Teaching Magick Evolves
As we moved through the early 2000s, we began seeing “witch schools” pop up around the world --more accessible than before. Gone were the days of “mail-order” or “distance learning” similar to what was offered in the backs of rare books by Wise Ones such as Laurie Cabot or The Cabot-Kent Hermetic Temple, or hidden deep on a secret message board. Those in the magick community began to experience power in Technomancy as seen by Ed the Pagan …in the booming of internet. Many magick teachers began feeling massive shifts in policy and in practice. The energies of Earth were vibrating more strongly than before. They began to see how different the message of magick could be delivered, with increased ease. Cautiously optimistic about the direction they were heading, more schools rooted and Traditions grew.
Lord Don Lewis and Correllian Nativist Tradition, Christopher Penczak and Temple of Witchcraft, Phyllis Curott and Temple of Ara, Selena Fox -a pioneer in magickal recognition amongst mundane and magickal societies, and Circle Sanctuary, Cyndi Brannen and Keeping Her Keys Covina, Lucien Greaves and The Satanic Temple, and the list goes on and on. Our magickal Elders had paved the way for what was to come. With the brilliance of that future, all of them began to branch out internationally.
A broad look at the last 10 years shows that the pendulum of magickal practice has swung wildly back and forth across the spectrum. Magick teachers are now sometimes saying they feel as if their sharing of esoteric Knowledge has become more difficult, as they grapple with constantly changing communities, especially with societal problems that have creeped into the classroom. The teaching of magick was being challenged by its apparent open door to the influential world of 1s and 0s.
“There’s an increasing amount of responsibility and accountability,” said Reverend Richoz, a long-time teacher who is the Founder of National Black Hat Society and their magick program, All Paths Magick School. “It has become more involved than it used to be as you have to dispel ‘the latest trend’ on various social media platforms such as TT or FB, as well as the rampant gatekeeping that continually occurs.” She also said, “what we do as Practitioner Teachers and Practicum Presenters has become even more important for the evident truth of magick than before.”
The political climate is also heating up on many levels, causing lines to blur and Practitioners to question their faith and ability to trust Self and practice magick on a regular basis. For instance, Practitioners wrestle with Golden Shadow on almost a daily basis in the sense that if they practice magick, (something they are well versed in) their family or friends will shun them. Or, they feel threatened by coworkers or that they may be terminated from their employment. That is a very isolating thought to face.
Many amongst us simply are not grounded enough in themselves to conquer the shallowness of the afront to Free Will and false ultimatum in these realities. This is our Shadow as a magickal community that we must heal from together. We must learn to stand in our own individual powers. We truly must look at the fulfilling practice of magick and communing with our Divine, as strongly as those who practice and show their faith on their Path, as “no two Paths are the same.”
Beyond the classroom, or where the classroom often leads is clergy. Due to a presence of Christian dogma in the laws for these United States, most states do not even recognize what magickal communities do nor the ordination they bestow upon Practitioners in their own Paths. The State has been inundated with blurry dogmatic lines across the board rather than the states standing to support Free Will for ALL. We live in a country where we allow the whole world in with open arms beneath a statue that some perceive as a visage of Goddess and Unconditional Love, yet we suffer under the laws created by men dedicated to a judgmental and warring God, absent of true Free Will.
Magickal standards have changed over the years, too. The eyes of the Wise Ones, the Seers, are now more open to the world and the Universe on a whole. As a Practicum Presenter at APMS, there are aspects to magick that were not able to be presented before because our global science and technology had not caught up to real occurrences. Now we are able to prove the things we teach with measured precision. An example, “the orb is real as we see it on IR.” (Infrared) Or, we have measured movement of energy or occurrences on cameras and sensors.
Standards for teaching magick have truly tested the mettle of those who have unresolved Shadow or unchecked Ego and finally begun to self-weed in the face of these awakened realities. The toughest change that has occurred has been the adoption of new “textbooks” and new teaching methods that are not always grounded in Best Practices for Magick. This is a standard that can be reached by all Practitioners. We are aware of several Practitioners that teach via the same “prosperity principles” that have infected other dogmatic Paths and caused some of the greatest teachers of their Path to fall. We are not saying Practitioners cannot be magickal in that way, we are saying BE HONEST with those that come to you and live in Truth. Do not deceive beginning Practitioners with “responsibly sourced” when in fact it is imported and made with slave labor. We must support Free Will across the board if we are to expect the same in return.
