Prayers and Spells

[SilverMoon22]

Hey everyone. It's been a while,

I had a thought today. I am definitely not practicing anything specifically, I'm more on a spiritual track. I've never found a method that fits my lifestyle to try and sit with my gifts. I am heavily needed as the main source of my immediate family, so I have a lot of interruptions when I try to focus on studying. As I am writing this, I am interrupted lol. So, I just accept what comes and try to meditate as much as possible. But, I still sit around wondering why I have these small gifts and what to do with them.

I think a lot about the Bible. I am a bit biased because of the contradictions. I'm interested in how all religions and beliefs connect. There is a lot of arguments about witchcraft being "evil" or that spells are of witchcraft. So, I want your opinions.

The way I see it, spells and prayers are the same. Covens and coming together in a church are one and the same. Praying together, chanting, It's all the same. The only difference is what is acceptable to society and who they worship. I don't think I want to join the argument on whether it's the same or not, but rather, looking for insight on my thoughts.

If I am wrong, please explain. If I am on the wrong track of understanding, please enlighten me. I'm just sick of not knowing and wondering if I am crazy or delusional.

Thank you in advance.

P.S. I am nowhere near the level of knowledge that most in here have, please be patient with me

[Firebird]

Hey silver moon! I'll be back to respond later, gotta hit the sack right now.
Bb, Firebird

[Firebird]

Hi again!... one thing I am reminded of in your post is a quote by Doreen Valente, "no one can prevent worship in your mind and heart"
I would say prayers and spells are pretty similar. Presumably most X-tians do not use corresponding ingredients to enhance their prayers. Witches pull out the things that are known to work, candles is one and yes some X-tians do that too. So in that respect we are on the same spiritual track.
The church has long used fear to control their flocks, so of course they do not want power int he hands of the people. This makes for a ton of contradiction for those who are coming from any of the many Christian backgrounds. They have been told we do evil things which most of us do not. There are some wicked witches out there who will bind and try to control others, but in my mind witchcraft is a tool to deeper awareness of the self, and use their gifts for self-transformation, not to hurt others.
My particular tradition was named with "church" in the wording. Yes a coven is our church, without all the dogma and fearmongering of a traditional church. We come together to celebrate, pray, cast spells, help others, and to have fellowship. It's similar yet different.
I hope you can break away from the fear that has been ingrained in you, because that seems to be your dilemma. We are all just people trying to find their way to spirituality.
My one beef is when X-tians try to say their way is the ONLY way because it is not.
BB, Firebird

[RavenClaw]

Here's a suggestion and do what you want with it. Maybe it can help you with the contradictions you found. If you're reading the King James translation, please keep in mind that it is full of errors. For example, the word witch replaces the word poisoner.

Imo, the Bible has a limited perspective, especially if it's taken literally. When I wanted to expand my understanding of it, I thought of some things as symbols, metaphors and personifications. It's kinda like a grimoire. For example, some people use the Psalms for spells and cleansings.

I later expanded my knowledge by reading the apocrypha and pseudogrypha (not sure how to spell it) which are books that were considered to be canonized but were dropped. They can be found online.

To take it further, ancient scriptures from Egypt, Sumeria, and Babylon helped to complement the Bible. Those too can be found online.

As of today, my favourite Bible is the Kolbrin Bible which is said to have one part written by Egyptian scribes and the other part written by Celtic scribes. I have a pdf of it. In the Book of Creation, it explains why there are two creations.

[Firebird]

RavenClaw, I found this page sometime back maybe you would be interested, some of the text need translating. viewtopic.php?p=287481#p287481

[RavenClaw]

Thanks for the link.