European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 31, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse Witches keep a Low profile by Kevin Dougherty Kaiserslautern Bureau witches evoke a Host of wicked images Black hats Black cats Green faces Long hooked noses flying Broomsticks and boiling cauldrons. For modern Day witches the Challenge is to separate fact from fiction reason from hysteria. That s not easy. If i had a Broom that could Fly do you think i would have a car asked air Force staff sgt. Nathan Crisp. Crisp is one of the founders of the Pagan support group an umbrella organization based in Kaiserslautern Germany. The group is primarily composed of Active duty . Service members who practice wicca or some other nature oriented religion such As shamanism which was practice by native americans. The word Pagan comes from the latin Paganus which Means country Dweller. Because they were isolated from cities pagans were the last to be touched by christianity. As the Church worked to broaden its influence pagans came to be scorned As unsophisticated uneducated and worshippers of false gods. The christians were determined to stamp out anything that was not of the Church said senior airman Lorie Johnson an electronics technician at Raf Ben Waters England and a practising wiccan. Like pagans the term witches took on negative connotations that remain to this Day. The word Witch derives from the old English wicca which applies to magic and sorcery which were socially acceptable. The term wicca Means Craft of the wicca is rooted in a system of Pagan beliefs rituals and practices that were derived in part from pre Christian celtic and Welsh traditions. Most adherents believe in some form of reincarnation. Perhaps the most difficult myth to dispel is the belief that witches Are inherently evil an agent of the Devil. While they acknowledge the existence of groups that worship an entity commonly known As satan witches do not even accept the Christian concept. It s not always easy for the casual observer to distinguish Between a Witch and a satanist Johnson said. Witches Wear around their necks a pentacle a five pointed Star with a single Point up. Satanist often Wear a Cross or pentacle upside Down and tend to dress More elaborately. You have to watch out with the satanist Johnson said because some Call themselves animal sacrifices Are not part of the wiccan religion though some sects engage in such practices Crisp said. Established churches and their followers centuries ago sought to discredit witches and their medicinal practices by painting them As repulsive creatures old hags with Long noses and Black hair wearing Cone shaped hats and standing Over a boiling caldron. In the Middle Ages Cone shaped hats went out of Vogue in cities but the change in style had not reached the country dwellers who were More concerned about surviving than about fads. The Witch s brew boiling in cauldrons consisted of herbs that were used for medicinal purposes. Eye of Newt Goat Tongue and Bat wings for example were code names for everyday herbs that witches used to protect their medicinal recipes and thus their influence from copycats. Through the Ages the stereotype was not openly rejected by the witches because it served As a cover for those who preferred the Pagan Way to christianity or other established religions. The real witches knew better than to get caught Johnson said. Witches began to emerge from the Broom closet when the last of the British witchcraft Laws were repealed in 1951. Wiccan rituals and ceremonies Are often held whenever there is a full or new Moon. They also observe Pagan holidays that Are tuned to seasonal changes such As the Spring and autumn Equinox and the Winter and summer solstice. Other holidays Are candlemas Day feb. 2, which is also groundhog Day Beltane april 30, which is the ancient celtic May Day that commemorates Fertility and planting Lammas Day aug. 1, which is a Harvest festival and Sambain or halloween oct. 31, which Marks the third and final Harvest and the beginning of the celtic new year. Rituals spells and potions Are part of the repertoire but they Are suppose to be used to heal and protect and not to cast harm. A Witch that casts a spell to inflict pain or to impose their will on another person is said to feel the Wrath of the gods and goddesses threefold. Air Force staff sgt Nathan Crisp of Kaiserslautern Germany says frequent harassment is part of being a Witch. We cast spells but we Don t Charm your Girlfriend into Loving us said army spec. Michael Wilson a ceremonial magician. Wilson is leaving the army partly because of what he perceives As discrimination. He says he has been harassed taunted and baited into fights by soldiers who object to his beliefs. In one instance he was pelted by unopened cans of Beer in his dormitory stairwell. I put up with this because this path for me is right he said. Others have fared better. The trick they say is to keep a Low profile which is easier since witches do not proselytize. Said Johnson i m More known out Here As a Star trek fan than As a military witches seek to break stereotypes l by Kevin Dougherty Kaiserslautern Bureau i Ike other service members air Force staff sgt. Nathan Crisp adorns his study with plaques and framed certificates that attest to his service and Devotion to the military. But the study also doubles As Crisp s prayer room where he practices wicca a nature oriented religion whose followers Are commonly known As witches. A laugh and a joke disguise the frustration he feels Over the stereotypes people have about witches. Sure i like kids he says not to eat but to play Crisp is among a group of witches stationed in and around Kaiserslautern Germany who recently founded the Pagan support group. Though the group is predominately wiccan it embraces other religions and movements such As shamanism astrology and new age. The group with a mailing list of about 50 people meets once a month at the Vogel Weh recreation Center. The biggest hurdle is the ignorance of the people about who we Are what we John Bohm a stand for said army staff sgt. Marlene at an initiation class for new witches Trlla and Chris Dukes left examine Tarot Ramos a personnel management specialist cards while Kathy and Thomas ban Hook look on. Who follows santeria a latin american religion closely aligned with wicca. They really think we Are children of the the number of witches serving in the . Military is difficult to Nail Down because so Many choose not to reveal the fact say those who have gone Public. According to an army handbook for chaplains which recognizes wicca there Are Between 10,000 and 100,000 witches in the United states. Crisp says that estimate is Low. Crisp recently asked air Force col. Robert s. Leeds the installation staff chaplain at Ramstein a Germany for permission to use the Chapel Annex for worship services. Leeds has raised the Issue with the command chaplain for . Air forces in Europe and with the air Force s chief chaplain in Washington said staff sgt. Doyle Tillman a base spokesman. Leeds declined to comment on the Issue until the matter is resolved. The group also has asked the army for space. Chaplain maj Daniel w. Taylor said the request is under review. We do that with any group that asks for support Taylor said. Predictably not everyone endorses the idea of allowing a to use a military facility. I Don t think my mar morale recreation and welfare funds should go to fund witchcraft indirectly or directly said Melody Hull whose husband Tim is stationed at Ramstein. I Don t think that is right at Hull who has written letters to Kaiserslautern military Community officials maintains the group will have a detrimental affect on teen agers and children. And she believes it is inappropriate to allow the group to use a Chapel facility. A Church is not a place for a witchcraft coven Hull said. A Church is for god and Jesus it is air Force policy however to encourage base commanders to make rooms such As educational facilities available for religious groups to meet the office of the Secretary of the air Force said in a statement. The office cited an air Force regulation stating that commanders Are expected to continue to respect the religious beliefs and practices of air Force members in a manner that is consistent and fair to the army Navy and Marine corps also. Recognize wicca which is in keeping with the policy of the department of defense to accommodate religious practices except when precluded by military necessity. In addition the internal Revenue service recognizes wiccan As a religion worthy of tax exempt status. All we ask for is a Little tolerance and respect for our Faith said army specialist Ivy Nelson a wicca believer assigned to the 66th Maint in Kaiserslautern. Nelson says most people she works with have shown respect. In fact Many Are curious. When the questions become too numerous for Nelson she asks them to read a synopsis of wiccan beliefs and principles that is taped to her desk. Wiccan espouse a belief similar to the Golden Rule an be harm none do Asye Many including Crisp rely on the King James version of the Bible for guidance and support for their beliefs. Scriptures can be twisted Hull argued. Unlike christianity wiccan followers say their religion does not maintain that its Way is the Only Way. And contrary to popular belief wiccan do not believe or worship satan. Think of me As Glenda the Good Witch Nelson said in reference to the the wizard Foz. I can t Hurt anything. added Ramos realize that we Don t Fly on brooms. We Don t kill babies. We Don t do any of that though he says he has been the target of discrimination and harassment Crisp is unwavering in his support of the military. I m pro air Force said Crisp who is a safety officer for the Kaiserslautern military Community. The air Force is is John Bohmer Witch paraphernalia includes ceremonial knives a magic Mirror Center front Rune stones wands scepter and a ceremonial Star right front. The tenets of wicca following Are some of the principles of wiccan beliefs As adopted by the american Council of witches we practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the Moon and the seasonal quarters and Cross quarters. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility toward our environment. We seek to live in Harmony with nature in ecological balance offering fulfilment to life and consciousness with an evolutionary concept. We acknowledge a depth of Power far greater than is apparent to the average person. Because it is far greater than Ordinary it is sometimes called supernatural but we see it As lying within that which is naturally potential to All. We conceive the creative pow Epin the universe As manifesting through polarity As masculine and feminine and that this same creative Power lives in All people and functions through the interaction of the Sis John Lohn military witches congregate in Kaiserslautern. From left Chris Dukes Michael Wilson Tracy Dull Chan Thomas ban Hook and Kathy ban Hook. Masculine and feminine. We value neither above the other knowing each to be supportive of the other. We value sex As pleasure As the Symbol and embodiment of life and As one of the sources of energies used in magical practice and religious worship. We recognize both outer worlds and inner or psychological worlds sometimes known As the spiritual world the collective unconscious the inner planes Etc. And we see the interaction of these two dimensions As the basis for paranormal Phenomena and magical exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other seeing both As necessary for our fulfilment. We do not recognize any authoritarian Hierarchy but do Honor those who teach respect those who share thei greater knowledge and Wisdom and acknowledge those who have courageously Given of themselves in leadership. We see religion Magick and Wisdom in living As being United in the Way one views the world and lives within it a world View and philosophy of life which we identify As witchcraft the wiccan Way. Our Only animosity toward christianity or toward any other religion or philosophy of life is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be the Only Way and have sought to deny Freedom to others and to suppress other ways of religious practice and belief. As american witches we Are not threatened by debates on the history of Tho Craft the origins of various terms the legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We Are concerned with the present and our future. We do not accept the concept of absolute evil nor do we worship any entity know As satan or the Devil As defined by the Christian tradition. We do not seek Power through the suffering of others nor do we accept the concept that personal Benefit can be Only derived by denial to another. Page 14 the stars and stripes saturday october31,. 1992 the stars and stripes Page 15
