Matriarchy and/or Patriarchy: The Historical Record

Matriarchy and/or Patriarchy: The Historical Record

Author: Helio 
Posted: January 1st. 2012 
Times Viewed: 1,141 

In modern Wicca and Neo-Pagan Goddess worship in general there is a big push to emphasize the idea that once upon a time all peoples were matriarchal and worshipped the divinity solely in female form. Then, at the dawn of the high civilizations, “Men” took control of the tribes and formed warlike cities, and they demonized the goddess and replaced her with an unloving Sky God. Patriarchy was instituted and the unwarlike goddess worshippers were either crushed or enslaved into a kind of early serfdom. 

How May I Serve You Today?

How May I Serve You Today?

Author: Deborah Castellano 
Posted: January 8th. 2012 
Times Viewed: 1,115 

I think service can be a difficult concept to our community because there are obvious services that many of us do not do… helping at a soup kitchen or a domestic violence helpline, volunteering in Haiti, etc. We all feel we should be doing these things but most of us don’t. And because we keep holding ourselves to standards we may not ever be able to reach (yeah, ask me how becoming a Girl Scout Leader is going) because of our busy lives, we hamstring ourselves from having the opportunity to give small services. If you do big services like I listed above, you are truly an angel. But many of us get too bogged down in our daily lives and it can be challenging to get involved in a larger more global cause. To that I say two things:

You Do Not Represent Me

You Do Not Represent Me

Author: Crick [a WitchVox Sponsor] 
Posted: February 19th. 2012 
Times Viewed: 1,189 

You know folks, I am getting pretty fed up with individuals and groups claiming to represent all of paganism. To begin with what is it that such entities are supposed to represent? The current reality of the pagan community is a massive chat group spread across the Internet. An electronic format where anyone can jump on and make whatever claims they desire in regards to their alleged pagan heritage. It is a format where folks can claim to be this or that, you know, the High Lord of the coven of Bologna. The only requirement is that they read two Cunningham books. It is a format where folks will sprout words like “Love and Light”, words that resonate the slogans of the old hippie days from the 60’s.

Solitary -vs- Coven

Traditionally, belonging to a coven was the only way to learn the Witchcraft. Thankfully that is no longer the case. Thanks to a large number of people who have published their book of shadows, tutorials, etc., it is now possible to learn the arts alone. 

The concepts of healing, harmony, and balance are all key to the green witch’s practice and outlook on life. These concepts embody three distinct focuses:

1. The earth ( your local environment, as well as the planet)
2. Humanity (in general, as well as your local community and circles of friends and acquaintances)
3. Yourself

A green witch isn’t defined by where they live or what they do to bring home a paycheck. Nor are they limited to working with plants, trees, or herbs. They are not, as people might assume, defined solely by the particular way they express their spirituality or by the religion they follow. A green witch is defined by their relationship to the world around them, by their ethics, and by their affinity with the natural world. In essence, they live the life of a green witch: they live the green path.

*Why do I use the term “living the green path” instead of simply saying “practicing green witchcraft”? It’s very simple. Green witchcraft is not a practice seperate from ordinary life, like ritual magic, for example; it is an all-encompassing, total-immersion experience wherein all of life is a magical experience.*

The path of the green witch consists of aspects of both witchcraft and shamanic practice, but is neither. It is an intensely personal path that integrates ability, likes and dislikes, the climate of your particular geographic location, and your interaction with the energy of your environment. It isn’t a tradition so much as a personal adaptation of an ideal.

Over the next days…. I’m going to be posting excerpts from a book I am using with my girls here in the valley to work on their skills as “Green Witches” called “The Way of the Green Witch, Rituals, Spells and Practices to bring you back to nature” by Ann Murphy-Hiscock

Examples of posts will be 

• what is a “Green Witch” 
• The Modern Green Witch
• Elements of the Green Witch’s Path
• Listening to the Earth
• The Four Seasons
• Twigs, Leaves, Stars, and Stones
• Crafting Green Witch Magic
• The Garden of the Green Witch
• Teas, Oils, Baths, and Other Potions: Healing with Green
• The Green Witch in the Kitchen
• Expanding the Green Witch Circle
• The Seven Central Energies of the Green Witch’s Path

I will be including exercises designed to help you get a feel for “Green Magic” and even how to do it in cities as well as where we are located in the beautiful mountains. As I said this is the same material that I am using with my 18 girls here and have been and continue to use myself, MANY on a daily basis. 

While titled for “Green Witches” this incorporates many of the same teaching as pagan, wiccans, druids, and many other nature based beliefs. I will also be changing the gender associations within the excerpts since they are all feminine and there ARE male witches.

I hope you enjoy the series and the many blessings that will come from it if you choose to use some of the information for your own life path.

Blessed Be