What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?

I have always been incredibly interested in these topics- but who are the leading sources of information? I like to read and learn about these topics, but I am having trouble sorting valid information from 13 year olds with free angel fire webpages! If anyone knows alot about this business, please let me know!What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?I've a weak spot for Cunningham and anything by the Farrars %26amp;/or Farrar/Bone.



But www.witchvox.com had a lot of interesting articles.



.What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?
I would suggest published books well over anything on the web. Try reading "Drawing Down the Moon," by Margot Adler, it is primarily information on the varying traditions, but it has less info on actually practicing. One of my favorite books is, "The Spiral Dance," by Starhawk. This book is has much more content on actually practicing.



Ultimately, everything should be fact checked, and the web is notorious for that not happening.



I'm not Wiccan so the Starhawk book, though used by Wiccans at times, is due to my bias for that author. Just thought I'd let you know.What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?I would suggest you read Gerald Gardner's work first, after all, he is the one who started Wicca as we know it. Then Janet %26amp; Stewart Farrar's works are good too. Stay away from Silver Ravenwolf, Fiona Horne etc.

Starhawk and Scott Cunningham's works are good but not exactly Wicca in a traditional sense. Starhawk is not Wiccan (just a feminist pagan witch), Scott Cunningham's "Wicca" is a mix of superficial folklore and elemental folk magic.

MAKE SURE you read Charles Leland's "Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches". It's not Wicca, but they say that's where it all started...

other good authors are Raymond Buckland, Doreen Valiente, Scott Cunningham, Ed Fitch, Gerina Dunwich (she tends to be fluffy a little, but her materials are useful and informative), Paul Huson, Robin Artissn, Sorita D'Este



BTW. Paul Huson's works are NOT about Wicca, it's about witchcraft (without all the fluffy bullshit) and is certainly very useful material. His book "Mastering Witchcraft" is the best book on witchcraft I would recommend.What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?
Try asking Practitioners of the religions.



www.paganspace.net

http://awitchesbrew.ning.com

http://isislounge.ning.com



http://www.religioustolerance.org/witchc鈥?/a>



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wicca



http://www.allaboutreligion.org/wicca-re鈥?/a>



http://www.wicca.com/celtic/wicca/wicca.鈥?/a>



http://paganwiccan.about.com/



http://www.sacredwell.org/wicca.html



As the harm none, do what thou wilt.

Blessed Samhain to all!



The top 3 websites I am a member of. Feel free to look me up there.



Blessed Be.What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?Aaron Leitch has written a brief history of Wicca and Neopaganism and provided a bibliography to assist enquirers. Here are some of the books he recommends:



A Witches' Bible: The Complete Witches' Handbook, Janet and Stewart Farrar



God of the Witches, Margaret Murray



High Magick's Aid, Gerald B. Gardner



The Golden Dawn, Israel Regardie



Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner, Scott Cunningham



Between the Worlds, Stuart Myers



Drawing down the Moon, Margot Adler
Welcome to that which is lovingly referred to by us as the "Fluff Bunnies". They are those folks that want so badly to believe that life and paganism (and the sub religions therein) are all bright, happy, fluffy and full of goodness.



I will not speak for anyone else, but I personally find them annoying to the point where I want to gouge my eyes out with hot needles.



My suggestions are as follows:



1) Talk to practioners one on one. They can be hard to find simply because alot of us are hermits. You can find good resources at http://www.witchvox.com and http://noblepagan.com for community contacts.

2) Read everything you find from books to stuff on the web with a grain of salt. Remember, the religions under the pagan umbrella are unorganized and alot of the teachings you find are common sense things that you do every day already. If it goes against your core beliefs, then that particular book, site, etc. is not for you.

3) Follow your gut instinct. You will find that when you open up to your own mind and instincts on what you read, you will be able to better sort the fluff from the actual teachings.

4) Talk with practitioners. I cannot stress this enough, there's only so much you can teach yourself. Having someone to bounce questions off of does not mean you have to join a coven or anything, just that you are able to better clarify your own misconceptions. Again, http://noblepagan.com and http://www.witchvox.com can help in this area.What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at http://tinyurl.com/AmyBlackthorn



Spells can work for anyone. Magic is a system, not a religion. It's also not good or bad. It's how you choose to use it.



I know magic works because I've been doing it for years. Wicca is just one of many faiths that embrace Magic. But Wiccans and Witches aren't

the only ones who use magic.



You can be both a Wiccan and a witch, these two words are not the same. None of these words has anything to do with devil worship.



One of the biggest sore points among Wiccans is the improper usage of the terms "Wiccan" and "Witch". Too many people use the terms interchangeably,

presuming that they both mean the same thing. They do not.



