What would an internet site be without the opinion of its crafter? Probably a lot more interesting. Unfortunately, most people feel the need to express their opinions on any given topic, and I share that fault, too.
For the most part, I can go about my humble existence without being too forceful or vociferous. However, certain issues arise that make it impossible to keep my mouth shut, or my opinion to myself.
The situation with cats in Singapore is one such issue. The Noah's Ark Animal Foundation Massacre , the deliberate burning of house cats in Indiana as an "innocent prank", and indeed the alarming increase in incidents of cruelty to animals worldwide are other issues I can't ignore. You'll find them addressed in this site by clicking on the highlighted text above.
To read the opinion of those OPPOSED to animal rights, CLICK HERE.
And the outraged rebuttals of those who support animal rights, HERE.

One topic in particular has arisen lately...one I hate to traffic in, but has become distastefully unavoidable. That topic is trying to explain Wicca and the Pagan religion to those who would view us as "devil worshippers," "troublemakers" and "evil-doers"; terms that absolutely make my blood boil. In a recent letter to a beloved friend--a Christian, who is delightfully true to that faith's tenets--I explained my personal take on Paganism and Wicca.
This is what I said:
"The best thing I can tell you about my faith is that, while you may consider the figures of Bast to be idols, icons or whatever, they are not that at all. Just as the Saints and Christian cross are not idols. They are symbols which bring our minds into contact with the spirituality they represent. Objects to focus consciousness...nothing more.
"I chose Bast because I feel that there is no creature on the planet other than the common cat capable of giving such unconditional love without surrendering its spirit, free will or dignity. To me, such characteristics are supreme. However, Bast is a mere analogy for what the faith truly represents...Nature. We worship our Mother, the Earth. We are of clay and unto clay we will return. She gives birth to us and she en-wraps our mortal bodies in Her mantle when our souls leave them behind. Everything of Hers is therefore sacred. The trees, the grass, the rocks, the mountains, the sky, the moon and sun, in fact every thing on the planet. The reason modern Pagans observe the traditional planting and harvest celebrations as our Sabbats--holy days--is to forever remind us--no matter how much stuff we humans attain, how much meaningless material wealth--we are of the Earth, we are merely creatures of this realm. We can fly to the moon, or find a cure for every disease, but we are still no greater and no lesser than a blade of grass. We hold dominion over nothing.
"These beliefs have been around for 10,000 years... long before the first primitive villages ever came into existence in Sumeria. It was born in a time when women were not subjugated, but were in the fields and forests farming and gathering along with their mates. A time when the feminine was held supreme because we have the ability to recreate ourselves as the Earth does. Women were the personification of the Earth and rebirth, and therefore the need for a divine purpose behind the phenomenon of our existence was deemed to be female. And, because there must be balance in all things as in Nature, the male essence was seen as the leader of the hunt, the planter of the seeds--in the fields of Mother Earth, and in women.
"Many Christians see the God as evil because his most ancient representations depict him with a hat or crown of horns. These horns are symbolic of the beasts that he hunted--most commonly, the elk--not some evil image created in the Dark Ages to terrorize the good and simple folk of the land into accepting the Christian faith under pain of torture and death. Most Pagans, my husband and myself included, keep the shed horn of an elk or deer on our altars to represent the male aspect of Nature...a symbol of respect acknowledging that only through both male and female joined equally can there be harmony and growth.
"The most misrepresented aspect of the Pagan faith is as a mesmerizing, seductive power bent on forcing people into our beliefs. This is a most ridiculous notion. We do not want to convert or solicit anyone. We do not proselytize--ever. If you are called, you will know it. The Pagan faith is not for any heart that knows prejudice, hatred or bigotry. If you find these in yourself, you are incapable of existing in the Pagan framework of thought. If you are incapable of taking things at face value without preconceived notions, incapable of joy in your daily life for the simplest of things...like a child who sees a butterfly for the first time...then you are not called. The Goddess does not want you. You are not being seduced or forced into 'doing Her will.' You are just here...no more. In a crude vernacular, you are not on the bus...and sadly, for many, not even at the bus stop.
"The cornerstone of the Pagan faith is free will. We are not driven to do the things we do by some external force, for good or ill. We do the things we do by the force of our own free will. That is why we do not believe in heaven or hell. Those are Christian ideations. Just as the Christian God and devil are ideations. They hold no more meaning to Pagans than mere characters in a book.
"Yet, the Christian faith throughout history has been one of brute force and subjugation. For so many who cannot conceive of what the universe would be without such beliefs, we are cast as players in their interpretation of reality. Fundamentalist belief, superstition and the media all serve to perpetuate only false and negative images of Paganism. It is forever a vexation for Pagans, like myself, who are 'practicing what they preach' by respecting and venerating the Earth and all Her creatures.
"Magick and rituals, spells and meditation are the same, no matter what faith a person defines them under. What the Christian faith thinks are evil conjurings and parlor tricks are the very same things that happen when Christians gather in a circle and hold hands to pray. They are raising the innate energy that resides in every single thing in the universe to make a change in circumstance. They are casting a spell, though they would rather die than admit to such a thing. A spell is a prayer used to redefine the energy that surrounds us and is us to make a change in circumstance. Nothing more, nothing less. We are not 'invoking the devil.' How can we when we do not even believe in its existence. To us, the devil is a fiction fabricated by persons of other belief systems.
