1/2Other reviews of this book were indeed glowing; it received praise from many notable Pagans including Margot Adler, Z. Budapest, Starhawk, and the editor of Sagewoman magazine. I really wanted to love this book, and while it is certainly not the most horrendous book on Witchcraft out there, I cannot say I am as thrilled by it as the reviews led me to believe I should. In general, I thought the book felt very scattered and was in need of furthur organization. I also find it difficult to take someone seriously if they claim to be half-human and half-faerie in a literal sense, even in spite of the fact that the author completed an admirable seven-year training (her claim to be part "magickal being" leads me to think of the You Might be Giving Pagans a Bad Name If... list!).
Much of the material is written in a poetic mode, which can be quite lovely, but when not balanced by a certain amount of factual writing, it can produce innacuracies. For instance, the history of Witchcraft is presented in a very nebulous and romantic way, but without other descriptions to modify it, the reader will come away from it feeling that Witchcraft as it is presented in this book is literally ancient (it is not, though some of the concepts within Witchcraft may very well be).
I was also very concerned by the fact that the book claimed to be based on "traditional Celtic" wisdom and techniques. Francesca does use the names of a few Celtic Deities, but I rather doubt that that material she presents in the book are based upon actual research on the culture and religion of Celtic peoples. I myself am not a Celtic Pagan (genetically or otherwise), and have not done extensive research on the Celts to either verify or deny the accuracy of DeGrandis' writing, but I feel that much of it is still only the general Wiccan fare with a Celtic veneer as opposed to being truly based on ancient Celtic Paganism, which is what the book suggests (in actuality, what she presents is essentially the Feri take on mythology which utilizes Welsh Deity names). A very duotheistic outlook is introduced to the reader, which is even more indicative of modern Wicca, since the Celts were certainly polytheists. In addition, I found that there was a strong emphasis on the Goddess and God as being perpetually sweet and loving which is a rather limited perspective not to mention that it was not supported by the Celtic worldview, which included such Deities as the Morrigan (who was decidedly not sweet and loving!).
I understand her desire to make sure no one rips her off by stealing the title of her tradition: The Third Road, but it gets really annoying to see virtually every reference to that title followed by an r within a circle (the symbol that indicates it is a registered trademark). It's a Witchcraft tradition, a spiritual path, not a product one would sell on a late-night infomertial!
There is a strong emphasis placed on the use of magic to acquire "stuff," material possessions. There is nothing wrong with stuff (Goddess knows, I like stuff too!), but I felt it focused a little too much on obtaining it through magic (especially VCR's - I guess this book came out before DVD players became popular). I thought that a self-described "Guide for Self-Healing" should aim to help us appreciate ourselves without all the extra stuff. If one acquires too much stuff and attaches too much worth to it, one ends up measuring one's self-worth by it, which is certainly not self-healing.
Now that I have detailed some of the less desireable traits of Be a Goddess!, I suppose I must be fair and give it credit for its good points. I particularly appreciated that the author includes both the creation of poetry and art as an integral part of a Pagan's path. There is more to being a Pagan than what occurs inside a circle, afterall. It it also wonderful that she acknowledges the necessity for both will and surrender in life, and this is a point many fail to mention.
1/2 The content of this book aims to accomplish many things, among them to introduce some of the very broad concepts held by Pagans, to address misconceptions Christians may have about Paganism, as well as to address misconceptions Pagans may have about Christianity. More specifically, he challenges the Christian claim to exclusive spiritual validity, the objectiveness of Scripture, and also the accusations some Christians make that Pagansism is morally inferior, and that it does not adequately address suffering in the world. In response to Pagan criticisms of Christianity, diZerega reveals many verses within the Bible that counter the perception of many Pagans that Christianity truly views Nature as merely an object at human disposal. He also illustrates the wonderful Christian legacy of spiritual equality and charity in the Western world.
I believe Pagans & Christians provides a very good overview of Pagans beliefs (the beliefs of NeoPagan Witches in particular, although reconstructionist Pagans may not feel that their beliefs are well reflected by this work) as well as approaching some of the more difficult questions about the nature of evil and suffering in a Pagan context. His account of his first meeting with the Goddess is beautiful and inspiring. I greatly appreciated his assertions that Paganism recognizes the remarkable love of the Divine as much as certain monotheistic traditions do. I also found his use of classical Pagan material and more contemporary poetry to be insightful.
