Curated by Cat Gina Cole
The Green Egg Forum is a lively hotbed of thoughtful discourse, moderated by Cat Gina Cole. In this column, Cat shares some of the most interesting and interactive posts and threads from the forum. Want to get in on the conversation? We would love to have you! Go to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1069823176940972/ to join.
This week in the forum we somberly and with admiration and respect acknowledge the passing of Ed Fitch. Ed Was a friend and staff member of Green Egg over many years. Here is some of his history from the Covenant of the Goddess Orange County Local Council that was shared in the forum.
“Ed Fitch, well known Pagan author and member of Covenant of the Goddess has passed away. His loving Son Thomas Sitch who cared for his father let us know he died on Sunday night. 2//24/2024
(From Wikipedia)
Ed’s Influence in Neo-Paganism Ed Fitch, who has also gone under the name “Ea”, was initiated by Raymond Buckland 1967, while stationed in Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts. He is one of the creators (along with Joseph Bearwalker Nilson and Thomas Giles) of “The Pagan Way,” an outer court Neo-Pagan tradition.
He was one of the editors of The Waxing Moon, a magazine founded by Joseph B.Nilson in 1964, and the first magazine devoted to Witchcraft in America (later renamed The Crystal Well). In the mid 1970s, Fitch also helped to organize and chaired two Pagan Ecumenical Councils to establish the Covenant of the Goddess (COG) as an international umbrella organization representing Pagans. Through the 1980s Fitch continued to perform as a Gardnerian High Priest, but his researches also led him to initiation in a number of other traditions and orders, including: Faerie faith, Mohsian, the Order of Osiris, the Order of the Temple of Astarte, Norse, and Ceremonial magick.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/
Then a forum member, wrote and shared this post.
I guess I am feeling a bit grumpy in my old age, and want to take a moment to rant. Recently a forum I am on got me thinking about something that is a bit of a pet peeve for me, and that is the apparent lack of scientific literacy among many who are involved in esoteric and magical practices. This always surprises me.
Especially given the many important discoveries being made that could potentially support and advance magical practice and esoteric pursuits. Such basic discoveries as the apparent effects of the observer on the observed as demonstrated in experiments involving light as both waves and partials. The developments in Quantum Physics, String Theory, new discoveries is astrophysics, the archeological discoveries that are pushing back the age of known civilization by thousands of years and more.
But beyond that, many occultists appear to lack even basic literacy in how nature works. This is concerning, at least to me. In the past, no matter what society you look to, it was the occultist, magician, shaman, Witch or village wise one that was often the most knowledgeable, and at the forefront of their community’s understanding of facts surrounding everything from the environment, health, nature, and yes magic … To be sure they were also those who were seen as eccentric, but this was precisely because they looked deeper into everything, sought knowledge in all that was around them, looking into the ‘forbidden’. And so we find such great thinkers as Newton, Franklin, Bruno and many others who were incredible philosophers, scientists and Occultists .. and yet revolutionary for their time.
Today, I run across so many people who are pursuing esoteric practices, magic and the Art, yet they lack any real understanding of basic practical science. This is to their disadvantage. For a lack of this type of knowledge really opens them up to misunderstanding, and in this day and age mis-information.
If you have stepped onto the path of the Magician or Witch I feel you owe it to yourself to take the time to look into the many exciting advances in the material sciences. You will soon be surprised to find that the materialistic paradigm presented by our society begins to fall away as research into consciousness and the nature of reality, through science, continues to rediscover what Hermetics and the Art has taught us for eons.
Just my my opinion…
As a final note – also look to the exciting and highly documented research into the nature of consciousness and parapsychology that is continuing by very reputable researchers. You will find that this will enhance your practices as well.”
And here are the responses:
“My teachers required us to have basic scientific literacy. Your magic is a lot likelier to succeed if it concurs with the laws of nature than if you have to fight them.”
“I agree with a majority of your points. Yes, as witches, we’re supposed to walk in both worlds, the physical and the metaphysical. Honoring nature should instill a desire to learn all we can about the earth sciences.
There’s definitely anti-intellectualism going on right now, and people aren’t putting enough effort into learning or giving enough value to quality education. This trend is troubling, especially our credulous simplicity and how we’re too easily victims of scams, and ready to trust whatever we hear as truth without the willingness or ability to dig deeper and scrutinize our sources of so-called wisdom. As AI becomes a bigger part of our lives, this will become a critical skill if we wish to avoid mutually assured destruction.
The flip side of the coin is there’s also a lot of ‘gatekeeping’. You’re right when you say that occultists of old were among the learned. It’s also true that pagan folk and medicine people were often those denied public education. There’s an inequity in access to this learning and knowledge, and to say ‘all witches should know x’ can lead to disenfranchising those people who don’t have access to knowledge because of social injustices like systemic racism, sexism, ableism, and other forms of bigotry.
So yes, let’s absolutely promote learning and remove the barriers to it. Let’s encourage people to learn and grow in wisdom. Let us also refrain from harshly judging those who haven’t had equal opportunities and make sure our actions are always lifting up those people, and not looking down upon them.
Blessings”
“Very good topic and I very much agree 100 percent. I have seen much of the same and have wondered at the why and how, or rather why it isn’t a prerequisite and how the former isn’t acknowledged, by a staggering number of today’s pagan community. Maybe it stems from the separation of natural Sciences from the occult, by the systems of government and the Christian Religion or The Church, that was meant to separate science from its origins. Kicking out any occult, witchcraft, or paganistic connections. And thus, it has just carried down the generations, in the mainstream or public eye, that the two are to be kept apart. Anything outside of institutionalized knowledge is to be considered fringe science, or otherwise science fiction. Anything that is contradictory to accepted science or what is allowed by the powers to be…
There are many of us still, that know the truth. But even more so, many that need to know.
Thank you for opening this discussion.”
“I don’t find the lack of knowledge in the Pagan community to be less than the population in general. Most people have little comprehension of science and nature, and certainly not of topics like quantum physics. It would be wonderful if more people could grasp those subjects, but it takes much effort to grasp that information.”
“I agree with you wholeheartedly. Do you know of Nasim Harriman and the Resonance Science Foundation? I think they are in line with what you’re addressing here.”
“Well written and valid my friend. Since the era of instant information, I am always pleased to see instances of “When science catches up to us magical practitioners.” As to knowing the way nature works, there is nothing more important to the skills of a magical practitioner in my never-to-be-humble opinion than knowing that. I mean how else does one connect to the elements if they do not know this?”
As always we look forward to your comments below, Many Blessings.
Cat Gina Cole is a Hereditary Witch and author of Psychic Skills for Magic and Witchcraft (Llewellyn, 2022). She is the founder of The Coven of the Rising Phoenix and Staff Coordinator for “Green Egg Magazine.” You can reach her at www.catginacole.com.