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Some Major Differences Between Kemetic Religion and Wicca

© Dark Wolf

Some Major Differences Between Kemetic Religion and Wicca

This article is meant to explain some of the major differences between Wicca and Kemetic religion. It is not meant to be thorough in any sense, and is also not meant to demean Wicca. Wicca was chosen because it is the most popular of the modern pagan religions, so most readers will have a familiarity with it.

The first and most basic difference is the approach to religion. Wiccans look to the past for inspiration and merge a number of different ideas and practices together. Kemetics draw much more heavily from the past, changing only what is necessary for the religion to be practiced in the modern world. They also draw from a single culture, while Wicca draws from a number of different cultures.

Differences also exist in theology. Kemetic Religion is not dualistic. They do not worship a Goddess and a God, or the Lord and Lady. They worship Goddesses and Gods. The largest Kemetic group, Kemetic Orthodoxy (KO), calls their concept of deity "Monolartry" and defines this as one ultimate God in many manifestations or Names. Another group, Kemetic Traditional Religion (KTR), calls their concept "One and Many" and believes that the Gods are both separate individuals and one divine force at the same time.

Some Wiccan groups emphasize the need to have both a God and a Goddess in workings. In Kemetic religion, this is not necessary. A ritual can be done with only a God or only a Goddess, it does not have to be both. Or one could include many of each "gender."

Speaking of gender, the idea of certain male or female energies within certain celestial bodies is reversed in Kemetic religion. The moon is associated with male deities, including Heru (Horus), Djehuty (Thoth), and Khonsu. The idea of Mother Earth would be foreign to ancient Egyptians as the earth was represented by a male god, Geb. Father Sky gets a gender switch, too: she is Nut, the sky Goddess.

In the worship of these Gods, certain items are commonly used. Kemetics usually have on their altar an image of a God/ess, an offering bowl and a water bowl. Both religions use candles and incense in their practices. However, the standard Wiccan ritual tools such as athames, chalices and cauldrons are not used. In ancient Egypt, wands were used in some (very specific) contexts, but are fairly rare in modern practice. Magickal workings are not as strongly emphasized within Kemetic religion.

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