I actually gave a copy of this book to a Christian friend of mine for the above reasons. However, I also had a few reservations when giving the book to such a dedicated Christian because it has the tendency to become rather harsh towards Christianity regarding certain issues (mainly Christianity's claim of possessing universal Truth and its historical intolerance of other religions). While the author's arguments may be entirely accurate and justified in this regard, I do not think that the way he goes about making those arguments encourages the understanding between Paganism and Christianity that he seeks. At some points the text seems almost hostile, which might make Christians as displeased with his points as much as Pagans are displeased with Fundamentalist Christian assertions.
Interestingly, in discussing "Pagan spiritualities" in the beginnning of the book, diZerega includes not only paths that are self-described as Pagan or more accurately NeoPagan, but also other paths which do not formally use those terms to describe themselves. For instance, he includes Native American religions, Hinduism, and Afro-Caribbean religions such as Santeria and Voudoun under the title Pagan. Undoubtedly, self-described NeoPagans and members of these other religions do share some common traits, which he lists as
1. Pantheism or Panentheism, 2. Animism, 3. Polytheism, 4. The Eternal Present (primary emphasis upon spiritual reality's cyclical and mythical rather than linear and historical character), 5. No equivalent of Satan or ultimate evil (5)but those communities are not the same as NeoPagan communities. Using Isaac Bonewits' system of classification, Native Americans, Hindus, and followers of Santeria and Voudoun would be more properly called PaleoPagans or MesoPagans, while most who describe themselves as Pagans (with a capital P) use it as a shorthand for NeoPagan. DiZerega does not make this distinction (or he does not make it very clearly) in the first segment of his book, which can prove to be confusing and misleading for those who are not too familiar with the differences between these groups of religions.
However, furthur down the line, diZerega tells his readers that his emphasis will shift to Gardnerian Wicca in particular. In regards to this branch of modern Wicca, he comments," I focus primarily upon the traditional, or Gardnerian, element in Neopagan practice for it underlies in more or less modified form, most Neopagan traditions" (51). I'm not so sure an Asatuar or a Celtic Reconstructionist would appreciate this comment!
Despite all of this, on a general basis, Pagans & Christians is a good book that does seek to provide understanding and serve as a catalyst for inter-faith dialogue which does not push for a melding or watering down of either tradition. DiZerega encapsulates this idea in his conclusion:
Interfaith work is that area of religious life where we can work with others of different faiths without having to justify our beliefs or worry about the validity of others' practices. Years ago I helped to organize an interfaith tree plainting in the hills behind Berkely, California. Christians and Pagans, Baha'is and Jews, Hindus, Sikhs, and Buddhists all came together to plant endangered oaks in what had once been their native habitat. Each faith prayed and observed in its own way, a way appropriate to the teachings of that tradition. Each community worked side by side with the others. There was no watering down to a lowest common denominator, no "one world religion." Rather, each acted in a reverential fashion unique to its spiritual vision while helping the earth common to us bloom more abundantly. (230)
When Stewart first began research for this particular book, he was a sympathetic outsider and an observer, a journalist commissioned to write a piece on one of the training covens of Alex and Maxine Sanders (the Alexandrian Wiccan tradition was founded and subsequently named after Alex Sanders). As he became acquianted with the Sanders, their coven, and with Wiccan belief and practice as a whole, he discovered that he was well suited to them and decided to undergo initiation into traditional Wicca. It is in this coven that Stewart meets his future wife, magical partner, and co-writer of many other books on Wicca, Janet. What Witches Do is an introductory and informative book that is drawn on Stewart's own journey and experiences. In keeping with Stewart's dual identity as both a journalist and a Witch, he approaches the subject matter with both a more detached, critical eye yet also with the spiritual and philosophical insight of a practitioner who understands ritual and symbolism. It was first published in 1971 and remains almost exactly in the same form as its initial publication although it does include a newer preface by the author.
