Differences by Stephens

8/10/2019 Differences by Stephens

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imilarities and Differences

Between Heathenry and Wicca

by Arlie Stephens

http://ansuz.worldash.org/asatru/articles/intro/wicca_compar.html

This article discusses the similarities and differences between Heathenryand Wicca.

t is not the first article that!s been written comparing the two religions. nparticular" #e$yn %illette and &ewis Stead wrote The 'entagram and the

Hammer to compare and contrast the two faiths" and try to facilitatecommunication between them.

That article!s only real flaw is that the authors don!t really seem toempathize with Wiccans. They focus on the (uestions that Heathens careabout" rather than those that tend to catch the attention of Wiccans. Andtheir discussion of history has a tendency to irritate many people withWiccan bac)grounds.

The present article is an attempt to pro$ide information from a more

Wiccan $iewpoint. t is intended for those with a Wiccan or partially Wiccanbac)ground who find themsel$es interested in Heathenry. t attempts toe*plain the similarities and differences between Wicca and Heathenry infamiliar terms" since the terms Heathens use when tal)ing to each othermay be (uite confusing.

&i)e all general descriptions" it will be only partially correct. &i)e Wiccans"there are many different groups of Heathens" each with different beliefsand practices. +n the e*tremes" Heathens may be as different from eachother as ,e.g.- lesbian seperatist feminist egalitarian #ianic Wiccans aredifferent from hierarchical initiatory %ardnerian Wiccans" or as either ofthese are from eclectic humour lo$ing #iscordian Wiccans.

Howe$er" ust as with Wiccans" there are common elements most agreeon" and it is these common elements will attempt to con$ey.

&et!s start with some commonalities. oth are modern polytheistic religionsthat draw on older pre 0hristian roots. oth often feel a strong connection
http://ansuz.worldash.org/asatru/articles/intro/wicca_compar.htmlhttp://www.ravenkindred.com/wicatru.htmlhttp://www.ravenkindred.com/wicatru.htmlhttp://www.ravenkindred.com/wicatru.htmlhttp://www.ravenkindred.com/wicatru.htmlhttp://ansuz.worldash.org/asatru/articles/intro/wicca_compar.html


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with the earth and the creatures that share the earth with humans. othtend to belie$e the gods are acti$e in the world" and interact with theirworshippers.

oth belie$e that anyone can ma)e their own connections with the gods1

no one needs a specialist to contact the gods for them. 2any Wiccans"especially the older traditions" initiate e$eryone as priest/priestess" sothere are no specialists. +ther Wiccans" and most Heathens" ha$e a rolefor specialized clergy" but it!s as ad$isers" teachers" leaders of big/fancyrituals" organizers of small groups" and interfaces with the public" not asha$ing some pri$ileged pipeline to the gods" or mediating between laypeople and gods. n particular" a lay Wiccan or lay heathen can do ustabout anything" e*cept where there!s an issue of legal recognition" or" inthe case of Wiccans" of initiation. ,Wiccan initiation isseen as conferingspecial powers" but they are not needed for basic connections and

communication with the gods.-

3ow some big differences. While neither religion is monotheistic" Heathenstend to be much more strongly polytheistic. Heathens see the gods andgoddesses as indi$iduals1 Thor and +din are no more seen as aspects ofthe same god than Tom and 4oe are seen as aspects of the same human.,Wiccans" on the other hand" often see all gods as aspects of the Horned%od" and all goddesses as aspects of the %reat %oddess.-

2any Wiccans also see polarity" especially gender polarity" as one of the

)ey organizing principles of their world$iew. n particular" most worshiprituals include a symbolic union of the %od and %oddess ,athame andchalice-. Heathenry does not include any such concept.

Wiccan circles tend to ha$e a ceremonial magic fla$or. Sacred space iscreated and protected" power is raised" and the gods are in$o)ed. 2agic orsome sort of guided meditation may be done. Heathen blots" on the otherhand" ha$e more of a fla$or of in$iting a friend o$er for a drin) or a meal.

n fact" that seems to be one )ey aspect of the Heathen attitude to ourgods ... they are our )in" or our friends. &i)e us" but more e*perienced and

able to do things we cannot. ... Some belie$e they are literally ourancestors. Wiccans tend to ha$e a more 5con$entional5 attitude to thegods" being much more li)ely to worship them than to in$ite them to aparty.

