(^12) A Wiccan Bible
With that image fresh in your mind, tell me who the woman is. You know, the one
who has God’s arm is casually wrapped around like a lover. As a child, it never oc-
curred to me that people do not think about it. It was my natural conclusion that it was
God’s wife. Then someone told me that God was a woman and I became terribly con-
fused. If God is a woman, who is that big almost-naked guy with his arm around her? In
answering that question, I found a beautiful religion called Wicca. But something there
was also missing.
Within the Wiccan religion, I found many books that spoke about Goddess, but
very few who listed her husband. Everywhere I looked, I could find information about
Brigit but very little information about her husband Bres. Also within the Wiccan reli-
gion, I found many books that spoke about God, but very few that listed his wife. I
could find reference to Wicca borrowing the Great Spirit from Native American tradi-
tions, but not with his wife Eschetewuarha.
This book is how I address that confusion.
You will note that the title of this book begins with the word A. This is because I in
no way consider this The Bible. It belongs to me; I wrote it and gave it to someone to
share it with you. They didn’t think it would be a very popular book if we called it A.J.
Drew’s Wiccan Bible, so they shortened my name a bit and just called it A Wiccan Bible.
Ok, actually that last part was just a bad joke, but I hope it made you smile.
You will also note that the title does not end with a period or with the word com-
plete. This is because it’s not finished yet. In fact, in trying to fit all that I would like to
say under this title, I managed to write two different books. The first, this book, is
dedicated to the discussion of the Wiccan religion. The second is dedicated to the dis-
cussion of Wiccan magick. This book is first because Wiccan magick is built on the
religion, not the other way around. But even when these books are side by side, I will
not be finished answering that question. You see, that answer is one’s lifetime, and I
am not ready for the grave quite yet. There are entirely too many things left to do.
In between the word A and the word Bible, there is a word that confuses a great
many people. Exactly what it means is a bit confusing as it tends to mean something
different to each person. Recently, a man by the name of Edred Thorsson published
his research into the etymology of this word in a book called Witchdom of the True.
There, he traces the word wicca past the Old English and into what may well be its true
origin. This must have taken a great amount of research and work on his part, so in-
stead of being one of the first to cite his book, I will be one of the first Wiccans to say
that you should buy his book. That way his work is rewarded. I respect Edred a great
deal. His research into the Old Norse traditions seems rivaled only by the soul of Freya
Aswynn. However, I do not think the etymology of a word is a good way of addressing
the meaning a word currently has. Yes, we are nothing without our past. But we are
little more than a memory if we do not also have our present and our future. Please do
read Witchdom of the True by Edred and also read Leaves of Yggdrasil.
If you have already read these books, you are probably wondering why a Wiccan
author would recommend them. After all, they are both written by authors who are
generally considered Asatrú rather than Wicca. Well, this Wiccan sees something very
interesting in Norse lore. I see not only the Aesir (mind) but also the Vanir (soul), and
e WB Intro.p65 12 7/11/2003, 5:45 PM
barré
(Barré)
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