I think it's because a lot of people have misconceptions about paganism and refuse to learn anything about it to change their perception of it.

Fear of the unknown

99% of the world are in a herd mentality. They go along with what the crowd says is right not what they actually think. I've been looking into some paganism and occult knowledge, I have told no one except my girlfriend who has been understanding but I've noticed I get looks at the bookstore when I browse. My thinking is what difference does what you or they believe make to me. I'm a truth seeker if they have a truth I want to hear it, enlighten me. Unfortunatly this is a small minority of society that think with my mental pattern. I find myself harboring my opinions and knowledge to myself at times. While people like ourselves have the Constituional right to do, say or presue what we like there are those that will try to get in our way in one form or the other... I have been uphauled by the amount of hipocracy that is in the world on all levels. Sociaty can be brutal. They will condem someone for comdeming themselves then turn around and condem others by the same method with no regard to what they are doing to the individual... In short, right or wrong people believe evil is what they don't like and good is what they do like.

It scares stupid, narrow minded people that refuse to learn and expand their knowledge. They were taught that from when they children, and they still act like frightened little kids.

Most people don't know enough about Paganism or witchcraft. They only know what they see in movies, hear other people say, etc. Paganism is traditionally associated with satan worship, witchcraft reminds us of pointy black hat wearing hags stirring potions in a cauldron. Unless we research these things, our misconceptions stay with us, and we want to get away from anyone involved with them, lest they cast an evil spell on us. Those of us lucky enough to have someone take the time to show us what it is really about know it has nothing to do with satan worship or evil.

It gets up Christian's noses because it is expressly forbidden in the bible.(Deut.18:9-13 in the Christian Bible) We are even told not to suffer a witch to live. Of coarse today we don't kill witches but we have in the past. Jesus taught us to love one another and to win men's souls by our love of God and each other. I believe that witchcraft and paganism is Satan worship. Any worship not directed to the God of the bible is Satan worship even no worship or atheism. I don't think that you are a worse sinner because you practice these things..(Gal.5:19-21) All people are sinners and fall short of the mark.(Rom.3:23) That is why Jesus came and died for us. ALL of us.(Jn. 3:16) I would never consider you as less worthy than me of that sacrafice. We are the same you and me and I hope and pray that one day you will accept that sacrifice for yourself. But, that is your decision to make and I cannot force it on you. I can only show you His love through how I live my life and answer any questions and offer any help I can give.

Because when you don't believe what they do it makes them uncomfortable. They don't like the loss of power that not knowing something does to them. And most people don't know about this so they feel very uneasy around us. What's really sad is that for the most part they let bigotry and ignorance rule their lives out of fear that they might be wrong. And people hate being wrong.Don't let it bother you. Belief is nothing without the Heart.

Some are more selfish in their beliefs than others. You have a sovreign right to "believe what thou wilst", as do they, do not allow anothers perceptions to cloud your own rightousness.

the nature of man

Merry Meet to you. I'm a witch and proud to be one. If you are one or wish to be one it shouldn't matter what others think about you. People hear the word Witches and they see a horrible person the the Television has been given to us tuns us out to be something like a old ugly hag, torn black clothing and will cast a bad spell. This is not so, once people really look into our life and history, I think they will see something different.

I've found that there's a generation of people that go round attaching themselves to particular social groups, assimilating whatever beliefs/customs they have, then shoving it down other people's throats in the attempt to get a reponse. They even do it to the people they're trying to immitate, and act as if they're somewhat better than them. When people think of witchcraft/paganism. They are thinking of the people mentioned above, and they'll apply that prejudice to you.

The welsh have strong pagan rituals including the crowning of the bard which are still going today and are great community events. I've been dancing in the solstice many times although I consider myself to be closer to god loving spiritualism than not. However if yougive me a tree and I'll hug it for you because I don't think we keep a strong enough connection with the earth in our lives and I believe a lot of paganism is about that connection. I think it's definitely fear of the unknown and/or bias against a religion or belief other than our own.

I can tell you that I do not support pagan beliefs whatsoever but if you were to sit and talk with me, I would never insult you or make you feel as though I were anything but respectful of your beliefs. I support freedom of religion. I think some people like to control everything and what they do not support.. they want to squash. Some people want THEIR freedom but do not want to allow others, theirs.

