- "...witchcraft is seen to be anything
from a cool hobby to a way to get a cute guy to notice you."
-
-
- If you have got a teenage daughter at
your house, chances are she's a Sabrina fan.
-
- Each week, she probably tunes in to watch
the bewitching antics on TV shows like Sabrina The Teenage Witch and Charmed.
-
- Whether it's just a fad, teen rebellion
or a genuine curiosity, there's a resurgence of interest in witchcraft
or Wicca, particularly among teenage girls.
-
- "In a poll of the top 60 interests
of teenage girls, witches are No. 1. It's the fastest-growing spiritual
practice in the United States," says Phyllis Curott, a New York City
civil rights lawyer and Wiccan high priestess.
-
- "There are lots of teenage girls
and young women in the crowds at my book signings," she says, referring
to her recently published Book Of Shadows (Broadway Books, $35.95), which
tells of her 20-year exploration as a member of the Wicca religion.
-
- Feminine Goddess
-
- Witchcraft is a pre-Judeo-Christian religion,
which recognizes the sacred in the natural world and experiences the divine
in a feminine goddess. A witch, like a shaman or priestess, is someone
who has discovered the goddess both within the world and within her/himself.
-
- However, mainstream religions remain
skeptical that Wicca can deliver real meaning to people.
-
- "Young people often have to go through
their own search for life's meanings. But are they asking the ultimate
truth questions and finding real answers?" wonders Suzanne Scorsone,
communications director of the Archdiocese of Toronto.
-
- She likens people's interest in Wicca
to a fascination with fairytales. "The problem is when fantasy is
taken as reality. The shows are okay as long as people don't take it too
seriously," she says.
-
- "Judaism has two attitudes to witchcraft,"
says professor Martin Lockhsin, associate director of the Centre of Jewish
Studies at York University. "One group believes witchcraft doesn't
exist; that its powers are the result of trickery. The other camp says
the powers do exist, but Jews aren't supposed to use them. We're to relate
to God through the Bible."
-
- "I got into learning about Wicca
because of Sabrina. I also like Charmed," says Megan, 19, of Mississauga,
who has checked out Web sites and read books on the subject.
-
- She's found the Wiccan religion has very
little to do with hocus pocus and casting spells. "After reading some
stuff, I realized they really overdo it on TV," she says.
-
- Wicca is part of the New Age movement,
as many people search for alternatives to traditional religions.
-
- "Teenage girls are attracted to
Wicca because it offers a feminine perspective. If they don't belong to
a formal church, they seek a model to provide dignity as a woman,"
says David Reed, professor of theology at Wycliffe College/U of T.
-
- Some parents are concerned their kids
will be putting spells on people or worshiping Satan.
-
- "We don't believe in a devil, we
certainly don't worship one," says Curott.
-
- "Adult fears are overstated because
of response to the word 'witch', which is linked to the demonic,"
says Reed. "However, while white Wicca is good, we have to be careful
about people opening up to a dimension of the spiritual world which is
demonic."
-
- There are "tens of thousands"
of Wiccans across the country, says Tamarra James, high priestess of the
Wiccan Church of Canada.
-
- "Whenever there's a new movie, we
do get a spurt of interest from teenagers, but most of the increasing membership
I see is from 20 to 30-year-olds," says James. "They find out
about Wicca and say, 'Yes, that's what I'm looking for.' "
-
- Although men make up about 40% of membership,
Wicca is particularly attractive to women.
-
- "What it offers is a very strong
emblem of the divine feminine. Women in our faith are not second-class.
They can have a calling and answer as priests," says James. "It's
good for men, too, who are trying to get out of the old stereotypes."
-
- Do these TV shows help remove misconceptions
about witchcraft or reinforce existing stereotypes?
-
- Divine Energy
-
- "From a witch's standpoint, they
do have positive qualities because they portray witches as basically good,
not Devil-worshippers. But the negative side is that witchcraft is seen
to be anything from a cool hobby to a way to get a cute guy to notice you.
They use witchcraft in silly ways, which degrades my religion," says
Chad, a member of the U.S.-based Witches League for Public Awareness.
-
- Wiccans say casting spells doesn't involve
women wearing pointy hats or putting a hex on someone. In fact, it's a
form of meditation and prayer which draws upon divine energy.
-
- "Everyone's always interested in
love spells," says Deborah Levin, a Toronto witch and psychic who
recently entered the real estate business, because so many people asked
her for advice on buying the right home. But it's not like TV portrayals,
in which a girl puts a spell on the gorgeous football player so he'll fall
in love with her.
-
- "Maybe it would work if he's already
got you in his thoughts. The best thing to do with a love spell is put
a general call out to the universe to send somebody your way," she
says.
-
-
- School Alters Policy To Recognize
Witch
- www.foxnews.com 3-23-99
-
-
- DETROIT - A suburban Michigan high school settled a lawsuit with the
American Civil Liberties Union Monday, allowing an honor student who practices
witchcraft to wear the symbols of her religion to class.
-
- Lincoln Park High School, located in
a blue-collar community south of Detroit, changed its policy so that 17-year-old
Crystal Siefferly can wear a pentagram, a symbol important to her Wicca
religion.
-
- "I'm glad it's over,'' the senior
honor-roll student said in a statement. "The longer it went on and
the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it wasn't just about
me and just about Wicca. It was about a lot of other people and religions.''
-
- Lincoln Park High School in recent months
banned witches, white supremacists and Satanists, as well as black nail
polish, vampire style makeup and pentagrams. Under the ban, the accessories
would be confiscated if they were worn to school and the student suspended
indefinitely.
-
- The ACLU sued the high school on Siefferly's
behalf in U.S. District Court in Detroit last month calling the ban unlawful.
-
- Monday, ACLU Michigan Executive Director
Kary Moss said school officials were "very reasonable in recognizing
that this (Wicca) is a religion.''
-
- Pentagrams are five-pointed stars enclosed
in a circle, a symbol of air, fire, water, earth and spirit.
-
-
- Mime-Version: 1.0
- To: neff1@mindspring.com
- From: eotl@west.net
- Subject: witchcraft:is it a problem?
- Date: Sat, 27 Mar 1999 13:22:56 -0800
(PST)
-
- Pls post as Comment to witch story about
girls...
-
-
-
- Comment
- From Katherine Q. Nick <spike@tyler.net
- 3-27-99
-
-
- The article on witchcraft is curious
and I just couldn't ignore it. I am a practicing witch. My question is,
So? Any female worth her estrogen is going to gravitate towards a religion
that values women. Ya gotta admit that the mainstream religions classify
women as second class and worse. The article seemed to indicate that witchcraft
is something negative and all the "young girls" should be locked
up the protect them from this evil.
-
- Come on, Jeff, you know how people react
to "witchcraft." Most people believe what if you are a witch,
well, you just gotta believe in Satan. That is a myth kept alive by all
of Christendom. If anyone wants to learn the truth about witchcraft all
they have to do is turn their dial to www.witchvox.com. That is the best
place to read about what being a witch is all about.
-
- Witchcraft can be negative. But then,
I can't think of anything more negative than the christians who called
themselves Nazis. Can you?
-
- The Satanists like to call themselves
witches. They can call themselves anything they want to, but a person
who worships Satan is a Satanist.
-
- Real witches aren't Satanists. Real
witches are real people, male and female alike, who love mother earth and
would like to see her continue.
-
- Sincerely,
Spike
|