It opens with a first person narrative of a first-degree intiation ceremony, undoubtedly based upon the author's personal experience. Other subjects this book touches upon include a discussion of polarity in Wicca, general Wiccan beliefs, the God and Goddess, invocation, ritual, the training of a Witch, and the construction and meaning of the Circle. In addition, there are chapters which consider clairvoyance, the Great Rite, the Tarot (it mainly explores the Major Arcana), astral projection, thoughts on divination, and the Cabala. There are a number of line illustrations within many chapters, for instance, one that shows the invoking and banishing pentagrams for each element, the symbols along the hilt of an athame, and a typical altar set-up. It also features a series of black and white photographs of the coven and rituals of Alex and Maxine. Many of the ritualwork described in What Witches Do is complete and clear enough for one to attempt to imitate it, however, the author cautions that everything except the concentration/meditation exercises should only be done after completing the proper training and with an experienced group.
What I found to be extremely positive about this book is that even though it was published in 1971, it shows a healthy skepticism towards Wicca's pseudo-history which many other books written around the same time seem to accept unquestionably (although there are plenty of books written much more recently which possess that same fault):
The roots of the spirit of Wicca are the fundamental nature and needs of the human psyche in its relation to the universe. The roots of the form of Wicca are many and diverse. A great deal of misunderstanding and irrelevant criticism has arisen from confusing the two. The [W]itchcraft movement as it exists today is a revival movement, and only a tiny handful of its members ('if any', some critics would add) can claim hereditary witch blood. Even of this handful, I doubt if any can say with certainty that their line descends unbroken from the heyday of the Old Religion. If they can, that is a fascinating historical curiosity - but it really does not affect the issue.(19)He also comes to a conclusion that some historians currently have come to: "To get down to cases: modern Wicca has had to build its own structure out of the materials available. These materials come from two main sources (though they overlap and always have done). First, witchcraft proper, the fertility-based philosophy of the old countryside.[. . .] The second source is the occult tradition" (20). I find it both refreshing and encouraging to know that there are sources that existed over thirty years ago which realized that Wicca's validity as a religion, philosophy, and practice does not rest on the imagined,inaccurate history some believe it to have.
However, there are also a number of somewhat negative aspects to this work. For instance, Farrar liberally uses the terms "white witch/magic" and "black witch/magic," which I believe are misleading and out-dated terms. Also, they are not in keeping with Farrar's own statements about polarity within Wicca:
Incidentally, the polarities should not be over-simplified - for example, by arbitrarily identifying male with positive and light, and female with negative and dark - but should be conceived as an interlocking newtork whose overall equilibrium is maintained by constant flux. Occultists regard the malke as positive (active) on the physical and mental planes, and negative (receptive) on the psychic and spiritual; and the female as the other way around. Even this is an over-simplification of a complex pattern of concepts. (34)Calling good magic "white" and bad magic "black" is definitely an over-simplification. In chapter 10, he compares Wicca with magic, presumably in this instance referring to more structured, ceremonial or "High" magic(k), and although he has previously identified Wicca as a religion(31) and not simply a craft or art, now speaks of it as somewhat inferior to magic:
[A] magician proper is a more advanced, more sophisticated, more scholarly and more highly-developed witch. Similarly, any witch who takes his work seriously, and really tries to understand what he is doing, is already beginning to be a magician even he was only initiated last week.(119)I think this spiritual hierarchy which sees the magician as superior and more advanced than the Witch is a false one. Certainly the work of a Witch and that of a ceremonial magician are qualitatively different (especially since Wicca/Neo-Pagan Witchcraft is primarily a religion while ceremonial magic may or may not directly reflect the spirituality of the magician) but I do not believe one to be inherently better than the other. A comparison between a witch (note the lowercase 'w'), simply defined as a pracitioner of certain classes of magic and divination, and a magician in this light may be appropriate. However, such a comparison between a Neo-Pagan Witch and a magician is something like comparing apples and oranges. In relation to both of these issues though, I must take into consideration that Wicca has changed since this book's original publication and that this book can only truly reflect the Alexandrian tradition in which Stewart was trained. In addition, it, like every other book, is inherently biased because it was written by an indivdual.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about traditional British Wicca.
