FAITH IN MAGICK

Faith is the foundation of religion and can vary from a blind belief in elaborate dogma to simple positive thinking. Faith expects the believer to suspend rational thought and rely on the intuitive association of historical events as taught by the recognized religious authorities to arrive at a set of spiritual tenets.

In most religions, this process gains reinforcement through the assimilation of the individual into large groups of like-minded people.

Humans are social animals that tend toward self-doubt when isolated from others who share their feelings. This is especially true when the individual can provide little logical support for their personal world view. This insecurity prevails in matters of philosophy and, maybe more so, in manifestations of destructive behavior patterns.

Twelve step programs are filled with people who thought they were the one and only who drank too much, ravaged themselves through drug abuse, or lived in the constant gloom of chronic depression. Recovery begins for most when they realize that they are not alone.

Finding such group support is not entirely a good thing, however. It is just as easy to find an assemblage that is indulging in the same kind of negative conduct that helps the individual to justify even the most heinous acts.

The shared tales of misery brought on by an alcoholic lifestyle that help a recovery center member toward sobriety sound quite different through the mental haze and slurred speech of fellow drunks at the local bar.

The very reasons that one should stop drinking reinforce its continuation by assuring the drunk that he is not alone in his troubles. Under the influence of the group mentality, individuals will believe almost anything, no matter if this dogma diametrically opposes that of the general population. While people enjoy the approval of others, they also like to feel special compared to the great mass of society.

Some achieve this status through the pursuit of harmless eccentricities and unusual hobbies. Others take a more destructive path, identifying society or some segment thereof as the enemy. Certainty that this enemy intends to destroy them and, more importantly, their doctrine, inspires these aggregations to commit atrocities against the perceived antagonists and their allies.

Faith that their cause is just and that the threat to their way of thinking is genuine overrides all logic.

Founded on a mixture of pseudo-history, myth, and outright lies, these organizations quickly dispose of society’s morals and replace them with their own. Unity increases as the group feels more threatened, typically finding a conspiracy around every corner. Nothing links people more firmly than persecution and paranoia. Add a sympathetic, charismatic leader to the mix, and this little band of misfits will commit acts of terrorism without regard for the consequent loss of life on either side.

Faith has been the formula for holy wars, political terrorism, and persecutions of every sort. Armed with a fundamentalist doctrine that views all who do not share their faith as the only true path to salvation, many self-proclaimed guardians of that faith have never lacked for followers willing to torture and murder in the name of their personal version of the Almighty.

For people who claim such a reverence for God and creation, these Fools (re: Tarot trump = 0) seem determined to destroy it! Faith can lead one to the absolute height of spiritual accomplishment or to the Kabbalah’s kingdom of shells. Wiccan philosophy finds its strength in antiquity. The earliest witches discarded that which had no practical use.

A witch believes in observation and extrapolation based upon the principles that govern everyday life. As a witch, you will learn to regard yourself as a scientist, dedicated to the accurate accumulation and analysis of data toward practical ends.

What separates you from the nuclear physicist next door is that you will explore areas that are not limited to the phenomena of the mundane world.

While the conventional scientist trusts only that portion of the mind that reasons, you will use intuition and Otherworld insight in addition to logic, expanding your knowledge accordingly. For a witch, faith comes from the series of general conclusions about the Universe that arise as a result of the Wiccan version of the scientific method.

Witches believe in little that they cannot measure by some means, though these measurements need not be limited by mathematics. Witches believe in eternal life because Nature abounds with examples that prove the case.

A gray, dead forest returns to life with the spring. Offspring resemble their parents throughout the wild and seem to carry with them some essence of their ancestors. No one teaches an ant to dig or a fish to swim. There must be some way for this information to be passed on.

Genes encode instinctive behavior. That code is a series of chemical bonds. So are all the functions of the brain. The debate over determined versus learned behavior, to a witch, seems ridiculous.

Why argue over something whose expression depends in either case on the vibrational patterns of molecules and the chemical bonds extant therein? Nothing enhances faith like proof. Witches constantly strive to systematize magic and ritual to repeat successes and discard methods that do not work.

The measure of these successes involves how the work influences the intuitive mind as well as its physical effects.

Not only must a spell or ritual produce the desired modification to the object of the magic, the work must also feel right in the making on both the rational and intuitive levels. Ritual methods must satisfy the heart and mind to be effective.

When this is so, the witch becomes totally involved in the work at hand. With each success, faith in those methods increases, and the witch’s confidence builds. Magic sometimes fails, yet faith in the system remains strong.

Missing a foul shot can be discouraging, but it seldom results in the player shunning basketball forever. As practicing a physical skill improves confidence in one’s ability to perform that act, so does repetition of rituals and spells bolster the witch’s faith that these operations will be successful.

The purpose of keeping a journal that documents every detail of magical work and its result is to increase the witch’s faith in his/her ability to perform such work. Using the Hermetic principle of cause and effect, the witch can review any ritual and eliminate those portions that are ineffective. In Wicca, faith has little to do with believing in some remote authority figure.

An old Celtic Book of Shadows states that a witch best honors the gods by mastering them. This mastery depends on the witch’s ability to interact with forces and entities on other planes of existence, to both learn from them and use them to specific ends.

The burden for working magic lies with the witch. Faith grows as the witch becomes more knowledgeable at contacting and employing those sources of power that assist the witch in reaching the desired goal. Thus, for the witch, faith involves improving self-confidence through measured success and learning by experience what Otherworld resources may be called upon to help.

Obtaining this assistance depends on the witch’s ability to harmonize mentally and spiritually with the archetypes that represent the forces to be employed. Keep trying to improve your ability to contact the Otherworld.

Through these efforts, you will begin to recognize those archetypes and entities that are most attuned to your personality and needs. Among the personalities and powers in the Otherworld, there is much duplication of correspondences and skills.

Therefore, do not be concerned if you find you have no affinity for a particular god, goddess, or hero. You will be attracted to some of these beings and repelled by others, whether through your research or by direct contact with them.

 Learn to use your own judgement to determine which of these are friend or foe. You will seldom find it necessary to establish a working relationship with an Otherworld representative abhorrent to you.

Be aware of one caution as you study about archetypes. Some psychologists hold the view that all such beings are the product of your mind’s attempts to personify different aspects of the subconscious. These writers are especially fond of the words “merely” and “just”.

They decry all belief in independent entities as unscientific nonsense. Suspend your judgement of this philosophy until you have gathered sufficient personal experience to confirm or deny these opinions. Keep in mind that calling a screwdriver by another name makes it no less effective at driving a screw. Before trying to reach an Otherworld personality, learn as much as you can about the nature of that entity.

Did this individual once live on this plane, or has the Otherworld been its permanent home? What sort of behavior can you expect? Consider knowing this information, and as much as you can, prior to contact. Some overlap exists between historical and mythical figures (i.e. heroes versus gods).

When in doubt about whether an individual is of this world or the Otherworld, assume the latter. Remember that life in the mundane world is finite and brief, while that in the Otherworld is timeless.