Spirited (35 page)

The majority of Pagans are “hidden,” and any division in the community because of age, race, gender, or sexuality is perceived as sheer prejudice. Films such as
The Craft
have damaged our reputation in that some choose to identify us with power-obsessed fantasists. My coven's focus is on spiritual awakening, celebration of Nature's rhythms, and homage paid to the Old Ones. We leave power-over to the politicians and power-with to the Pagans.

The Hidden Children are those who feel at home within the beauty, peace, and rhythm of the natural world and who are inspired by its chaos and power. We live in a time of conflict and uncertainty. A Pagan friend of mine once told me that uncertainty leads to doubt, and therein lies the truth. With all the doubt that infests this world, that corrupts the purity of the heart and denies the passionate embrace shared between the seeker and Life, there is little room for one to wonder at the raw power of Nature and the cosmos. The Hidden Children, however, rebel against that which wrests free consciousness from the soul and immerse themselves entirely in the now.

We are cloaked by the shadows of secrets long lost to the shifting sands of time. We work with the power (Magick), and this is no tomfoolery; it is a serious undertaking, crossing over the boundary of no return. What is there but the power we know through our work and spirituality, and how shall we wield this power? What kind of individual does it take to genuinely and respectfully represent our communities, values, and wisdom to the world? Is this a path reserved solely for the priesthood? What does it mean to be a priest/ess? What does it mean to be a Witch? What does it mean to be Pagan? What does it mean to be youth?

As a Priest/ess …

Does the Paganism of the twenty-first century and the future require a priesthood? Are there lay Pagans and those of us who are called to service? In my experience, there is little difference that exists, at least in the Witch traditions, between those who are the priests and priestesses and those who integrate the principles of Magick into their lives as a tool for self-empowerment.

We are each our own priest/ess; there is no middleman. However, within my own coven there are those who are working toward priesthood via their initiation and those who simply await initiation as a gateway into further knowledge and insight. This may demonstrate the varying levels of readiness in terms of taking on the vows of service to the gods from person to person; however, I can attest to the concept of being priest-born.

In past Pagan civilisations, there was a thin line between the priesthood and the laity. Throughout the Fertile Crescent in the Mediterranean, the state religions employed officiating priests whose job it was to oversee ritual sacrifices, ceremonies, and festivals. There were both male and female priests, and they were either born into the role or chosen for it by key political figures and also by the families of the nobility.

Being a priest or priestess in these societies was in sharp contrast to the concept of the clergy nowadays within the Abrahamic faiths. For instance, the minister, vicar, imam, and rabbi are all trained and
consecrated
figureheads representing the power and authority (not necessarily the persona) of the divinity (the supreme Godhead) of the church, mosque, or synagogue they serve, respectively. They are human and mortal, of course, but they are endowed with unequivocal wisdom (at least in the eyes of their laity). They are the appointed officials of their faith and therefore are elevated in that they are also the ones who reprimand sin and preach doctrine and dogma to the masses. A Pagan priest/ess was not one to preach or to lay down law and order; their service was to celebrate the divine through ritual and consecration and act as a spiritual vessel. They propitiated the gods, but it was not their will or power alone that secured a response, it was the collective energy raised by the congregation that gave power to the gathering. This is mirrored in the covencraft of Witches and the large gatherings common to Paganism.

In the Greek and Roman religious traditions, there existed the priests of the state temples that enshrined the cults of various deities, and the celebrants, who worshipped within their own homes in what is known to historical scholars as private religion, or faith of the hearth. Interestingly, it was generally the hearth (the sacred spiritual centre/heart of the home) that was largely the focus of offerings, prayers, and blessings made by the residing family.

In Roman tradition there was an altar made to the
lare
, who represented the ancestral spirits, and in Greek culture there was the
agathos daimon,
who was the “good spirit” that protected the family and was often symbolised by a serpent. It is therefore clear that within the privacy of the home, each individual was able to communicate with the gods and with the spirits of place simply by willing it and offering an appropriate libation whilst reciting a prayer of praise. While this is sometimes reflected in today's Christian culture through charismatic worship and prayer, there still remains no notion of offering or of a sacred interchange indicative of an honourable relationship with the divine. It seems that many of these charismatic Christians nowadays (in Dionysian style) abandon ego and allow themselves to be absorbed into the collective energy body that is their church. While this is a valid pathway to enlightenment, they often forget to allow themselves to step back, reclaim their individuality, and then once more assert their unity with God. Grounding is a technique for everyone!

What, then, of the priest/esses of the Paganism of today? Within the various Witch traditions, all who are brought to the sword and initiated are consecrated priest/esses and serve the gods in perfect love and perfect trust. In this endeavour, they are often supported by their coven. Solitary Witches often find themselves yearning for a similar experience or else stylise their own practice into a spiritual tradition that embodies the principles of covencraft.

The idea of a high priest or high priestess descends from the British Traditional groups, and while these two can sometimes be volunteers (in the case of open rituals), they are generally individuals who have been through the third degree and therefore claim the right to hive off from their coven and start a group of their own. In some traditions, the titles of “Witch Queen” and “Magus” are bestowed upon the initiated females and males respectively. At the worst of times I find this to be all a grand ceremonial wank, and at the best simply grand.

In its purity, the concept of a Pagan priesthood is not about ascending through the ranks to claim certain titles. Things like “Witch Queen” and “Magus” are not conducive to the transcendence of ego that is a necessary prerequisite to becoming a high priest/ess to begin with. Ceremonies and rites of passage that mark specific phases of the human journey through growth and decline, such as croning and saging rituals, are a much better idea.

