The Activist Witch: Finding Your Way to Change the World by Irish Flambeau. Edited version appeared in NewWitch magazine, Summer 2003. As you've probably discovered by now, most forms of Witchcraft have the underlying belief of "immanence". Immanence means that Goddess and God, Creator, Great Spirit or even the Great Metaphor (according to my Unitarian friends), exists right now, right here, as part of this world. As Witches, we know that we belong here, embodied, and this is a joyous thing. Being alive on Earth is how we connect and participate with Goddess and God; not by some future transcendence into a cotton candy heaven. Once you start to see Deity present in the world, it naturally follows that you will notice that humanity is really doing a number on Her. The most important radical act that you can do as a Witch is to acknowledge the Earth as sacred. This flies in the face of all our Western cultural conditioning. The next step is to find ways that you can actually live this belief; ways that fit for you and your life. Discovering your personal values and living them as best you can is what defines you as a Witch. Change Your Mind, Change Your World I think the first place to start is with Dion Fortune's concept of magic. Magic is "the art of changing consciousness at will". Make the intention to be aware that the world is much more than what we have been taught. This isn't just hocus pocus. Modern science such as quantum physics and "string theory" have shown us that everything is made up of moving energy...even the computer I am typing on now and the table it is resting on. It looks solid and inert to my eyes, but I know better. I think the reason that the movie, The Matrix, was so popular is because it has some truth in it. If everything is made up of moving energy and Witches work in harmony with it to move and shape it, could it be that magick is real and working within the Laws of Nature? Ah, now you've taken the Witch's "green pill". It's a well-known and curious phenomenon that when a long-standing sports record is broken (such as Olympic sprinting), it doesn't take too long until all over the world, other athletes meet or closely approach that record. This is the underpinning of the idea of "the hundredth monkey", and I believe it has a lot to do with how cultures are built. Cultural standards and expectations exist because a large enough group of people agree on those standards and expectations as "acceptable". But one person with an idea that is good enough to spread to enough people (the hundredth monkey) can change the culture. Examples of this would be Galileo, Einstein, Madame Curie. Or Jimi Hendix, The Beatles, Elvis, Marilyn Monroe. These are all people who were Originals, who brought something new to our culture. We can do this too. In this time of technology and industry, the Earth needs our wisdom and ability to see divinity in all things: trees, computers, rivers and subways. And we can make a difference. All it took was one friend talking to me about paganism, and it grew to today where I am the co-creator of a vibrant group of witchy friends, organizing events in my community, teaching and even writing articles for national pagan magazines. I can hardly believe it myself. Likewise, your activism can be rooted in the power of being alert to cultural agreements and modes of thinking that don't serve the Earth (in yourelf and in others), and in consiously deciding what actions and attitudes will serve Her. By doing this, you have changed your consciousness and created magick. Be patient and watch for evidence that your world has changed, because it has. Be an Original. |
The Activist Witch: Finding Your Way to Change the World by Irish Flambeau. Edited version appeared in NewWitch magazine, Summer 2003. As you've probably discovered by now, most forms of Witchcraft have the underlying belief of "immanence". Immanence means that Goddess and God, Creator, Great Spirit or even the Great Metaphor (according to my Unitarian friends), exists right now, right here, as part of this world. As Witches, we know that we belong here, embodied, and this is a joyous thing. Being alive on Earth is how we connect and participate with Goddess and God; not by some future transcendence into a cotton candy heaven. Once you start to see Deity present in the world, it naturally follows that you will notice that humanity is really doing a number on Her. The most important radical act that you can do as a Witch is to acknowledge the Earth as sacred. This flies in the face of all our Western cultural conditioning. The next step is to find ways that you can actually live this belief; ways that fit for you and your life. Discovering your personal values and living them as best you can is what defines you as a Witch. Change Your Mind, Change Your World I think the first place to start is with Dion Fortune's concept of magic. Magic is "the art of changing consciousness at will". Make the intention to be aware that the world is much more than what we have been taught. This isn't just hocus pocus. Modern science such as quantum physics and "string theory" have shown us that everything is made up of moving energy...even the computer I am typing on now and the table it is resting on. It looks solid and inert to my eyes, but I know better. I think the reason that the movie, The Matrix, was so popular is because it has some truth in it. If everything is made up of moving energy and Witches work in harmony with it to move and shape it, could it be that magick is real and working within the Laws of Nature? Ah, now you've taken the Witch's "green pill". It's a well-known and curious phenomenon that when a long-standing sports record is broken (such as Olympic sprinting), it doesn't take too long until all over the world, other athletes meet or closely approach that record. This is the underpinning of the idea of "the hundredth monkey", and I believe it has a lot to do with how cultures are built. Cultural standards and expectations exist because a large enough group of people agree on those standards and expectations as "acceptable". But one person with an idea that is good enough to spread to enough people (the hundredth monkey) can change the culture. Examples of this would be Galileo, Einstein, Madame Curie. Or Jimi Hendix, The Beatles, Elvis, Marilyn Monroe. These are all people who were Originals, who brought something new to our culture. We can do this too. In this time of technology and industry, the Earth needs our wisdom and ability to see divinity in all things: trees, computers, rivers and subways. And we can make a difference. All it took was one friend talking to me about paganism, and it grew to today where I am the co-creator of a vibrant group of witchy friends, organizing events in my community, teaching and even writing articles for national pagan magazines. I can hardly believe it myself. Likewise, your activism can be rooted in the power of being alert to cultural agreements and modes of thinking that don't serve the Earth (in yourelf and in others), and in consiously deciding what actions and attitudes will serve Her. By doing this, you have changed your consciousness and created magick. Be patient and watch for evidence that your world has changed, because it has. Be an Original. |
