Now and again students will ask why they’re expected to learn about Wicca’s history (all the ‘boring stuff’) before they get into the ‘juicy stuff’ like magick, circle casting and working with the elements and so on. Good question! Why don’t I just jump straight in and teach some ‘juicy stuff’, after all that’s what Wicca is isn’t it?  

I’ve learnt over the years to curb my own teacher’s frustration when I get this question and I usually come back with something like, “If you were learning how to drive a car, would you expect a good instructor to give you the keys, let you get in the car and drive straight down the first available freeway? Or would you expect them to sit with you in the car, explain the pedals, the seatbelt, the road rules, spend time getting you used to the feel of the clutch, help you manipulate the steering, the indicators, the pedals and watch the traffic and pedestrians all around you simultaneously, BEFORE they let you lose on the freeway?”  

When anyone is teaching a skill set or knowledge set, particularly one as strong as a religion, a magickal system, a new life choice or a self improvement program (and isn’t Wicca all of those things?) they have a responsibility to ensure that they teach not just the ‘how’ but also the ‘why’. Wicca isn’t just a bunch of actions that you do, it’s also a life choice you make and a way to feel about life. You don’t just ‘do’ that, you ‘are’ that. So it makes sense that a good teacher will spend the time to lay the appropriate foundations first so that the student’s ‘doing’ is based on a sound understand of why they’re ‘doing’. 

With that sound understanding, the student is also more able to modify the ‘doing’ into something that makes more sense to them. As an example, if I asked you to modify your lawn mower so that it didn’t just cut grass but now also cut hedges, you probably wouldn’t be able to modify it without having an understanding about how lawn mowers worked. So getting clear teaching on foundations helps the student modify and make more informed personal choices later on. 

One other point that’s worth noting is that teachers feel much more inclined to teach when the student genuinely wants to learn. Bare with me here because this is important. Most teachers do what they do because they love their task and teaching Wicca is no different. It is one of the joys of my life to offer information and skill development to people willing to give it a go. On top of that, Wicca is a religion whereby teachers generally provide that teaching free of charge (or they might ask for enough just to cover expenses but that’s about it) and Oak and Mistletoe is no exception here. All our teaching is free and the costs are born by me because that’s what I ethically believe is important and it’s my contribution to the religion and to the students. But, and here comes the clincher, learning something as powerful as a religion, as a magickal system, as a life choice and a self improvement program takes dedication, tenacity and dogged determination. Achieving all that doesn’t come in 2 weeks, or 3 months or even in 8 months. It comes after years of practice, years of dedication, years of trial and error and loyalty and a love of deity and nature. For a teacher to give that level and length of service to a student, free of charge and with absolute devotion they need to know the student is serious. So getting the ‘boring stuff’, all the foundations and the ‘why’ sorted first helps the ‘how’ fall into place much more easily for the student over all those years. Like the driving instructor, a good Wiccan teacher probably wouldn’t let you lose on the spiritual freeway before giving you some basic instruction first. Wiccan teachers have a responsibility to look after your religious safety and well being before they encourage you to take a spiritual joyride.

Smiles and blessings, Amethyst