Isaac Bonewits

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Awens to All:

Read through Chapters 9 ‘The First Neopagan Witches – and the First Neopagan Heretics’ and Chapter 10 ‘Sisters Doing If for Themselves’. For some strange reason, both Chapters combined are only 8 Pages for some reason or another.

Chapter 9 is basically a chronicle about a 1973 Meeting where they argued back and forth about whether Modern Paganism is based on Ancient Knowledge of our Ancestors or if it all Modern Made Up Material. He does tell of a Priestess Sheba who made a motion to have all Wiccan Pagans should turn in their Books of Shadows to be then have those Tombs rewritten into a Standardized Version to be issued back out again. That Motion was thoroughly rejected as all Wiccan Pagans were not going to be allowed to be talked into handing in their Books of Shadows.

Chapter 10 chronicles the creation of All Female Covens and the “Certain Dogmas” that they follow although Bonewits does not define what sort of Dogmas they were which they wanted to be followed in this 3 Page Chapter.

3X3

• This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by Dave TheDruid-3X3.

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Awens to All:

Chapter 11 ‘Witchcraft in the Modern World’ is the Last Chapter of Part 3 of the Book and Part 4 is ‘Wiccan Beliefs And Rituals’ which is followed by Chapter 12: ‘What Wiccans Believe’.

Both Chapters are not much more than 10 Pages long so I will read them both today and I found that both Chapters appear to me to say similar things.

Bonewits seems to not like it when some Neopagans Worship the Christian Created Devil just because they want to make a point against such Abusive Monotheistic Beliefs. The Beast 666 Crowley was particularly bad for that.

In Chapter 12, Bonewits points out that most Good Neopagans should concentrate on paying Homage to the Cyclic Annual Eight Sacred Sabbaths and the Phase Changes of the Moon in much the same way that Celtic Druids do.

3X3

• This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by Dave TheDruid-3X3.

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Chapters 13 ‘Varieties of Wiccan Ritual’ and 14 ‘The Sources of Wiccan Ritual’ total out to only 7 Pages so I read both.

Bonewits defines ‘Religion’ for 3 things:
– An Institutionalized Expressions of Sacred Beliefs.
– A Magical System combined with Philosophical & Ethical Systems.
– And Psychic Structure of Shared Believes and Experiences.

Bonewits did not include the One Definition on Religions that I realized. And that
is the Endeavor of trying to understand the Natural Processes of Life & Nature of
the Animals, Plants & Seasons of our Earth.

He mentions the types of Rites and that includes Rites of the Solar Cycles, Passions,
Family Intimacy, Solitude, Magic and Combinations of them.

In Chapter 14, Bonewits goes over the Sources from where Gerald Gardner got his Rituals
from and once again it involves being based on both Ancient Rituals and Modern Influences
but does state one thing that I did not know about.

It seems that the Ordo Templi Oreintis is an Crowlian Offshoot of the Free Masons Rituals.
I am Amazed he was able to (along with so many other things) that Crowley managed to get
away with that without Repercussions from the Free Masons.

I am also a bit disappointed that the 3 Page Chapter on Sources of Wiccan Ritual did not
include mention of Margaret Murray’s Contributions and just mentions Gerald Gardener.

3X3

• This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by Dave TheDruid-3X3.

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Awens to All:

Decided to get to it and read Chapter 15 which is called ‘Current Variations in Wiccan Ritual Structure’.

It Chronicles the setting up of a Sacred Ceremonial Circle with the Sacred Quarters of North, East, South and West along with their Sacred Watch Towers of Earth, Air, Fire and Water.

It goes on with the usual Blessings & Consecrations with the Sharing of the Energies, Food & Ales followed with the Closings of such Ceremonies.

Pages 28 & 29 give a rendition of how such things can be done although most Ceremonies are always done Freely as Thou Wilt.

3X3

[DowrgiParticipant]

The Beast 666 Crowley was particularly bad for that.

It is a common assertion that Aleister Crowley was some kind of Satanist, and he did indeed use some provocative titles such as ‘The Beast 666’ whilst openly criticising Christian dogma, however, these were acts of rebellion against what he perceived as religious orthodoxy rather than expressions of any actual ‘Satanic belief’. Crowley’s whole spiritual philosophy, Thelema, centres on the pursuit of ‘True Will’ and draws heavily from Egyptian mythology, ceremonial magic, and Eastern mysticism, not any kind of ‘devil worship’ as such. The whole point of Crowley’s belief system was about ushering in the ‘Aeon of Horus’, which was supposed to be all about self-realisation.

In any case, it does not really have much, if anything to do with Druidry/Druidism.

Bennathow,
/|\

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

My Review of Chapter 16th could not be posted here as I got the arch typical annoying ‘Your Post can not be Created at this time’ Statement.

The first Essay by Ashleen O’Gaea was about Ronald Hutton’s Book Triumph of the Moon which I created a separate Thread (which worked to my actual Surprise!).

Now for the Final Bit which is the Essay ‘Recent Developments in the Great European Witch Hunt’:

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Basically, the Essay ‘Recent Developments in the Great European Witch Hunt’ is something
The Bonewits included that was written by a Jenny Gibson and states that a Vast Majority
of Witch Hunt Court Records are Fiction Made Up Forgeries which especially sites the Records
of a Etienne Leon de Lamothe-Langon’s ‘Histoire de l’Inquisition en France’ which (it
seems) Fictional Chronicles the Execution of 400 Witches in the 14th Century.

And that Essay is the Final Chunk of this Book ‘Essential Guide to Witchcraft &
Wicca’ and this is the last bit of my analysis of it.

The End.

3X3

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Basically, I found out from this Book on Wicca Paganism by The Bonewits exposed just how
much Infighting and Disunity there is in Wicca.

So I am not having more to do with Celtic Druidism than Wicca Paganism from now one.

I am getting out my copy of The Bonewits’s Essential Guide to Druidism to give it
another read through as I recall it was more Enlightening and chronicles just how much
more Harmonious & Tranquil the Druids conduct themselves in their Circle Groves than
Wiccans do in the Circle Covens.

3X3

• This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by Dave TheDruid-3X3.

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

Well, most Drudistic Circle Groves are more Enlightening.

But the way the ADF threw their Founder under the Bus due to a Single Posthumous Accusation by a Moira Greyland, I would not count the ADF as being as Peaceful & Tranquil as most Druidistic Groves should ought to be.

3X3

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

I tried to send Phaedra an Email with an Address provided by neopagan.net and got a Rejection Email saying that ‘neopagan.net’ was not recognisable.

So I guess Phaedra has since become a Recluse nowadays.

3X3

[Dave TheDruid-3X3Participant]

I have gotten out ‘Living With Honor’ by Bobcat to have a read over. But during this afternoon’s Meditation, I think I will have one more Re-Read from ‘Essential Guide to Druidism’.

3X3

[Author]

Posts