Greetings all!

It has come to my attention that many of you have heard of Wicca and/or Paganism and are curious as to what it all means. I am taking this opportunity to educate the curious by posting the Principles of Wiccan Belief in this forum. I hope this helps. If any of you have questions or comments, please feel free to contact me.

This is not meant as an attempt to convert anyone or convince anyone of the "correctness" of my beliefs, for spirituality is a personal journey and each must follow his/her own chosen path. This is for educational purposes only.

1. We practice rites to attune ourselves with natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the moon and of seasonal quarters and cross-quarters

2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility toward our environment . We seek to live in harmony with nature, in ecological balance offering fulfillment to life and consciousness within an evolutionary concept

3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than ordinary, it is sometimes called "supernatural" but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all

4. We conceive of the Creative Power in the Universe as manifesting through polarity-as masculine and feminine-and that this same creative Power lives in all people , and functions through the interaction of the masculine and feminine, We value neither above the other, knowing each to be supportive of the other . We value sexuality as pleasure , as the symbol and embodiment of life ,and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practice and religion worship .

5. We recognize both outer worlds and inner, or psychological worlds-
sometimes knows as the Spiritual Worlds , the Collective Unconscious,the inter planes, etc- and we see in the interaction of these two dimensions the basis for paranormal phenomena and magickal excercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other , seeing both as necessary for our fulfillment.

6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, repect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom , and acknowledge those who have courageously given of themselves in leadership

7. We see religion, magick, and wisdom-in -living as being untied in the way one views the world and lives within it -a world view and philosophy of life , which we identify as Witchcraft or the Wiccan Way

8.Calling oneself "witch" does not make one a witch -but neither does heredity itself, or the collecting of titles, degress, and initiations. a Witch seeks to control the forces within him/herselfthat make life possible in order to live wisely and well, without harm to others, and in harmony with Nature .

9. We acknowledge that it is the affirmation and fulfillment of life, in a continuation of evolution and development of consciousness, that givesmeaning to the universe we know , and to our personal role within it

10. Our only animosity towards Christianity, or towards any other religion or philosophy -of -life , is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be "the one true right and only way " and have sought to deny freedom to others and to surpress other ways of religious practices and belief.

11. As American Witches , we are not threatened by debates on the history of the craft , the origins of various terms, the legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We concerned with our present, and our future .

12. We do not accept the concept of "absolute evil" nor do we worship any enyity know as "Satan " or "the Devil" as defined by Christian Tradition. We do not seek power through the suffering of others , nor do we accept the concept that personal benifits can only be derived by denial to another

13. We work within Nature for that which is contributory to our health and well being

We also honor two principles known as "The Wiccan Rede" and the "Threefold Law".

The Wiccan Rede states: "An it harm none, do what thou wilt." This means harm no one, including yourself. I believe this covers most of the 10 Commandments as stated in the Judeo-Christian Bible. Or in other words, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you".

The Threefold Law states that anything you send out, be it for good or evil, will return to you at least threefold.

Again, I hope this is helpful.