April 14th, 2008 | 
Author: 
This is probably one of the biggest controversies in Paganism and Christianity.
Can you be both a Christian and a Witch?? Yes! of course you can! Sheesh, there
really aren’t any rules out there saying what you can and can not believe!!!
Though there are plenty of people who would LIKE there to be rules about
spirituality and religion, the fact is, there isn’t!
So, the question remains, how can someone be a Christian Witch? Aren’t they two
diabolically different religions?
Of course this all depends on the person’s definition of each of these
religions. That should go without saying. But it should also go without saying
that religion and spirituality are totally private and individual! But that is
beside the point of this article.
What is a witch, pagan, Wiccan? There are more definitions of these words than
there are of Christians! But basically the tenets of Witchcraft, Paganism and
Wicca are the belief that everything in nature is Divine including ourselves.
There are those who believe in one God or Goddess, there are those who believe
in many, and there are those who believe in none (or that all Gods are really
one God). But there is no hard and fast rule about who, what, or how to believe
in Divinity, except that all things are a part of that Divinity. You’d think
that magic is another tenet, but it’s not really. Most Witches, Pagans and
Wiccans use magick as a way of communicating with the Divine, but certainly not
all of them do. That is a personal decision. Most pagans don’t believe in Satan,
and none worship him as their God! But this is also a personal choice, not a
rule. So basically this is what witchcraft, paganism and Wicca are… yes
there’s a lot more too them, but most of it depends on what tradition you belong
to, or what the individual believes.
So how does Christianity fit in with Witchcraft and Paganism? Doesn’t one of the
ten commandments say not to worship false gods or other gods? Well, first of
all, if you’re going to be a “Christian”, lets talk about the only “rule” that
matters in Christianity. Jesus and the blessing. To be a Christian, you have to
believe in Christ as the son of God (or *A* son of God, hehe). That belief, is
the blessing that gives you “ever lasting life”. Living by the law of the bible
doesn’t give it to you, because the Law is set up for you to LOSE!! “Those who
live by the law, will be judged by the law, and ALL WILL FALL SHORT”. Period,
end of discussion. Don’t try to be a “good Christian”, don’t worry about
sinning, cuz you really can’t stop sinning! (all of this according to the bible)
You’ve got this blessing, this special gift of belief and that’s the only thing
that matters. So does it matter if you disobey every single commandment?? Of
course not! Because you can’t expect to be alive and not sin! No this doesn’t
mean go out and be a horrible person, it means that you can’t expect yourself to
be perfect!! And if these laws are the only thing keeping you from committing
crimes, and from being a truly horrible and evil person, you’re not going to be
able to keep up the charade for very long anyway!
So, ok.. the two basics of the so called “opposing” beliefs are “All things in
nature are part of the Divine” and “Belief in Jesus as the Son of God”. hmmm…
they don’t seem so opposing anymore do they?? yes there is a lot more to these
two religions, but these are the basics of them.. the very foundations. I could
go on about the similarities between them, but I just wanted to state how they
are NOT contradictory in nature, and that it’s very easy to see how you can be
both a Christian and a Witch. I’ll probably write about more specific things in
another article. But I think this is a good start. 
Posted in Christian Witch | 
Tags: beliefs, christian, Christian Witch, ecclectic, pagan, religion, Spirituality, wicca, witch, witchcraft
16 Responses to “I am a Christian Witch!”
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I am so pleased to read this I too am a christian witch, and some argue it is impossible. I am glad you wrote this it was quite inspirational.
I am so glad that you both found this to be helpful. There are many of us out there that believe this way, but it’s only been since the internet that we’ve been able to find each other.
I was glad to read this message. I am also a Christian witch and I have struggled with various aspects of this belief system. I believe that it is possible to follow Jesus and be a witch, although I don’t share this belief with very many people.
I am happy to have found your site. I am a lifelong Christian who discovered 5 years ago that she was also a witch. However I have never been able or wished to deny my love for Jesus. This way of spirituality feels right to me and it’s good to know I am not alone!
