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i'm wicca and i'm gonna have a baby and well i was wondering if it's wrong if i make my baby learn and follow through with the wicca relligon i really want her/him to belive in what i belive in and i think of it as like the christans and how they make them belive in the whole jesus christ bible stuff no offence to any people who belive in that relligon so is it wrong? plez help (link)
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No, it's not wrong.
Throughout history, people have brought their children up in their own cultural and religious traditions. Why should you be any different?
Of course, it can be taken too far. If you overdo it, you could easily get a backlash. Human beings tend to resist when something is forced down their throats. So you'll have to manage a balancing act, of sorts; to raise your child in the wicca tradition and faith without being heavy-handed.
And it would be smart to take the cultural situation into account. Assuming that you're in the United States (which I suspect is the case, from your writing style), you have to recognize that you'll be bringing up your baby in a minority religion that most practitioners of the majority religion at best don't understand and at worst despise. That may lead to difficulties for your child. But of course it's no reason not to raise him or her in the faith that is the truth, as you see it.
Just be ready to cope with any potential difficulties, that's all.
It's also possible that your child may choose another faith when they get older, but that's a risk that every parent takes.
I'm in a similar situation, as an atheist; I'm doing my best to raise my son without religious belief. That in itself isn't difficult, but unfortunately well-meaning people keep foisting their own religious mythology on him. Which leads to endless questions and explanations.
Please note that ALL of what I've just written is based on my own understanding, and that I have never practiced wicca nor studied it much. I've emailed some pagan friends of mine and asked for their thoughts on the subject; if/when I hear from them, I'll pass their remarks along by editing my answer here.
FOLLOW-UP: A very knowledgeable pagan friend of mine tells me the following:
"Wicca is a specific neo-pagan religion, and has about a dozen or more sub-sects within it.
Generally about half of those sects are appropriate to teach a child in or have children involved in the faith directly, while the others it is inappropriate to have children in most rituals because of the cultural taboos of our society (things like use of communal alcohol, group nudity, etc.)
Without details beyond the use of the general term it's hard to say more."
If anyone is wondering, I got permission to quote that; my friend prefers to stay anonymous.
Good luck!
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