Orthodoxy: Correct Faith, the right doctrine (Greek).
Orthopraxy: Correct Practise, the right action (Greek).
In Western society, people are
generally only used to one viewpoint about religion: that of
Christianity. Christianity in all its flavours is an orthopraxic and orthodox faith.
This means that the religion itself is defined in every aspect. There
are rules for how to worship, but there are also rules for how to
think and feel about the way a person worships. As a result,
discussions about personal interpretations of ritual and viewpoints
such as the form or meaning of the Divine are discouraged apart from
the upper echelons of the Church. The level responsibility that a
person has within the creation is usually clearly set out, as is the
reason for our existence on this planet. It makes for a relatively
dualistic attitude: there is a right and a wrong in life for most
situations, with very little room for a grey area.
Wicca is different. Wicca is an exclusively ortopraxic belief system. The way in which we work, in which we
practise
is defined, but the personal interpretation of the individual
worshipper is undefined. The way in which the rituals are structured
is written down, but what the rituals mean is not defined by anyone.
It is one of the reasons why the book that holds the rituals is
called the Book of Shadows: It holds the basis of the rituals, the
text but it is impossible to write down the actual ritual because it
is the personal experience that matters. Personal experience will
obviously vary from person to person, so it simply cannot be written
down.
This viewpoint was exactly the reason why I felt at home in the Craft
from the beginning. I have a Jewish background, and Judaism is
largely orthopraxic. The way things are done during service in the
synagogue are written down, but vary greatly between communities and
local traditions are freely incorporated. In Judaism questioning the
Bible and the Tzadikim (wise men) is almost seen as a duty rather than as something that is wrong or inconvenient. The concept of Lernen
(learning), where Jews sit down and discuss and argue the sacred
texts, is an important foundation of our culture. And nobody in
synagogue will ever ask what your viewpoint on the Divine is, as it
is completely your own responsibility. There are actually many devout
Jews who are atheist, but practise because it gives them a connection
with their ancestors and culture. It is also the reason why I have no
problem combining Jewish practise with a Wiccan belief system, though
I am strict about not practising the two at the same time.
It is often a very big switch for people to make when they first come
into contact with Wicca. I have spent many nights sitting up with
frustrated students because I simply could not give them the 'right'
answer. “But how do the Eight Festivals exactly
relate to the Wheel of Life, because all these books give different
answers?” “But exactly how does the Goddess of Wicca relate
to the local Goddesses?” All these questions were met with the same reply: “Well, that depends. How do you view it?”
Sometimes the fact that there are no 'right' answers is confused with
the fact that you can do anything you like in Wicca. This is
absolutely not the case. The fact that Wicca is orthopraxic means
that there is a defined praxis, a defined way of working. For
example, if a different ritual is used during initiation, the
initiation could be just as effective but simply wouldn't be an
initiation of the Wicca. Orthopraxy does not mean “anything goes” or that every time you do a ritual you need to adapt and change it.
I
help students by giving them different possible viewpoints that
others in the Craft have shared with me over the years. It isn't
possible for me to give them the one, correct answer, because there
simply isn't one. What is more, there shouldn't be one to begin with!
One of the essential abilities of a Priest or Priestess is to find
their own answers and interpretations of what the Gods and Life
expects from them. These answers need to be well thought out and
balanced – that is the main requirement. It is what we do as
Priests: we recognise what needs to be done in our own lives, when to
reach out to others and when not to, and to help others make their
own interpretations of what is needed in their lives. These
interpretations might even be diametrically opposed to their own
answers, but can be just as true and valuable as any other answer.
It can be scary to end up in a
realm where there is no right or wrong, no clear guidelines that give
safety. It is an essential – if not the most essential – part of
Wicca, and it is my opinion that before a person is considered for initiation, he or she should be completely comfortable with the concept.
Wonderful post - very clear and coherent with a firm position (one I am inclined to agree with!)
ReplyDeleteMore Jewish stuff I had NO idea of. Very cool Boann :)
ReplyDeleteIt must be handy to have the questioning almost a requirement than the old way with priests where you darent question em.