{"id":535,"date":"2017-03-22T08:04:43","date_gmt":"2017-03-22T12:04:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/poisonersapothecary\/?p=535"},"modified":"2017-03-22T08:04:43","modified_gmt":"2017-03-22T12:04:43","slug":"traditional-witchs-love-affair-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/poisonersapothecary\/2017\/03\/22\/traditional-witchs-love-affair-history\/","title":{"rendered":"A Traditional Witch’s Love Affair With History"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
\u201cThe Gods of the Old Religion Become Demons of the New.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\nPan, oil on canvas. Mikhail Vrubel. Wikimedia Common License.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
History becomes the lens through which we view the world.\u00a0 It gives us context for our present situation.\u00a0 It helps to answer and understand how we have come to be where we are.\u00a0 I believe that it is my love for history, and desire to investigate the classical roots of witchcraft, that has led me to the path of the traditional witch.\u00a0 By following\u00a0history back to the beginning of Western Civilization we find some of the first anti-witchcraft laws emerge in the Roman Empire.\u00a0 It is important to note that at this early time there were certain magical practices that were socially acceptable, and those that weren\u2019t were made illegal.\u00a0 Roman culture and politics was the basis for Western Civilization, and shaped many of our basic ideas.\u00a0 While Christianity spread quickly throughout the Roman Empire, much of central and northern Europe remained polytheistic strongholds.\u00a0 This is when Romans coined the term paganus<\/em> or pagan.\u00a0 The old religion and the new coexisted for sometime outside of the Empire\u2019s reach within the feared Germanic and Celtic tribes, albeit with some apprehension.<\/p>\n
As a scholar of traditional or classical witchcraft, the historic influence of the early Church and remaining pagan traditions are of utmost importance in understanding the roots of modern traditional witchcraft.\u00a0 The effects of Latin Christendom on Western civilization is undeniable; influencing everything from politics and fashion to dietary habits and international relations.\u00a0 The Christian worldview seemed to dominate the land eventually becoming the majority.\u00a0 However, there were always those, who from the very beginning questioned the authority of this new religion and sought answers for themselves, often turning to Nature for their answers.\u00a0 There have always been those who can see the divine in the natural world.\u00a0 Scientists of the enlightenment, medieval naturalists, and Renaissance magicians alike stood in opposition to the infallibility of the Bible and the Church.\u00a0 This put them in a dangerous position in regards to the state as well, risking their own lives they were labeled as heretics.<\/p>\nThe Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp. Rembrandt 1632. Wikipedia Public domain.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
The scientific world began making its own discoveries about the nature of the Universe, which contradicted the doctrine of the Church.\u00a0 Heresy and Inquisition was a way for the Church and state to establish a unified Christian tradition, which would strengthen both of these institutions.\u00a0 Originally the focus was on fellow Christians who were considered a threat to the Church because of their heretical ideas.\u00a0 Those in question would be required to renounce these beliefs and quit sharing them with others.\u00a0 Those who knowingly continued were tried for the crime of heresy, which was viewed as treason.\u00a0\u00a0 The Inquisition eventually turned to focus its ire against\u00a0scientists, philosophers, and those accused of witchcraft; basically anyone circulating ideas that were incongruent with the Church\u2019s view.<\/p>\n
It was during this tumultuous period that our current view of Witches and the Devil took form.\u00a0 The influence came just as much from the Inquisitors as it did from the accused; reflecting the popular religion, folklore and superstition which all contributed to ideas about witches and their practices.\u00a0 Traditional witches embrace the image of the classical witch archetype of the medieval period.\u00a0 Even some of the more stereotypical imagery influenced by the Inquisition contains valuable insights into the folk lore of the period.\u00a0 It is recognized that there is much insight to be found in this ancient archetype of the witch figure.\u00a0 The symbolism and folklore of the medieval Witches\u2019 Sabbath is a repository of occult knowledge.\u00a0 The diabolic pact<\/em> and the gift of the familiar spirit<\/em>, mark the witch as other<\/em> and begin\u00a0them on the path.\u00a0 There are many layers of symbols hidden within accounts of the Witches\u2019 Sabbath, which is why it is a central theme in traditional and Sabbatic witchcraft.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no Devil in the Craft.\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Sally Owens<\/p>\n
This commonly quoted line from the movie Practical Magic is often\u00a0used by modern practitioners in order to distance themselves from any negative associations perpetuated by the early Church.\u00a0 This presented the already existing idea that witches are not Devil worshippers, but members of an older nature based religion.\u00a0 While this may be the case, it cuts modern practitioners off from a valuable stream of gnosis that provides a means of deconstructing the Christian framework that many of us were brought up with.\u00a0 Traditional witchcraft utilizes many of the symbols of the witch that may have previously been regarded as superstitious or stereotypical, but when one begins to peel back the layers of these symbols one finds deeper meaning within them.<\/p>\n
Another theme unique to traditional witchcraft is the lore of the Witch Mark.\u00a0 This mysterious concept may have come from coerced testimony.\u00a0 However, a closer look reveals a deeper mythology with connections back to antiquity coming to be known as the Mark of Cain.\u00a0 The idea of an initiatory experience transforming one into something different, something other, is not new to human consciousness.\u00a0 In witch mythology the mark is transmitted from Cain, the first sorcerer, who was marked as other by God.\u00a0 It is seen as a spiritual fire that connects those of the Witchblood across time and space.\u00a0 The Mark is something that crosses the boundaries of all traditions, uniting those who seek a deeper truth.\u00a0 Individual spiritual growth is paramount to the witch, forging their own spiritual relationships while discovering for themselves the secrets of the Universe.<\/p>\n
This individuality and quest for knowledge is represented by our Promethean mythology, and the figure of Lucifer as the light bringer.\u00a0 He represents the antithesis of static institutionalized religion, bringing the tools of enlightenment to humanity.\u00a0 We see similar themes throughout history in the Renaissance, the Enlightenment and the Romantic period; where certain individuals seek truth outside the walls of religion, often turning to the natural world for answers.<\/p>\n
The concept of the Horned God or Witch Father is a piece of modern folklore.\u00a0 A synthesis of Luciferian and Pagan themes represented by the image of the Devil.\u00a0 A combination of the rebellious adversary, the seeker of illumination, and the primal spirits of the natural world create this powerful image.\u00a0 Are the pagan deities of antiquity part of a collective of spirits who align with our pursuits and answer to the call of the Devil.\u00a0 Perhaps the being we call the Horned One is actually many helper spirits, the Witchfather being the collective of the various scribe\/messenger\/trickster deities historically associated with magic.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
“The gods of the old religion become the demons of the new;” is a common saying in the study of religious history. Are the pagan deities of antiquity part of a collective of spirits who aligned with our pursuits, and answer to the call of ‘devil?”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2804,"featured_media":536,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33,15,104,60,9],"tags":[66,13,106,87,11,47,17,86,44,16,58,34,46],"class_list":["post-535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gods-and-goddesses","category-historyofthedevil","category-luciferian-tradition","category-magic-and-witchcraft-in-history","category-traditionalwitchcraft","tag-academic-occultism","tag-clan-of-tubal-cain","tag-classical-witchcraft","tag-historical-witchcraft","tag-horned-god","tag-horned-one","tag-luciferian-tradition","tag-medieval-witchcraft","tag-sabbatic-witchcraft","tag-the-devil","tag-the-witch","tag-witches-sabbath","tag-witches-god"],"yoast_head":"\n
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