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Crescent Shadows
On-Line Newsletter of the Hudson Valley Pagan
Network, Inc. |
The Shadowwolf Tradition
I was raised a Catholic and my wife a Baptist. The Shadowwolf tradition of witchcraft
was created out of frustration and a lack of fulfillment of our two faiths. For
many years we read everything we could get our hands on and talked with acquaintances
that practiced non-mainstream religions. None of the traditions we read about
seemed to fit our particulars needs, many of the traditions, however, had several
things to offer. We kept searching. One day we decided to s..t or get off the
pot. The Shadowwolf tradition of eclectic witchcraft was born. We picked a night
and held our self-dedication ritual. Our next ritual was a consecration of our
working tools and our first Full moon ritual followed this.
Moonwolf prefers simple ritual and I prefer very choreographed ritual (remnants
of my Catholic upbringing, I guess). So our rituals vary. Our tradition takes
its form from a mix of Seaux-Wicca, Pennsylvania Dutch, American Indian and
most recently Asatru and warrior beliefs.
Let me explain further, our ritual structure is Seaux-Wicca, our rituals are
created using ideas from Scott Cunningham, Ed Fitch, Ray Buckland, Silver Ravenwolf
and many others, as well as American Indian myths and beliefs. Our rules, values,
and principles come from Asatru and warrior beliefs.
Our trad rituals are structured. Sacred space is created, a Circle cast, Goddess
and God invoked, Ritual performed according to season and need, Cakes and Ale
is next followed by a closing rite. The Goddess and God invoked are those needed
for the work at hand, sometimes a generic Radiant Lady and Horned Lord is used.
The main body of the ritual is very eclectic and specific to need or the Sabbat
being celebrated. Candle magick is the favorite form of magick of our trad in
its current form.
The principles we follow as a trad are very much Asatru in nature. These are
as follows:
- We believe in the Gods and Goddesses of the Old World. These Goddesses
and Gods care for mankind, those who worship them, and the world in general.
- We believe in living an honorable life. Our guide is the nine virtues:
Courage, Truth, Honor, Fidelity, Discipline, Hospitality, Industriousness,
Self-reliance, and Perseverance.
- We believe in our Myths, while they may not be literal translations, they
are valid in a religious sense.
- We believe in right and wrong and stand by our Gods and Goddesses against
all who do evil.
- ? We believe that our religion is ever changing. We will however, always
honor the memory and traditions of those who came before us.
- We will always strive for excellence.
- We believe that our path is not the path for everyone nor the only valid
path.
- We believe that everyone can seek their own truth with our Goddess and
God. This relationship is not dependent upon another.
- We believe in the right of others to worship theirs Gods as they see fit.
We will leave others to their own faith.
- We believe in the future of the Shadowwolf tradition as a legitimate religion.
- We believe in the Wiccan Rede: “If harm ye none do what ye will” this includes
ourselves.
- We believe in the Law of three: What we send out will return 3 times, good
and bad.
- To these beliefs and to the Goddess and God we pledge ourselves body and
soul.
There is no degree structure in Shadowwolf as we consider all as members of clergy.
There are beginners and experienced folks. The Priest and Priestess for any given
ritual may vary so that everyone learns.
I hope that this brief description of the Shadowwolf Trad structure, beliefs
and principles gives some insight to all of you have wondered if you could start
your own tradition. The answer is you can! You have to work at it, build it,
and mold it into the shape that suits your needs but it is possible. Anyone
with questions can contact me.
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Shadowbird
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February 14, 2002
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