• Colonizing religions coined the term witch as a name for the pagans existing in ancient civilizations.

• Witch is a term used for all pagan cultures not just European, but the term witch has old English roots. Other cultures throughout the world have their own names for witches. Such as the Sangomas of South Africa. They are traditional healers of Africa who utilize what appear to be paranormal powers for a variety of work. This term is most well known to the Zulu, Nguni, Sotho-Tswana, and Tsonga of South Africa. The Machi women of Chile are another form of spiritual healers and shamans. The Mangkukulam, healers of the Philippines are spiritual healers and magic users. These are just a few examples of the magic healers, and users of the craft, from all over the world. Paganism, and witchcraft are the very first spiritualities ever documented in human history.

• Most witches all over the world practice a form of divination.

• The very first doctors in most cultures were witches.

What is paganism and how is it different from wicca?:

Paganism originates from many different philosophies and spiritualities all over the world. There are forms of ancient paganism throughout every country in the world. Every form of pagan spirituality is known by a different name, there are thousands. Paganism is not some new religion or the return of some ancient one. It is a basic fundamental human philosophy. There are no sacred writings or dogma to be bound by. Knowledge within this spirituality comes from doing and practicing. The philosophy is very natural and holistic. It recognizes that everything is made of energy, that everything is interdependent and mutually supportive in a greater energy system. It has a historical presence in nearly all cultures around the globe. Ancient peoples from different regions not connected by land or language share similar pagan practices. Paganism is loosely defined as an earth based spiritual practice that is polytheistic/semi atheistic. Paganism is any non monotheistic spirituality/ religion.

 

Paganism and Wicca are intertwined. Paganism is an umbrella term used to describe all earth based spiritualities. Any polytheistic religion or spirituality is defined as pagan. The term Pagan comes from the Latin paganus. When Christianity began to grow in the Roman Empire, it did so at first primarily in the cities. The people who lived in the country and who continued to believe in "the old ways" came to be known as pagans. Pagans have been obroadly defined as anyone involved in any religious act, practice, or ceremony which is not Christian, Catholic, Jewish or Muslim. It is also used to describe any spirituality that recognizes more than one god/goddess. Pagan spiritualities exist in every country on earth and are known by many different names. We must always remember that even though the word "paganism" and the word "Wicca" have become the coined terms throughout Europe and the US, those are not the correct or common names for the spiritualities in many countries throughout the world. Every language has its own name for paganism.

 

Wicca is a branch of paganism. Paganism represents a wide variety of traditions that emphasize reverence for nature and a revival of ancient polytheistic and animistic religious practices. Some modern forms of Wicca have their roots in the 19th century, like the British Order of Druids. There are also more modern forms of Wicca such as the 1960s addition of garderian Wicca. Wicca today is a movement that consists of many different perspectives. Most American and European Wiccan religions have practices that blend different traditions such as Celtic, Greco-Roman, Native American, ancient Egyptian, Norse, South African, west African, Indian, and ancient Middle Eastern traditions. Many wiccans blend pagan teachings from all over the world to gain deeper knowledge and understanding of the greater connections within paganism.