent with the rest.

If magic is different for every wiccan, how do you know you're all talking about the same thing?

You've defined spells as being like a prayer. Praying has always mystified me, what do these spells entail? Why candles?

Circles are used to protect those inside. Protect from what exactly? What protection does a circle on the ground offer?