Swedish Easter Witches by Jenny Nyström (1854-1946) What is a witch? An old woman on a broomstick? There is a treasure trove of Renaissance folklore about witches, to tell us about these creatures. It was between the 14th and 17th centuries that a fear of Witchcraft gripped Europe. People had a lot of funny ideas about what witches did, and this caused a lot of men, women and children, to be tortured and executed for the suspected crime of Witchcraft. It was imagined that witches belonged to a demonic cult, worshipping pagan gods and goddesses. Of course, any Christian knew that the gods and goddesses of other religions were all devils, out to seduce the weak minded into handing over their souls to Satan. How could Satan convince someone to become a witch? He could promise them all sorts of supernatural abilities such as flying through the air, attaining wealth, fame, beauty, or anything they desired by performing magical spells. There would be nothing to stop a witch from using ...

Stewart and Janet Farrar There are a lot of people who choose not to use the word Wicca, because they see it as too restrictive and dogmatic. A dogma is an official system of belief held by a religion, or a particular group or organization. But who has the authority to decide what the official beliefs of Wicca are? I would suggest that Wicca as a whole is not dogmatic, but that some Wiccan groups may be. In Wicca it is generally agreed that every coven is autonamous, independent and self-governing, not subject to anyone else's laws. No Wiccan has the right to tell another coven what they can or cannot do. We can give each other advice, sure, that's what the Rede is after all, a piece of advice. This is what makes Wicca so difficult to define, and I think the difficulty makes some people very uncomfortable. Other religions seem more than willing to offer up official creeds, rules and regulations by which they may be recognised. Other religions have sacred texts, but Wicca ...

Happy solstice everybody! Here is my special solstice celebration video (which was filmed in the rain!) and I also want to let you know that you can follow me on twitter @OathBoundWitch This video is intended to foster great community spirit on youtube and blogger. I know that I tend to be very guarded about my personal practices, but I want people to be able to get to know me and build friendships. I plan on making more personal videos and blogposts, not revealing everything, but just enough for people to see who I am. I am quite shy, I think I always have been, and sometimes this can come across as rude, lofty, or dissinterested. I hate for people to think that I'm being rude when really I am just too shy to pipe up. I find it hard to make friends because of my social anxiety, but the internet has always been a way for me to communicate with the world from the safety of my home, and it has helped me to work on my social skills. It's online that I find people wh...