As teachers of magick, we also recognize that there are social pressures that have influenced the day-to-day practice of the Craft as well. Food. Housing. Safety. Addiction. All are real mundane world problems that a Practicum Presenter is faced with and counsels their students through on a regular basis. Suicide rates have increased dramatically amongst all humans, especially the young. Social media and new technology have given improved tools for teachers to transform learning, but that has also led to an increase in cyberbullying in magick groups and more competition for students’ attention in Craft outside the classroom/apprenticeship role.
Everyone wants to convince you that their product is the best and made with the “best” magickal Intent. Using this candle for your spell is better. This magick school is better than that magick school. When in reality, YOU, the Practitioner, are the key component. YOU are the one who has to walk the Path YOU choose. The individual Practitioners are forced to wrestle with a seeming pack of wild west magicians and snake oil peddlers who follow only God Money through this Cycle of Life and Death. Having “money be your master” is fine but KNOW. YOUR. TRUTH. Know why you choose to walk the Path that you do and the value you place on everything around you.
One of the most dangerous confrontations we have had recently as Practitioners was the attempted burning of The Satanic Temple in Massachusetts. Fortunately, no Practitioners of that Path were killed but rather traumatized. The continued threat upon Free Will for all remains very real in our Society. A lot more talk and conversation need to occur amongst all people, all Paths, to quell and dispel many untruths. Lest we forget, our pagan police Kindred keep a sharp eye out and ear to the ground, warning of impending actions from those who feel threatened by global community change and transformation.
Perhaps as a consequence of some of these shifts, obtaining balanced and accountable Practicum Presenters in the classrooms is tough. This is despite the fact that more people are enrolling, and states have begun to analyze our personal practices as essential to our well-being as functioning healthy and whole people in society. Practicum Presenter voices have increasingly become a priority for National BHS. They are formalizing more teacher-leadership roles, in which Practicum Presenters are given the opportunity to be more involved in decision making policy for the communities in which they live. And, in the last couple of years more teachers have taken leadership roles into their BHS Community and visa versa.
As active members of BHS, they now look forward to being an integral part of the political spectrum, making their voices heard and encouraging more political representation in the United States. We feel that this in turn will help normalize what we see being faced with our Practitioners in the classroom. “A teacher’s job has always been complex with many layers,” said Reverend Richoz. Going on to say, “there are opposing forces that Practicum Presenters are trying to manage. Things such as trauma and mental health and caring for students, not a duality between this faith or the other. At the same time we are also being asked to dig further into our personal strength and fill numerous empty spiritual cups.”
Indeed, many teachers point to the increased focus on accountability, and the changing spectrum of faith as the biggest shift of the decade. There is some bleed over from the secular part of our society into the magickal classroom. We are not driven to “feel responsible” if a Practitioner cannot complete a Craft submission or do Spell Work with others. Instead, unlike secular school, some Practicum Presenters offer counsel to help the Practitioner succeed in their chosen Path or to make a difficult decision like divorcing their significant other or disenrolling from school this year to return next Turn. There is so much more to “success” than to simply see that Practitioner succeed at the class being offered. Making the Practitioner’s livelihood or perceived existence and integral part of what you are teaching changes the focus of what you are trying to do with magick.
“With National BHS, money is not a motivator. We present this Knowledge, for free, to as many members as we can each Turn of the Wheel. We do however expect Practitioners to do the work, and in a timely fashion. While it may appear “rigid” to an outsider, those in the classroom understand how fluid learning magick really is --once you allow your Self to truly walk the Path, whatever that is to you. We do not involve ourselves with perceived “witch wars” which emanate from social media and those with lesser experience or less understanding from various Paths. Some Practitioners indicate that the public perception of teaching magick continues to be sadly, somewhat negative,” said Reverend Richoz.
Even so, Practicum Presenters are cautiously hopeful that the tide is turning with social change around the world. The Wise Ones and Presenters concur that there would be great impact if they all simply walked away. “We cannot. We are called to hold our torch light higher than ever before to blaze this trail in to our collective future. We are driven by forces stronger than you or I alone. We cannot walk away with still so much further to go.”
For more information on National Black Hat Society or any of the mentioned individuals, follow the links attached to their names above.