Alot of religious people (like me) hold onto two ideas: 1) "It is of the devil"... Wiccans who I have read about & talked too donot believe in the devil or in demons however many talk about spirits & such.... 2) Others COULD hold onto the ideas of bloodletting & other types of bizzare rituals during the 'Ancient' days... Peoples like Celts, Druids & other types of European witches used a variety of objects to peform spells & such... HOWEVER I have yet to see any REAL REPORTS from archeology of human sacrifice & such to soldify any disagreements about the 'craft'

People think it's devil worship, it's not. They just don't understand it's philosphy as being a nature religion. It's all about you controlling your own life and destiny. There is nothing evil about it, only some of the people using it, use it for the wrong reasons. More people use magick and don't even realize they are doing so. Luck charms, 4 leaf clover, rabbit's foot,etc. They come from magick. There is nothing wrong with it, just your purpose and how you use it makes it good or evil.

i think its because they're scared, scared of change,and scared of truth. i have done research and jesus worshiped with the druids, but the bible says that druidism(now known and formed into pagan/wiccan religions)is evil. well the roman catholics(nothing toward catholics) made all saints day, the day after halloween. haha well it was set in like may but when the roman catholics were with the druids they changed the day to get more attention so to speak for their religion, because they didnt believe the druids were right in their thinking. and they tried to convert the druids to christianity. thus the shunning of that type of religion began. (this is known through my research, though there are little if any known documents from the druids themselves, their enemies did write alot of violent things about them, such as human sacrafices which is probably also why that religion in shunned) its all accusations gone ari.

Ignorance (not stupidity, but rather a lack of knowledge) and fear. Witchcraft/paganism is totally misunderstood by hoards or people who are quick to condemn but slow to gain knowledge of what they are condemning. If I can sit down with someone and explain exactly what I believe, 9 times out of 10 they come away from the conversation with a better understanding, and as a result, acceptance. I do not shove my religion down anyone's throat (And expect the same in turn), but will gladly answer any questions any one may have. The biggest misconception is the christianized version of witches. We do not believe in, and hence do not worship, satan. We do not fly around, we do not have warts, we are not immortal. We are people who believe in what I categorize as earth-based religions that have been around thousands of years prior to any thought of Christiandom.

From what I have been able to learn so far: Wicca is a Neopagan religion, which started in the late 1940s. However, its symbols, days of celebration, beliefs and deities go back to about 800 B.C.E. and the beginnings of ancient Celtic society. Some Wiccan are + Monotheistic, recognizing a single supreme being, "The All" or "The One" + Duotheistic, worshiping a female Goddess and a male God, "the Lady and Lord" + Polytheistic, recognizing many ancient Gods and Goddesses, like Pan, Diana, Dionysius, Fergus, etc. + Atheistic, viewing the Goddesses and Gods as symbols, not living entities Some Wiccans consider Wicca and Witchcraft to be the same thing. Others think that Wicca (a religion) and Witchcraft (the practice of magic by anyone) are different things. Most Wiccans practice magic. However, some concentrate only on the spirituality of the Wiccan religion and do not practice magic. In Christianity, Satan is a fallen angel, the devil. Wiccans recognize neither Christ nor Satan and are therefore not Satanists. Wiccan behavior is governed by the Wiccan Rede which permits Wiccans to engage in carefully considered actions (including magic), as long as they harm nobody, including themselves. Therefore, they claim that they are limited to non-manipulative, consensual, positive magic. Other pagan groups that use witchcraft do not follow this rule. http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_intr.htm http://www.holysmoke.org/wicca/satvnp.htm http://www.witchway.net/ Monotheistic religions like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam disagree with the Wiccan view of God and magic. Christians believe that all supernatural power (including magic) either comes from God or Satan. God did not intend humans to wield this power. We request (pray) God to do some good thing like a miracle but we acknowledge God’s will first, “Thy will be done.” Using supernatural power puts us in contention with the will of God and even in the position of being God. Catholic Church teaches: All practices of magic or sorcery, by which one attempts to tame occult powers, so as to place them at one's service ... - even if this were for the sake of restoring their health - are gravely contrary to the virtue of religion. For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, section 2117: http://www.nccbuscc.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt1.htm With love in Christ.

I was brought up as a Roman Catholic and suffered the institutionalised guilt foisted on it's followers until age 8 when I realised the priests were telling a few porkies and were not 'God's' emissaries on earth. I have since looked at many religions in varying depth and must say that paganism and other earth based religions are generally far more tolerant, caring, hormoniuous with nature and less confrontational than almost all the formalised religions I have come across. I believe that for one religion to attack another religion is unjust and unnecessary. Go with your heart, hold your head up and do not let negative people or attitudes affect your way. I personally am studying to be a bard in the celtic tradition much to the puzzlement of my mostly catholic family.

