Witch?

Post Reply New Topic

People from my old high school thought I was a Satanist.


-SpaceCase

Wow your "friends" are jerks.
You don't need to apologize for being a witch/wiccan/pagan (whichever moniker you prefer, you seem to like wiccan) if they are so shallow as to reject you based on that you don't need to be surrounding yourself with people like that. Its bad for you and will serve only to drag you down.

I'm really sorry FieryGatoh, people are cruel sometimes.
Don't let it dissuade you though, there are plenty of wonderful types out there
I'm sure you'll find them.

It depends on the type of satanists, theres LaVeyan satanists who believe in Satan solely as a symbol and essentially worship themselves and don't believe in heaven or hell. Theres also theistic satanists who do warship the Satan of the Christian constructs, then theres Lucifernians who worship wither the Christian Lucifer or the Lucifer of the Greeks.

I have experience with both students and teachers calling (and occasionally punishing me for studying "weird" religions) me a satanist because I act and dress "goth".

Ah, just hex their asses.

People can be very judgmental sometimes.

Don't let anyones opinion have any affect on you.

This never quite works. . . well, almost never, I guess.

Most people require some sort of social support; therefore, some other people's opinions matter at least somewhat to almost everyone.

The trick is letting the right people's opinions matter the right amount.

It's a hard trick.

Its also hard to ignore people when their opinions lead to violence because you don't fit in.

Very true.

This is a different sphere that being emotionally influenced by the opinions of one's associates, though.

Funny, but its not her behavior, its that she pretty much told them "I am a witch" though in different terms.

Seeing as you're still talking about recess, I'm going to assume that you're on the somewhat younger end of the spectrum. I'm 18 and after a lot of a lot of soul searching the closest I've come to picking a religion is my present state. "Agnostic Wiccan quasi-Humanist." It probably doesn't make sense to anybody, it barely makes sense to me.

This isn't because you have Aspergers, what your friends are doing, this is their own ignorance about Wicca. You're young and your friends don't seem like the kind of friends worth keeping, but something I'd suggest doing is sitting down with them and asking them what they know about Wicca. When they cite horror movies and talk about riding brooms hopefully they'll realize as they speak that they in fact know very little about Wicca, and this will present you with an opportunity to dispell their fears.

Setting up a meeting with them with the school counselor, if possible may also make it easier because assuming the counselor is mature, they'll understand whats going on and even be able to help. When you explain that Wicca is a pacifist religion respecting for nature rather than devil-worship with bubbling cauldrons hopefully they'll come around.

If they don't, they don't seem like friends worth keeping anyways.

I'm in college. I wear a rune pendant around my neck and when people ask about it I tell them I'm Wiccan, and that it's somewhat of a good luck charm. Even the most religious people I've told have reacted with respect, understanding, and even interest in my beliefs. Most people tend to get over their ignorance by college. Just stick in there.

I don't think that's so much ignorance about wicca, which does, after all, entail witchcraft- which is, after all, punishable by death in a variety of interpretations of Christianity.

I think this is part of a larger question about tolerance, literal religous interpretation, and moral relativism. . . Though you are right about one thing; people do tend to mellow out and get a better handle on the world between high school and college age.

But witchcraft was also considered satan-worshipping, which it isn't.

If they called it witchcraft and punished (puritans and the dark ages) wiccans for it even if they didn't do it, does that make it witchcraft?

The WAY in which your 'friends' made the remark is discriminatory! This is just unacceptable. Plus, from you've related, you've been mistreated because of your AS too - double indemnity. You've done nothing wrong and you should be proud of your heritage.

I hate when other's feel fully justified in being judgmental and shaming. Really, if this continues (abusive behavior?) maybe you should consider consulting your advisor. Those remarks about or to you are unethical.

I think the fact that Wiccans call it witchcraft makes it witchcraft.



Discrimination isn't necessarily a bad thing.

For example, today at the snack kiosk, I passed up. . . well, everything, because I found it to be unhealthy, disgusting, and/or overpriced. This is what we call discriminatory eating habits.

The treatment in question isn't wrong because it was discriminatory- a word which simply entails choosing one thing over another, or choosing nothing at all because one has standards. It's wrong because it's unkind and unjust. . . and on a more practical level, one should fight it because encouraging people to let go of their close mindedness (at least when the close-mindedness has gone that far) is. . . well. . . better.

And on a related note, I chose to make this (somewhat obnoxious) post because discrimination is a knee-jerk-reaction inducing word for a lot of people. When someone cries discrimination as if the fact of a practice being discriminatory were enough to make it wrong, it in some small measure justifies those reactions. Unjust discrimination is wrong- and the thing that makes it wrong is not the discrimination, but the injustice.


A lot of pegans go through this. . . a coming out of sorts. Whether or not it has anything to do with the AS. . . I've no clue. . . but it's a very common experience, you aren't alone. Try trawling the good pegan sites- my favorite is Witchvox- and I'm sure you'll find any number of people's thoughts on how to deal with the situation most wisely.

Jainaday - True, I am discrete when using the word 'discriminatory,' and there are cases it's fine, and necessary (like, "No, I prefer the green jell-0). That being said, just a few months ago I went through a nightmare scenario of verifiable discrimination based upon my autism so I am now touchy where before I let everything just slide. That's why I was so touchy....I didn't mean to jump to conclusions. I just hate to someone hurt because of another's mean intent. I should have qualified that better.

I did learn, though, that I cannot afford the luxury of letting someone insidiously tease/harass/abuse me and say nothing......ultimately, I collapsed from nervous shock. Then, 12 days later I was overnight in the hospital from a serious meltdown. I guess I'm still shellshocked......sigh.

Have you ever seen or read the Crucible? (based on real events and real accusations)

What those girls accused each other of, stereotypes of witchcraft had nothing to do with true witchcraft.

What people were accused of and punished for was not anything to do with witchcraft. The story starts out with an older woman teaching girls to read their fortune's in tea leaves. THAT is witchcraft, but that is not what people were accused of. People were accused of dealing with the devil.

Whatever Wiccan telling you witchcraft involves Satan in any way knows nothing about their own religion.

I've acted in it. My audition for Abigail was the only standing ovation I've ever gotten for a solo. (yay, excuse to brag! It was a lot of fun though. Read the play something like seven times?)

I'm reasonably familiar with the Salem witch trials.

I don't know what definition of "true witchcraft" you're using. What I'm saying is; if Wiccans practice something and call it witchcraft, it seems pretty reasonable that Christians should be permitted to call those same practices Witchcraft as well.

I have no idea what this has to do with The Crucible.