Craft Joys and Tribulations: ‘Dangerous and Evil’ they said, and they were so right . . .
“Oh, thou circle be thou a place of love, joy and truth.”
The opening words of many a witch’s ritual that lead us into a space between the worlds and the fulfillment of our desire.
We are a rare and odd breed of human, we witches — our fascination with the rhythm of Mother Nature and the magic available through the workings of ritual, worship of the Goddess, and the eight ways of magic to those who have a vocation and aptitude for the priesthood of the Craft.
‘Dangerous and evil’ they said, and they were so right, although not completely. If the training is wholesome, the spiritual and magical aspirations of the student lead to joyous and truthful realisations.
Alas, how were they to know the real danger is not the magic, rather, it is those accepted for Initiation who thought they could take shortcuts bringing about the most feared of fates: the ego and compulsive lying that is embedded within their psyche as truth…
One such man is typical of the failed witch and worse, is a compulsive liar. Years of awareness have finally culminated in the necessity to say something after being alerted to his recent deceptions:
For the sake of his wife and convenience, I shall name him ‘the deceiver.’
The deceiver has particularly vile halitosis, is a compulsive liar, rapist, and corruptor of the Sacred Mysteries. For some reason, he seems to be liked or maybe endured by the so-called community who recently took his word regarding his sexual assault on a young woman who wanted to learn more about Witchcraft.
The crux of the matter was his insistence that if she wanted to know more about Witchcraft, she would have to take her clothes off; the silly girl did, and on realising her mistake refused to allow the moment to go further, she wanted knowledge, not rape.
The deceiver had an explanation for his wife which portrayed himself as the innocent victim of a failed seduction. The young woman has been painted a Scarlet Woman and her character assassinated by the somewhat gullible and judgmental community.
The deceiver’s track record of rape and assault has been well-known; he has been warned on several occasions to no avail, indeed several years ago he was banished by his own coven.
It is men and women like the deceiver who are self-delusional and dangerous in the world of Witchcraft. They have somehow gained kudos because they knew the founders of the Alexandrian Tradition of Witchcraft and embellished the stories as to their level of closeness with them, creating tales to impress.
Shockingly, there are people who believe the ego-driven failure of an initiate who is a disgrace to the Craft and the community that has been far too fast to throw stones.
This is not an isolated case.
Alas the community in general is lacking in the fine art of discernment and are abundant in the ability to wagon-jump. However, the majority of Initiated witches are genuine, joyous and trustworthy.
It is time to actively protect the joy and truth of our beautiful Craft.
Maxine Sanders
