Another month, another solid round of questions!
Welcome back to another monthly advice column! We've got another ten questions to get through, so let's hop right on in.
Remember: if you have any questions, all you have to do is check out this Google Form right here and fill it out with your question!
Now for all this good conversation!
How Do I Charge Magical Items?
"First I want to say I loved the book [Discovering Christian Witchcraft] and that you contributed to some much needed healing I realize now I needed. I do have a question about it though and I think I'm overthinking. There's energy work in the book but there's no mention of charging your items. I come from the Appalachian way of doing things and with that. Charging the item is prayer and feeding it with alcohol or water and light. Mainly though it's prayer that builds the power. I feel like this is how you mean, pray over it to charge it. Can you clarify this for me?" —Anonymous
Hey, there! Thank you so much for grabbing a copy of Discovering Christian Witchcraft, and I'm glad you enjoyed it! Mimi, my co-writer on this book, is the real expert when it comes to Appalachian things, and her input is:
"Moon,light, sometimes you swipe something in morning dew. Or pray over it. Depends on what you want to do with it!"
However, when it comes to charging things, it's however works best for you to visualize that energy infusing into something. I like to hold an object in my hands and imagine my power literally soaking into it, as if it's a sponge and my hands are little fountains soaking it with power. I also understand that the source of this little spring of power in me is actually God, and that my soul, even though it has its own energy stores, is really better serving its purpose by channeling God's might and miracle down to earth; that's where prayer and meditation serve the highest use in this situation.
You can also leave things to soak up the energy of the moon, sun, or even other items you have, like crystals, if you want to add that influence to the item in question, too!
Is Christian Witchcraft Closed? How Do I Convert?
"If I want to change my faith from Buddhism to a Christian witch, do I need to get a baptized in order to be recognized as a member of a specified Church first? As in that I need to be a Christian before I am able to practice a Christian witchcraft. I am not sure if Christian witchcraft is a closed practice or not." —Votey
Hi, Votey! Rest assured that Christian Witchcraft as a broad concept is not closed. Certain styles of it may be closed because of cultural elements (for instance: the syncretic faith styles of Latin America, that combine old pre-Christian faith with Catholicism, are very much closed, but lots of folk magic across various cultures isn't, like for instance English or Italian folk magic. It's best to look into your own culture for folk magic, though, rather than look to others, as you'll connect with it better that way.)
If you want to be Christian, and you're fully dedicated to starting up that path, by all means, jump right in! However, you definitely want to start with getting to know this God first, so reading the Bible like you've been doing is a great start.
When it comes to baptism and the like, these are Sacraments. They signify that you are, essentially, locked into the faith, and baptism is the biggest deal of all because it washes all your past right off you and brings you back into the world as a new being. It's something that should only be done if you're sure you're going to stay on this path for the long haul, in my opinion. But you only get baptized once, no matter what denomination you are or what church you may end up going to later on. (So I didn't get baptized again going from Catholic to Episcopal. One baptism covers it all.)
So start on the path that speaks to you, and commit when you're ready by finding a church that you feel comfortable with for baptism and other sacraments as you go along!
How Do I Get Into the Episcopal Church?
"Hello, I have recently been feeling the call to give churches another chance. God has been making my need for community more and more apparent. Do you have any suggestions of where to start looking for resources on the Episcopal church?" —Anonymous
Hey, there!
A really good starting book I was given by the priest at my local Episcopal church is The Episcopal Way, Vol. 1 by Stephanie Spellers and Eric H.F. Law. It's a solid one-stop-shop of understanding the basics of Episcopal philosophy, faith, and a bit about the history, too.
Otherwise, though, take a look at your local Episcopal churches now! Many churches now livestream their services, so you can always check out a few services online before committing to going in person. See what they do for ministry (feeding/clothing initiatives?), see what they teach their youth (mine had a big unit on social justice for confirmation classes, for instance), and get a sense of who the priest is, if you can find out who they are.
Finding the right church is about finding a place that you can feel comfortable in, even if you don't agree with every single thing anyone in there says. What matters is that the people are open, honest, and willing to listen to other points of view, because that's how people grow. So when thinking of what kind of church you want to go to, think of what kind of community you want to be a part of first!
