The Moon River Wicca Principles...

Acceptance of all

Moon River does not tolerate racism, sexism, or prejudice against disability, sexual preference or national origin, within its classes, covens, rituals or gatherings. We are open to all those honest and respectful people who seek to learn our Craft, who are over eighteen (or accompanied by a parent/legal guardian if underage with the High Priest/ess discretion), and who are tolerant and non-judgemental of others.

Tolerance of Diversity

Moon River understands that all people are different and we encourage this diversity. We do not wish to create ‘mindless sheep’ within our belief system, so we understand the individuals right to practice as they wish within our principles. Due to such diversity, we must also accept that there is no ‘One True Way’ and that many people will find the Divine in ways that we do not. It is the right of the individual to choose their most comfortable way of communing with the Divine, be that within Moon River, other Pagan paths, or other more orthodox religions. Moon River claims that we must all be tolerant of another’s faith, even if we disagree or do not understand it, and strive to improve relations between different religious and spiritual paths.

Concept of Evil

Moon River does not tolerate the concept of cruelty to others, or the betterment of one self by the suffering of another. An act of conscious cruelty is considered the only true concept of pure evil. We accept and understand the polarity of positive/negative, day/night, light/shadow within our universe. We do not consider there to be a ‘sentient malevolent force’, such as the ‘Devil’, in opposition to our universal creative force, because we accept that there is beneficial and harmful aspects in all things.

Morals & Ethics

In order to benefit from Moon River Wicca as a whole, we must work to grow spiritually, in both our inner and outer worlds, as well as being a responsible and moral person. We believe that you can live honestly and ethically without an imposed ‘religiously reinforced’ punishment and reward system. We believe that we should do our best to harm none in our life, but know that this is not a black and white world and morality is often in 10 shades of grey. Therefore we must face every situation individually and weigh up the most appropriate solution within our own hearts as to what we can live with. Every action we take will affect those around us in ways we may not even see, so we must be consciously careful, compassionate and considerate in our behaviour at all times.

Self-Responsibility

Moon River teaches that every action taken will bear its own consequence, for every cause must have an effect and every effect creates new decisions for a future cause. With this in mind it is necessary to accept responsibility for the consequences of your actions, especially if those actions have caused harm, and understand the karmic responsibility within this lifetime. Accepting your harmful traits as well as your pleasant traits is the biggest step towards ‘knowing thyself’. When you know who you truly are, you will find that inner personal conflict decreases but outer moral understanding increases. With moral understanding comes a greater sense of social responsibility. We learn that we are always a part of the whole, and as such we are all responsible for the world we live in.

We also believe that it is the individuals’ responsibility to practice discipline when studying all aspects of the Craft. Spiritual fulfilment is not handed out on a silver platter; it is the product of hard labour and personal harvest. If you are unhappy – take the time to smile until someone smiles back. If you feel foolish – take the time to learn a new skill. If you wish to understand Moon River – take the time to understand yourself first. As with all things, the more energy that is sown into a project, the more will be reaped come the harvest.

Living by Example

Moon River does not seek to convert or prosethylise; we live as an example of our faith. However, Moon River Wicca is a teaching tradition, we learn to teach and therefore teach to learn. Should we be asked to teach our Craft to another, we must remember to learn as much from our student as we teach. Never assume a student is willing to be Initiated into the Craft; to learn Moon River and to live Moon River are very different concepts. We do not accept an authoritarian hierarchy, as we encourage all those initiated to become their own Priest/Priestess, but we do honour those who teach and give their time to others as Elders of our community. We respect the right of an Elder or a teacher within Moon River to charge for classes, courses, workshops or requested ceremonies, as our world does not survive on the exchange of smiles alone! Energy exchange or monetary exchange is necessary for a balanced existence, and Elders will not charge simply for their time, but for their talents and experience as well. The Moon River Tradition will never charge for Initiations, as spirituality is available to everyone.

Polarity of Divinity

Moon River Tradition teaches that the Divine power or creative force within our universe is manifest as both masculine and feminine, that neither is honoured above and to the detriment of the other, and that personification of such forces is the individuals right to choose. The masculine is often referred to as ‘God’ or ‘Lord’ and the feminine as ‘Goddess’ or ‘Lady’ for ease of understanding only.

