The Future: Positioning of Wicca , Part 2

Wicca is a Earth Religion. That is a position that is growing in much of the Western World. It is not Satanism, and that it centers on nature. They believe in Mother Earth. They have different ways of behaving, and they are just people.

All of the above statements is basically the party line for years, for at least 30 years, and it has been a growing steadily in the mainstream press. This talk went toe-to-toe with Christianity insistence that all non-Christian faiths are automatically Satanists. We have won this initial positioning war, and we shifted the word. We gave it new meanings for many people and a different way of looking at it. It was even accepted, with much hard work, as a term for a legal religion. In this we have moved our position as Wiccans.

By having a changed position, in this case being a nature religion with every legal right to exist, and with a developing culture, we have given ourselves breathing room and some legal protection. So we have to continue this, as we know Christians Attack Ministries will continue to try to create a negative Wiccan image.

The Barna Group did a report that basically said that only 45% of people know what Wicca is in America, and around 6% of people saw Wicca as favorable. They further added the claim that 55% of Americans do not really know what Wicca is. Of course, Barna is a Christian think tank and all their statistics must be under suspect and scrutiny, but it still shows something of America. Most people are not aware of Wicca, and when they hear of it they will go with societal default definitions. So we have only a fraction of the population, less than 3% of overall America, and possibly that much in Europe, that have a favorable image of us.

So in marketing '˜Positioning' occurs as an aggregate perception of the marketplace, as compared with similar products. It will happen whether or not a company or group's management is proactive, reactive, or passive about the on-going process of evolving a position. Most companies and organizations can positively influence the perceptions of people through enlightened actions.

In Wicca's case, Wicca is positioned as a religion, a faith, a practice, a culture, a pop fad, a Hollywood creation and increasingly so, as a moral structure. This position was and is being created by an accumulation of views of hundreds of leaders over the last five decades. It has been a mostly reactive strategy, and one that seeks to form natural consensus while allowing for fierce independence. Positioning is created from this against all the negative and mythical positions created by mainstream and Christian society.

When talking about who can state the Wiccan position in society, you discover the answer is that each person and group speaks for themselves. There is no Grand Wiccan Council anywhere that represents all Wiccans. It simply does not exist. So no one individual, group or organization can talk for and set the position for all Wiccans. In fact, no one can really claim anything more than representing of a small portion of the overall community. This makes the positioning of the Wiccan community a lot harder, but more honest overall. So any desire of changing position has to begin within the community, change the perception of the Wiccan community and then outward into the mainstream. It has to be a consensual statement, and with no anticipation that it will be accepted by any given individual or group. It makes the idea of creating a position a very difficult one.

So, in order to change a Position within the Wiccan community, you will need to develop a consensus if it is widely deployed, or to be iterated by a small but vocal minority focused on change. According to "Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind" in which they define Positioning as an "organized system for finding a window in the mind. It is based on the concept that communication can only take place at the right time and under the right circumstances." (p.19 of 2001 paperback edition). We need to be on the continuous look-out for right time and right circumstances to offer our ideas of where Wicca should be placed in society.

So we see the task ahead of creating and improving our position to be a large one. We still need to reach more than half of the people in the United States, and give them our definition of Wicca. That we need to try to reach the 3% that finds us favorable overall, and then find bridges to the remaining portion that has a less than stellar opinion.

So here are few positions I hold that I believe would be helpful to Wiccans everywhere.

1. Wiccans are not Satanists. (Okay, I hate this as much as anyone!). This position must be continued to reinforced, as the moment we stop, the Christian Attack Ministries will seek to regain that position.

2. Wiccans are as healthy and mentally balanced as the average population, and to a larger degree show a healthier population, living longer, and find more peace and stability in our minds. Wiccans pursue health as one of the great gifts of the Mother Earth. We have lots of tools to handle change both physically and mentally.

3. Wiccans have been and are concerned about the Climate and Earth Changes. From Water Witches dowsing in the American West, to Urban Shamans in New York, London & Tokyo, Sagoma's and Medicine Men, and just your average Witch have felt the changes that are occurring around the world. It is a instinct that is part of our lives, just seeking to be reopened in all people. Environmentalism is a major focus of the Wiccan Life.

4. Wiccans are friends, as they seek to bring blessings and balance to the world. Food and Water is a core belief that Wiccans have. Food is a miracle of the Living Earth, a gift of life and a celebration to be enjoyed. Water is life itself. The Earth herself can provide for us all, if we work with her and develop the ecology to support life and provide energy for us all. A Clean and sustainable world is in our best interest, and one that is holy and divine.

If these were a consensus of thought, I believe that this would move the Wiccan from having to defend ourselves constantly against derogative and negative attacks to taking a stronger, push forward action of stating what we want people to know about us.

So there is a beginning. A seed in the collective consciousness.