When I sat down to write this installment of "Notes," I set out to do something towards completing the requirements toward my first degree. To that end, I chose to do a piece on the Goddess and the moon. I struggled with it for days and days with nothing materializing. My good friend, my workaholic subconscious, apparently went either on strike or on vacation. So I ran the idea by my editor, who said the same thing I was feeling, "It just doesn't grab me." Then she suggested I do a piece on whether the Craft and/or Wicca should try to find acceptance as a mainstream religion.
Zowee! That was it - my blood pressure rose, my eyes opened wide, and I'll be damned if I didn't get a hard-on over it. It grabbed me.
To be, or not to be.... What was the question?
When I got to thinking about it, there was one real glaring problem. To ask whether the Craft/Wicca should try to find acceptance as a religion presupposes that one is in the Craft/Wicca for religious purposes. Is that what attracted you to the Craft? Not me. Oh, at first I saw it as an avenue to further develop on my spiritual path, having served as a minister in an unorthodox Christian faith for many years. I guess when I honestly assess my position after a little more than a year, I have to say that Goddess worship does not appeal to me. I find it to be empty. No - worse. I find it hollow - a political shell largely created by feminists to contain the vacuum left by Christianity when it decided to dominate and exclude, rather than provide for, its minority constituents, such as women and homosexuals. I realize that what I've said here is probably going to piss off a lot of people, but hey! I'm entitled to my opinions. And no, my editors don't agree with me.
So why am I still part of the Craft? I'm here simply for the magic and the mysticism. That statement alone got me into an argument with a Canadian fellow this last year at Spring Mysteries Festival. He was appalled when I told him that ceremonial magick appealed to me because I didn't want to involve myself with the "religion" of paganism. (FYI: I'm not a ceremonialist, but I do draw heavily upon ceremonial magick in my private workings.)
Really, I wonder. How many people actually come into the Craft/Wicca as a religious expression instead of for the supernatural aspects? I don't personally know any. I have a feeling that many of us saw the esoteric side of our lives manifesting through actual psychic experiences, or at least a hearty interest in them, found the Craft/Wicca and just adopted the Goddess business that goes along with it.
Off the sideroad and into the mainstream
All right, just for the sake of argument, let's say that I am in the Craft for that ol' time religion. What benefits does mainstreaming bring along with it... and what drawbacks?
Well, before anything else, I would have to realize that mainstreaming works on two different levels - the first being on a personal level, which is the most easily apparent. I could wear my pentagram openly at work like Christians wear their crosses. I could legitimately ask for a day off for a religious holiday without pretending I was sick. I could openly call myself a pagan/witch/jujumeister without being afraid that my house was going to be firebombed, that I'd lose my job or that I'd lose custody of my children. The second level is broader, one that encompasses the entire Craft. There would be a greater influx of potential initiates. There would be protections for those in military service if you wanted classification as a conscientious objector. There would be less garbage on television about how witches are Satanists that breed babies and eat them. Or would there ? Hmmm....
Oh yes, I mentioned drawbacks. Well, the Craft/Wicca is already expanding at an unprecedented rate. If we become popular, like Christianity, would we have to set up social programs like it does? You know - food banks, thrift stores, mental health counseling (which wouldn't necessarily hurt). What next? Pagan bingo nights?
It wouldn't hurt us to have some good PR, anyway. Sam Wagar has advocated that pagan parents get involved with their local PTAs, block-watch groups and other community organizations and demonstrate that we are responsible parents and citizens. The idea is that if you demystify the people in the Craft, out goes the opposition party. At least, one can always hope.
At this point in time, I don't think it's a likely possibility that the Craft/Wicca is going to achieve any kind of universal acceptance. The American political landscape doesn't seem to be conducive to this sort of thing right now (think twice before you vote Republican). We also have the hundreds of years of bad press from religious organizations to work against, not to mention decades of awful movies Hollywood has produced, which have contributed strongly to people's prejudices. In this matter alone, our own legendary fractiousness works against us; we can't respond effectively to our enemies' attacks.
Regardless how you view the Craft/Wicca - as a religious expression, a philosophy, a magical practice or any combination of these - it's a duty each one of us has to create an open dialogue with those outside our circles. It all starts at home, folks. But I'm not talking about nonpagans here. If we can't accept ourselves, meaning other pagans, how can we expect the patriarchalists to welcome us? They'll just point to us and say, "Look at all the little creepy freakies; don't they light up the night sky so prettily?"
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