The Path of a Christian Witch (20 page)

It felt glorious. I don’t know if it was the wonderfully warm wave that washed over me or the powerful aroma of the steeped plants, but I felt at once completely invigorated and completely relaxed. All tensions melted away. It seemed that the healing waters had penetrated into my very soul and lifted a huge, unnamed burden. I felt new.

I wrapped myself in white linen, covering myself from head to toe, and I walked to my altar. I lit a single white candle, symbol of purity. In my white shelter, I felt safe. I felt absolute “whiteness” surround me and inhabit me. I was uplifted to a state where color was not just a frequency of light. It was an entity in and of itself, a way of being. In that state of absolute purity, I heard myself say, “If I lived in your temple, Lord, I would dedicate every day of my life to its upkeep.”

We do live in the Lord’s temple. Jesus himself called his earthly body a temple. But it was not until I got interested in magic and the mysteries that I began to be interested in things of the body. As a Christian, I considered matters of the body to be inferior to the matters of the soul and the mind. Maybe because of this underlying philosophy, the body had always held a secondary place in my life, even though I was always involved in competitive sports and dance. I participated in sports with the attitude that the body was meant to be pushed to extremes, its limitations overcome. I’d come home from karate class with my arms black and blue, having submitted my body to a rigorous regimen.

As I started meditating, however, I began to feel my body as an ally instead of an enemy. I lived within my body and not in spite of it. During grounding meditations, my body would yield some astonishing lessons that I could apply to my life. I realized that this body of flesh and bones had a spiritual dimension and an inherent wisdom. I developed a need to communicate with it to understand its needs and wants. I interacted with it in a way that was more forgiving and more loving.

Because our vibration is so important and because energy work goes through our body, as Witches it is extremely important that we take care of our body. Energy work can be demanding. If you are in a constant state of imbalance, working with energy can only aggravate an already precarious situation. Everything we do—from the way we walk to the way we talk, touch, see, and hear—comes from our physical being. This body is where we worship. It is both sanctuary and altar. It is the only tool we will ever need.

A regular health retreat helps fine-tune our energies and get rid of unwanted vibrations. Such a retreat can include a number of activities. I prepare a healthy menu for the day and reserve some time for physical activities such as yoga, as well as grounding and meditation. I choose a book that inspires me. If I need to reconnect to a more instinctual, emotional part of myself, I may decide to dedicate some time to art or dancing. I may go for a pilgrimage or take a walk in nature. There are any number of activities that you can do to reconnect your body with your spirit. It really is up to you.

The Magic of the Web:
Magic for a Better World

I sat down for my daily meditation. I breathed in deeply, inhaling light and releasing the tension that had built up in my body during the day. From the base of my spine, I let my roots unfold and dig deep into the earth, passing the floor, the concrete, and the asphalt of the city. My roots unfolded and spread wide, like a great majestic oak.

Breathing in, I drew in all the freshness the earth had to offer. I tasted the minerals and the wetness of the energy, and I felt refreshed. When I was filled with this mineral light, I turned my focus upward to the sky. I was a tree with magnificent branches of green light like tentacles waving in the wind, reaching out for the sun and the moon. I was a being in between the worlds, connected to space and to the earth at once. I levitated into space connected now only by rays of green light, one going down to the earth and one going up into the darkness of space.

I looked up in the darkness and saw the night sky crisscrossed with similar rays of green light. My tendril of light rose up to connect to this grid. That is when I noticed the most amazing thing: around me, for as far as I could perceive, were other people like me, levitating in a lotus position, with rays of light reaching out to this web of light. As I looked up, I saw it start to glitter. Waves of light were going through it—left, right, and across. I could pour myself into it and draw from it.

And it dawned on me: we are all connected through this web. The Web of Light.

A few weeks later, our teacher asked us to write an essay on the “Mystery of the Web.” I smiled inwardly at the uncanny coincidence. The Web is something you experience, not something you can understand with words. Once we get together and start resonating with others, we act like a single organism, working as a whole, each of us with our specific functions and purposes. That’s where our purpose lies: to be in resonance with others. In isolation, we are just mechanics. Together, we fulfill a purpose. This is the mystery of the Web.

We are a community in progress. Our priesthood is to bring this world into a new state of resonance, a state we call love. What better way, then, than to spill this will into the Web so that we may all grow and share in this peace that is our birthright.

Sit in a quiet space. Take a moment to ground and cast a protective circle around yourself. Strong roots connect you to the very center of the earth, making you feel strong and stable. Draw up the energy of the earth and let it fill you and calm you.

