"All of them witches"...

by Preston 15 Replies latest jw experiences

• 

  Preston

  "All of them witches" was the name of the book that Mia Farrow read in in the film "Rosemary's Baby" which eventually lead her to believe that Ruth Grodon, Ralph Bellamy, and several other actors from the 40's and 50's rooming in her apartment were Satan-worshippin' wiitches. In this day in age I think people who are witches in real life have to live with various stereotypes permeated from movies, t.v. shows, and whatnot. Personally, I see it here at JW.com when the expression "Witchtower" is used to pejoratvely describe the WBTS.

  For the past two months I have been dating soemone and over the weekend he said that he had something very important to say to me, and he wanted to meet. Well, last Friday he told me that he was a witch and he asked me if this was something that I could accept from him as a significant part of his life. Even though I am a skeptic at heart, I told him that I would be able to accept this part of him.

  I would like to share with you guys what I've learned about witches. Apparently the word "witch" comes from the word Wicca which means "wise person". In ancient colonies witches were viewed as healers who held a significant positions within each town. People often associate witches with spells, and witches take spells very seriously. My bf says that spells are granted by the "powers that be" in order to grant some kind of outcome to a person (good or bad). In either case, the person making the spell has to live with the outcome of each spell through what happens in the witch's prospective lifetime, or the one to come (I guess he's talking about karma). He also told me that the individual spiritual journey of a witch is something that is personal rather than something which is dictated by a church or organization. Personally, although I'm a skeptic, I'm happy that he enlightened me with what it means to be a witch. With that in mind I would like to hear from some of you here if you have anything to add in order to help me to understand further what being a witch is all about...anyone, anyone?
• 

  raven101

  CLARITY OF VISION
• 

  COMF

  On a pedantic note:

  witch
  n. A woman claiming or popularly believed to possess magical powers and practice sorcery.

  war·lock
  n. A male witch, sorcerer, wizard, or demon.

  - The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  "Can you believe there are still people suckering for this shit? Hehehe!"
  - J.R. Brown
• 

  crawdad2

  he sounds like a great guy, so far!!!!!
• 

  Silverleaf

  Hi Preston,

  Nice to meet you. My husband is Wiccan and I have studied Wicca for several years, though I consider myself an Ecclectic Pagan, and somewhat of a Kitchen Witch, though I am not Wiccan.

  Your boyfriend is right about the journey being a personal one and it is not dictated by a church, it comes from the self and is guided by the self. Not all witches cast spells but those that do so must understand the serious nature of their actions and never do anything to harm someone else. If you ask 10 witches what it means to be a witch you will get 11 answers [at least].

  The best thing you can do is read a lot about it, the internet is a good beginning source and ask your boyfriend if he has books on the subject [likely he's got a budding library] or check out the New Age and Spirituality section of the book store.

  Also: 'warlock' is word that means oathbreaker, male witches are witches not warlocks.

  Best wishes, and if you have any more questions, just ask!

  Silverleaf
• 

  b_ster

  The best website - (IMHO) - http://www.witchvox.org
• 

  Xander

  The warlock = witch vs warlock = oathbreaker debate is long and interesting.

  In short, the word 'warlock' exists in no language prior to English. IIRC, the ?celts? have a word that sounds a lot like 'warlock' used to describe someone the churches used to infiltrate the covens to destroy them, hence, 'oathbreaker'. Whereas, the ?Vikings? have a word that sounds a lot like 'warlock' that means, male witch.

  It seems no one is sure where the English 'warlock' came from, so itsa tossup. In short, it means whatever you want it to mean.

  Xander F
  (Unseen Apostate Directorate of North America - Ohio order)

  A fanatic is one who, upon losing sight of his goals, redoubles his efforts.
  --George Santayana
• 

  Lindy

  My daughter is a witch, pagan. She is not Wiccan, although she explored that first. There is a difference. Like someone said, male witches are not warlocks. The journey is individual, and thus the coven, church, or group, supports each member on their journey of self-awareness. A lot of exJWs seem to gravitate towards being pagan, or becoming wiccan. My youngest daughter has been going to the rituals recently and my son, my eldest child is also pagan, and has been for a long time. Their church has rituals each month. They also have other celebrations they attend. I have not attended a ritual yet. I have no real interest in replacing JWdom with anything else. I will probably go eventually, just to check it out, but I have doubts that it will be anything permanent. i have no inner need for any sort of organized belief system at this time.
  People feel a need to belong, and some feel the need for belonging to a spiritual group. Paganism is just another way to explore your spirituality. Don't be afraid of it, it is just another diversity that the world has to offer. Read up on it, it is very interesting.

  Here's my daughter's site: < http://www.geocities.com/tinkastar (Her kid's site which has stuff spelled out in simplicity so that children can understand it, but is good for adults too.) or
  < http://www.geocities.com/tinkarae which is her personal site with pagan links on it. Hope this helps.

  As Always,
  Lindy
• 

  DevonMcBride

  I have been an electic witch for 10 years and studied witchcraft with my mother since I was a kid. My father has been studying the Kabbalah for a few years.

  Unlike what many believe, especially JW's, Witches are not bad people and are not Satanic in anyway, shape or form. Witchcraft is a positive Earth religion that believes in the laws of Karma. Our actions both positive and negative come back three-fold.

  There is even a web site for ex-Jehovah's Witness who are now Pagan. www.exjwpagans.org

  Devon McBride
• 

  Jewel

  Preston,

  I've been exploring paganism and Wicca. Witchvox is a great place to go for information. This can be VERY scary to an XJW because we have been given this paganism=demonism indoctrination.

  In fact, paganism usually has NOTHING to do with Satan or demons. In most cases, Satan is not even recognized as an entity at all (one of the things that was a wonderful revelation to me!)

  I'm not Wiccan (I have this fear of organized religions of all sorts-wonder where that came from <G>) but have a couple of very dear friends that are Wiccan. Their most important rule (and one followed by some other pagan traditions as well) is: An it harm none, do as ye will. Not that far from "Do unto others..." and it pretty much precludes sacrificing babies and that sort of thing that the WTBTS (and others for that matter) will tell you is part of paganism.

  Another big thing is the absolute LACK of proseletyzing (sp???) Your boyfriend might invite you along or give you information, but if he's serious he won't push you anywhere you don't want to go.

  Jewel