Some things I just think are weird...

A Christian Witch
A Jewish* Witch
and any other variation of an established patriarchal religion that demonised witchcraft and magick use, and believes only in the One True GodTM Witch.

I just don't understand it, and I have never had anyone explain it in a way that makes me understand. I have had plenty of people tell me that people can believe anything and any way they like. Which is undeniable. That doesn't mean I think they are right in what they believe.

This apparently makes me Teh Evilz and Big Bad Michelle. I just wish someone would explain how it is possible to put the two together and make a viable, workable spirituality? Yes, take influence from it, take inspiration from it, but actually calling yourself a Christian Witch?

Why it doesn't work for me:
-Whether you consider witchcraft to be a spiritual path, or a structure of occult skills, both of those views are not compatible with the doctrine of Christian belief. As a Christian, Jesus Christ is the one and only One True God. No Goddess, no Mother Earth, no Female Divine. There can be no divination, no spellwork, no idols, nothing that is actually Witchcraft. So what is it you are actually doing if you are a Christian Witch? (Same goes for all the other religions that have an anti-occult doctrine.)
-It ignores the history of Christianity. The history of violence, anti-homosexuality, anti-women, all those "goodies" that fill the Bible.
-It smacks of an inferiority complex. Being a Witch isn't good enough, it has to be pre-fixed with a label that gives it a respectable meaning. Why can't you embrace and reclaim the word WITCH? If you walk like a duck, and quack like a duck, why do you pre-fix the word duck with chicken?
-It is insulting to Christianity. Not that I really care, but it is. Christianity and all its fellows have established doctrine and laws that you are meant to subscribe to.

If someone can give me some clarity on this, I would be really grateful. I don't think I would ever really change my mind about just being a Witch, but I would love an intelligent and non-emotive answer to my questions. Other than just being mean and horrid! :P

*Being Jewish is not only a religious path, it is a heritage. You are born a Jew. So technically, if you choose the path of Witchcraft, then you are still Jewish and a Witch. A good example of this is Starhawk. She is proud of her Jewish heritage, but still calls herself a Witch...

Not a Jewitch...

Disillusionment...part deux

I have started to tentatively put my nose back out on the pagan scene. I was quite active a few years back, but after some horrible experiences I pulled my head back in. But I do miss it. I am not entirely sure why, but I want people that feel the same way about things as I do, or at the very least people that don't think I am a freak for feeling the way I do.

I just find that a lot of pagans/witches/insert your appropriate label here just don't seem to be on the same mindset as me. Now I have never expected people to be exactly the same as me, but I do get tired of being the odd one out.

I often have the conversation with my husband where we ponder if we really are the weirdos. The conclusion that we have come to is that we must be. We look at our peers, and we have very little in common with them. Our concerns and priorities aren't the same. And I just don't understand why that is. My concerns and priorities are based on what I consider to be common sense. But that appears to be different from what others consider common sense.

I am very disillusioned with People at the moment. I am just not that sure what to do about it.

Disillusionment...

The meaning of disillusionment is "freeing from false belief or illusions". At face value this sounds quite positive, doesn't it? Unfortunately I think most of the time we become disillusioned when something we have believed to be true is found to be false. Which isn't necessarily a freedom that we always want. It might be the truth, but the truth can be cold, harsh and unwelcome.

I try very hard not to be a cynical, pessimistic person. It is becoming increasingly hard at the moment. I hate being in situations where I am watching from the outside and am helpless to change. All I can do is sit and wait it out.

What does this mean to me? There could be some radical changes happening in the not so distant future. They are changes that were on the cards anyway, however being prematurely pushed into the situation before we are ready could well be very uncomfortable.

To Be Continued...maybe...

OK, a rebuttal. Of sorts.

I still think what Dr Sigman has to say has merit. But it has been pointed out to me that there is a flurry of eminent scientific objection to what has been said. Or maybe to how it's been said.

So, Twitter gives you cancer?

Now, let's be frank. I don't really think that social networks cause cancer. I do think they can mess up the way people view relationships with others. In simple terms, until you know how someone smells, you can't tell if you want to marry them over the internet. No matter how much you think you love them.

FFS! GET A LIFE!!

I noticed quite early on while perusing the internet, people insisting that friendships made on the internet were as meaningful and important as friendships made in Real Life. I don't mean meeting people online first, then meeting them in real life and developing a friendship; I mean online relationships that are never taken into the real world.

I have nothing against online friendships, I have lots of them. However the people that I consider to be real proper friends are the ones I have taken the next step with, and have actually met. If I haven't met you, it doesn't negate the fact that I like you and would like to meet you if we could, but it does mean that our level of friendship will never really go past a certain level. And personally, that's how I think it should be.

