The Stealing of Wicca By Donald Michael Kraig I have been involved with the Wicca for about two decades. During that time I have seen the Craft go through a great deal of change, as any emerging religion will do. When I first became involved I was able to count the number of Pagan traditions on my hand. Now that number has multiplied so much that I doubt if anybody even knows how many traditions there are. This development has its good aspects. For example, by growing it has allowed tens of thousands of people to find a home in a spiritual system that they might not have even been aware of just a few years ago. It has also resulted in the popularization of the study of almost forgotten cultures and their religio-magical systems. But this wild growth has also spawned numerous problems. First, because there are more of us, there are also more people aware of us. Those who would forbid others the right to religious freedom and those who seek the causes of their problems outside of themselves now have an easy target, and we have no effective ADL or NAACP to defend ourselves. Curiously, the constant attacks on us by those whose lives seemed ruled by fear and hate have not hurt us. This is because to defeat an enemy the attacker must thoroughly vanquish the opponent. But for a defender to win, all they must do is survive. We have survived and grown. Now, however, Wicca faces a greater problem than ever: destruction from within. There are those who have their own agenda and who are trying to call what they are doing Wicca. It is my opinion that unless Wiccans put a stop to this, Wicca will become nothing but a small entry in the almanac of the late 20th century. This self-defense has historical precedents. The Old Testament is filled with repeated instructions from leaders on what not to do. This was to ensure that Judaism was not mixed with other religions of the time. Similarly, the history of Christianity is filled with instructions and debate over what is, and what is not Christianity. These documents exist both within the New Testament and extra-biblically. Whether Judaism and Christianity would be better if they had included other ideas and influences is not the point. What is important is that the leaders took a stand as to what was part of their religion and what was not. It is the purpose of this article to bring up three things that could destroy Wicca. Whether Wiccans take action against them (or even if they should take action against them) is something that I believe should be discussed between Wiccans everywhere. 1) Directionless or Nonexistent Training. I have seen many people initiated into what somebody calls Wicca even though they have had virtually no training or only a few classes. When I first became involved in the Craft I was told that I had to study for at least a year-and-a-day before I could be initiated. As a result, I have watched aghast at nonsensical, powerless rituals, or rituals which blended the descriptions of a multitude of gods and goddesses, some of which were in direct opposition to one another. Perhaps the most famous example of this is summoning the Goddess by calling on Her by Her various names with the Isis, Astarte chant. While it is true that Isis and Astarte are similar in nature, Kali is nothing like them. For years, many covens held as secret the name by which the members addressed the Goddess. Now groups have no Goddess other than a nondescript the Goddess. They worship Diana one day, then Innana the next. There is no direction here. Is this good or bad? Well, I am just one voice. Perhaps this is the future of the Wicca. Perhaps it is its destruction. Only time will tell and only individuals can make a difference. When I received my initial training I learned about how to act in Circle, natural magick techniques, the history of the Craft and much more. Now I see more and more self-described Wiccans who haven't the faintest idea of history, techniques, theology, etc. True, there are still many groups which demand much from initiates; but it seems like there are far more groups (or at least far more vocal ones) who ask and give little. Is this, or should this be, the future of Wicca? Only time will tell. 2) The Subversion of Wicca. Do you want to become a Wiccan? Just look—you'll find somebody to initiate you. Or, as one writer suggested, simply say, I'm a Witch, three times and you are now a true Wiccan, capable of starting covens and teaching. Well, sure. That sounds great. It will certainly help the Craft to grow. But what type of Craft will it be? There were several reasons to have a person study in the Outer Court for a year and a day. Besides the training, the candidate would learn if Wicca was a good path for them. Also, it would allow the High Priest or High Priestess to learn if the candidate is right for Wicca—it is not a path for everyone. One aspect of this is the determination of the baggage that the candidate brought to the Craft. Many people were so inculcated in other religions or philosophies that they were not right for Wicca. Now that the Outer Court does not exist (or does so in a minor way) in many groups, individuals with philosophical, theological or psychological baggage are more and more apparent in Wicca. I have seen Christianity, Theosophy, Satanism, political philosophies and weird UFO fantasies displayed as traditional Wicca. I have seen the Craft Kabalized, prudified and turned into an excuse for having a party or making acorn bread. While I have nothing against Christianity, Theosophy, UFO fantasies, the Kabala, acorn bread or people who are prudes, I personally resent their introduction as part of traditional Wicca. Some have said that for many today the Goddess is simply Yahweh in drag. A person is a Hindu if they worship any of the deities of the Hindu pantheon. By this definition, a person is a Christian if they worship any of the deities of the Christian pantheon (Father, Son [Jesus], Holy Spirit [Sophia], Mary or Satan). Therefore, Satanism is simply a form of Christianity, albeit one that does not worship the main deity. It has nothing to do with Wicca, and those Satanists or deluded Crafters who maintain that there should be links would be better off trying to get in contact with Pat Robertson. 3) The Isolationist Tactics of Some Self-Described Feminists. There is a small coterie of women who, for whatever reason, are trying to define their own, self-created, goddess-oriented spirituality as Wicca. They deny the importance of the God and of men in general. Do they have reasons to do this? Absolutely. But there is no reason to psychoanalyze them or debate their agenda. The fact is, they are a tiny minority trying to project majority status. But enough of my whining already. Part of this article is based on my love of what the Craft was and my fear for the loss of it. This is not to say that I fear change, only that it seems like we would be throwing away the something that is very good in order to embrace an unknown future. One of my teachers once told me, Learn from the past, Live in the present, Create your future. Wicca, in order to continue and grow, must change as we move into the 21st century. The question is how will it change and who will determine those changes? There is an old Jewish expression which perfectly answers this question:
If not me, who? If not now, when? 1994 Donald Michael Kraig | 