Being Christian Witch is not a problem. Being a witch is not a religious belief, and witch is not synonymous with Pagan. Paganity is religion, therefore being Christian AND Pagan IS a problem.
Pagan means non-Christian.
It’s not a question of the tenets, it’s a question of what words mean. You cannot start defining words by yourself to fit your ideas.
You cannot be a Pagan and Christian.
You cannot be Muslim and Christian.
You cannot be Jewish and Christian.
You cannot be Pagan and Muslim.
You cannot be Jewish and Pagan.
You cannot be Muslim and Jewish.
You cannot be a man and a woman.
You cannot be a cat and a dog.
You cannot have the cake and eat it too.
You have to choose. Be a witch, but if you want to be Pagan, you have to give up Christianity. If you want to be Christian, you have to give up Paganity. You cannot be both.
You are right in that the core belief is compatible in both religions. You don’t have to denounce Christianity simply because you believe that the nature is part of the Divine. St. Francis of Assisi shared this opinion. But if you believe Jesus was Son of One God, the Messiah, the Savior, born Human, part of Trinity and all the other Christian tenets, you cannot be Pagan.
That’s where you’re wrong. I DO get to change the definition of words. Actually everyone does. Words… language is always changing, growing, redifining itself BECAUSE of how people use it differently through time. As people use words differently, changing the idea behind the word, eventually the meaning changes. If words never changed, then witch would still mean “hag who worships the devil” or “someone who practices black magic”, “poisoner”, and we both know that these are not the ONLY definitions of the word.
More importantly than all of that, I can define MY spiritual path any damn way I want to! It’s MY path. You don’t have to like it, you don’t have to accept it, you don’t have to agree with it. Obviously plenty of people understand and agree! But you don’t have to. You can say I’m trying to “have my cake and eat it too”, you can say “I’m hedging my bets”…. you can SAY anything you’d like, doesn’t change who I am or what my beliefs are. My spiritual beliefs are that I am BOTH Pagan and Christian.
oh, and by the way, the only TRUE way to be a Christian is to BE Jewish…. according to the bible the only TRUE Christians are Jewish people who believe in Christ, all others are gentiles and don’t technically count. Of course because the word “Christian” has been used over the centuries by those who were not Jewish, it’s meaning has changed over time. Which of course is my point!
Wow! Thank you! I always wanted to write in my site something like that. Can I take part of your post to my blog?
“I DO get to change the definition of words. Actually everyone does. Words… language is always changing, growing, redifining itself BECAUSE of how people use it differently through time.”
Not if you’re French. They have an entire institution dedicated to preserving the purity of the French language.
“My spiritual beliefs are that I am BOTH Pagan and Christian.”
Only if you don’t believe Christ was YHWH is that possible. And pretty much nobody but you would consider that Christian.
“oh, and by the way, the only TRUE way to be a Christian is to BE Jewish…. according to the bible the only TRUE Christians are Jewish people who believe in Christ, all others are gentiles and don’t technically count. Of course because the word “Christian” has been used over the centuries by those who were not Jewish, it’s meaning has changed over time.”
Uhm, no. Christian denotes follower of Christ. Jews and Gentiles were both given the opportunity to follow Christ, which is why we now have Christians and Messianic Jews. Some Jews decided to follow Christ specifically with the Gentiles and abandoned their purity laws, whence we get Christians. Others retain the “old laws” and also accept Christ as Savior, whence we get Messianic Jews.
Gentile means not-Jewish or more specifically not-an-Israelite, because it’s based on race. That’s it.
Isn’t it funny how people always say, “According to the Bible…” but never do give references so we can look it up for ourselves?
Wow! what an idea ! What a concept ! Beautiful .. Amazing
This is a beautiful post! I’m just starting out on my journey as a Christopagan, and this post really helped me bring everything together at the beginning. PS I’m stealing your button so I can link to you on my blog!
