Everyone has the divine (or Goddess) within, and everyone has a "life-force"
-Well, duh. Think about it. Ok, well not everyone believes in some divine force, so this part is not necessarily true, however we DO all have a "life force", if we didn't, we wouldn't be alive, now would we?
One should develop natural gifts for divination or occult magic (often spelled 'magick' by occultists)
-Gifts for using divination are not a requirement for Wiccans (or anyone for that matter). Anyone can learn how to divine using various means. You don't have to be Wiccan, a Witch or any other occult practitioner in order to use divination. Magic as well (the 'k' really being a silly fad, is NOT necessary) is something that can be developed by anyone through practice, and again, doesn't require the practice of any occult practices to use...even popular religions like Christianity utilize magic, even if they wish to deny it.
Divine forces or nature spirits are invoked in rituals
-That's really dependant. Divine forces are invoked during particular rituals, say an Esbat or Moon ceremony, and the only reason why is the same reason the Christian God is invoked during Sunday mass...to honor them. Those who work other forms of magic, say spell work, may invoke (but don't have to) deities for assistance in their workings, but in this instance it is not a requirement. Nature spirits, again, are invoked based on desire or necessity, depending on what the task is. "Divine forces or nature spirits" are not necessarily always invoked...that and not everyone believes and/or works with them, so such invocations are really unnecessary.
The Goddess, as either a symbol or a real entity, is the focus of worship
-Yes, this is true. In Wicca, the Goddess AND God are the focus of worship. There's nothing wrong with this anymore than there is something wrong with the Christian God being the focus of their worship.
Nature and the earth are sacred manifestations of the Goddess
-Again, not too dissimilar from the Christian ideas of God. The Christian belief is that God made everything, therefore Nature and the Earth would be manifestations of the God...so what's the problem? The Goddess??
Everyone has his or her own individual spiritual path to follow
-In essense this is true for EVERYONE...even Christians. Not every Christian follows Christianity the same way, hence different denominations of Christianity (Baptists, Pentacosts, Catholics, Christian Reform, Presbyterian, etc). Everyone follows their "path" in their own way, determining what they feel is right for them. Wiccans are no different
Rituals and celebrations are linked to the seasons and moon phases
-As are Christian rituals and celebrations. While Sunday mass isn't necessarily linked to seasons or the moon, Church holidays are...for example, Easter comes (I do believe) 40 days after the previous full moon (little tidbit I bet you didn't know), hence why it's never on the same day or same week every year.
Meditation, visualization, invocation (calling on forces or gods/goddesses), chanting, burning candles and special rituals trigger a sense of the mystical which typically reinforces their core belief system.
-I really don't understand what it is they're trying to accomplish with these point form notes. This entire point here can EASILY be describing ANY Christian mass. Meditations take place during silent prayers; visualization happen during transubstantiation of the bread and wine; invocations come shortly before transubstantiation; many people chant when reciting the Rosary, candles are a BIG part of the Christian religion, and special rituals (say Christmas mass) ALSO "trigger a sense of the mystical which typically reinforce their core belief system".
About God:
Willow believes in a male counterpart to the Goddess, who could possibly be the Christian God or the God of Islam
-Uh, no, not necessarily. TRUE Wiccans do not subscribe to the Abrahamic deity belief. Their "Gods" manifest in pre-existing deities generally from Greek, Roman, Egyptian and Celtic pantheons...not Abrahamic, due to the animosity felt from and for the Christian religion. Anyone claiming they worship the Christian God while being Wiccan, is clearly confused about BOTH religions, and is thusly not practicing EITHER in a proper way.
About the Trinity:
Willow doesn't believe in the Trinity
-Not in the Christian sense of Father, Son and Holy Spirit/Ghost. She may believe in a Thricean Goddess, commonly associated in Hecate, Diana, Demeter, Selene or Persephone (manifesting in a Maiden, Mother Crone aspect).
About Jesus:
Willow believes Jesus was an enlightened man who should be honored just like Mohammed, Moses, Krishna, and Buddha, but he was not and is not God in the flesh.
-That depends. Many Wiccans don't acknowledge the existence of Jesus PERIOD, but a mere figmant of the Church's imagination, and a conglomeration of numerous pre-existing myths and legends all rolled into one (i.e. The story of Osiris and Isis).
