Misunderstood Witches

[Schlobin at aol.com]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at y..., "Benjamin" <jaffa276 at y...> wrote:
> Angela Boyko wrote:
> [snip] She began to tell me that since the stories
> > > were about 
> > > witchcraft, they were bad and preached evil.  
> [snip]
> > I know a couple of Wiccans and I don't believe they
> > are evil. One can be quite unpleasant if someone slams
> > her favourite sports star, but she'd be that way no
> > matter what beliefs she practises.
>  
> I think that perhaps the most evil person I have known was not a 
> witch, but in fact assisted in a Anglican church.  She had a friend 
> who was a witch (just "came out of the broom closet") and who acted 
> somewhat as a calming and restraining influence.
> 
> Not that I'd hold these up as either typical or atypical of either 
> form of belief.  It also depends on what is your definition of evil 
> really.  The rest just seems to fall back on stereotypes.  
> 
> -Ben. Has my solvent dried yet?


Well, of course, there are probably the same percentage of evil 
witches/wiccans as there are evil Christians/Jews/Muslims/Buddhists, 
etc.

The bottom line is that the witchcraft that is practiced today as a 
spiritual discipline does not embrace evil. Period. It doesn't.

The "know nothings" and "don't bother me with the truth" people make 
me crazy.

I really don't get the "Christian" argument (I put it in quotes 
because I know that the anti HP and even the anti witchcraft groups 
are not representative. Why are they against witchcraft? Because it 
says so in the Bible? 

Now, I can understand being against Satan, and against anyone who 
invokes the powers of evil/Satan.

So, I can understand being against Satanists...I guess there are some 
but I've never met one. And I'm a pagan..maybe the Satanists just 
hang out around Christians -- after all, Satan is a Christian 
construct, not a pagan one...

And I can understand being against witchcraft if one thinks it's 
about evil....

But modern day witches (I'm one) can speak up and say "no, we're 
about nature and the environment, and accountability, and love, and 
pleasure, etc." Of course, we do think sex per se is good, not evil, 
and we don't think you have to be married (all acts of love and 
pleasure are my rituals), so I can understand people having a problem 
with that..

But for gosh sakes! get informed! How can you be against HP, and call 
Harry evil? The HP saga is your basic morality play -- it's all about 
Harry as the enemy of Voldemort the Evil..

Susan