Table Of ContentWhen
Someone
You Love
Is
WICCAN
A Guide
to Witchcraft and
Paganism for Concerned
Friends, Nervous Parents,
and Curious Co-workers
Carl McColman
NEW PAGE BOOKS
A division of The Career Press, Inc.
Franklin Lakes, NJ
Copyright © 2003 by Carl McColman
All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copy-
right Conventions. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in
part, in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval
system now known or hereafter invented, without written permission
from the publisher, The Career Press.
WHEN SOMEONE YOU LOVE IS WICCAN
EDITED BY NICOLE DEFELICE
TYPESET BY EILEEN DOW MUNSON
Cover design by Jean William Naumann
Printed in the U.S.A. by Book-mart Press
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McColman, Carl.
When someone you love is Wiccan : a guide to witchcraft and paganism for
concerned friends, nervous parents, and curious co-workers / by Carl McColman.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 1-56414-622-7 (pbk.)
1. Witchcraft. 2. Paganism. I. Title.
BF1566 .M36 2003
299—dc21
2002026408
Dedication
For Meg Anderson, John Beasley, and Susan
Strauss—three dear friends, each of whom embod-
ies a spirit of love and honor that transcends all reli-
gious bounds.
✪
Acknowledgments
Thanks to the many people who supported the pro-
cess of writing this book, including Linda Roghaar;
Mike Lewis and everyone at New Page; Candace
Apple and everyone at the Phoenix and Dragon
Bookstore; the members of the Earth Mystic com-
munity and the Atlanta Pagan community; all my stu-
dents; and most of all, my wife, Fran McColman, and
stepdaughter, Rhiannon Wilburn. Thanks also to my
family and non-Pagan friends, for giving me oppor-
tunities to express some of the ideas presented in this
book.
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Contents
Introduction...................................................................13
Part One: When Someone You Love Is Wiccan............23
1. Why would I want to read a book about Witchcraft? 26
2. Why would anyone want to call themselves a Witch? 28
3. So Witchcraft isn’t about ugly hags riding on brooms?30
4. Is Witchcraft evil? 34
5. What is Witchcraft? 38
6. What’s so good about Witchcraft? 42
7. Do Witches worship God? 44
8. Is Witchcraft safe? 45
9. Why should we take Witchcraft seriously?
Isn’t it just a big joke? 47
Part Two: Understanding Witchcraft........................... 49
10. What is the difference between Witchcraft and
Wicca? 52
11. What is the difference between Witchcraft,
Wicca, and other forms of Paganism? 54
12. Is there more than one kind of Witchcraft? 55
13. Is Witchcraft hereditary? 58
14. Why are male Witches not called wizards or
warlocks? 60
15. What is the pentacle, and why do Witches wear it? 61
16. What is a magical name? Why do Witches use it? 62
17. Why is there so much secrecy surrounding
Witchcraft? 64
18. What’s the big deal about the “burning times”? 66
Part Three: Going Beyond the Stereotypes.................69
19. Why do Witches wear black? 72
20. Do Witches have familiars? 74
21. Why are Witches portrayed as stirring a cauldron?
What’s in the cauldron anyway? 75
22. Do Witches practice animal or human sacrifice? 77
23. Are Witches on drugs? 78
24. Do Witches have orgies? 80
25. Do Witches do their rituals in the nude? 82
26. Are Witches kinky? 84
27. Is Witchcraft irrational? 85
Part Four: What Do Witches Believe?..........................87
28. Why do Witches place so much emphasis on
the Goddess? 90
29. Why do Witches place so much emphasis on nature? 91
30. Why is mythology so important to Witches? 93
31. Are Witches polytheists? 95
32. Are Witches pantheists or animists? 97
33. Why do Witches call the God “the Horned One”? 99
34. Do Witches have a moral code? 100
35. What do Witches believe happens after we die? 102
36. Do Witches believe in evil? 104
Part Five: What Do Witches Do?................................ 107
37. What are the main activities of Witchcraft? 110
38. Can a person be a solitary Witch, or must they
work in covens? 112
39. What is initiation? What is the difference between
the three degrees? 113
40. Do Witches worship the moon? 117
41. Why is Halloween so important to Witches? 118
42. What other days qualify as Wiccan holy days? 120
43. Why do Witches like to burn candles and incense
and use essential oils? 122
44. What is an altar? Why is it important? 123
45. What is a circle? 125
Part Six: Magic and the Occult ..................................127
46. Is Witchcraft part of the occult? What is the occult? 130
47. Are Witches psychic? 131
48. What is magic, and why do Witches do it? 133
49. What do Witches mean when they talk about
“energy”? 135
50. What is a Cone of Power? What is it used for? 136
51. If a Witch has magic power, what’s to prevent him
or her from using it for bad purposes? 138
52. If Witches are such powerful magicians, why
haven’t they all won the lottery? 140
53. Do Witches believe in astrology or Tarot? 141
54. Do Witches believe in spirits, such as angels or
fairies? 143
Part Seven:
Witchcraft, Christianity, and Other Religions...........145
55. Witches call their religion “the old religion,”
implying that Wicca is one of, if not the, oldest
religions on Earth. Is this true? 148
56. What are the differences between Witchcraft
and Satanism? 150