About the Bible:
Willow doesn't believe in absolute truth but she considers the Bible a good book that she can oick and choose things from to help her follow her spiritual path
-Ok...somehow things got lost in the mix. Wiccans don't follow the Bible PERIOD. They don't use ANY part of the bible to "help (them) follow (their) spiritual path". This here is completely false!
About the Afterlife:
Willow believes in an endless cycle of reincarnation (birth-death-birth-death, etc) and karma(what you do here affects you in the next life). She does not believe in heaven or hell
-Finally, something somewhat accurate. For one thing, many Wiccans have a misinformed notion about karma. They see it as a rubber vs. glue type thing, which isnt Karma at all. But...Wiccans DO subscribe to the belief in reincarnation, however it's not necessarily endless. It's what is called a "Spiral Dance" in which they move upwards, until all has been learned, then they merge with the divine. The journey could seem endless, but does eventually end
About Salvation:
Willow does not believe in sin or a need for forgiveness, so she doesn't see a need for salvation. In her mind, being 'saved' would be to reach a point where one is free from the reincarnation/karma cycle.
-Salvation reeks of fundamentalism. "Believe this way or go to hell". Sin and salvation are guilt trips, not a release from something.
What the Bible Teaches
About God/About the Trinity:
God identified himself as "I Am" (Exodus 20:2) - meaning He is the self-existent (never had a beginning or end) eternal Creator of the universe. There is no Goddess
There is one God and yet three Persons (Isaiah 45:5; Deuteronomy 6:4; James 2:19). There are no other 'gods' or 'goddesses'
-Ok, then explain to me why it says in Exodus 20:3 "You shall not have other Gods before me"? He acknowledges the existence of other Gods, but demands his followers not put them before him. Just because he wants his followers to follow him only, does NOT mean there are no other Gods in the universe.
About Jesus:
Jesus is fully God and fully man. He is the God of the universe (John 1:1, 14, 18; 8:58; 10:30. Compare Titus 2:13 and Isaiah 45:21), and His death on the cross completely paid for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2). What Willow sees as 'enlightened' was actually His power as being God. What separates him from Moses, Buddha, Mohammed, etc was that He came back from the dead
-How can Jesus be God, yet cry out on the Cross "My God, My God, why have you forsake me??" (Matthew 27:46) just before death? Again, not all Wiccans view Jesus as an "enlightened" man, or even a man to begin with, but a combination of different deity myths from history. Osiris came back from the dead after being killed by his brother.
About the Bible:
The bible alone is the word of God and is absolute truth. It is without error. It cannot and should not be added to or subtracted from (2 Timothy 3:16-4:4; Revelation 22:18-20), and it is also the ultimate authority on spiritual matters. Every word of it is inspired by God, so you can't just pick and choose what you "think" is true.
-If this is true, why does it say in Exodus 20:13 "Thou shall not kill", yet in Exodus 22:18 says "You shall not allow a Witch to live". Whether guilty or not it's still killing (or murdering if you like). That's a contradiction. How can you follow the law of God that says you shall not kill, yet go ahead and kill a Witch. OR offer a sacrifice of a lamb or whatever other animal God says is sacred? That's still killing, a contradiction. Either way, you are disobeying God. To say the bible is never wrong, is wrong in itself because the bible is FILLED with contradictions. You cannot ignora that. It's not the Wiccans who are picking and chooseing what they thing is true, it's the Christians. PLUS Wiccans never changed one word of the bible, yet King James changed numerous parts of the bible to suit his agenda...to justify the murder of countless people because of his fears. That and numerous "authors" of the bible, had numerous books either left out or taken out of the bible, simply because it didn't suit the theme.
Never wrong indeed.
About the Afterlife:
Those who trust in Christ alone as their only hope of salvation spend eternity in heaven; those who reject Christ spend an eternity in hell (John 5:24-30; Revelation 20:11-15). The Bible denies the concept of reincarnation (Hebrews 9:27-28
-Ah, but see, how can Jesus come back if his life was not reincarnated? He may not have retuned in a different body, but still came back from death. That's reincarnation. Also, how does one deal with those who ave never heard of Jesus? Do they go to hell simply out of ignorance? Or those who were around BEFORE Jesus? Are THEY swimming around in a lake of Fire simply because Jesus chose (and I say "chose" because it's apparent to Christians that Jesus is also God too, however improbable) to appear after their deaths??
