Belyn Mawr

Thank you

Hi Atwater Vitki, I know it is strange. But if you look at my member status under my profile pic it says validating and some topics on the forum, like The Debate Team, aren't showing up as if I were logged out. Thank you for responding. You're right, I can still post though. Weird. I am well versed in arcane sorcery, but concerning modern technology, not so much. Give me a crystal ball or some Tarot cards and I can penetrate the great mysteries of the unknown, but just don't ask me how to set the clock on a microwave oven .

I wish more Christians and Muslims agreed with you .

Hello, I've tried to send and resend my email validation link, but I am not receiving the emails. I have checked my spam folder and checked my filter settings. Thank you for any assistance.

Since ISIS is so concerned about Witchcraft, and I am not bound by the Wiccan Rede, I have some special curses headed their way. I invite any other spell casters or magick users to do the same .

Being both gay and a Warlock, I guess I will be crossing Syria off for any future vacation plans.

Today is the Summer Solstice or Canol Haf (Midsummer in Welsh) for me. Whether you are celebrating Litha as a Wiccan, Alban Heruin as a Druid, or any other forms of Midsummer, I hope it is a great one .

I am also guilty of starting or engaging in side topics, but I think that is human nature. People are not always trying to derail the original topic by doing so. Sometimes people have stopped posting on the original topic, and two members find they are basically having an informal conversation with each other that is not really in need of a completely new thread. I also don't feel slighted when someone returns to the original topic .

In the past I have referred back to the original topic because I have been a sporadic poster and have come late to the discussion. Other times I do as mentioned above and refer back to the original topic to avoid "choosing sides" when there appears to be a heated debate on a side issue. I prefer to let the individuals involved work it out for themselves. In the past I have participated in interesting and enjoyable conversations with both Pete and Dan. My views are much closer to Pete's than Dan's, but I like both of them. Sometimes discussions become heated, and I prefer not to stoke the flames unnecessarily. (By this I do not mean to imply that others who decide to weigh in on the side issue are fueling the fire if they feel they have a relevant comment on the matter.)

-at- Stormbringer, Good point !

-at- Cuchulain,

Hi Mark , Luciferianism is a subset of Satanism, some are theistic and some are atheistic just as some Satanists are atheists like the Church of Satan and some are theists like the Temple of Set who believe the god Set exists and was the prototype for Satan. You are correct that the term Witch alone doesn't signify a particular belief system, but those I am speaking of are presenting themselves specifically as practicing European Traditional Witchcraft and are mixing Luciferian and European Pagan beliefs implying that pre-Christian European gods are really fallen angels which I find demeaning . My belief is that indigenous European religion was more akin to Druidry or Asatru and had nothing to do with fallen angels.

Greetings all, I am a Warlock or male Classic/Traditional Witch, and I just wished to address the current trend towards Luciferianism instead of Paganism in Traditional Witchcraft (in case anyone runs into this on the internet and thinks I endorse this). There had always been an underlying current of this within Traditional Witchcraft, even in one of my favorite books, Mastering Witchcraft, but I overlooked it and did not incorporate it into my practices. The story goes that the first Witches were taught magic and mated with the Watcher Angels of The Book of Enoch. The Pagan gods of Europe were considered by those following this tradition to be either Watchers or Nephilim masquerading as gods. There is a belief that those who are naturally drawn to Witchcraft have "witch blood" inherited from these fallen angels through their Nephilim descendants who were purported to be the forefathers of the elves and fairies of European folklore, according to those who believe such things. Many Witches were believed to have ancestors among the fairies or elves or at least close ties to them. I do not understand why someone who is searching for the pre.Christian beliefs of Europe would want to graft into the Judeo-Christian tradition; it seems to defeat the purpose. I am sure some Christians will be very happy to hear of Witches acknowledging that their Pagan gods are really fallen angels . I believe that the gods are the gods and originally had nothing to do with Judeo-Christian tradition until the Pagans were converted by the missionaries. As far as "witch blood" goes, I do believe, as my Pagan ancestors did, that the gods are our ancestors, and I will acknowledge there may be some genetic components that predispose one to have an affinity for Witchcraft or exhibit other metaphysical abilities. Something I personally find even more annoying than equating the gods with the fallen angels is the further extrapolation that the Watchers were actually E.T.s in the modern UFO sense. Those who espouse this say Witchcraft is really a label for Sci-Fi type psychic abilities inherited from their alien forbears. I know that ancient aliens theories are quite popular, and I don't mean to knock anyone who believes them. I just prefer myth and magic as my paradigm rather than UFOs and E.T.s. (I choose to live in The Lord of the Rings rather than The X-files .) Also, I have no problem with Luciferians using the term Witch in general or even Traditional Witch in its broad sense as a practitioner of non-Wiccan or pre-Wiccan forms of Witchcraft or folk magic, but my issue is when they represent themselves as Celtic or Germanic Traditional Witches and imply their beliefs are a form of indigenous European religion. I do acknowledge that large chunks of Judeo-Christian ceremonial magick and Qabalah have found their way into European folk magic since the coming of Christianity, but angels, demons, and the Judeo-Christian "God" were not part of the original belief system of my Pagan ancestors. I do use elements of ceremonial magic within my path, but I do not pretend they are of European origin. In any case, I posted this just because I wished to clarify my personal views on the matter. So if you see this Welsh Warlock flying across the night sky on Halloween, it will be on a pitchfork or broom and not with angel wings or in a UFO .

