What is Wicca All About?

Watch above: Halloween is the biggest festival of the year for one religion with nearly 1,500 followers in Edmonton alone. Quinn Ohler explains.

EDMONTON – The witch has historically been one of the most popular Halloween costumes for kids and adults alike. From the long, black dress and pointy hat to the wart on the nose and maniacal cackle, witches have long been portrayed as evil.

But as we head into All Hallows’ Eve, a couple of local Wiccans want to clear up some of the misconceptions around the Wicca religion.

“I understand where that prejudice comes from,” said Ali Hammington, a priestess with the Congregationalist Wiccan Assembly of Alberta. “I don’t blame them for being afraid of us.

“They’ve had a lifetime of Disney and grim and stories and fairy tales telling them that witches are evil.”

While it has no single, defining doctrine, Wicca started in the 1950s in the United Kingdom. Hammington describes the religion as a recreation of what they believe to be the spiritual practices of their European ancestors.

Wiccans act in a way that does the least amount of damage to the environment.

“Wicca is a small religion based on reverence for the earth, love of women and love of life,” said Samuel Wagar, the Wiccan priest at the University of Alberta.

“We are strongly influenced by the environmental movement. We are strongly influenced by feminism. We are strongly influenced by the sexual liberation movements of various sorts,” Wagar explained.

“We don’t think that sex is a bad thing and we don’t think that the body is a bad thing. We are strongly biased in favour of the pleasures of this world being roots to spiritual understanding rather than roadblocks.”

Described by Wagar as a small but thriving community, there are about two million Wiccans worldwide. Wagar says there is a large Wiccan community in South Africa.

Here in Canada, there are about 25,000 to 30,000 practicing Wiccans or Pagans, about 1,500 of whom are in Edmonton.

There are eight Wiccan festivals per year. Right now, Wiccans are heading into Samhain.

“This is the Wiccan New Year, Halloween; Samhain we call it,” Wagar explained. “It’s the time when our ancestors come and talk to us and give us their advice. The veil between the land of the dead and the land of the living is at its thinnest.

“We’ll set a plate for the ancestors and invite them to come and give them some food. We’ll do tarot readings or other forms of divination and ask for their advice. We will honour and remember those who came before us.”

While the beliefs may cast a spell of fear on some, Hammington hopes more education will help dispel the misconceptions.

“I want Edmontonians to know that Wiccans are nothing to be afraid of. No matter what the fairy tales say,” said Hammington.

Edmonton is home to the only legal Wiccan temple in Alberta; Hammington is the priestess. Wagar began his role as the U of A’s Wiccan priest this past September.

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