About Salvation:
All people are sinners in need of forgiveness (Romans 3:23). Salvation is by faith in Christ ALONE on the basis of His death on the Cross (John 3:16-17, 36; 6:29, 47; Romans 4:1-5; Galations 2:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5)
Human nature determines that we make mistakes. Why do we make mistakes? To learn, not because we're bad. It was the "mistake" of Eve to eat from the tree of knowledge, but God is not innocent here either. He lied to Adam and Eve. If he had told them the truth, instead of keeping them in ignorance, perhaps we would still be in paradise. No. Everyone is not a sinner because it was not us who sinned.
Things to Remember:
Like Tara the Typical, Willow is extremely sensitive toward anything that sounds intolerant and/or judgemental, so approach with extreme caution! As well, she sees Christianity as an oppressive religion, so be sure to show her love and respect
--Judgement and intolerance disguised by love and respect is STILL judgement and intolerance. The way to get to a Wiccan is to understand where they're coming from and acknowledge their freedom to believe what they feel is truth to them, while still maintaining your own belief. Pushing upon them that your belief is right and theirs is wrong is a sure fire way to being "extremely sensitive". I mean, if Wiccans were to pressure Christians into thinking that Wicca is the one true right and only way, Christians would be rather sensitive too, don't you think?
Ask Willow what she believes about Christianity, because she might have a distorted image of what Christianity is. Try and use this as an opportunity to help her develop a correct understanding of true Christianity
--I ask Wiccans to do the same about Christians. The table turns both ways. Each have distorted ideas of each other. Wiccans see Christians as proselytizers, bent on converting everyone to their religion, whereas Chritsians view Wiccans as satan worshippers ignorant to their Devil worship. Both need to retract each other's claws and gain a better understanding of each other, because firing at each other constantly is not going to help anyone.
Don't confuse Wiccans with Witches, because anyone can practice Witchcraft, but Wiccans follow a strict code. Also, don't confuse Wiccans with Satanists, because mos Wiccan's don't believe in Satan or the Devil
--(**falls over in disbelief**) Wow, this one hit me with accuracy. Well, one in however many points here isn't bad I suppose.
Outline the strengths and reliability of the Bible (accuracy, consistency, fulfilled prophecy, etc) because Willow rejects it as unreliable
--See my outlined contradictions listed above. THAT'S why she views it as unreliable.
Stress your personal relationships with the Father through Jesus Christ and what impact that has on your daily life
--It won't do any good. Telling "Willow" you personal experiences will get her to convert just about as easily as Willow's personal experiences in Wicca will get a Christian to convert. If it's not right for someone, then it's not right for them.
Whether Willow knows it or not, she is in the grips of Satan, so like Sid the Satanist, be sure to cover your relationship and conversations with her in a ton of prayer
--This makes as much sense as any Wiccan saying Christians are in the Grips of Hades, however ignorant to the notion.
Italics from: http://www.dare2share.org/worldviews/wiccans/ (I do not own the information from this site, but wished to address the misinformation and shed clarity).
-Again, not too dissimilar from the Christian ideas of God. The Christian belief is that God made everything, therefore Nature and the Earth would be manifestations of the God...so what's the problem? The Goddess??
Everyone has his or her own individual spiritual path to follow
-In essense this is true for EVERYONE...even Christians. Not every Christian follows Christianity the same way, hence different denominations of Christianity (Baptists, Pentacosts, Catholics, Christian Reform, Presbyterian, etc). Everyone follows their "path" in their own way, determining what they feel is right for them. Wiccans are no different
Rituals and celebrations are linked to the seasons and moon phases
-As are Christian rituals and celebrations. While Sunday mass isn't necessarily linked to seasons or the moon, Church holidays are...for example, Easter comes (I do believe) 40 days after the previous full moon (little tidbit I bet you didn't know), hence why it's never on the same day or same week every year.
Meditation, visualization, invocation (calling on forces or gods/goddesses), chanting, burning candles and special rituals trigger a sense of the mystical which typically reinforces their core belief system.
-I really don't understand what it is they're trying to accomplish with these point form notes. This entire point here can EASILY be describing ANY Christian mass. Meditations take place during silent prayers; visualization happen during transubstantiation of the bread and wine; invocations come shortly before transubstantiation; many people chant when reciting the Rosary, candles are a BIG part of the Christian religion, and special rituals (say Christmas mass) ALSO "trigger a sense of the mystical which typically reinforce their core belief system".