The idea of a priest/ess holding leadership rights over a congregation in the name of ascension through degrees is not one that remains popular with the vast amount of Pagans today, many of whom are not necessarily interested in being initiated at all. So where does this leave those who aren't Witches? What does it truly mean to be a Pagan priest/ess today?

There are various skills and qualities that are generally associated with the Pagan priesthood. They are to be adept at various magickal techniques or otherwise ritualistic skills (if they are not Witches), have patience, be trustworthy, and be good teachers and even greater
listeners
. They are counsellors and comforters, oracles and vessels for the gods. They are able to transcend their ego and draw down into themselves (invoke) a deity or spirit for the purpose of insight, divination, and perhaps even as a symbol of a coven/group mystery. In my time with the Coven of the WildWood, I have done all of the above and more, and without having to publicise or cheapen myself, I have become exactly what I have wished to be for my brothers and sisters, and of course my gods. I am both priest and Witch. As I stand, so do I kneel.

As a Witch …

Many who know me know that I view my Craft as non-religious, meaning I do not acquiesce to dogma and doctrine. I am a Witch, pure and simple. I capitalise it because it has spiritual meaning for me and because I honour the word and its spirit by doing so. What does it mean to be a Witch in the twenty-first century?

When Wicca was first brought to the attention of the Western world in the mid-twentieth century, there was plenty of heated argument concerning its authenticity as an unbroken, intact Pagan Nature-based tradition that honoured the old gods of England, as this is what Gardner professed it be. Gerald Gardner, who came to be Wicca's (
Wica's
) main propounder and is now considered to be the father of modern Witchcraft by many in the community, is remembered today as a fraud, a charlatan, a man of many titles, and above all as a great Witch. The term
Wicca
was never considered to be a variation of Witchcraft, it was used synonymously with Witchcraft. As Eclectic trends grew more popular among magickal practitioners, a distinction was made between the traditions that were thought to represent the “truth” and the “heresies” that were diverging from them. There is also some conflict between those belonging to “pre-Gardnerian” family traditions or covens, who do not ally themselves with the word
Wicca
.

For there to be a Pagan heresy is an oxymoron in itself; therefore, for one to condemn another of it is to diminish the wild current underlying our power and vision. As Witches, we cultivate this rich vibrancy as a necessity; it is part of our charge, what we breathe in daily. To ignore the divine current, its continuum and cycle, is to deny the truth and beauty instilled within the heart.

Witchcraft is a spiritual tradition of Life, which embraces the heart and draws forth all its yearnings and innermost desires so that they may blossom and bear fruit.

Witchcraft has been described by many, historically and even in recent times, as a (sub)culture of parody and desecration. We do parody and desecrate, but this is limited to what the normative feels is opposite to the principles of social conservation. Witches work to fight against the separation of matter and spirit; we seek to unite the “profane” with the “sacred” and to bring forth and reveal the Shining. One of our most holy rites is, of course, the Great Rite (
Hieros Gamos
, the High Marriage), which unites apparent polar opposites (personified generally by the masculine and the feminine) and then celebrates the oneness between the two that is, in truth, innate. It is the illusion of separation that enhances this perception for the majority of people.

Witchcraft bears no message or hope of salvation from earth, nor does it preach dogma. Witches lead lives of empowerment and celebration, of connection and sacred realities. We are journeyers, artists, crafters, and Nature folk. We share in a blessing that has been viciously torn from us time and time again and flung into a burning bush to become the ash of an age-old era of superstition; but we know better. No one can defeat or suppress what is innate within the soul, for it would simply find other portals of expression, and it has done so countless times before.

We are magickal and spiritual creatures; once we learn to accept this reality, we become the better for it. Magick is not so much a process or technique of changing consciousness and fulfilling desires, it is a sacred principle that defies the rigid logic imposed on our society by the patriarchal, unfeeling, nonreceptive paradigm.

Witchcraft is intuitive, experiential, transformative, and evolutionary. Though its heart will remain eternally timeless, we Witches know that through any age and at any time we are able to connect, to destroy the illusion of separation, and to achieve enlightenment. We come to the Great Mystery, and here it is that we are initiated.

As a Pagan …

In my graduating year of high school, my ancient history class was studying a unit on religion, and during one class we mapped out a chronology from the earliest signs of “religious” instinct to the present day. When my teacher asked us what was generally considered to be the oldest religion by history scholars, I raised my hand in earnest. When chosen, I replied, “Paganism.” My teacher nodded, adding that it could also be called animism. The majority of people today dismiss things like animism and Paganism as relics of the past; however, they are extremely relevant to this day and age.

NeoPaganism, which has been the focus of this book, is a conflicting term for many people. Many believe that it is a useless and contradictory word that merely brings confusion to an already confused set of spiritual traditions. Those who hold this opinion generally have well-rounded and articulated reasons for their argument, something along the lines of, “Paganism has never been and is not today an unchanging, conservative fossil; it is on the frontier of change! There is no reason to suggest that what we do today differs in any essential sense from what was happening thousands of years ago when our ancestors lived.” I think, however, that the correct reasoning behind adopting the term NeoPaganism for our community today lies in the simple truth that many things about our spirituality, its exoteric forms and symbols, have been resurrected and revived in a new light.

Many of us are not attached to any intact Pagan survival or lineage other than through successive past lives and inborn spiritual predispositions. For instance, in my coven we all share common past-life experiences (of having been involved in spiritual communities as priests and priestesses, shamans and seers, etc.), and we are also connected through our work with the Greening, which we believe to be a sacred charge. The majority of us come from either nominally Christian or agnostic backgrounds (atheism and Hinduism seem to be the exceptions). There are simply too many fey souls nowadays waiting for an incarnation and not enough Pagan families to be born into.