Is Christian Witchcraft a Safe Place to Explore Angels, Demons, and Other Deities?
"I feel a certain pull to witchcraft, angels, demons and deities. Do you think that Christian witchcraft is a 'stable' or 'safer' place to explore these things ?. Even if you are interested in researching or practicing other types of magic?" —Anonymous
Oh, boy. I think here warrants a really good start to a conversation about what it means to be safe in spirituality.
The truth is that there is no religion, spiritual path, or supernatural philosophy that will ever be 100% safe—even Christianity. The moment you decide to engage with an entity that is non-corporeal—as in, you cannot physically see, touch, hear, or engage with it like you would any tangible human being—you are at risk of all kinds of deceivers, predators, and overwhelm. That last one is a risk even from spirits and entities that are trying to help you, too. Lots of Christians don't understand that there is danger even in praying to God, because there are things that masquerade as God that will happily snap you up if you follow their false light over the true light of God. Remember:
"And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light." —2 Corinthians 11:14
I can tell you that I've personally had some really bad experiences with angels, demons, and other deities that absolutely kicked my ass and wiped the floor with me, even though God was watching over me the whole time. (And you can read about many of these experiences in my book, Where the Gods Left Off.) I can tell you that there were times that got so intense that it scared the absolute hell out of me, and that my only options were to run back to my little enclosure and be content in perfect, riskless safety, or keep going and become stronger for it, learning from my mistakes and learning more about myself. It's worth it to take these risks, no doubt, but they are risks.
So is Christian Witchcraft a safer place to explore these entities? Absolutely not. God wants to help you and keep you safe, but He won't shelter you from the many tests, traps, and all around bad times you might have trying to explore the spiritual realm. Your discernment can't grow in theory alone—not any more than one can become a master chemist by only reading books and never holding a beaker. You have to be willing to brave the challenges and tests He'll have for you, and you'll have to learn how to find your way back to Him in the dark every time, as well as make sure not to follow the wrong lanterns and the wrong paths through the misty dark of the spiritual world in the meantime.
How Do We Make Sense of "Bad" Entities Like Satan and Lucifer?
"I’ve felt deeply connected to various entities, including Lucifer. But how do you make sense of the belief (and correct me if I’m wrong, but the verses) that say Satan makes you see ‘bad’ as ‘good’ and ‘good’ as ‘bad’? Whether or not infernal entities are ‘bad’, what I’ve seen and felt is so much love and acceptance there (and just generally wonderful people), that I don’t know how to reconcile the two. Am I being manipulated or am I missing a piece there? (Sorry for the confusing, long questions, and thank you for your time always!" —Anonymous
Hey!
No worries! Long questions mean we get lots of context for a good discussion. As for the idea that Satan or Lucifer make one see bad as good and good as bad, well... I won't lie, that sounds more like a problem that the mainstream Church has to deal with than demonolaters who worship Lucifer, no? Think about it: these people telling us it's good and Godly to strip people of their rights, to bar women from public society and strap them to the domestic sphere, to be hostile to immigrants and the poor/downtrodden/sick, to advocate for harsh and terrible prison sentences rather than reconstructive, merciful programs, etc.? It sounds like quite a few people have already conflated good with bad and vice versa. Who is really doing the manipulating in larger society? An entity you feel is trying to teach you something that'll help you be a better person, or humans who interpret the word of God to justify horrors against their fellow people?
Whether or not these entities are really good or not is up to you to discern in the end. However, I will give you a quote from Daniel C. Matt's The Essential Kabbalah:
From a more radical perspective, evil originates in divine thought, which eliminates waste before emanating goodness. The demonic is rooted in the divine. (Emphasis mine.)
One might see the Infernal as the ones who do the separating, the purging, before the restorative work of the Celestial begins. This is likely why we associate the heavy ideas of Hell with the demonic, too: because that is where we're purged of our evil. The truth is that angels and demons alike are approaching the same problems, just from different angles—and that angels can appear as demons just as much as demons appear as angels.
So stay alert. Don't let your guard down all the way. Push back when things don't sound right.
But do that with everyone—whether they come representing God or Lucifer/Satan/whatever other entity people want to make their bogeyman.
Can I Work With/Worship God and X Entity?