I agree that one need not belong to a particular ethnicity to follow a spiritual path. If Europeans want to be Taoists or Africans want to be Druids I see no problem with it. I do not have any Japanese ancestry but I am a master/teacher in a Japanese Reiki lineage .

Hello, I was brought up by a Southern Pentecostal but in adolescence my burgeoning homosexuality caused me to question my Christian upbringing. Once I began my religious exploration I began to think of how the majority of the Bible was basically a collection of the myths and legends of the Hebrews, and that the genealogies of my European ancestors had been crudely grafted onto Biblical genealogies to retrofit them into the Biblical account of things. Before this, I had never given thought to what the native beliefs of my ancestors were. They had their own Pagan genealogies tracing descent from various gods and heroes rather than biblical patriarchs. (Christian monks just made the Europeans all descendants of Noah's son Japheth.) In any case, exploring the beliefs of my Welsh and Irish ancestors is what led me to begin practicing forms of Celtic Paganism (Celtic Witchcraft, Druidry, etc.) which is the path I have been following in one way or another for over 25 years. I am just curious to hear what impact heritage or ethnicity has had on the beliefs of other members, if any. (I am not interested in claims of racial superiority, etc.; that was not the intent of my post.)

It is a good suggestion, but Harry Potter and roleplaying game stereotypes have ruined the term for me personally .-at- Freyja Worship, Count me in, mmmmmm .

Neither does the Confraternity of the Rose Cross, the offshoot of AMORC of which I was a member .

I know it may seem odd for a Pagan Warlock to wish people a Happy St. Patrick's Day, but I celebrate it as a secular holiday. I have some Irish ancestry (my mother was born an O'Neal) and the holiday has some pre-Christian / Pagan elements associated with it. (Leprechauns and shamrocks, oh my!) I see at as a festival welcoming the Spring wrapped up in a Christian guise. A burrito of Pagan meat wrapped in a Christian tortilla, if you will. (I know, burritos aren't very Irish ) Anyway, however you celebrate it, I hope yours is a happy one .

I agree that there are multiple legitimate paths. I made it to the end of the 9th degree with the Rosicrucians before letting my membership lapse, but I prefer to follow the path of Witchcraft. Same thing with Druidry. It's not that I couldn't make the grade; it is just not what I was looking for. People are different and some paths fit some people better. There is no reason for a Rosicrucian to look down upon a Wiccan or a Druid to look down on a Vodouisant, etc. I feel that someone should look for the path that suits him or her, whatever it may be, and follow it with his or her heart .

I was the Pac-Man and Space Invaders generation, but my much younger sister used to play Secret of Mana. Her all-time favorite game(s) was Legend of Zelda. I saw Sylvia Browne at a seminar once, and she was really good "in person." I thinks she had a real gift but unfortunately let commercialism take over. If you come across the article, please do post it. BTW, "dawd?" I'm sure I'm showing my age, all of 44 years, but I am not familiar with the word. Is it like "dude?" Or is it like "dad" meaning I'm old?

Hi Freya Worship, Thank you for your post. I predate the term "fluffy bunny" being used. I started off as a Wiccan back in 1988, but my beliefs have changed over the years (after studying other forms of Witchcraft as well as Druidry and Rosicrucianism). Now I practice Classic or Traditional Witchcraft. When I started, at least in the area where I lived, there was no magical community as such. (I had to drive 45 miles to be able to attend a coven meeting.) It was mainly solitary practice and independent study. Communication with Neopagan groups, courses, and magazines were all snail-mail only. The words Wicca and Witchcraft were used interchangeably and bashing new Witches or those with different ideas certainly wasn't the norm. It seems as if the Internet, which has brought us so close together, has also creatd a few social monsters as well. I tire of making posts (not meaning here at the ULC Forum) where every point is contested because it does not adhere to the party line of the current Neopagan or Witchcraft community. BTW, I am afraid prayers and spells don't always work no matter how experienced a practitioner one is, sometimes things are simply Fate or the will of the Gods. As the psychic Sylvia Browne used to say, "God always answers prayers, but sometimes he says no." Your "Almighty Floating Pancakes of Destiny" makes me hungry for IHOP or The Village Inn .

-at- Atwater Vitki, Although many of us disagree on various things, I have always found the ULC in general and this forum in particular to be supportive. It is much appreciated .

Thank you Raincloud, I certainly agree .

I agree with your take on academia. It seems sometimes they perpetuate arguments on many minute points just for the purpose of having something to discuss or something on which to publish a paper. BTW, I am aware that the term Druid (Dryw - Welsh or Drui - Irish) might be culturally appropriate for a Celtic Pagan, but in the modern Pagan community it no longer conveys the concept of the path I follow. Warlock seems to better resonate with me on an emotional level. Besides, I speak English as my primary language, and I am a British Isles mutt with English and Viking ancestry as well as Celtic. Anyway, I appreciate your support .