Everything Under the Moon

Does anyone else around these parts consider themselves either of these? Just curious your thoughts on it. I remember seeing a girl on YouTube who considered herself an Atheist Wiccan but kind of consider myself Agnostic Wiccan.

Just thought I'd put it out there!

ok; maybe tell us your beliefs about wiccan deity in short?

Hi Cloverfox! I wrote a bit about Paganism that is not centered around deity worship; you are definitely not alone!

If it helps I am an atheist new to the forum looking to learn more about the culture and to support my gf.

I think "atheism" is given a bad shake these days; it kind of labels you as refuting and denying all religious or supernatural beliefs.

But here I am, learning from you guys! If I can learn more about wiccan culture, spells and energies then I don't see why an atheist can't take a step further with some of those bits and practice it.

Could atheists be labeled as "undecided"? Like people who want to learn more about all of the religions and only then decide on one or an an eclectic path?

Edit: labeled is not the right word, as imo labeling people is totally wrong.

@Bychan Wild: I don't think "labeling" is wrong, how else can you define topics or interests? Then again, some labels are inherently harmful so I suppose you are right.

But I see your point...I have known many folks who default as "atheist" because they haven't found anything that speaks to them. I have also known atheist that construct ideals and beliefs from multiple religions, beliefs, etc.

There was a post discussing a "Christian Wiccan" before (I forgot what the title was) but by definition a Christian is supposed to not worship other gods like the Mother in Wicca. If we were to extrapolate from this similar model I guess by definition an atheist is not an atheist if they worship and believe in Wiccan deities?

Then again, what if you choose to take the wholesome beliefs of Wicca as an atheist and study said beliefs? Surely that means you are a practicing Wiccan?

As far as I understand it, a Christian wiccan is more a wiccan than a Christian. They may believe that there are many gods and they chose to work with YHWH and/or Virgin Mary while they don't consider them to be the only way.

I really don't want to put labels on myself but I guess I'm a bit close to this. I pray to Mary and the saints (officially catholic) but at the same time I feel energies of nature and believe/have experiences with parapsychological phenomena. I feel reluctant to contacting spirits and don't feel the need to cast elaborate spells. At the same time, I know there are other beings and I believe in auras, chakras, etc. i just don't feel ready to work with them. I strongly believe in the power of placebo and faith. I may not be a good example of a Christian witch, of course. I don't know what to call myself. Just my 2 cents.

One way an atheist could believe in pagan gods if they understand them as aspects of people's psyche or collective unconsciousness, archetypes. Also, I see no problem for an atheist to work with the elements, meditate, learn about herbs...

tiniestsalmon wrote:But I see your point...I have known many folks who default as "atheist" because they haven't found anything that speaks to them. I have also known atheist that construct ideals and beliefs from multiple religions, beliefs, etc.

Isn't that an eclectic person?
I call myself an eclectic witch, because I don't only follow Wicca. I took the rules from Wicca and Buddhism, Christianity ( and believing in angels)influenced my praying and ritual making process, and the nordic Paganism in the way I see life and death. Speaking of death, Hindi influenced that perception too. Still, I'm not an atheist( which means no God), because I have Gaia as matron Deity and believe in the existence of other Gods too :-December

So, what you described is more of an eclectic person. I honestly didn't know about this word untill I got on this Forum, but it really fits best.

An atheist can still practice witchcraft, but he doesen't ask for the help of the Gods. He just uses his own energy, and believes in his own power.

I might be wrong, of course, but that's how I see it right now. Please correct me if I'm wrong:-)

@ Bychan: I would say you are right! I didn't know what eclectic meant until you just mentioned it.

I guess a "Stout" Atheist is adamant of no gods, witchcraft, or Magicka.

An "Eclectic" Atheist is a person who maintains the meaning of the word; a person who does not believe in gods, but dabbles and has accepted various cultures that believe in deities.

Kind of like @moonraingirl, she has accepted various cultures and does not concern herself too deeply with labels. Correct me if I am wrong btw.

And besides, if we were too concerned by boxes and categories how can you expect to be happy?

tiniestsalmon wrote:And besides, if we were too concerned by boxes and categories how can you expect to be happy?

Good point, my friend :wink2:

Bychan Wulf wrote:

tiniestsalmon wrote:And besides, if we were too concerned by boxes and categories how can you expect to be happy?

Good point, my friend :wink2:

tiniestsalmon wrote: Kind of like @moonraingirl, she has accepted various cultures and does not concern herself too deeply with labels. Correct me if I am wrong btw.

That's right

Can you try to explain to us what is your philosophy? Don't be afraid to say you don't believe in magic. You talk very sensitively so far and I don't think anyone here will feel offended if you tell your real opinions It will definitely be useful to know your thoughts for future conversations.

What I mean is OK, you don't believe in gods. What is your opinion about soul, life energy, parapsychology...

Hmm, I suppose in a nutshell I would say that I don't believe in gods or magick but I allow myself to be pleasantly surprised if something rolls along. I do pick up philosophies here and there, I am sure I will learn some interesting perspectives here too.

I believe we all have a soul whether it is from the chemical balance in our brain or maybe there is an inherent, incorporeal entity that makes us who we are. I find it hard to believe that our personalities are a barely balanced cocktail of hormones, cellular signals, and gene editing...

Which ultimately leads to one of my strongest beliefs: Anything is plausible for the unexplained. We clearly are diverse, unique, and intelligent beings. How could you explain the origin,development, and components of the human psyche? Some say soul, others say gods design, several say brain tissue. But the fact that we have "intelligence + thought + emotion + personality + traits + etc" is so outrageous that calling this lump sum a "soul" sounds equally credible as calling it "complex thought organ operated by chemical pathways".

A good example is the creation of the universe. Think of how crazy the "Big Bang" sounds. The possible theories behind how the Big Bang came to be. Now compare it to Wicca or Christianity or any other religion. All of these things are equally possible because I see them as equally outstanding.

TLDR: When presented by a belief I think "Gee that's incredible, I guess it could happen!" and move along.