Wiccan circles pretty much always in$ol$e some attention to the fourelements" generally seen as earth" air" fire" and water. Some Heathens


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may pay some ritual attention to the 6 or 7 directions" but many do not" and$ery few associate the directions with elements.

2any branches of Wicca are initiatory" with secrets reser$ed only forinitiates. 2oreo$er" there are commonly three grades of initiation" with

initiates passing through the three degrees one by one. Heathenry is notinitiatory" and there are no secrets. 2oreo$er" while a distinction is madebetween clergy and laity" and some heathen organizations ha$e some )indof ran) or status within the organization" there!s no shared idea of aprogression between le$els" with e$er growing wisdom and spiritualinsight.

Some things are decepti$ely similar. t would be possible to compose atable of correspondance for Heathen and Wiccan terminology. t wouldha$e entries li)e 5co$en5 8 5)indred51 5priest5 8 5godhi51 5circle5 8 5blot5. t

would also be (uite misleading. 9indreds aren!t generally organized li)eco$ens" though there are commonalities" and don!t ser$e (uite the samepurpose. A Wiccan priest or priestess has somewhat different training andresponsibilities than a Heathen godhi or gythia. A 5blot5 is strictly religious"whereas a 5circle5 can be for worship" magic" or both.

Then there are the social similarities and differences. n general ,with atleast as many e*ceptions as any stereotype- Wiccans tend to be sociallyand politically liberal" while Heathens tend to be socially and politicallyconser$ati$e. Wiccans tend to a consensus see)ing nonconfrontational

communication style" whereas Heathens tend towards emphaticstatements of their opinions. Heathens also tend to be a lot moreindependent and forceful than Wiccans" and tend to e*pect the same fromeach other1 a polite intro$ert is li)ely to completely fade into the woodwor)"and lea$e" feeling unwanted and ignored ... whereas Wiccans are moreli)ely to freeze out a newcomer who is not sufficiently polite anddeferential.

Another big difference is the attitude to historical research. While there is ahuge range in both communities" Wiccans are" in general" much moreli)ely to be interested in mythological or emotional rightness ,how

something feels-" where Heathens are more li)ely to focus on scholarlyresearch ,what sources can be documented" and how reliable are they-. nparticular" Heathens careabout consistency with recorded material. Theytend to distinguish carefully between things recently in$ented and thingsderi$ed from the recorded lore. A person who cannot identify their sourcesis li)ely to be laughed at or at least be somewhat forcefully educated ...often by someone citing primary sources or recent scholarly wor).


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Wiccans" on the other hand" may or may not care about scholarship" but$ery commonly consider it e*tremely rude to point out the improbability ofsomeone!s claimed 5historical5 tradition.

oth communities ha$e a certain amount of interest in connecting with

historical and cultural roots. 2any Wiccans are $ery interested in all things0eltic" and hea$ily identify as 0elts. Heathens" on the other hand" ta)e thisa lot farther. At one e*treme" there are those who belie$e that the Heathengods are only interested in those humans who are descended from them"i.e. the descendants of those who worshipped them in pre 0hristian times"and no one else can or should be Heathen. Whether or not Heathensshare that $iew" or feel the gods call whome$er they wish" they still tend tobe $ery interested in their ancestral heritage. lots are done to ancestors,physical and spiritual- as well as gods. 2any dress up in ;i)ing costumeto worship" or ta)e an interest in preindustrial crafts. personally ha$e

found myself ta)ing up sewing as a connection with my female ancestors.

Wiccans ,especially relati$e newbies- often thin) that all pagans arebasically similar to Wiccans" with perhaps a different pantheon. or someminor changes. Heathens" on the other hand" often feel li)e they aresharing a ,neopagan- tent with a ,Wiccan- elephant ... they feel li)e they!rebeing constantly misunderstood and misrepresented as 5Wiccansworshipping 3orse gods5 and conse(uently often refuse to accept thename 5pagan5 at all" treating 5pagan5 and 5neopagan5 as referring only toWiccanderi$ed religions.

This can cause a lot of misunderstanding and resentment. The Wiccansand Wiccaderi$ed 'agans see the Heathens as natural allies ... and getrebuffed with a confusing insistence that Heathens ha$e nothing to do withpaganism" or ha$e nothing in common with Wiccans. Heathens whoattempt to approach Wiccans and Wiccaderi$ed 'agans often treat themas 5ust li)e Heathens5 ... and wind up sha)ing their heads in bewilderedanger when rebuffed as rude" aggressi$e" and generally unfriendly.

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