Witchcraft and Wiccanism
Lesson 2; Brief History of Witchcraft
taught by [rachelah]

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Hello, everyone, I hope all is well with you.
This lesson is one of my bad ones, I just copied it from a good website. The internet is a good place to find a lot of stuff. I assure you all that I have no intention of not creating my own lessons in the future, I only copied this one because, quite frankly, I did not know enough about the history of Witchcraft to write a whole lesson. My following lessons should be better. By the way, if you have limited internet access, such as myself, with twenty hours a month, you could copy and paste this lesson, into any word program on your computer that has the ability to save under 'All files'. I use Notepad, but I have a 1998 computer. The assignment is short, you could write it in a minute the next time you are online.
Have a great day.
~[rachelah]

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A Brief History of Witchcraft
The roots of magic come from the Celts, a people living between 700 BC and 100 AD. Believed to be descendants of Indo-Europeans, the Celts were a brilliant and dynamic people – gifted artists, musicians, storytellers, metalworkers, expert farmers and fierce warriors. They were much feared by their adversaries, the Romans, who eventually adopted a number of their customs and traditions.


The Celts were a deeply spiritual people, who worshiped both a god and goddess. Their religion was pantheistic, meaning they worshiped many aspects of the "One Creative Life Source" and honored the presence of the "Divine Creator" in all of nature. Like many tribes the world over, they believed in reincarnation. After   , they went to the Summerland for rest and renewal while awaiting rebirth.



The months of the Celtic year were named after trees. The Celtic new year began at Samhain, which means "summers end," and was the final harvest of the year. This was also their "Festival of the   ," where they honored their ancestors and deceased loved ones. Many contemporary Halloween customs come from Samhain.


Next on the wheel of the Celtic year was the Winter Solstice, celebrating the annual rebirth of the Sun. Our Christmas customs today are similar to this ancient celebration. Around the beginning of February came Imbolg, a time when domesticated animals began to give birth. The Spring Equinox and Beltaine, sometimes called "May Day," were fertility festivals. The Summer Solstice, known as Lughnassa, celebrated the glory of the Sun and the powers of nature. Lughnassa, the Fall Equinox, and Samhain, were considered as Celtic harvest festivals.


The "Druids" were the priests of the Celtic religion. They remained in power through the fourth century AD, three centuries after the Celts' defeat at the hands of the Romans. The Druids were priests, teachers, judges, astrologers, healers and bards. They became indispensable to the political leaders, giving them considerable power and influence. They were peacemakers, and were able to pass from one warring tribe to another unharmed. It took twenty years of intense study to become a Druid.


Translated, the word Druid means "knowing the oak tree." Trees, the oak in particular, were held sacred by the Celts. Mistletoe, which grows as a parasite on oak trees, was a powerful herb used in their ceremonies and for healing. Mistletoe was ritually harvested at the Summer Solstice by cutting it with a golden sickle and catching it with a white cloth while never letting it fall to the ground.


The religious beliefs and practices of the Celts grew into what later became known as Paganism, not to be confused with the term Neo-Paganism, which is beyond the scope of this writing. The word Pagan is derived from the Latin word Paganus, meaning "country dweller." This outgrowth was consistent with the Celts' love for the land and their holding such things as the oak tree and mistletoe sacred.


Paganistic beliefs and rituals blended with those of other Indo-European descended groups, and over several centuries spawned such practices as concocting potions and ointments, casting spells, and performing works of magic. These practices, along with many of the nature-based beliefs held by the Celts and other groups, became collectively known as witchcraft.


The term witch, which means to "twist or bend," has its origin in the ancient, Anglo-Saxon word "wicca," which is derived from the word "wicce," which means "wise." Witch is also related to the German word, "weihen," which means "to consecrate or bless." Some say that the origins of the witch date back thousands of years, to the days when the goddess was worshiped and humanity had great reverence for the powers of nature and for women as creators of new life. In the "New Age" philosophy, this relates to the concept of "Gaia," or "Mother Earth," which views planet earth as essentially a living being.


Prior to the 14th century, witchcraft came to mean a collection of beliefs and practices including healing through spells, mixing ointments or concoctions, dabbling in the supernatural, divining or forecasting the future, and engaging in clairvoyance. Groups holding to other beliefs and rituals often branded witchcraft as "demon-worship."


After North America was discovered and Europeans began migrating to the new land, witchcraft came into practice by some of the early, colonial settlers. Since it had previously been branded as "demon-worship," witchcraft was      throughout the North American colonies. Despite this decree by the powers of the day, some colonists secretly practiced witchcraft knowing they would be hanged or burned if caught. It has been said that certain rituals performed by early-American witches helped shield their settlements from attacks by Native Americans.


Magic can effect many outcomes, some good and some evil, depending on the type of magic and the intentions of the practitioner. The more well-known types of magic are denoted by colors.


"Black magic" is performed with the intention of harming another being, either as a means of building the practitioner's power or as the goal itself. The underlying ideology upon which black magic is based states that the practitioner and his or her pursuit of knowledge and/or physical well-being, are more important than other concerns, theological or ethical.

"Green magic" involves the practitioner's attuning himself or herself to nature and the world around him or her.

"White magic" is where the practitioner attunes himself or herself to the needs of human society and attempts to meet those needs. This is a form of "personal betterment" magic, and does not entail harming other beings.


"Grey magic" is magic that is neither green, nor black, nor white, and which usually replaces the absolute stand of these realms with an ethical code that is particular to the practitioner. It is a type of magic all its own, and may be used for many different purposes.

"Folk magic" is an eclectic collection of herbalism, faith healing, curses and hexes, candle magic, and other workings that has thrived in rural areas for centuries.

There is also the term, "hedge wizard," which refers to an individual who attempts to practice magic with little or no formal training.
 
Copied from;
http://ca.essortment.com/historyofmagi_rsav.htm

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ASSIGNMENT #2
Witchcraft and Wiccanism Assignments is where you can find the assignment to be completed with this lesson, which is Assignment 2 .

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