"The saddest thing for most of us when we consider the Christian faith--and I was a true and loyal fundamentalist Christian for 25 years, carrying my bible everywhere with me--is that they had a leader of the most sublime nature...and he was killed for being so sublime.
"The man known as Joshua Bar Joseph--called Jesus by the Christians--personified the Pagan system of beliefs. He told people to be meek, turn the other cheek--no matter what-- to be humble, not to seek material wealth, not to kill, and above all to be joyful and love everything. And for this, he was brutally tortured, humiliated and murdered. Then, to add insult to injury, for centuries to come his humiliation has been displayed in the form of the cross...or worse yet, some jingoistic interpretation of a brutally abused, blond man nailed to a cross. The majority of Pagans are deeply offended by the cross for this very reason. Why remember such a magnificent and unparalleled life with such a horrid, nightmarish image? What's wrong with these images of him holding a lamb, or comforting children instead. That is the Jesus that inspired change in a troubled world, not the pitifully broken man destroyed by the very people he tried to love.
"Many people question our faith because we have no scriptural writ. We have no bible. For our faith, we don't need one. There is one true rule as ancient as the Pagan religion itself: if it harms NONE, then do what you will. Think about it. That isn't 'do unto others as they do unto you'...that would give you carte blanche to hurt and destroy if someone hurts and destroys you.
"The rule means, no matter what, don't harm anything. It's a very tough rule to live by. For even in a time of heavy weaponry, a word can still kill.
"The problem Pagans--and all other non-Christian faiths--have with the bible is that, while it is one of the most magnificently worded books of all time, it is just that...a book. It is a compilation of stories from different authors, different philosophies that covered millennia of time. It has been rewritten and reinterpreted countless times to uphold the regime of the moment. King James of England being only the most well know instance. How can anyone believe that it is word for word the writ of God?
"Human beings, sitting in a circle and told to whisper a story to their neighbor around that circle invariably do not have the same story by the time it has made its way around. How can it be remotely logical to assume that any story handed down over time is at all rooted in fact?
"The Quakers are wise to see the bible as the framework of ideas that inspire faith and proper living. Few other sects of the Christian faith can say the same.
"My own fundamentalist full gospel upbringing would have me believe that God sat down one century and penned the book Himself! Now, that isn't even feasible, much less believable.
"However, in a troubled world--and it has ever been so--humankind feels fragile and must find a crutch, a support system to help make sense of senseless things. Religion is that crutch. And, what should have been a remarkable force for unity has become just another excuse for mankind to humiliate, torture, persecute and murder each other. While humankind looks for excuses why they do such abominable things, they miss the point. Demons, devils, gods and saints don't make us do anything. We have been, and forever will be what we are: creatures of free will. We have no one to blame or praise for good deeds or evil, but our own selves.
"The first crack in the veneer of my Christian faith happened when my brethren insisted that even people like Ghandi were going to hell because they were nothing more than ignorant savages. All Catholics, Mormons, Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, Toaists, and Shintoist were all going to roast in the everlasting fires of hell. It was too much to even consider. People suffering damnation because they didn't subscribe to our particular brand of belief.
"The hypocrisy of so called organized religion inspired me to choose atheism for many years. I refused to be part of a system that perpetuated hatred, distrust, persecution and humiliation of anyone. Finding my Pagan self inspired me to a renewed faith in humankind and indeed the universe as a whole. It allowed me to cast off the hatred and resentment I had for my fellow humans for the transgressions I had suffered at their hands. It gave me a sense of unity with the Earth which I love.
"I chose also to study the Wiccan arts because I have recognized my abilities since I was a child for healing and precognition. Wicca, or witchcraft, teaches a system of harnessing such abilities and using them with reverence and respect. Above all, it teaches never to abuse them for ill. Every prayer that is said, every spell that is cast must be considered deeply. The old phrase, 'what goes around comes around' is a truism...and what any witch sends out comes back to him or her--for good or ill--threefold. Just as in doing good deeds or evil deeds in any faith...you get what you send out, with the return multiplied.
"It is within every human being to be a 'witch,' which really means wise one. Every human being has energies within themselves for healing and for seeing what is to come. How many times have people endured the unendurable to save the life of another? Grandmothers lifting overturned trucks off of crushed children. Those are miracles wrought by suddenly using such energies. Accepting such abilities and using them with respect and love is a difficult task, and not for the emotionally immature.
"When you hear stories about evil spells, or love spells, or possessions being the result of witches or Pagans, know that they are false. If persons doing these things claim to be witches, know that they are NOT witches or Pagans, but are instead troubled individuals with private, hurtful agendas. Anyone who would commit such acts is no more a Pagan or witch than someone who spreads hatred, bigotry, intolerance and mistrust would be a Christian.
"Paganism means, more than all else, tolerance. We accept the faith of any person who is willing to live in love and accept full responsibility for their actions. It is our feeling that there is NO one 'true' path. It is the means one uses to get to an end that matter, not the path you took to get there."