"Is it okay to worship or work with multiple deities AND worship God? Like is it okay if I worship or work with Apollo but also worship God? How about with Infernals? Is God okay with that? Are the Archangels also okay with that? I am just curious to know 😿😿 I'm so sorry if I have so many questions!! I didn't exactly know how to word it properly. I'm very very sorry 😓😓" —Anonymous
"My question for you is, could I work with the Holy Trinity but still work with other deities such as Lilith and Hekate as well? What does God think of them and me doing such a thing as that?" —Anonymous
Hey, friends!
As we talked about last week: Christopaganism is very much a thing. Plenty of people work with other deities, as well as demons and angels, while also worshipping God (it's just that God has to be first priority). However, many of these questions are really ones that you should be asking God yourself, because at the end of the day, what is generally okay isn't necessarily good for every single person. Everyone has a different path and different needs!
With that said, I personally have no problem working with angels and demons at the same time, but some aren't on good terms. Raphael and Asmodeus, Michael and Belial, they're just not good matches. Certain pantheons also have rules that may conflict with what you do in your practice for God. It requires research and discernment to figure out in the long run!
How Do You Start Being a Christian Witch?
"How do you start?" —Lovito
Hey, Lovito!
That's a big question. I'd say when it comes to starting, there are multiple places you could start. For instance, do you begin learning magical philosophy? Do you start researching the history of the Church? Do you start picking up the hardcore medieval grimiores and alchemical textbooks? Do you read the whole Bible front to back?
All of these things will need to be done at some point, but I wouldn't say any of these things are where to start. Starting requires you to ask yourself some honest questions first, actually. Before you really decide to start running down this path, ask yourself:
Who is God to you?
What do you want to be a Christian Witch for?
What wounds might you be carrying from previous experiences with Christianity, and do you want to continue being a Christian?
How do you view your fellow human?
What does it mean to submit to God?
These are the questions that'll help you learn more about yourself, and by extension, whether or not this is even the path for you to begin with.
What About Folk Catholicism and Christian Veiling?
"Hi! I have a few questions if that’s okay! I was wondering if you had any resources recommendations on folk Catholicism? I was also wondering if you use the pentacle/pentagram at all in your practice, and whether or not you participate in Christian veiling and why? Thank you!" —Maya
Hey, Maya!
When it comes to folk Catholicism, the best resources you can get have to do with specific cultures, because each culture that's taken up Catholicism will have radically different ways of going about it depending on their pre-Christian cultural traditions and superstitions. For instance, think about how different the folk Catholicism of the Philippines, Mexico, and Poland must look. They're completely different cultures on completely different sides of the world!
To that end, check out books that have to do with those specific cultures of interest. Mary Grace Fahrun's Italian Folk Magic and Zuza Zak's Slavic Kitchen Alchemy are some good examples of Italian and Polish lore, but of course there's plenty all over. And don't think you only have to look at books, either! The Folklore journal has tons of interesting articles, which can be found in databases like JSTOR (for instance: this article about rice rituals in the Philippines)!
Can I Venerate Mother Mary Alone?
"What do you think of veneration towards the Virgin Mary and her alone? I don't think Christianity is really for me however Mother Mary has been my comfort spiritual guide[?] and i would love to continue to pray to her. Would that be inappropriate or insulting to God?" —Anonymous
Hey!
This is actually a much more common thing than you think. While Mama Mary does want people to talk to her Son and build a relationship with Him, she's also been around the block quite a few times and knows what people need and how to help them—no matter their spiritual tradition, background, etc. In fact, Mary is often syncretized to many goddesses across cultures (like Quan Yin, Pachamama, Athena, Isis, etc.) since these people recognize the great feminine divinity within her and want to hold onto their own ideas of Divine Mother with a woman's image.
There are many folk Catholics as well who are less comfortable with God than they are Mary and choose Mary as their gateway to that greater Godhead/their guide for understanding that fuller sense of Divinity. Keep in mind she'll always want you to build up the courage to face the broad and impossible concept of God, but she'll always be there for people in need, so if you want to pray to her, by all means go for it.
How Do You Embrace Unverified Personal Gnosis (UPG)?