Wiccan

Wicca is just one of many faiths that embrace Magic. Wicca is a religion, and someone who follows that religion is called a Wiccan. Sometimes it

can be difficult to accurately define Wicca, and not all Wiccans will define themselves the same way. Observing the 8 Wiccan Sabbats, honoring the

Gods and/or Goddesses, creating sacred space for rituals, to name a few. Many traditional Wiccans also feel that belonging to a coven is also a

requirement and that those who practice their religion as a solitary, should not refer to themselves as Wiccan. Personally, I'm still not sure on

that point. Typical Wiccans also practice magick, and therefore are also witches. You cannot be a "natural Wiccan" any more than you could be a

"natural Christian".



Witch

The practice of witchcraft is not associated with any religion, therefore you can be a witch and yet also be a member of any number of

religions (or none). Using the natural energies within yourself, along with the energies of herbs, stones or other elements to make changes

around you is considered witchcraft. Though the skills and gifts that are part of witchcraft can be inherited from parents or grandparents,

you aren't automatically a witch just because your grandmother may have been one. The use of magick takes practice, experience and learning.

On a side note, a male witch is called a witch, not a warlock.



Pagan

While I'm explaining terminology, I thought I would throw in "Pagan" as well. Paganism refers to a variety of non-Christian/Jewish/ Islamic

religions that are usually polytheistic and are often nature-based. Wicca is only one Pagan religion, but there are others such as Santeria,

Asatru, or Shamanism. Many people do not necessarily identify with a specific religion, and just use the broad term "Pagan" to define their

spiritual path. Pagan religions are distinct and separate from each other, and it should not be assumed that they are just different names for

the same faith.





Suggested Reading List



Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham



Living Wicca: A Further Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham



Complete Book of Incense, Oils and Brews by Scott Cunningham



Book of Shadows: A Modern Woman鈥檚 Journey into the Wisdom of Witchcraft and the Magic of the Goddess by Phyllis Curott



Green Witchcraft by Aoumiel (Ann Moura)



True Magick by Amber K



Inner Temple of Witchcraft: Magick, Meditation and Psychic Development by Christopher Penczak



Heart of Wicca: Wise Words from a Crone on the Path by Ellen Cannon Reed



The Spiral Dance by Starhawk



Natural Magic by Marian Green



Wheel of the Year: Living the Magical Life by Pauline Campanelli



The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan

Witchcraft by Ronald Hutton



AmysGreenDreams.etsy.com



pagan.meetup.com

wicca.meetup.com

witches.meetup.com



azuregreen.com



abaxion.com



ecauldron.net



paganwiccan.about.com



witchvox.com



wicca.timerift.net



Christians becoming Wiccan

http://www.wicca-spirituality.com/christ鈥?/a>
I recommend books over websites, but http://wicca.timerift.net is not a bad place to start.What sources can I trust regarding information about wicca and neopaganism?
ive always trusted scott cunningham. as well as the helpful people on paganspace.net
You need to remember that as Wicca is oath-bound anything you read will be outer-court so finding reliable information is difficult - the more you learn the easier it is to find information that is more likely to be valid and reliable. Paganism is also a huge classification for various different beliefs and religions, so it depends on what sort of thing you're looking into, also do you want ot look into related subjects such as say golden dawn, which would also give you a bit of a better footing when studying Wicca.



General rules of thumb are to avoid the likes of Ravewolf and Horne (I'm guessing you'd figure that one out for yourself), past that it is more difficult. It's good to go for information and sources form those who are Wicca (BTW) with confirmed lineage, but you then have people like Buckland and Cunningham where their is lineage so they are Wicca, but their work is very much neo-wicca rather than Wicca - Neo-wicca being a system based on outer-court teachings, but who are not themselves Wicca. You've got some good book suggestions; Fararrs, Murry, Valiente, Crowley, Gardner himself of course (the difference between his work and the sort of books on 'Wicca' you get today is so vast). "The Spiral Dance," by Starhawk as very much a pagan book however be warned she is very much second wave feminist, "Triumph of the Moon" by Ronald Hutton, boring as sin and some arguments about his sources but an important book.



Web sites;

http://amberandjet.org - Amber %26amp; Jet

http://www.wcc.on.ca - Wiccan Church of Canada

http://janus.spawnfar.net - Janus Gate

http://www.cog.org - Covenant of the Goddess

http://www.tangledmoon.org - Tangled Moon Coven

http://beaufort.bravepages.com/index.htm鈥?/a> - Beaufort House

http://www.asiya.org - Asiya's Shadows

http://www.sacred-texts.com/index.htm - Internet Sacred Text Online

http://www.paganfed.org - Pagan Federation

http://www.thewica.co.uk - The Wica

Yahoo! only allows for 10 links - add http:// in front.

newt.00me.com/notgard.html - Gardnerian or not

www.geocities.com/astraeaaradia - Myriad of Enchantments

www.the-cauldron.org.uk - The Cauldron