Other topics I can't ignore:

This is a witch
This is an ugly, bigoted insult.

The disgusting picture on the bottom is a typical, thoughtless, ignorant interpretation of the sacred Crone or Grandmother aspect of the Great Mother Goddess. Most Pagans and witches despise such imagery. Turn the tide of ignorance. Be considerate. Don't display such images at Halloween. Don't teach your children that it is what a witch looks like. We are not characters from a horror film, we are your neighbors, your teachers, your doctors and your lawyers. We are not evil, green, w art-covered trolls who steal children from their beds. We are people.




Trying to ensure equal rights for ALL its employee's, Disney became the whipping boy of the Southern Baptists. Show your support for tolerance and understanding. Visit this informative site by clicking on the banner above. Make your voice heard, support Disney.



Anyone with a positive, tolerant message deserves to be heard. It is not our individual mission to decide what suits everyone else. Please click on the icon above to learn more about Surfing Without Prejudice. Join us in making the Internet an enjoyable, tolerant place.




The Burning Times refers to a dark portion of our history when people were regularly imprisoned, tortured, and killed for allegedly being witches. Once known as healers and midwives, early Christianity made witches the object of scorn, ridicule and terror. For many hundreds of years, being discovered to be a witch, or merely being accused of dealing in witchcraft meant death...by being burned at the stake. It was a weapon the church and individuals used for power and revenge.
At one point, cats were burned alive by the thousands, trapped in wicker cages and tossed into enormous bonfires, all because it became vogue to believe them agents of the devil. History's greatest plague times resulted from such ignorance.
Pagans and witches of today vow:
NEVER AGAIN THE BURNING TIMES!
For more details about this part of our history, please click on the links below:
A Chronicle of the Burning Times.

The Witches' Voice: A News and Education Network

And if you think it will never happen again, visit this site...the Burning Times return:
"Northern Province Targets 'Witch' Killers"

To get a feel for this topic, watch the films "The Scarlet Letter" and "The Crucible" to see a mild, fanciful look at how it was, and "The Handmaid's Tale" to see how terrifying it will be again for everyone if any fundamentalist faction is in power.







OR TRAVEL TO:
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