This is what was once given as common knowledge about the Craft.  It was once on Catala Silvermoon's website, and many people (myself included in my youthful naivety) took this as gospel truth.  Much more information has become available since 1998, especially on the history of Wicca, Witchcraft and Paganism in general.  I'll reprint what was innocently given as fact, in its entirety. Please remember this is just to show what some people still believe even today.

~ Ravenna

The history of Witchcraft has been so tainted by historians throughout the years, in articles and books so blatantly filled with prejudice and fear, that it's hard to uncover the truth.  But as more and more brave souls step forward and proudly proclaim themselves as Witches, we learn more about our ancestry.

Comment from the WebMistress, Ravenna: She has one good point - the history of Witchcraft has been tainted - by pagans, Wiccans, and Christians alike.  Everyone has their own opinion about the true history of Witchcraft, and it really is hard to sift through the crap to find the good stuff.

Tens of thousands of years ago, our ancestors lived close to the land.  They hunted and harvested fruits and seeds from their environment, and their respect for the creatures sharing the Earth was a constant point of reference in their day-to-day existence.  Because the world of our ancestors was a magical place filled with the spirits of plants and animals, and because their experience had shown them that cooperation with nature was more efficient than working alone, it was only natural that a bond of cooperation with nature would be sought by them.  Thus was born the world's oldest religion: Witchcraft.  During the follow centuries this religion developed naturally and easily to fit the needs of the People.  As closer bonds were developed with nature, rituals became more complex and the ability to accurately communicate with nature spirits was designated to The Wicca - which means "the wise ones".  These men and women held the secrets for the community, sharing wisdom and power and leading the rituals during the Sabbats - the holy days that mark the turning of the wheel of the year.

Hi! It's me again, the friendly neighborhood WebMistress!  Wow, this woman made one heck of a leap in her logic in this paragraph!  For one, we really don't know what the lives of our ancestors were really like, we weren't there.  All we can do is make speculations and guesses on their lives, spirituality and other stuff.  Then she just jumped one heck of a chasm and said that our ancestors were Witches... ummm no, sorry dear, that's been shown as wrong.  And that is not the correct meaning of "wicca"... heck! I'm not exactly sure what the word really means... suppose I should look it up one of these days.

With the advent of Christianity, several things changed and we feel those repercussions even today.  This new, man-made religion focused on a single God as opposed to a pantheon of Goddesses and Gods that had developed naturally over hundreds of generations.  According to Joseph Campbell, monotheism is the single most dangerous idea humans have ever had because this new God is a being we cannot relate to in any way.  Rather than interacting with people, this God dictates from a position of formlessness and timelessness.  This God has no personality to relate to, no idiosyncrasies to show us that our own quirks are acceptable.  Is it any wonder that the monks, nuns, missionaries, bishops and priests of the early church were seen as erratic, pointless souls lost in a belief they could neither explain nor understand?

Sorry, dear, wrong again.  All religions are man-made, regardless of whom you choose to worship.

The spread of Christianity was not as lightening fast as our history books would have us believe.  Rather, women and men of power were converted first and the force of their will was imposed on the People - sometimes on entire countries.  When the People refused to give up the Old Religion, Pope Gregory the Great issued an order to destroy the sites of worship associated with the Old Religion and replace them with Christian churches.  The Old Religion was seen as a rival to the Christian march toward world domination, so the ugly rumors began in earnest.  No one could have been more surprised at the accusations of "devil-worship" directed at the Pagans than the Pagans themselves.  Until the moment they were cursed, they had no concept of the devil.  Satan was a Christian import and the history books are full of examples of the "winner-take-all" philosophy of the Christians.  Throughout history the Gods of the defeated became the devils of the victors, and so it was in this case.  The Great One, the Horned God Herne (or, later, Cernunnos) became the epitome of Satan - horned, cloven hooves, etc. By the time Pope Innocent VIII took office, the cards were stacked against our ancestors and the followers of the Old Religion.  Pope Innocent issued a Bull against Witches in 1484.  And in the 1486 two German monks submitted a filthy, obscene, personally-conceived document against Witches that changed the course of history.  This document is called the Malleus Malleficarum, or "The Witch's Hammer" - a title that still sends chills up and down the spine of pagans and Witches today.  The holocaust against Witches began in earnest with its publication, and this time of hysteria is called "the Burning Times" (ironically, their manuscript was rejected by the Theosophical Council as "crazy" and the monks forged the signatures of approval: a fact that was not made public for over 400 years).

During the Burning Times, an estimated nine million Witches were killed by their Christian brothers, sisters, spouses, and neighbors.  Even today you cannot publicly announce the fact that you are a Witch without fear of severe and often brutal repercussion, depending on where you live in the world.  But the times are changing and the Goddess is reawakening.  The power of Herne is calling us, children of the Earth, and many of us are answering, but not with vengeance or hatred.  We are answering with the Witch's Rede:

"An it harm none, do what thou wilt."

Now it's my turn - Ravenna here, speaking back at you readers:

So this is a lovely story to tell by the fireside at night, but that's all these words are... a story.  Much has been learned in the past few years, and when I came across Catala's website in 1998, this was what was commonly believed.  Now we know more about the "Burning Times", we have a more accurate portrayal of what really might have happened, a more accurate death count.  Yes, a lot of people died, and yes, most of them were women, but they weren't the only victims.

Wicca was created by Gerald Gardner in the 1950's.  In truth, it is only around 60 years old, but that doesn't mean it's any less credible than any other religion out there.  All religions are man-made, and somewhere, at sometime, some person created a religion (even Christianity).  Religion is born from ideas and a need for fellowship.  That isn't necessarily a bad thing.  Good things have come from those ideas.  Hope, fellowship, love and trust are some of those good things.  Bad things, too.  It's part of human nature... for every good thing done in the name of religion, there are 2 more bad things done in the name of that same religion.