Wicca and religion in the Disney comic

[Katie Sullivan]

I hope this isn't too off-topic, but someone asked if anyone had
studied religion enough to know how Wicca is treated
academically.  I certainly don't profess to be an expert, but
two years ago I took a college course called "Introduction to
World Religions," and Wicca was one of many, many religions we
covered.  We also had a student in our class who is a Wiccan,
and she gave a lecture about her experiences and beliefs.  I
personally am a Christian (Lutheran, to be exact,) but I find
learning about others' beliefs to be very interesting!  :)

If one anyone know more about this than I do, please feel free
to correct me or jump in to elaborate.


Wicca absolutely *is* considered a religion.  Someone here
compared it to the ancient worship of Zeus, Aphrodite, Hermes,
etc, in Greece, and Odin, Freya, Loki, etc, in Scandinavia. 
This isn't really a very good comparison because no one worships
Zeus or Odin anymore, but there are thousands of people who are
actively practicing Wicca today.

Wicca has its roots in pre-Christian Europe.  (I think the
British isles in particular, but I could be wrong about that.) 
It is a nature-based religion that pays special attention to
things in Nature, like plants and trees, animals, the moon, etc.
 In ancient days Wiccans were considered to be skilled healers,
with their knowledge of herbs and medicinal plants.

True Wicca has absolutely *nothing* to do with devil-worship or
any of that nonsense.  The concept of Satan didn't even exist in
Europe when Wicca originated.  One of the cornerstones of Wicca
belief is "First, do no harm."  Another concept is similar to
the Hindi concept of karma--whatever you do to someone else will
come back to you many times over.  So no witch in her (or his)
right mind would "curse" someone or cast an evil spell on an
enemy, because she (or he) would also be seriously harmed. 

Wiccans do not use the terms "warlock" or "wizard."  Both males
and females are simply "witches."


Now for the more on-topic part. ;)

I have not read Blum's new story, since I can't get to the comic
book store until tomorrow--darn it!  :(  However, I am
uncomfortable with the idea of Magica being identified as
Wiccan.  I would expect some real-life practitioners of Wicca to
be insulted and dismayed to see their religion associated with
comic-book "witches" yet again.  Someone mentioned the long
history of witches in the Disney universe.  Well, there are
"witches," and there are *witches.*  
I mean, there are real-life people who practice the Wiccan
religion, but they don't carry magic wands, fly on broomsticks,
brew potions in bubbling cauldrons, or have talking black cats,
pointed black hats, warts all over, and the ability to shoot
sparks from their fingers.  All these things are the invention
of non-Wiccans who didn't understand the religion and felt
threatened by it.  Brooms have a role in some ceremonies, but no
one ever sits on them or tries to fly!  In ancient times some
Wiccans wore tall hats for ceremonies, but again, they weren't
like the kind you see around at Halloween.

The point I'm trying to make is that real witches (i.e. those
who identify themselves as Wiccan) and comic book witches (i.e.
Magica, Witch Hazel, etc) are really two completely different
things.

One last note...I don't recall very many references specifically
to Christianity in the duck comics.  I'm most familiar with
Barks and Rosa, but aside from Christmas (which is nearly always
presented in a secular fashion, as far I know) there really
aren't any explicit references to religion in the duck stories. 
If I remember correctly, there aren't even any crosses or other
specifically Christian imagery in the cathedral of Notre Duck. 
The ceiling paintings that we see are knights and dragons and
that sort of thing.  (St. George and the dragon *was* used by
the Christian church in midieval England as a metaphor for
defeating Satan, but that's pretty obscure for the average
1950s/60s comic book-reading kid!) ;)
In "Guardians of the Lost Library" and "The Last Lords of El
Dorado" there are monks and nuns, but there aren't any explicit
religions messages!

Just some random observations.  I don't mean to offend anyone,
by any means!  I just find this an interesting topic.  It's
probably best not to keep this line of discussion going much
longer, though.

As the saying goes, if you want to avoid arguing, then don't
discuss religion or politics.
Um...so how's the weather?  ;)


Katie Sullivan
http://www.sullivanet.com/

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