About God:
Willow believes in a male counterpart to the Goddess, who could possibly be the Christian God or the God of Islam
-Uh, no, not necessarily. TRUE Wiccans do not subscribe to the Abrahamic deity belief. Their "Gods" manifest in pre-existing deities generally from Greek, Roman, Egyptian and Celtic pantheons...not Abrahamic, due to the animosity felt from and for the Christian religion. Anyone claiming they worship the Christian God while being Wiccan, is clearly confused about BOTH religions, and is thusly not practicing EITHER in a proper way.
About the Trinity:
Willow doesn't believe in the Trinity
-Not in the Christian sense of Father, Son and Holy Spirit/Ghost. She may believe in a Thricean Goddess, commonly associated in Hecate, Diana, Demeter, Selene or Persephone (manifesting in a Maiden, Mother Crone aspect).
About Jesus:
Willow believes Jesus was an enlightened man who should be honored just like Mohammed, Moses, Krishna, and Buddha, but he was not and is not God in the flesh.
-That depends. Many Wiccans don't acknowledge the existence of Jesus PERIOD, but a mere figmant of the Church's imagination, and a conglomeration of numerous pre-existing myths and legends all rolled into one (i.e. The story of Osiris and Isis).
About the Bible:
Willow doesn't believe in absolute truth but she considers the Bible a good book that she can oick and choose things from to help her follow her spiritual path
-Ok...somehow things got lost in the mix. Wiccans don't follow the Bible PERIOD. They don't use ANY part of the bible to "help (them) follow (their) spiritual path". This here is completely false!
About the Afterlife:
Willow believes in an endless cycle of reincarnation (birth-death-birth-death, etc) and karma(what you do here affects you in the next life). She does not believe in heaven or hell
-Finally, something somewhat accurate. For one thing, many Wiccans have a misinformed notion about karma. They see it as a rubber vs. glue type thing, which isnt Karma at all. But...Wiccans DO subscribe to the belief in reincarnation, however it's not necessarily endless. It's what is called a "Spiral Dance" in which they move upwards, until all has been learned, then they merge with the divine. The journey could seem endless, but does eventually end
About Salvation:
Willow does not believe in sin or a need for forgiveness, so she doesn't see a need for salvation. In her mind, being 'saved' would be to reach a point where one is free from the reincarnation/karma cycle.
-Salvation reeks of fundamentalism. "Believe this way or go to hell". Sin and salvation are guilt trips, not a release from something.
What the Bible Teaches
About God/About the Trinity:
God identified himself as "I Am" (Exodus 20:2) - meaning He is the self-existent (never had a beginning or end) eternal Creator of the universe. There is no Goddess
There is one God and yet three Persons (Isaiah 45:5; Deuteronomy 6:4; James 2:19). There are no other 'gods' or 'goddesses'
-Ok, then explain to me why it says in Exodus 20:3 "You shall not have other Gods before me"? He acknowledges the existence of other Gods, but demands his followers not put them before him. Just because he wants his followers to follow him only, does NOT mean there are no other Gods in the universe.
About Jesus:
Jesus is fully God and fully man. He is the God of the universe (John 1:1, 14, 18; 8:58; 10:30. Compare Titus 2:13 and Isaiah 45:21), and His death on the cross completely paid for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2). What Willow sees as 'enlightened' was actually His power as being God. What separates him from Moses, Buddha, Mohammed, etc was that He came back from the dead
-How can Jesus be God, yet cry out on the Cross "My God, My God, why have you forsake me??" (Matthew 27:46) just before death? Again, not all Wiccans view Jesus as an "enlightened" man, or even a man to begin with, but a combination of different deity myths from history. Osiris came back from the dead after being killed by his brother.
About the Bible:
The bible alone is the word of God and is absolute truth. It is without error. It cannot and should not be added to or subtracted from (2 Timothy 3:16-4:4; Revelation 22:18-20), and it is also the ultimate authority on spiritual matters. Every word of it is inspired by God, so you can't just pick and choose what you "think" is true.