"How do you personally process theological UPG, and balance trusting yourself but also remaining grounded? For example, you mention that in your practice Lucifer is Samael. For a lot of the world Lucifer is Satan, and we can throw that out with good reason, but for many Lucifer is his own entity, and I'm sure for others he's another named entity too. What kind of techniques or ideas help you embrace these ideas as truth?" —Anonymous
Ah, this is a great question! All too often, people seem to find their UPG about something and run with it, even against all sense, reason, or lore surrounding something. And it's true that sometimes, the lore we have is tainted by human understanding (in fact, that's why I began the series that created Where the Gods Left Off to begin with: to find the truth about the myths of all these gods), but there's a trick to working this stuff out. In fact, within WTGLO, I even fell into a trap that's very easy for people to fall into when constructing UPG, and that's confirmation bias.
In my interview with Hades, I had an answer that no, the relationship between him and Persephone wasn't the cute Death and the Maiden trope I'd always hoped it would be, and I squinted and tilted my head until that answer looked like what I wanted it to say. It was only after I'd grown and looked back that I realized how bad I misinterpreted Hades' words. That's bad practice, and frankly. I don't think anyone should be trying to create UPG around deities or spirits unless they're self aware enough to recognize when they're doing that and to get out of their own (and the spirits') way.
But knowing this now, the biggest thing I do to verify and incorporate UPG is to back it up against established lore. People claim to be in romantic godspousals with angels, and I reject that out of hand no matter what people's UPG around angels and relationships is... because the Book of Enoch detailed exactly what consequences befell the first angels that tried that. And the idea that Lucifer fell because he wanted to be God and take over heaven actually has some truth to it... but there's more to the story than that, and I've had that other side confirmed by angels and demons alike multiple times with the same messages. This is also why I use tools like tarot: even if I misinterpret things, the cards are what the cards are, and they mean what they mean; it's easy for me to look back and concretely see where I might've misinterpreted.
It's by talking to each of these names, entities, etc. individually that I can tease apart more and more of a larger story, and it's with source material like the Bible or other myths that I can compare these ideas against, and with all these threads woven into one tapestry that I can see a balanced picture between Canon and UPG.
Are There Any Dangerous or Harmful Spirits Out There?
"My question is: are there beings in your opinion that want to just frighten us, or is that just something hard to get rid of in mainstream Christian thinking?" —Patzy
Hey, Patzy!
Oh, yeah. There are all kinds of nasty spirits around. In fact, what I've found in my time with the Infernal Divine is that, in fact, the beings we call demons (like King Paimon or Prince Stolas, or Baal, or Lucifer) aren't really demons. That's why we call them the Infernal Divine. They're typically jinni, old gods, or fallen angels, but they're fundamentally different than the many legions of actual demons they command (or, as some have told me, corral): these demons are more like the base intelligences surrounding all this world's darkness. It's in their nature to poke and prod and test our weak spots, just as it's in a minor angel's nature to support our goodness, and in a minor fae's nature to not really care about our wellbeing either way (true neutral).
Outside the world of angels and demons though, are those fae, and many other spirits of forests, swamps, etc. that are essentially like wild animals. While we can't blame a wolf for wanting to snatch up our chickens, goats, or even an unattended toddler (because they need to eat, too), we understand that they can be dangerous, scary, and unpredictable as much as they are majestic and cool, and we try to keep out of their way or deal with them if they become too much of a danger to us. The world is full of spirits that happen to prey on us as much as protect us or just not mind us, and it's important to be on guard with creatures and spirits we don't know as a result. You never know when something is just pretending to get close to take a big bite out of your energy or feed on your fear.
So be careful, be wary, and always be safe!
Ask Your Questions!
Remember, all your questions can go to this Google form, so don't hesitate to reach out! I'm looking forward to seeing what questions people have in the future, and I hope this has been a helpful read! Thank you everyone who participated!
—Sara
Sara Raztresen is a Slovene-American writer, screenwriter, and Christian witch. Her fantasy works draw heavily on the wisdom she gathers from her own personal and spiritual experience, and her s
piritual practice borrows much of the whimsy and wonder that modern society has relegated to fairy-and-folktale. Her goal is to help people regain their spiritual footing and discover
God through a new (yet old) lens of mysticism.
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