Does anyone know of someone who has been a Christian witch for a long time and has made it work? I would like to hear how they did it because it is a difficult path, at least at first. A witch does spells as part of the craft. When is a spell appropriate instead of a prayer and as a Christian, why would you need a spell if prayers worked? I personally believe that magic is not religion but more like a science.
Those are excellent questions Rowan! I’ve been a Christian my entire life and have been Pagan for the last 20 years. Never once did I think of my self as anything other than a Christian Pagan/Witch. So, it’s been 20 years for me. I consider spells and prayers basically the same. Spells are a little more active and participatory and prayers are more devotionals or chants/affirmations.
When I call the quarters or invoke the God/Goddess in a ritual, I am saying a prayer. When I am saying a chant or affirmation over my spell working, that is a prayer. Spells and prayers are done in conjunction with each other, not as an either or situation.
I understand how you see magic like science. I look at magic and spells more like psycology rather than science. The tools, spells, prayers, are all to help you focus your will and intention on your desired outcome or goal. They are only there to enhance your workings and connection with deity, but in reality, they are not neccesary to connect with deity at all. But since we are human, and are distracted easily, the tools, spells, chants, prayers, all work to help us stay focused.
Does that help?
Hi. Yes, I can agree with your explanation of prayers and spells. This is a very interesting path to be on. My Christian life has be basically devoid of ritual, with the exception of Christmas, Easter. That is how it has been for me, but the witch in me has been seeking more meaning to my life. This includes Christianity but also includes rituals, blessings and spells. I have studied the Norvicensian version and am now studying under a green witch. I read a lot as well.
I normally don’t reach out like this, but I wanted to share my story. I am a Christian Witch. I have been a Christian all of my life; but a few years ago, I felt that I needed to do some spiritual searching. I found a home in a solitary wiccan path.
I am also a singer and for about 9 years, I was employed as a soloist in a church. When I decided that I needed to seek The Creator on another path, I told the minister (who happened to also be my father-in-law!) He understood and supported my journey. I continued to sing with the church and his term as Pastor came to an end.
The new minister was a woman fresh out of Seminary. We shared similar beliefs about women’s role in the church (which, btw, is one of my reasons for leaving the church!) and we got along pretty well.
When my son was five and Samhain was nearing, I got a little nervous. I share my spirituality with my family, and being five, I was worried that he would blurt out something to the Sunday School teachers. I didn’t make my beliefs known to the church because I didn’t know how people would react. I felt obligated to let the new pastor know in case I was “outed” by my son. I thought she would understand. She didn’t.
We had a few meetings (where I stressed my belief in Jesus everytime), and they had several meetings; and a week after Easter, they fired me! (Note that they continued to use my talents during this time!)
So now I am betrayed and hurt; and my family and I now have to find a new church to go to. I was online looking for ideas to create a spell to find a church, when I found your page. it’s nice to know that I am not alone and that there are people who will understand and apreciate my predicament.
Thank you for sharing.
I’ve had many people on both sides, tell me that I can’t believe the way that I do. They are wrong though… we can believe any way that we choose. And As I have seen from the responses to this article, we are not alone!
I am sorry that you were used and hurt by your former church. Have you looked into the UU church near you? They are not only open minded, open hearted, and welcoming, but they also have pagans in the church that hold rituals and such thruogh out the year. CUUPs, Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans, is the pagan portion of the Unitarian Universalist Church.
From their website –
You might want to take a look and see what they have to offer. Whatever you decide, I wish you good luck on your path and hope that if you need anything further you’ll ask!
Blessed Be!
Kendra
It’s too bad it turned out that way for you. I have a feeling that most Christians will feel pretty much the same as that pastor. This is why I am extremely reluctant to share the witch aspect of me with other Christians. The exception is a good friend of mine who has been through a few things herself. There is no judgment there, but even she says ‘you’re not a real witch’! This is due to the pagan witches she knows. This path can be complicated but, it is really between you and the Creator.