Now, imagine a great thread of light going up from your center and into the sky. Let it reach the stars and the moon. Feel the electricity and pulse of the orbs flow into you. Connected above and below, you see yourself rise up into the night. You are firmly connected to the earth, and yet you stand surrounded by the lights of the cosmos. You rise above the earth, in complete control, connected to both earth and stars.

You look around you, and you notice that some of the other stars also have rays of light flowing from them. You follow them with your eyes and you see others like yourself, smiling, beaming, connected with all there is. You smile back and a deep joy swells up within your chest. We are many, you see. We are many who hope and dream and care to bring peace and unity in the world.

You reach out and grab their hands. It matters not that you are miles away. Time and space have no bearing here. We are the Web. We crisscross the universe and envelop the earth in a glorious grid of light. Light flows and sparkles between us. We close our eyes and let the energy of the earth and the stars flow through us, up and across and down again. The universe reverberates with a soft music. This glorious energy rains down on the earth so that love and hope may stand a fighting chance against the darkness of greed and injustice. Alone we are weak. But together, connected as such in a Web of Light, none can defeat us. We are here and we care. The time we take to give back and fight can make a difference. We will not stand by while the earth is being trampled and others suffer. This is our gift to all humanity.

When you are done, say goodbye to the others and let them go gently. Drift back down to Earth, until you feel the floor supporting you. Get back to the familiar sounds and smells of the room you are in. Breathe evenly and let any excess energy go back to the earth. You have done a great thing today. Blessed be.

In Closing . . .

Our final assignment for level three was a public presentation on some aspect of cultural magic. These presentations were usually small, consisting mostly of fellow classmates and teachers. But as I walked in that night, I saw a room full of about fifteen people who had just walked up from the store below, members of Montreal’s Pagan groups and Pagan resource center.

I was here to deliver an hour-long presentation on Christian Witchcraft. I was only slightly less nervous than if I had to present to a room full of bishops. I was standing in the lion’s den, and my presentation was the first of the night.

I looked up and opened with a question: “Is it possible to be a Christian Witch?” There was an awkward silence. Then our class bard let out a boisterous “No!”

Everyone laughed. But I understood the seriousness of the remark. Most of these people had been hurt and disillusioned by one or another denomination of Christianity. And here it was in their face once more, in their own sacred space.

I went on to address the apparent contradictions one by one. I was subjected to pointed questions on Christian dogma, but all of them were asked in respect of our diversity. I was not there to convert anyone. I wanted to explain how I lived my practice. I wanted to give rational explanations to legitimize my practice in everyone’s eyes. Some part of me probably wanted to legitimize myself in my own eyes as well.

My presentation ended, and I could see people mulling things over. A young girl in the front row raised her hand and asked, “Why keep the Christian aspect at all if Witchcraft is the way you want to celebrate?”

She asked this with softness and true desire to understand my struggle. All of a sudden, I found myself faced with a question that could not be answered by my readings or by intellectual rationalization. No amount of research or theology articles could provide the answer.

I took a deep breath and looked up. “I am keeping the Christian aspect because I have no reason to give it up. All my life I have been blessed in the most amazing way. Every time I have been in need of anything, I have been answered. For as long as I can remember, I have been talking to Jesus and Mary. I cannot turn my back on such a friendship.”

A sense of peace filled the room. The young girl looked at me and smiled. The teacher who had been grilling me all night nodded his head. All the logical arguments in the world had had little impact. But in one soft stroke the words of the heart had torn down the walls that separated us. No further justification was necessary.

___

We are all united by a common thread. We have different names for it and different ways of acknowledging its presence. To identify ourselves as Christian Witches is not meant to create division. The sole purpose of this identification is to allow us a place in this world to grow and shine. By living my life as a Christian Witch, I have learned valuable lessons that I can then share with others, regardless of their spiritual or religious affiliations. This is my credo, my way of life, the way I give thanks for my blessings.

• I believe in unity in diversity.

• I believe in the holiness of Christ, his mission, and his teachings.

• I believe in the sacred polarity of the universe, manifested to us in the male-female reality.

• I believe in God as a verb, a process of ever-fulfilling creation.

• I believe in the quantum quality of life, in the magic of intent and reciprocity, in the power of thought, and in the universal consciousness. I believe in the manifestation of will.

• I believe in the sacredness of the earth in its cycles and rhythms.

• I believe that I am a sacred process in God’s creation and a creator in the quantum earth field.

• I believe in love, always and above all.

• I believe that we have reason to have hope and faith and that we are made to rejoice in the greatness of all things.

Blessed be, and peace be with you always.

Appendix

Comparative Chart