Personal: Writing A Personal Code Of Ethics
A recent assignment, almost a sort of final for the module, was to synthesize all the readings we’d done around morality, values, and ethics and to write my own personal Code of Ethics. I was surprised by how challenging this assignment was for me! The purpose wasn’t to write a sprawling thesis on our own ethical code but to boil it down to the real heart of what we believe.
Personal: Fragmented Identities
For a few years now a core part of my personal practice has been working with Queer Ancestors. This takes many forms: queer history research and lectures, maintaining a private shrine, and personal rituals throughout the year. The synthesis of my queerness with my magical practice, however, is a relatively recent development and is just part of a larger pattern of coming into the “wholeness” of who I am.
Growing up Catholic: How The Church And Superstition Helped Shape My Craft
I was raised in a Roman Catholic home, even if our adherence wasn’t terribly strict. I also grew up much closer to my mom’s side of the family which meant my relationship to our religion was intertwined with Cuban culture and heritage. As I was coming to terms with my sexuality in my teens, around the same time I discovered Wicca, I all but ran from the church. For years I told myself I had left everything about it behind except the “Catholic Guilt” but its only in recent years that I’ve really begun to realize just how much of my craft is influenced by my Catholic upbringing as well as the uniquely Hispanic faith-based superstitions surrounding it.