People hold their religious beliefs very close to their hearts. I do mine and I am sure you do yours. The definition of religion that I like best is "ultimate concern." If your beliefs are what are of ultimate importance to you, it becomes difficult to show tolerance for beliefs that tend to contradict your own. I believe what I believe strongly, but with maturity, comes a tolerance for the beliefs of other people. This does not mean that I think it does not matter what a person believes. For instance, I could not believe what I believe and accept the tenants Paganism or Witchcraft. That is just a conclusion from logic and an understanding of both belief systems. Rather, it means that it does not effect the validity of my belief or threaten my faith to have someone believe differently. It also means that I can have a faithful and consistent witness to my faith, uphold it, share it, and practice it without everyone else agreeing or without having the need to convince everyone that I am right. What you believe is what you believe. We don't have to synchronize our beliefs in order to be friends. f you are trying to balance two systems, however, I might suggest that you will have to water one of them down to be consistent. My faith teaches that each person must make their own choices and relate or not relate to God out of free will and personally. That means that I can accept you where you are in your faith journey without assuming responsibility for your journey. We can be friends. We can even share some common ideas and values. I can admire you as a person of integrity and consistency. And, I can be honest with you about my own views of my beliefs, and if you ask, yours. That takes some time a maturity in faith and not everyone is there. People of any and all belief systems can feel threatened by lack of unanimity or by opposing views. None of us start out strong in our faith. I speak mostly for Christians here since I am one. So, you'd have a hard time getting "up my nose." <smile> But others might feel threatened. Some may be genuinely concerned for you, but unable to show it without seeming offensive or judgmental. Please don't confuse challenges to your beliefs with what we are talking about. There will also be people who accept you as you are and assume you are mature enough to handle objections and dialog about what you believe. They should also be respectful enough to back off when you ask them to. I hope this helps you understand the folks who are making you uncomfortable. They are human just like you and have all the emotions and fears that you have. i bet they even like ice cream and good music.

People just don't bother opening their eyes to get to know what it's really about. They think movies, books, stories portray reality a lot more than it actually does. You're Pagan-you must be of Satan. Besides the point that there is no Satan in Pagan beliefs...or in mine, anyways. Anything that isn't Christian isn't normal, nor is it moral. You must be healed. These beliefs, those of Paganism/witchcraft are normal to me as well. I'm a practicing Wiccan, and do understand how people greatly misunderstand it. You say Witchcraft, they back off and ask if you can turn someone into a frog or fly on a broomstick. Energy work is very, very real, and they just don't understand it. Until they bother to open their eyes and let themselves see or feel it, they just won't know.

FU-K other people. You aren't telling them what to do... I normally don't let this get to me, but this is so screwed up. Don't let other's make you feel bad, they are cattle if they try. If you aren't brainwashed to their beliefs, you get ridiculed.. You have the same rights they have.

If your choice of belief makes you comfortable, ignore what others believe. Most are offended by what they do not understand, and it's not that they're born with this hatred of any pagan belif - it's usually passed down to them from their parents. I have read into many different religions to find that with almost all of them, there is something I agree to in their teachings. So long as you are happy, don't bother explaining it to anyone else. The only thing I take offense to, is the children that play around with witchcraft/paganism as though it is a game to be played and to get people talking. It's that sort of thing that gets most people thinking that it's not a belief, just a game.

People have a tendency by their nature to fear the unknown. Many people are brought up thinking that their particular way of thinking is the ONLY WAY. This causes them to reject anything that would contradict that, as well as sometimes violently defending or seeking to spread their belief system.

They watch too much TV, or they think 'their' god is the ONLY god.

I'm a Pagan, and to be honest, most other Pagans get right on my tits too, especially the ones who belong to "Groups" that meet regularly. They all seem to make the same mistakes as every other Religion, and get tied down in Dogma and Ritual. Once you start getting bogged down with stuff like that, and writing "Religious" or "Holy" texts down in Books, Then you may as well just skip the Litany, chuck the Hymn-book out the window,, and go straight for the Kool Aid. (Spiritually speaking, that is.) The worst of the lot, in my opinion, are Wiccans. With a Tradition that goes all the back to the early years of the 20th Century, it's just an offshoot of Blavatsky's, frankly laughable Theosophists, Spiritualists, and Table Rappers. Their "Book of Shadows" was hastily Cobbled together by Gerald Gardiner, who obviously saw a gap in the Market, and filled it with .......bloody Wiccans! (Damp, young emotionally needy, but socially awkward Women, who dance Naked round Bonfires once a month, wishing they had Boyfriends) All Yin, and no Yang. Wicca's just lots of quasi-mystical Hippy dippy nonsense, sprinkled with Fairy tales, Nursery Rhymes, and the deranged garbled "Oral Tradition" of half mad Old Crones, then draped around the bog-standard "Cults for beginners" model, that all today's major Religions used to get them started. And putting a Religion between a Man, and his Gods, is the laziest form of Atheism. These Worship based systems are mostly designed by People, whose interests lie in maintaining a healthy (Priesthood shaped) barrier between Men and their Gods, in order to obtain Political power, and Riches.