To begin: I want to clarify Laura's post which I found confusing. Not all witches are Wiccan, and not all Wiccans are witches. However, all Gardnerian Wiccans ARE witches. Wicca is like any other religion, there are subtle differences between Wiccan groups and solitary Wiccans.


Do you believe the abilities that a witch has is learned, inherited or both?
Either one. I'm not sure everyone can learn to be a witch, and not everyone with a witch in the family is also a witch.


Do you believe these abilities come from a higher source or a source outside yourself?
The abilities come from each person - I have some abilities that other in my working group don't, and they have abilities that I don't have. The energy to use the abilities can come from us (very limited, needs to be recharged often) or from the earth/universe (unlimited).


Do you as witches have sacred text or books that are a standard in your belief system?
I consider all books to be sacred, we can learn something from everything we read, whether we agree with what we're reading or not. Learning to discern between what is wisdom and what is nonsense is part of becoming a witch.


Do you consider your beliefs as a religion?
Some witches do, some witches don't. I do as I follow Wicca, which is a religion and honors the God and the Goddess.


What is the history of your beliefs?
I can trace my beliefs back to Gerald Gardner who drew from several sources and combined them to make a very good religious practice back in the 1940's and 50's.


Are there signs a person exhibits that could indicate that they may be a witch?
To me, it would be a belief that you can work with nature and do things that seem magical to non-witches.
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