Day 2: A rose by any other name. . .

I didn't get a chance to post last night because I was out late, but I DID do the exercise. Today's gonna be a long post by the way.

Today's (well, last night's) exercise, is about words associated with Wicca. According to this book, words are not a reality in themselves. For example, the word "apple" is not in actuality an apple. You can understand the concept of an apple, but to know an apple you must hold it, smell it, taste it. Avery explained this to me in a different way that I thought made sense. In Eragon, Brom explains that simply knowing the words in the ancient language is not enough. Eragon needed to know not just what the word represented, but the essence of the word. Brom claimed that he could produce water simply by using the ancient word for fire because he understood these connections.

Anyway, I was given a short list of words and I had to answer some questions about each word.

Wicca: I feel comfortable with this one. I can't say I completely understand it as I'm in the process of learning what exactly Wicca is. I don't think other people view this one with much of a negative connotation. Crazy probably, but not negative.
Witchcraft: I don't know if I would use this word or not. It isn't that I'm uncomfortable with it, it's just that I don't think it describes what I'm doing. I hear this and I think of fantasy stories and whatnot. People probably aren't too keen on others practicing "witchcraft."
Power: This word doesn't seem too complicated. Power is one's ability to do something. Power in itself is not bad, it's when it gets abused. Because of that, I almost view power as a negative word, although I'm sure many would disagree.
Ritual: I think I like this word. Rituals are comforting and dependable. Every religion has their rituals, but I feel that Wiccan rituals can often be viewed as weird or crazy. When I hear the word ritual (in relation to Wicca) I think of a magic circle, candles, and incense.
Magic: This one's tricky. Magic is a fun word, and it gets tossed around a lot. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that I hear 'magic' and think Harry Potter. I don't really know a whole lot about Wiccan magic. Obviously the believers say it's real, and I'd like for it to be real. This word goes hand in hand with ritual, I think.
Occult: Ghosts, witches, UFOs, voodoo, etc. Those are the first things to come to mind with this word. It's got such a weird connotation, I don't know if I would like it being applied to my religion or not. Probably not. What would a hardcore Christian do if you referred to their religion as part of the occult?
Pagan: I think of this as sort of an umbrella term. Wicca is pagan, but pagan is not necessarily Wicca. There are different kinds of pagan religions, and people can choose to just say they're pagan and not specifically associate with any of them. Unfortunately, paganism has a bad rap. I don't understand why. They don't seem like a particularly confrontational group. "Do no harm" and all that jazz. It's been shoved into people's minds that paganism is bad, monotheism is good. Gr.
Spell: This one is like magic. Not sure about it either. For the most part, nowadays people don't believe in magic or spells, they view them as a fantasy thing. But spells seem to be a big part of practicing Wicca. It's how one does. . .stuff. I don't know if they work or not, but I would try them. They seem like they help one focus on what it is they want.
Earth-Religion: Religion has been a scary word to me ever since I went to a Catholic school. However, I like the Earth-based aspect of this. It sounds peaceful and friendly.

After this, the book goes on to explain the words as Wiccans generally define them. Mainly, it gives the history of how the words developed. The definition of magic is interesting though. "Wiccans understand magic as a natural process. It is the ability to change one's frame of mind. . . Out of one's change of consciousness comes change in the world."

I like this :)