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To start out with, I'd like you to know that I don't believe in proselytizing. In other words, you'll never find me trying push my religion on you. I believe that everyone has their own path for each life. Witchcraft just happens to be my path for this life. I don't believe that there is only "one true religion." Divinity is like the hub of a wheel and each path or religion is a spoke on that wheel. How good would a wheel with only one spoke be?

The word "Witchcraft" literally means "The craft of the wise." Witches were the wise ones of the village. They were the doctors, lawyers, psychologists as well as religious leaders. We Pagan's have reclaimed the word in our persuit of Paganism.

A Witch is an initiate of Witchcraft, the priests and priestesses who have earned the right to call ourselves witch, through study, dedication, self evaluation and spiritual living.

As Witches, we honor the Earth and all its creatures, for Akasha is in everything. We celebrate the change of seasons and all the "mysteries" of nature around us.

The purpose of religion, basicly, is to explain why we're here. To some, it's the means of salvation. To others, practicing a religion is a way to keep the gods from being angry at you. Still others see religion as a device that brings about unity.

Witches and Pagans for that matter, also have a specific reason for being religious: to become a better person. We believe that it is better not to be religious at all if your religion does not help you grow as a person. "What is a good person?" In order to be a good person, we must ask answer that question. Most religions have many texts on what it takes to be a good person. Pagans, however, believe the following:

Do what you want, as long as it harms none.
this includes yourself.

This means that as long as you do no harm to anyone or anything, it doesn't matter what you do. Harm here is defined by anything that takes away, or works againstan individual's free will. It is, of course, impossible to exist or even cease to exist, without causing harm, so Wiccans look to fullfill this as close as possible, making choices based on what would cause the least harm and have the greatest overall positive effect. This basic concept is evedent in many religions. For example, in the Judeo-Christian religions, it is phrased as, "Love thy neighbor as thy self."

Wicca teaches self discipline, personal responsibility, kinship with our planet and its creator(s), open-mindedness and the virtues of diversity. There is no typical appearance, age, personality, or sex for Witches. (Contrary to popular belief, male Witches are not called warlocks. Warlock comes from an Old English term that means "oath breaker." Witches, male or female, are called Witches.) Put simply, a Witch is simply a person who practices Magic.

Magic is a combination of prayer and meditation that uses the energy within your body. Anyone can become a Witch, it doesn't involve any unique, "supernatural" powers or a magical set of ancestors. Witches come from all backgrounds: Pagan, Native American, Athiest, and even Christian. My mother is a Christian Witch. She'll never admit it, but she has a healing power that I have never seen in anyone before. Christian Witches are people who believe in God and the Salvation of Jesus Christ, yet they also believe in the power of Magic and the internal energy.

Witches acknowledge that there are positive and negative forms of magic. It is imposible for everything a person does to be positive to everyone, but it is the duty of a Witch to steer their Magic and their lives in a positive direction. The terms Black and White Witch is not acurate. True Witches would never intentionally cause harm to others.

What is Wicca? Wicca is a polytheistic Pagan religion. It involves honoring a Goddess and a God and reverence of the natural world. It is not a Satanic religion, as Satan is a creation of Judeo-Christian culter. We don't believe there is a Satan/Devil, or a Hell for that matter.

We are not bound by traditions from other times and other cultures, and we owe no allegiance to any person or power greater than the Divinity manifested through our own being. We welcome and respect all life-affirming teachings and traditions, and seek to learn from all and to share our learning with others.

We ask only that those who seek to identify with us, accept these few basic principles:

1. We practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the Moon and the seasonal quarters and cross-quarters.

2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us unique responsiblity toward our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, inecological balance offering fulfillment to life and consciousness within an evolutionary concept.
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 something called "supernatural," but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all.
4. We concieve of the Creative Power in the Universe as manifesting through plarity-as masculine and feminine-and that this same creative Power lives in all people and functions through the interaction of the masculine and feminine. We value neither above 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 magical practices and religious worship.
5. We recognize both outer worlds and inner, or psychological worlds sometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconsciousness and Inner Planes, etc., and we see in the interaction of these two dimensions, the basis for paranormal phenomena and magical exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other, seeing both as necessary for our fullfillment.
6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, respect those given of themselves in leadership.
7. We see religion, magic and wisdom-in-living as being united in the way one views the world and lives within it-aworld view and philosophy of life, which we identify as Witchcraft or the Wiccan Way.
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 makes life possible in order to live wisely and well, without harm to others and in harmony with Nature.
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.
10. Our only animosity toward other religions or philosophy-of-life, is to the extent that its institutions have clamed to be "the one true, right and only way" and have saught to deny freedom to others and to suppress other ways of religious practices and belief.
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.
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 Judeo-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.
13. We work within Nature for that which is contributory to our health and well-being.