1/2As in A Witch Alone, Marion discusses the magical meaning and medicinal use of plants, the solar and lunar cycles, connecting with the landscape, ritual, magic, and the Old Gods of Paganism. She frequently cites folk and agrarian practices. In addition, this book includes a concise, lucid account of the real history of the Neo-Pagan movement, and Marian is quite honest about the fact that since many ancient people (particularly pre-historic people) did not leave behind literary accounts of the specific nature and meaning behind their structures and artifacts, our thoughts on them are largely speculative. It is wonderful to finally hear a Pagan author state this directly instead of assuming that certain theories are correct and presenting the information as such, for instance the theory that the sculptures of voluptuous women created in the Stone Age are representations of fertility Goddesses.
In my review of her A Witch Alone, I wrote that Marian clearly seemed to be writing about the Neo-Pagan variety of Witchcraft known as Wicca although she did not overtly concede to this, but after reading this work and considering the topic further, I decided that my initial conclusion wasn't correct. Upon deeper inspection, I feel the type of Witchcraft she writes about is a different form of Neo-Pagan Witchcraft. Marian is obviously well-versed in Wicca, the Neo-Pagan religion which is based at least in part on the tradition founded by Gerald B. Gardner (the degree to which particular Wiccans adhere to his specific tradition varies widely), but the tradition she writes about is different. In numerous places in the text, she even goes about contrasting the type of Witchcraft she encourages from that of Wicca:
This is quite a different path from the coven-based, hierarchal, structured and book-bound ideas of wicca. The old magics are wild and free, they can only be encountered when the heart is unbound to sense, and the eyes are open to the hidden realms. The tracks of old witches wound through the realms of night and day, recognizind the healing and illuminating powers of plants, knowing the sacred in stone and tree and curve of a river. Today more and more rules are being printed in books, limiting wiccans to fixed dates, house-bound circles and convenient times rather than encouraging seekers to wander under the great and sacred circle of the sky, at times when the great forces which they perceive as Gods and Goddesses offer the guidance they need. (3)She goes on later by bringing up an interesting, if ironic, point:
For many of these wiccans and new pagans there does seem to be a need for direction, lists of rules or a Book of Shadows, leaders and instructors, regular meetings and initiations and degrees. These structures give them stability and and a feeling of 'belonging' to a religious society. All of this after having rejected their previos faith because of its regulations, fixed festivals, distant priesthood, and so on. However, there are others who bravely recognize that witchcraft is a daring philosophy, and they have sought to make that count, not with an organized paganism, but directly with the forces of Nature herself.(95)However, while the form of Witchcraft she espouses can not be specifically labeled as Wicca, there is a definite spiritual aspect to it which places it clearly in the realm of Neo-Pagan religious Witchcraft.
As usual, the author highly encourages Witches to make their own incenses and tools, grow or find their own herbs, connect in their own way to the particular land in which they reside, and to observe Nature firsthand. The magic, spellwork, and ritual she promotes with her work is highly integrated with nature, intuitive and spontaneous rather than intellectual and structured and is inherently spiritual. This book includes a number of simple, accessible exercises to help the would-be Witch develop her/his skills (though not as many as are present in A Witch Alone) as well as a lot of practical advice.
Although Marian is clearly writing about Witchcraft as a Neo-Pagan spiritual path this book could still prove to be quite useful for someone only interested in natural magic and not in Neo-Pagan religion. However, she does not capitalize either the terms "Witch" or "Pagan" to distinguish these words from their more mundane usages which could cause some confusion. She often refers to old country witches and cunningmen, but I get the impression that she simply makes educated speculations about their methods and takes inspiration from them rather than asserting that there is a direct historical connection between them and practioners of contemporary Neo-Pagan Witchcraft. In fact, in numerous places in the book she calls into question aspects of the popular myth of modern Witchcraft's history, for example:
Don't you think that a pagan priesthood, which not only admitted priestesses but held them in high regard above male priests, would have been recorded in some document somewhere in Europe in the last thousand years or so? Even the witch trials, which suggested all sorts of impossible things, never caught on to the idea of female priests! [. . .] [P]reserving ancient gods and goddesses, dancing at high, sacred sites, casting magical circles and gathering in covens led by priestesses fortunately never seem to have crossed their bigoted minds. Surely this suggests they never happened!(188)It is a fairly introductory book, but it can also be of definite use to more experienced Pagans since it includes a great deal of information not commonly found in other books as well as containing unique approaches to more typical topics. For instance, she includes Twelfth Night in her cycle of Sabbats, bringing the total of holidays from eight to nine. The chapter on divination is especially interesting since it describes methods which most books do not even consider (e.g. dowsing, twig divination, and pendulums as opposed to just mentioning the standard astrology, Tarot and runes) and she compels the reader to find their own meanings and connections for each of the symbolic factors involved; she does not supply hard and fast interpretations. The systems she introduces are far more natural and simple , utilizing materials direct from nature rather than being manufactured, than more complex systems like the Tarot. They are ideal for those who like to create or personalize their tools, not to mention that they are also cheaper.
