Do I, as a Witch, have a moral and ethical obligation to inform the devout Christians in my entourage that I am a Witch?
I did my volunteer shift at the annual book show with the same person as last year, a devout, Bible-thumping, very sweet lady who really, really likes me. Last year, I hardly knew her, but I got a taste for what is acceptable to her through the books she perused. This year, I got a much clearer answer to a question that's been plaguing me--should I come out of the broom closet to her? For one thing, she has invited me into her home on several occasions and seems to be under the assumption that I am Christian. I haven't done anything to encourage or discourage this belief. She'll probably freak out to learn that I am a pagan!
We passed a kiosk today set up by a local religious publisher. She gasped suddenly and said that her esteem of them just about went down because she saw some kids books about witches (the green kind with a big warty nose who ride broomsticks)... until she realised that the witchy books belonged to another publisher.
Combine that with her opinion of Harry Potter (magic=bad) and I know now that if I come out to her as a Wiccan, Witch, and practitioner of the white arts she will have an issue with that. I doubt that she would try to make my life 'difficult' because she seems to have a good soul, but I'm sure that she will feel betrayed.
So, I ask again, do I have a moral and ethical obligation to her to let her know what I am so that she can choose whether or not to literally honour what her faith tells her she should do with me? The Rede doesn't help me much. I mean, do I cause her more harm by not telling her, or by telling her?
This is the first time that my 'unorthodox' faith weighs heavy on my heart, that I realise the damage it can cause, the sacrifices it requires. Wicca is, truly, a contrary religion, almost as much a curse as it is a blessing, in fact. For I did not choose this, and I wonder why I was chosen.
"Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."
Saturday, March 3, 2007
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