i've been considering converting to paganism...

[silverpatronus]

are there any pagans out there who can provide me with research material? what's the difference between paganism and wicca?

[flowomo]

1. you mean the pitcher for the SF Giants?

look here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/p/paganjo01.shtml

[skygazer]

2. Oops.....

Thought you said "plagiarism". That's pretty big these days, too, evidently.

[catzies]

3. What are you converting from? Just curious.

I can't answer your question, sorry. I'm partial toward earth-based belief systems, and I prefer matriarchal over patriarchal but I'm not "religious" at all. Except when my team is in the NBA playoffs.

[silverpatronus]

5. i've been agnostic for years...

but i've been meeting more and more pagans lately and from what they tell me of their beliefs, it could be what's for me.

[izzie]

4. Oh just join one of the fundy groups here or the Middle East.

They are all nuts and either wish to kill them selfs to make a point or send some one kids out to die to make a point.

[GeorgeBushytail]

6. Orthodox, Reform, or Fundamentalist Paganism?

[silverpatronus]

7. i have no idea...

information on both would be much appreciated.

[GeorgeBushytail]

8. That was a joke, son

[silverpatronus]

10. daughter...

sorry, missed that. i was looking for serious answers. i didn't expect to be mocked.

[flamingyouth]

9. You can check out this website

www.witchvox.com

There's lots of good info and links there. :hi:

[silverpatronus]

11. thank you

for not mocking me like most others here have.

[JimmyJazz]

12. I'm sending you a pm

[ieoeja]

13. There are about a million variations of paganism.

Most of my friends are pagans and most of them are self-appointed priests or priestesses who don't do anything with regard to their religion except throw a party for Samhain, the Vernal Equinox, the Autumnal Equinox, etc.

I think only one of my friends actually does new moon rites, etc. You just have to find the right group.

Wicca is one form of paganism. Okay, not strictly true. Wicca is probably several hundred thousand forms of paganism as there are also almost as many forms of Wicca as there are adherents. Most Wiccans believe they are following ancient traditions of witchcraft pre-dating Christianity. In actuality, Wicca and the basic rites were invented by some Englishman in the 50's or 60's. Most folk who take the practice of witchcraft seriously have tossed over the term Wiccan and returned to Witch (NOBODY uses the term Warlock). About the only tenement (sp?) of Wicca is "do no harm" or something like that. The serious Witches laugh at that and call Wiccans "Fluffy Bunnies". They believe the whole point to practicing witchcraft is to use it for your own personal means. Not particularly nice, but at least they aren't hypocritical about it.

[Solon]

15. What you say is rather disengenious...

You generalize WAY TOO MUCH for my tastes, and are rather flippant about it as well. First off, Witchcraft is not, in and of itself, a religion at all. My grandmother is a witch(folk magician) who believes her spells and powers come from Yaweh, plus she is a heavily religious Catholic. Practicing Witchcraft is not a absolute requirement for a practitioner of Wicca, so not all Witches are Wiccans, and not all Wiccans are Witches. It is true that the term Warlock is never used by male Wiccans or Witches, it means "Oathbreaker" roughly.

To the Fluffbunny comment, this is a slightly different issue, but to put it simply, those types of people are usually teenagers who are WINOs (Wiccans in Name Only), they watch a movie like "The Craft" think it is cool, check out one book about Wicca in the library, and consider themselves Wiccans. Most Wiccans ignore them, or try to feed them real information on Wicca, and not the crap they get from bad info. Easy to pick out, especially if they talk a lot about the "Olde Religion" or the "Burning Times". Most grow out of that, and either abandon such a path, or move to become serious Wiccans. This type of problem isn't exclusive to Wicca, I can think of many Christians who have the same problem, especially with "Free for All" belief systems.

As far as to what Wiccans believe in, its more than the Rede, and your flippant regard too that is insulting. Gerald Gardener is the founder of Wicca, back in the 40's and 50's, mainly after Great Britian repealed its Witchcraft laws. As far as the core of Wiccan beliefs, here is a preview:

* Core Beliefs:
o The Rede
o Law of Balance, or Return
+ Law of Return
+ Three-fold Law
+ Any similar concept of action/reaction
o Belief in at least one of the following:
+ Polytheism
# More than one divine form
+ Pantheism
# Divinity in all things
+ Animism
# All things have ‘life’ energy
o Sabbats, or ritual recognition of the seasons – Wheel of the Year
+ Esbats
o Belief in Deity – generally both God and Goddess – masculine and feminine energies
o Witchcraft
+ Belief in the existence of magic/witchcraft, whether practiced or not
o Realization that Wicca is not taught – it is experienced
o The Sacred Marriage
+ Great Rite
+ Creative energies
o Individual connection with divinity
o Taking responsibility for your actions
o Constant improvement - study - practice

These core beliefs are on the website www.beliefnet.com under the learn about Wicca discussion board. If you have questions or inquiries, please talk to them. BTW: I borrowed this core, I did not make it, though it is in line with my own beliefs, generally.

[the Princess]

16. I was just gonna suggest Witch Vox - it's the best site on the net IMHO

There are tons and tons of book son the origins of Paganism and Wicca. I consider myself Pagan - but I am not religious at all. I just honor all living things on the planet and I do some ceremonies when I feel up to it. I consider myself a *Kitchen Witch*. I know a bit about herbs and I try never to use anything in my house that will harm me or hubby. There are so many ways to go - you need to read as much as you can and decide what works for you. I will PM you some book suggestions later OK?

Sandie

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

14. I'm thinking of converting to plagiarism

I think it would make my life a lot easier.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. ;)

[Solon]

17. Paganism is a rather broad term...

There are many varieties in Paganism, let me touch on a few:

Wicca: I described in post 14

Asatru: Interesting religion, focus on the Scandinavian Pantheon.

Re-constructionist Religions: These try to, as accurately as possible, to rebuild the old religions of Ancient times, such as the Hellenes (Greek) or Kemetic (Egyptian). BTW: I would like to see the reaction from Fundy Christians if they ever encounter Canaanite/Judah Re-constructionists, how much would they be in a tizzy with that (Think of the worship of Yahweh/El/Adonai in addition to his consort, the Goddess Asherat, along with the other Gods and Goddesses under that pantheon.)

General Paganism: These would be similar to, I guess, non-denominational Christian, or simply polytheists that don't conform to any particular pantheon or religion. Not very ritualistic, usually.

Neo-Pagans: These are usually people who combine various beliefs, sometimes contradictory, combine Eastern Spirtual beliefs with Western ones. Similar in some respects to Neo-Christians of a sort, beliefs in reincarnation and karma in addition to whatever "Traditional" beliefs they hold from their raised or aquired religion. Crystal power, etc. usually associated with the "New Age" movement, though in many instances this isn't true.

[Solon]

18. One website you NEED to see...

this is before the others, helps you filter out the crap out there....

http://wicca.timerift.net/

This will definitely help you find your path...where ever it might lead.

[Solon]

19. If you want to look at the example of a Trad(Denomination) in Wicca...

Here is the website for the Dragon Tradition...

http://www.dragontradition.com/

[exJW]

20. Cheers! It's the most logical extension of Pascal's wager, imo

not that I think pascal's wager has any value.

[chaska]

21. Try Animism, it's all the rage.

[GreenPartyVoter]

22. Check out some comparative religion sites like these

http://www.geocities.com/greenpartyvoter/liberalchristians.htm#polspirit