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Weekly Update: 7/5/2004
Author: Witchvox Central
Posted: July 5th. 2004
Times Viewed: 5,335
Sean Ciall
by Robert Reeder
The Witchcraft of Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man has worn many masks in many ages; shape-shifting, changing, evolving with the passing of time. No word, or volume of words, can meaningfully describe the Witchcraft of the Gaels, for any line which may be described is but a single strand of an amazingly beautiful and intricate tweed. The Sean Ciall practiced today is not the Sean Ciall of ancient Scotland, Ireland and Man, nor is it the Sean Ciall which immigrated to the Americas during the Highland Clearances and Potato Famine, although we may at times, legitimately or otherwise, claim some distant kinship to these. We honor this heritage, but we are not enslaved by it. "Sean Ciall" (also written "Sean Cill," which translates rather differently) is, literally, the "Old Way," but it is also the new, as change is the very nature of magick, and truly ancient magicks are no more or less valuable than ancient techniques of surgery.
History:
  All history is fiction. The fiction of the history of Sean Ciall begins in Ulster during the latter part of the 1700's, during the height of the NeoPagan revival in Europe. The shredded remnants of Gaelic, Welsh and Broad Scots which have actually been passed down indicate strongly that the original creators of what is now Sean Ciall were English- speaking Protestants, attempting to recreate what they thought Celtic Druidism might have been based on such folklore as they had been exposed to in Ulster and Donegal. I imagine this to have been rather like some of the predominantly European-American "Native American Spirituality" groups which were popular in this country ten or so years ago. In any event, the Presbyterian migration, fuelled by the Highland Clearances in Scotland and the Potato Famine in Ireland, brought many Scots and Irish to the Americas in the late 1700s and early 1800s, and they in turn brought Sean Ciall. In the years since, Sean Ciall has been either "enhanced" or "corrupted" (depending on one's perspective) by whatever magickal or mystical fad it happened to be exposed to, from Freemasonry and Rosicrucianism to Voudun and Cherokee practices to Spiritism, Hermetics and eventually Wicca. Today Sean Ciall has been co-opted once again by the larger whole of NeoPaganism... [Full Profile]
A Extensive New Set of Definitions....
 Symbols
by Kerr Cuhulain
Throughout the Witch Hunts series I've showed you checklists taken from the large number of books and manuals meant to educate the public and law enforcement agencies on the "dangers of the occult". Most of those that I have collected over the past two decades are appallingly inaccurate. The few that have any factual basis are so short that they are virtually useless. The slapdash scholarship, exasperating misinterpretations and deliberate falsehoods contained in these books are truly amazing. Unfortunately unsuspecting investigators take these inadequate manuals and waste a great deal of their time on unproductive wild goose chases trying to put the "information" in them to use. As a result, expensive investigative hours are wasted, innocent people are falsely accused and investigators are embarrassed.
One of the first such manuals that I collected was the Law Enforcement Guide to Occult-Related Crime, written by Sgt. Edwin Anderson, Jr., of the California State University Police in San Jose, California. In the introduction, Anderson states: "This work is the result of compiling information from an abundance of sources, both documentary and testimonial."[1] Having got past the first page one finds that this manual appears to be a glossary of occult terms, though for some odd reason, Anderson lists five names of organizations on the third page with no definition or explanation attached to them at all... [Full Article]
 NEW Essay Topic...
"Festivals"
How important are Pagan festivals to you and to your sense of/connection with community? How many do you generally attend each year? For those of you who have been around for a decade or so, how have festivals changed over the years? Most importantly, how do you think festivals can be improved, and what advice would you give to someone who has never attended a festival, but is considering it?
The deadline for this topic is August 1st. 2004., but we will post the essays as we receive them. Please keep in mind that we will not post responses to previously posted essays.
Any thoughtful and postive essays of over 1,000 words will be published. Please read our editorial guidelines first, and send your essay to Diotima |
The One True Path (As Described in the Kybalion)
by SGT Timothy W. Walley
Here I go again - writing on a topic based on the Kybalion. After the last two writings, I reread the Kybalion. Taking a look at some of the responses I received, I do believe some missed the point entirely. So I'm going to just write and explain what the Kybalion is saying. Many of you that have taken an interest in what I write will be surprised by what I'm about to say. A few of you will just nod your heads and say, "Naturally; I knew this already."
Remember this: I am writing from a certain background. I grew up as a Baptist missionary kid in the Philippines. I started studying various religious views at the age of 13. When I returned to the USA at the age of 18, I started noticing the differences and similarities in what people called "religion." Interestingly enough... [Full Article]
Warlock: The Other 'W-Word'
by RuneWolf
I have recently taken to referring to myself as a Warlock. At midnight on the Summer Solstice, in a solitary seaside ritual, I made it "official."
Now why in the world would I want to do such a boneheaded thing as that?
Well, I have a few reasons:- Because I want to.
- Because I can.
- Because it will probably irritate and scandalize the kind of people I enjoy irritating and scandalizing.
- Because it makes me feel "SPEH-shul!" (And yes, that's The Church Lady you hear...)
Aside from these admittedly shallow and self-serving reasons, I have other motives for this change. Allow me to ramble a bit...
We are told by many modern Witches, particularly those involved with the various flavors of Feminist Wicca and Witchcraft, that we are "reclaiming the power and positive meaning of the word 'Witch' after centuries of patriarchal oppression and denigration." Cool - I am completely down with that... [Full Article]
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