Tansy Firedragon

Hello and Happy Saturday!

I wish to thank Elena-Maria for her wonderful interview. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your answers and I thank you for sharing your faith with all of us!

Today we have a new interview so please welcome Tansy Firedragon. Tansy is a Witch and I know you'll enjoy her interview as well!

Here Is Tansy Firedragon's Introduction:

My craft name is Tansy Firedragon and I have been a witch for many years now.

I am a member of the Dorset Grove Druids, as well as being High Priestess in my own coven co run by my lovely sisters in the craft, The Kitchen Witch Coven of Natural Witchery which allows me to attend lots of outside rituals in wonderful sacred places within the UK.

I am co-founder and a leadership team member of the online Kitchen Witch School of Natural Witchcraft, we also have a facebook page and a blog.

www.kitchenwitchhearth.com
www.kitchenwitchuk.blogspot.co.uk
www.facebook.com/kitchenwitchuk
I have a personal blog www.tansyfiredragon.blogspot.co.uk


1)What religion do you practice?
My religion is that of witchcraft. Although my training was in Wicca I have also trained in Druidry but my heart and the Craft that I practice now is that of the Old Ways, Kitchen/Green Witchcraft with a dash of hoodoo.

2) Are you a convert/revert or were you raised within this religion? If you converted, what did you need to do to convert? And what did you practice prior to converting?
My family are not particularly religious although I did go to Sunday School at the local church. As a teenager I joined Girls Brigade and followed the Baptist faith for several years but I lost interest in my late teens. I knew I believed in something but wasn’t sure what and started to realise that Christianity was not what I was looking for. I didn’t find the Craft until my early late twenties/early thirties but when I did I felt that I had ‘come home’.

3)Within your religion are there degrees of observance (ie. Orthodox,conservative, moderate, liberal)? What are the defining differences between the degrees of observance?
Witchcraft comes loosely under the umbrella of ‘paganism’ and there are so very many different pathways. Pagan, neo pagan, Druid, Witch, Wicca, Shaman and all sorts of different branches within such as Dianic, Gardenerian, Hedgewitch, Stregheria, Faerie and solitary to name but a few. All are Earth based religions centred around caring for the planet, the animals and people that live on it and working with the elements (Earth, Air, Fire and Water) and working with deity – the Goddess and the God in their many facets.

4)Within your religion what degree of observance are you ((ie. Orthodox,conservative, moderate, liberal) ? Why did you choose this degree of observance?
Although I am not keen on ‘labels’ as such if I had to give myself one it would be that of a Kitchen Witch. It is not particularly a pathway that I specifically chose, it is the one that I feel comfortable with and one that as my experience and knowledge have grown has been the area that I work with the most.

5)What is the Afterlife within your religion? For example: what happens when a person dies? Are there places for reward/punishment? (such as a Heaven/Hell concept)
We do not have Hell, we do not have the Devil.

I believe in the Summerlands, the Otherworld place that your spirit goes to once the body has died, it is there that the spirit awaits to be reincarnated.

6) In your opinion, does everyone make it into heaven/paradise? If they do not, why?
I guess that would depend on what your own beliefs are, the mind is a very powerful tool.

7) What makes your religion a good fit for you?
Being a witch is what I am, who I am and how I live my life, it is perfect for me in every way.

8) What are your holy days and what do you do to celebrate them?
We have eight Sabbats during the year, ancient festivals of the Wheel of the Year, some are solstice celebrations, all of them were festivals that our ancestors would have observed in tune with the seasons – they all celebrate the land, the food, the time of year and what Mother Nature offers. I celebrate them with decorations on my altar and meeting others for rituals outside in the open.

9) Do you consider people of other faiths to be your friends?
I believe that everyone has the right to choose their own faith and it is no business of mine what it is, I choose my friends because of their hearts, souls, kind actions and words. They are my friends because of the way they behave and how they treat themselves and others not because of what faith they are.

10) Would you ever join people of another faith to celebrate one of their holy days? Please explain why?
Although Christmas and Easter are not a celebration from my faith I still join my family to celebrate with them. And I am more than happy to investigate celebrations from other faiths, it is wonderful to join with others to celebrate no matter what the faith.

11) What are your thoughts on the burka, and Shariah Law?
It is not my religion and I do not know all the full details so I would not presume to have the knowledge or right to cast an opinion.

12) Are women allowed to hold religious office (priest, minister, rabbi, iman etc) in your religion and how do you feel about it?
I myself am a High Priestess of a coven. I believe men and women should have equal rights.

13) Does your place of worship segregate? If yes, how does this make you feel?
No it does not and it should not, but that is my own personal opinion.

14) How much does your religion affect your daily life and how much thought do you give it when making a decision? Does it affect in any way your decision on abortion, gay marriage, etc?
Being a witch is who I am, it is how I live my life. One of the redes within the Wiccan pathway of Witchcraft is ‘do what you will but harm ye none’ and I do believe this is a good guideline. We also have the rule of three ‘whatever you do or say comes back to you threefold’ – again a good guideline. I am of the train of thought that each and every person should be responsible for their own words and actions and have respect for yourself and others.

15) How would you react/feel if your child wished to marry outside your religion?
What matters most is that my children are happy, marrying into any religion is not an issue so long as they are in love and happy.

16) In your opinion, if someone is not of your faith, will they go to hell?
No, apart from anything we don’t have a Hell within my faith.

17) Who do you think is not a practicing ----- in your religion and why? ie who in the public domain claims to speak for your religion? Do you agree with them or not?
There will always be outspoken people in any religion, if I don’t agree with someone I don’t have to listen!

18) Have you ever been the target of a hate crime? Please explain.
No I have not.

19) Do you ever feel like your religion devalues you?
My religion would never devalue me, if it did I have freedom of choice and would choose not to be a part of it.

20) Does your religion give you peace of mind?
Yes, it is my core being.

21) Do you believe in reincarnation? Why or why not?
Definitely, I believe I have lived many life times before and learnt from each one. I will continue to be reincarnated until I have learnt all the lessons I need to.