We are human animals. We need sight, sound, and the often neglected smell to know people. Real life interaction with people satisfies a need we all have for companionship. Someone on the end of MSN or Facebook is nice to talk to, but it is better to do it for real. In person.

Well, I was vindicated today. Dr. Aric Sigman has stated, GET OFF FACEBOOK AND GET A LIFE!

An online relationship/friendship can be meaningful only up to a point. I am NOT saying that they aren't meaningful, useful, and worth having. I am saying though, that we should also be getting the hell back out there and MEETING people again.

Butterflies flapping.

The Butterfly Effect
(gacked from wikipedia)
The phrase refers to the idea that a butterfly's wings might create tiny changes in the atmosphere that may ultimately alter the path of a tornado or delay, accelerate or even prevent the occurrence of a tornado in a certain location. The flapping wing represents a small change in the initial condition of the system, which causes a chain of events leading to large-scale alterations of events. Had the butterfly not flapped its wings, the trajectory of the system might have been vastly different. While the butterfly does not cause the tornado, the flap of its wings is an essential part of the initial conditions resulting in a tornado.

I learnt something new today. I hadn't realised that this was a concept from Chaos Theory. I had always thought it was some ancient ye olde proverb. It is interesting to look at. It makes a lot more sense when you actually read what it is rather than the version most people try and make of it. It isn't the flapping in itself that makes the change, it's the flapping at the right place at the right time. However, the chaotic part is that you can never really tell when and where the right place is. So should we just be flapping anyway?

Most pagans see Butterflies symbolising joy, freedom, living in the moment, transformation, the birth-death-rebirth circle, mental powers, reincarnation, magick, divination concerning the life cycle, understanding where you are in the cycle of your life, inspiration, immortality, leisure, beauty in old age, longevity, love, happiness, falseness, vanity and the soul. They are connected to the element of Air and Xochiquetzal.

So what am I yapping about? I am not completely sure. Perhaps it is the chaotic nature of not knowing why, when or where that is the important factor here. We don't know why, when, how, where, or even if our actions have any real impact on the world. Yes, there are times when we can see a result, but that isn't necessarily the only result that occurs.

The reason why I am thinking about this stuff is I want to make my spiritual life more meaningful and productive. I do feel I have been lacking somewhat in certain areas and I am unwilling to put up with the status quo anymore.

Things are going to change. Not sure how, when, where, but I do know the why.

If there was ever a voice that sounds like hot dark chocolate...

(and a bit like Antonio Banderas, which isn't a bad thing at all!)

Shahram Shiva - Rumi: LoveDrunk

I am definitely thinking about getting this cd, as I think it would be quite lovely to listen to in bed, late at night...

Sera Beak - THE RED BOOK

I really enjoyed this book, and I emailed the author to tell her as much. She sent me a lovely reply which was very sweet of her. (And quite unexpected.) If you fancy a refreshing take on a modern woman's spirituality then read this...

Sera Beak's The Red Book

I found an interview with her on youtube. So here it is.

A Good Childhood?

The Children's Society have commissioned this report called A Good Childhood, and it as well as all the snow has been in the news today...

Selfish Adults Are A Threat To Our Children.

Working Women Damaging Children.

While both these assertions raise some interesting and disturbing views, I do feel that they are missing the point somewhat. I am also particularly irritated with the same old, same old about working women. Blaming it on the need for economic independence, which causes women to leave their husbands is archaic, patriarchal and basically bollocks.

I am not going to completely slag off the report though, since all I am reacting to at the moment are media soundbites. However, after looking at the Children's Society website, it is a charity run by the Church of England. Hmmmm...so no hidden agenda there then?

View from the backdoor

Fourth Annual Brigid in the Blogosphere Poetry Slam

WHAT: A Bloggers (Silent) Poetry Reading
WHEN: Anytime February 2, 2009
WHERE: Your blog
WHY: To celebrate the Feast of Brigid, aka Groundhog Day
HOW: Select a poem you like - by a favorite poet or one of your own - to post February 2nd.


Spring Quiet Christina Rossetti (1847)
Gone were but the Winter,
Come were but the Spring,
I would go to a covert
Where the birds sing.

Where in the whitethom
Singeth a thrush,
And a robin sings
In the holly-bush.

Full of fresh scents
Are the budding boughs
Arching high over
A cool green house:

Full of sweet scents,
And whispering air
Which sayeth softly:
“We spread no snare;

“Here dwell in safety,
Here dwell alone,
With a clear stream
And a mossy stone.

“Here the sun shineth
Most shadily;
Here is heard an echo
Of the far sea,
Though far off it be.”



And here are my pomes* for the day.

Snow Snow Snow Snow
Snow Day Today
sNOw School, sNOw Trains, sNOw Buses.


Spring is starting.
Tiny signs to be seen.
But today is all snowy,
White covers the green.

*I never said I was good at writing poems, so these are pomes, which are slightly different.