The cycle of Sabbats is not apporached in purely archetypical terms, but in a more concrete manner by referencing agricultural happenings, which is sure to be of benefit to rural Pagans but can also serve as inspiration to more urban ones to look for tangible expressions of the changing of the seasons in their own environments. In addition, she does not consider typical ritual tools as a major part of Wiccan practice, she even looks upon the athame as somewhat out of date. Instead she presents the use of other tools, including the stang, a forked wooden staff which she describes as something of a portable altar.
Throughout the entire work she makes practical and realistic suggestions, and her overall presentation of material is definitely in keeping with the simple, natural path she advocates. While acknowledging the use of meditation and trance as valid methods to learn about ancient practices, she also tells the reader to compare their intuited information with historical research. What I found to be a noteworthy example of her down-to-earth viewpoint is her discouragement of the use of store bought crystals (114), which are mined for much like other natural resources, and instead incites individuals to go out and find their own in nature. It is good to know that someone actually realizes the hypocrisy displayed by certain New Agers and Pagans who stock up on store-bought quartz in order to connect with the Earth, yet support the environmentally destructive mining required to obtain such crystals in the first place. Marian encourages people to actually put in effort and make things as opposed to simply buying them. The fact that she regards such factors and makes a point of discussing them in her book speaks to me of her sincerity as a follower of an Earth-based religion, which I greatly respect. I would definitely recommend this book to a beginning seeker as well as to more seasoned Pagans.
I'm a visual person, and I will admit that the first thing that really attracted me to this book were the photographs within it, which were also by Sally Griffyn. They are lovely and poetic in many instances. To flip though these pages and gaze at the images is akin to "walking in a Wiccan wonderland." But even though I responded so well to the visual content and layout of the book, I cannot gloss over the truly important part: the written content. Ms. Griffyn is a wonderful photographer but a poor historian. Her introduction to Wicca is filled with false claims about the origins of Wicca and fails to make the distinction between the myth of Wiccan history (which does have value - as a myth and a metaphor) and historical truth. The presentation of this "Wiccan history" was so shockingly naive that I would have expected it to be published in the 1970's or earlier but not in 2002. I think we as informed, intelligent Witches should know better by now and so should Ms. Griffyn. Her account of history is especially conspicuous in that some of the people she interviews, for instance Edmund and Judy Harrow, speak out against it.
Other than the atrocious claims of historical continuity, the rest of the book, i.e. the interviews themselves, are generally interesting and insightful. Scattered throughout are a number of "spells" and pieces of liturgy and poetry which are quite lovely, unfortunately though, many of them go uncredited to their original authors.
As a rather irrelevant aside, there are some very unusual things occurring in some of the photographs, which I think are results of some poor editing in Photoshop. For example, on page 78 there is a photograph of a man wearing a cape and an elk-antler headdress. His chest is completely exposed, but he has no nipples. I know where they should be, but they are clearly lacking ( I thought perhaps the publisher had them digitally removed because nipples are too risqué, but there are other photos in the book of completely nude women, so I cannot imagine that is the reason). Also, on page 121 there is a photo of Francesca Howell in which someone obviously went a little too far with Photoshop's clone tool - Francesca has an extra two teeth where the corner of her mouth should be. Poor Francesca!
