Fides

I'd like to introduce you to one of Rome's little known civic goddess' Fides. You may recognize her name as the origins of more commonly known words such as fidelity and infidel but her name simply means ...faith. Fides can represent many types of faith like the faith (fidelity) between married couples, faith in a government but more importantly the faith that exists between man and deity. There were sacrifices to Fides and people wore a white cloth around their hands to symbolize their faith and honor.

How do you describe faith actually...? How can it be put into easy to understand terms...? I think that it is more of a concept than a simple definition or word, it describes something that just is. Most of us come to paganism or wicca because of the abandonment we feel towards other faiths... usually christianity or judaism.  

We may feel let down or somehow shoved aside. I know in my experience, there was always something missing but I could never really put my finger on it. I tried very hard for several years but I just felt that I was lacking. I wore a cross, sang the hymns, and for a long time never missed a service...so how come it just didn't seem right? Did I have that little faith in god? Why was it so easy for some people?

It wasn't until paganism found me that I knew I was right where I belonged. It just resonated with me and it felt like had "come home" I wear my pentacle with pride now...I show the world that who I am and the way I choose to live are one in the same, not because I recited the rosary or lit a red candle and went to confession but because I realize that I am a part of deity...I am connected to the universe and everything in it.

My pentacle necklace is my way of showing my faith, of holding true to myself and others that identify themselves as pagan or wiccan. What symbol of faith do you wear...?  How does it represent your faith?

Why Yes, My Number Really Is 666.

I bet that number got your attention...it happens all the time... audible gasps, people visibly twitch... some even find that suddenly they have somewhere else to be and quickly shuffle off murmuring to themselves. Even the very thought of that number brings controversy so allow me to fuel the fire. Being in the craft can sometimes be interesting, I get a lot of blank stares after being asked what my religious affiliation is and I answer witchcraft... no one is really sure if I'm actually confessing that I am a witch or just yanking their chain and when I'm asked for my phone number it just goes downhill from there. 666 is a number with such a vivid and powerful stigma attached to it that sometimes you just gotta laugh because otherwise all the Prozac in the world could not solve the issues that this number has been known to cause. Just the other day, my friend Peggy wrote her 666th blog posting on Laila and Minchie (there is a link to her blog on the right side of my page) and everyone held their breath....she emailed me just a bit ago so I was able to draw the conclusion that she did not explode and there was no appearance of the anti-christ materializing in a cloud of fire and brimstone. A few comments on her post mentioned the humor in it, ( most did not) but I'm guessing the younger crowd is not as knowledgable about this topic as we older folks are and that's ok with me. For argument's sake allow me to slip in a bit of history on the origin of "The number of the beast"... While reading the information in Wikipedia, I was suprised to see that historians and theologians are now starting to come to the conclusion that more than likely the translation was erroneously understood to be 666 but in fact is probably 616 instead and had more to do with numerology and Nero or Caligula than a christian concept associated with the devil . (In my spiritual beliefs, the devil does not exist and did not in any way, shape or form appear in any activities practiced by the early pagan cultures.) Hmm, interesting.... I suppose you can start sending that email now... I have even given it thought as to maybe including my phone number ...(my actual telephone number is area code (360) and the prefix is 666-**** ) but I won't put the last four digits in because my nerves could not handle it's constant ringing from unsettled readers calling to chew me out but here in Battle Ground, Washington the telephone prefix really is 666!

To read the Wikipedia article:

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_of_the_Beast)

Good Witch or Bad Witch.....

Often when people find out about my spirituality, at the top of all questions first asked is "Are you a good witch or a bad witch?" It never fails to give me a start no matter how many times I hear it, I don't know exactly why but as I'm hearing these words being spoken, my mind is instantly transported back to the age when I first saw "The Wizard of Oz" and Glenda asks Dorothy that very same question. To most folks I'm sure it's a very legitimate question in their minds and inwardly all the bad press down through the ages about witches and the craft makes me cringe. The craft does NOT fall into the categories of good or bad nor even black or white, the craft is an empowering; exhilarating and positive experience to those that choose this path and any other beliefs that classify themselves as anything else other than this definition in my opinion, are examples of attack magic and should be avoided. My main objective in starting this blog was to be an educational example of my everyday life as well as speak of the craft and how it weaves itself throughout my daily life so that maybe it can become clear that I'm really not so different after all, it may lay a few of these fears to rest. I like to explain it not as someone who lights candles; chants rituals makes charm bags (and occasionally participates in broom riding that results in reports of UFO encounters and general widespread hysteria because after all, we all know physics doesn't exactly work like that.) To me it's easier to just answer that it is simply a lifestyle or outlook on the world and how we interact within it and spells and rituals are how I approach the common practice of prayer that the "mainstream" religions follow. Lately, there has appeared an abundance of those who seek to remove the fear from terms like witchcraft; the craft; wicca and even paganism. The one I like the best is that of Ariel ( pronounced AH-ree-el) who moderates Ariel's Corner Discussion Forum. He has an excellent podcast titled "the Witches Primer" and can be found at this link: http://www.magic-craft.com/ and this one as well: http://www.thedcw.org/ They are chock full of wonderful info on just what the craft IS and so are the links on the right side of my page that will give you a glimpse of who we are and what we believe. I encourage those who read my blog to check out these links.

P.S.- I indeed DO own a rather handsome handmade broom (from an elderly gentleman in Oregon that made the brooms for movies like Harry Potter) but it flies above my door as a symbol of welcome and positive vibrations for those who enter my doorway.