Principles of Wiccan Belief
The following was written in 1974 by the Council of American Witches. This pretty much sums up the general beliefs of a wiccan, though there are many more beliefs added on depending on your tradition and/or personal beliefs.
Since it may be hard for some of you to follow what the council is trying to say, I have included my interpretation of the principles of belief in italics. Please note that I will interrupt here and there to comment on what I believe the council is saying.
Principles of Belief
The Council of American Witches finds it necessary to define modern Witchcraft in terms of the American experiance and needs.
We are tired of being misunderstood. Lets list what we as American Witches believe so that we can get past this satan-worshipping witches are evil thing.
We are not bound by traditions from other times and other cultures, and owe no allegiance to any person or power greater than the Divinity manifest through our own being.
As we are a newer religion, wiccans do not always exactly follow the beliefs of the older traditions of witchcraft. We often take peices from this and pieces from that. We claim that no one is our leader.
As American Witches, we welcome and respect all life-affirming teachings and traditions, and seek to learn from all and to share our learning within our council.
We like learning about all different types of witchcraft, and do not think that any type of witch is "more of a witch" than another.
It is in this spirit of welcome and cooperation that we adopt these few principles of Wiccan Belief. In seeking to be inclusive, we do not wish to open ourselves to the destruction of our group by those on self-serving power trips, or to philosophies and practices contradictory to these principles. In seeking to exclude those whose ways are contradictory to ours, we do not want to deny participation with us to any who are sincerely interested in our knowledge and beliefs, regardless of race, color, sex age, national or cultural origins or sexual preferance.
Here is what we believe... people that claim to be witches who do not follow these principles of belief are not to be representative of the entire group as a whole..
We therefore ask only that those who seek to identify with us accept these few basic principles:
If you want to call yourself a witch, please first make sure that you believe the following things:
1. We Practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rythm of the forces marked by the phases of the Moon and the seasonal quarters and cross-quarters.
Our holidays and sabbaths are designed around nature and the changing of seasons, moon phases, etc. We see everything as having a certain pattern: life, death, rebirth...spring, summer, autumn, winter...
2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility toward our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in ecological balance offering fulfillment to life and consciousness with an evolutionary concept.
Since we love nature, we don't want to abuse our environment! We don't fling trash everywhere! We don't cut down rainforests! I am sure that the ancient druids would have recycled...
3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than is apparent to the average person. Because it is far greater than ordinary, it is sometimes called "supernatural", but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all.
We believe in all sorts of supernatural things. Everyone has the potential to use supernatural abilities, it just takes some work to unlock them.
4. We conceive of the Creative Power in the Universe as manifesting through polarity- as masculine and femanine- and that this same creative Power lives in all people, and functions through the interaction of the masculine and femanine. We value neither abover the other, knowing each to be supportive of the other. We value sexuality as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of Life, and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practice and religious worship.
Males and femals are equal. One could not exist without the other. We view our god(s) this way. Generally, wiccans believe in a duality (two gods who are a perfect compliment to each other). Most wiccans believe that the goddess is the mother of creation and the god is the protecting father. Some believe that they are two faces of the same force (one god). Wiccans believe that sex is not a bad thing, and acknowledge that it creates a massive ammount of potential energy, which is sometimes used in the casting of spells. Wiccans realize that we should have sex responsibly, but we do not view it as shrouded in evil.
5. We recognize both outer worlds and inner, or psychological worlds- sometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconscious, the Inner Planes, etc. -and we see in the interaction of these two dimensions the basis for paranormal phenomena and magickal exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other, seeing both as neccesary for our fulfillment.
The truth is out there.
6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, respect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom, and acknowledge those who have courageously given of themselves in leadership.
We don't follow any sort of a "head of the entire religion" (like the pope), but we do pay respect to those who have learned from experiance things that we have not yet learned in our lifetime. So, we have priests and priestesses, but they do not have the ultimate decision in things.
7. We see religion, magick, and wisdom-in-living as being united in the way one views the world and lives within it- a world view and philosophy of life, which we identify as Witchcraft or the Wiccan Way.
One is not merely a witch by learning about witchcraft, it is a way of life. You have to live it.
8. Calling oneself "witch" does not make a Witch- but neither does heredity itself, or the collecting of titles, degrees, and initiations. A Witch seeks to control the forces within him/herself that make life possible in order to live wisely and well, without harm to others, and in harmony with nature.
Once again, wicca is a way of life...
9. We acknowledge that it is the affirmation and fulfillment of life, in a continuation of evolution and development of consciousness, that gives meaning to the Universe we know, and to our personal role within it.
The meaning of life is simply...to LIVE! To live and learn, and we must always cherish both things.
10. Our only animosity toward Christianity, or toward any other religion or philosophy of life is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be "the one true right and only way" and have sought to deny freedom to others and to suppress other ways of religious practices and belief.
We don't go out christian bashing...that is very disrespectful, please don't do it. We do not hate christians, we are not their natural enemies, nor are we the enemies of any other religious organization. We do not like attempts at converting us to another faith, but just remember... there is more than one spiritual path. You have chosen yours, and they have chosen theirs. They don't mean to offend you, they are just trying to save you from a fiery doom. That is what they believe. You believe what you believe.
11. As American Witches, we are not threatened by debates on the history of the Craft, the origins of various terms, the legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We are concerned with our present, and our future.
The history of witchcraft doesn't really matter anymore, because it is over and done with. Wicca has almost been reinvented in modern times, and that is what we should concentrate on...not stupid nitpicky arguments over what should and shouldn't be.
12. We do not accept the concept of "absolute evil," nor do we worship any entity known as "Satan" or "the Devil" as defined by Christian Tradition. We do not seek power through the suffering of others, nor do we accept the concept that personal benefits can only be derived by denial to another.
We don't worship Satan. We never have, and we never will. We don't even BELIEVE in Satan... Wiccans believe that to give evil a name is to give it power. We believe that we are responsible for our own actions... there is no evil lord out there somewhere pulling on our strings and tempting us. We do believe in evil, but we do not worship it, or anything to do with it.
13. We work within Nature for that which is contributory to our health and well-being.
We know that nature can help us out if we will only take time to study it, appreciate it, and preserve it.
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