Living Moon River Wicca

We celebrate the balance of masculine and feminine aspects of divinity, and revel in diversity and personal spirituality. We recognise eight Sabbats throughout the Wheel of the Year, four quarters and four cross-quarters, with each festival bearing a focus on either the God aspect, Goddess aspect or a balance of both. Moon River utilises Esbats for crafting, casting, and working with energy. We respect the individuals right to name Wiccan festivals as they wish when working solitary, but when working within a Moon River group the names must be confirmed with each other and used uniformly.

Moon River recognises:

Samhain, a balanced festival, on 31st October;

Yule (Midwinter), a God festival, on 21st December;

Imbolc, a Goddess festival, on 2nd February;

Ostara (Spring Equinox), a Goddess festival, on 21st March;

Beltane, a balanced festival, on 30th April and 1st May;

Litha (Midsummer), a God festival, on 21st June;

Lughnasadh (Lammas), a God festival, on 31st July;

Mabon (Autumn Equinox), a Goddess festival, on 21st September.

Moon River teaches within a degree system, following the paths of Seeker, Dedicant, 1st Level Initiate, 2nd Level Initiate, 3rd Level Initiate, and Elder. Moon River will support the learning process of every student along their path, but those who are Initiated into their 3rd level will be expected to walk their path with confidence and have the capability of teaching a student on a one-to-one basis. From Dedicant to 1st Level, and each consequent level after, takes a minimum of a year and a day to complete. However the emphasis is more on what you have achieved during your studies, rather than the length of time you have been training.

After receiving your 3rd Level, you may in time progress to becoming a Moon River Wiccan Elder. Becoming an Elder is not based on age or years of study, but on contribution to Moon River Wicca and the greater community – this decided by a council of peers and other Elders after a nomination is made.

Cyclical Nature of Energy

We recognise that all energy in the universe, including those of Divine origin and physical origin, are cyclical in Nature. Energy cannot die, only transmute. Every atom of our universe is made of energy, and therefore all the animate and inanimate parts of our world contain this energy. As every aspect of our universe is made of the same energy, and this energy is cyclical, it is understood within Moon River that we are all connected energetically to each other and to everything else within the universe. Therefore it should be known that the Divine energy is the same energy that runs through everything else, and as such the Divine is within us and we are within the Divine.

Magick, Crafting, Casting and Divination

As Moon River believes that energy is within everything, we also believe that we can exact changes in the energy by force of will, and we call this magick. We use magick for many purposes but always in accordance with our morals and ethics.

Followers of Moon River Wicca are encouraged to research and learn a variety of magickal and spiritual techniques from many different cultures and spiritual systems. There are many forms of divination available to study, some traditional to Wicca and some imported from other cultures, and we encourage all followers to learn as many as possible and specialise in at least one art. We believe that spell casting and crafting may be as formal as a seasonal ritual or as informal as a simple prayer, depending on the individual and the magickal requirements, as long as every magickal working is done with pure heart and clear intent. Never create a ritual just for the sake of it, always make sure every ritual is fulfilling a purpose, even if that purpose is only to commune and connect with the Divine. Ritual, magick, casting, crafting and divination should be performed deliberately with intent, with knowledge and with reverence of the power you are utilising.

Reincarnation

Moon River Wicca teaches that the essence of self – the soul – is reborn repeatedly after each death of our physical form. After the transition of death we journey to the Summerland, a place of rest, to take stock of our lives and the lessons learned. During an undetermined period of time in the Summerland the soul is stripped of personality and ego related to its previous physical form; is reconnected with the universal consciousness; and is prepared for rebirth into physical form. As Wiccans, we also believe that those souls who we have loved and supported in previous incarnations, will also manifest in future lifetimes – hence the term ‘soul mates’.

Personal Spirituality

Although Moon River Wicca has a structure within which we work, it is important that every person create his or her own path to magickal and mundane fulfilment. Moon River is not a tradition that will insist on defining you as a person, it is for you alone to discover and to ‘know thyself’. Personal spirituality can be influenced by education systems, careers, home life, relationships, family pursuits, hobbies and creative arts – to name but a few. For the founders of Moon River Wicca, poetry, song, dance and other creative arts are considered positive expressions of our personal spirituality and have been inspirational to our learning curve. For us they are a welcome addition to any ritual or celebration, and can provide an uplifting and evocative method of raising energy.

We encourage individuals to learn from outside influences and everyday life to create a bespoke belief system that is both dynamic and practical while staying true to the essence of Moon River Wicca.