-If this is true, why does it say in Exodus 20:13 "Thou shall not kill", yet in Exodus 22:18 says "You shall not allow a Witch to live". Whether guilty or not it's still killing (or murdering if you like). That's a contradiction. How can you follow the law of God that says you shall not kill, yet go ahead and kill a Witch. OR offer a sacrifice of a lamb or whatever other animal God says is sacred? That's still killing, a contradiction. Either way, you are disobeying God. To say the bible is never wrong, is wrong in itself because the bible is FILLED with contradictions. You cannot ignora that. It's not the Wiccans who are picking and chooseing what they thing is true, it's the Christians. PLUS Wiccans never changed one word of the bible, yet King James changed numerous parts of the bible to suit his agenda...to justify the murder of countless people because of his fears. That and numerous "authors" of the bible, had numerous books either left out or taken out of the bible, simply because it didn't suit the theme.
Never wrong indeed.
About the Afterlife:
Those who trust in Christ alone as their only hope of salvation spend eternity in heaven; those who reject Christ spend an eternity in hell (John 5:24-30; Revelation 20:11-15). The Bible denies the concept of reincarnation (Hebrews 9:27-28
-Ah, but see, how can Jesus come back if his life was not reincarnated? He may not have retuned in a different body, but still came back from death. That's reincarnation. Also, how does one deal with those who ave never heard of Jesus? Do they go to hell simply out of ignorance? Or those who were around BEFORE Jesus? Are THEY swimming around in a lake of Fire simply because Jesus chose (and I say "chose" because it's apparent to Christians that Jesus is also God too, however improbable) to appear after their deaths??
About Salvation:
All people are sinners in need of forgiveness (Romans 3:23). Salvation is by faith in Christ ALONE on the basis of His death on the Cross (John 3:16-17, 36; 6:29, 47; Romans 4:1-5; Galations 2:16; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5)
Human nature determines that we make mistakes. Why do we make mistakes? To learn, not because we're bad. It was the "mistake" of Eve to eat from the tree of knowledge, but God is not innocent here either. He lied to Adam and Eve. If he had told them the truth, instead of keeping them in ignorance, perhaps we would still be in paradise. No. Everyone is not a sinner because it was not us who sinned.
Things to Remember:
Like Tara the Typical, Willow is extremely sensitive toward anything that sounds intolerant and/or judgemental, so approach with extreme caution! As well, she sees Christianity as an oppressive religion, so be sure to show her love and respect
--Judgement and intolerance disguised by love and respect is STILL judgement and intolerance. The way to get to a Wiccan is to understand where they're coming from and acknowledge their freedom to believe what they feel is truth to them, while still maintaining your own belief. Pushing upon them that your belief is right and theirs is wrong is a sure fire way to being "extremely sensitive". I mean, if Wiccans were to pressure Christians into thinking that Wicca is the one true right and only way, Christians would be rather sensitive too, don't you think?
Ask Willow what she believes about Christianity, because she might have a distorted image of what Christianity is. Try and use this as an opportunity to help her develop a correct understanding of true Christianity
--I ask Wiccans to do the same about Christians. The table turns both ways. Each have distorted ideas of each other. Wiccans see Christians as proselytizers, bent on converting everyone to their religion, whereas Chritsians view Wiccans as satan worshippers ignorant to their Devil worship. Both need to retract each other's claws and gain a better understanding of each other, because firing at each other constantly is not going to help anyone.
Don't confuse Wiccans with Witches, because anyone can practice Witchcraft, but Wiccans follow a strict code. Also, don't confuse Wiccans with Satanists, because mos Wiccan's don't believe in Satan or the Devil
--(**falls over in disbelief**) Wow, this one hit me with accuracy. Well, one in however many points here isn't bad I suppose.
Outline the strengths and reliability of the Bible (accuracy, consistency, fulfilled prophecy, etc) because Willow rejects it as unreliable
--See my outlined contradictions listed above. THAT'S why she views it as unreliable.
Stress your personal relationships with the Father through Jesus Christ and what impact that has on your daily life
--It won't do any good. Telling "Willow" you personal experiences will get her to convert just about as easily as Willow's personal experiences in Wicca will get a Christian to convert. If it's not right for someone, then it's not right for them.
Whether Willow knows it or not, she is in the grips of Satan, so like Sid the Satanist, be sure to cover your relationship and conversations with her in a ton of prayer
--This makes as much sense as any Wiccan saying Christians are in the Grips of Hades, however ignorant to the notion.
Italics from: http://www.dare2share.org/worldviews/wiccans/ (I do not own the information from this site, but wished to address the misinformation and shed clarity).
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