Wicca and LGBT people the Universe. Historically, the Christian church and lay-people have believed that more women than men are involved in paganism and witchcraft, which can be seen as far back as 1487 with the printing of the "Malleus Maleficarum" Several modern authors of Wiccan books state that, in current Wicca, the situation is the same. An exception to the traditional male/female dualism is Dianic Wicca (also known as Feminist Witchcraft and/or Feminist Spirituality), practiced almost exclusively by women. While most adherants are heterosexual, preferring to practice their spirituality with other women in pursuit of Women's Mysteries, the tradition takes pride in its
Wicca Wiccans do not claim to know how magic works, merely believing that it does because they have observed it to be so. Some spell it "magick", a variation coined by the influential occultist Aleister Crowley, though this spelling is more commonly associated with Crowley's religion of Thelema than with Wicca. During ritual practices, which are often staged in a sacred circle, Wiccans cast spells or "workings" intended to bring about real changes in the physical world. Common Wiccan spells include those used for healing, for protection, fertility, or to banish negative influences. Many early Wiccans, such as Alex Sanders, Sybil