A Real Witch Lifts the Mask

When it comes to witchcraft--the real stuff, not the ersatz Halloween variety--Orange County takes a back seat to such hotbeds as Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area.

“It’s a more conservative area,” said one of the county’s leading witches, who writes under the pseudonym of Ed Fitch and lives in Westminster.

The author of “Magical Rituals from the Crystal Well” (Llewellyn Publications, Minneapolis, Minn., 1985) and the forthcoming “Rites of Odin” (Llewellyn), Fitch estimates that there are six to eight witches’ covens scattered around the county, plus a number of other “Odinist” groups which observe reconstructed Norse rituals.

Fitch, an aerospace engineer who is retired from the Air Force, said in an interview Friday that he and his wife were on the way out to celebrate the witches’ festival of Samhain, “the most profound holiday of the year.”

During the ceremony, Fitch said, members “investigate the nature of life and death, what lies beyond and why.”

His attire for the evening?

“What else but basic black?” he replied with a laugh.

The ritual will be repeated throughout the Southland today as witches celebrate Samhain, or Halloween, when, they believe, the veil between the worlds becomes thin, making visits with spirits possible.

Despite the current New Age religious climate that has popularized such occult beliefs as trance channelers and past-lives therapists, the public has yet to take much notice of modern-day witchcraft.

But for thousands of followers throughout the country, witchcraft is not Salem, Hollywood horror films and fairy tales. Rather, they say witchcraft is an ancient goddess- and nature-based religion that gives them vital tools to cope with the 20th Century.

Witches’ Rituals

There is no rigid theology among witches. Some practice rituals such as dancing “skyclad” (nude), throwing Tarot cards and patterning their beliefs after the ancient Greeks, Romans and Celts. Others keep their clothes on, use computers for magic work and take beliefs from science-fiction writers. Some worship many gods and goddesses, others only a special one. Whatever the bent, modern witchcraft is growing, especially among feminists drawn to goddess aspects of the cult and among those concerned with the environment.

There are goddess book shops, pagan Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, witches’ newspapers, public magic seminars, pagan performance theater, a witch politician (Laurie Cabot, who may run for mayor of Salem, Mass.) Recently what is thought to be one of the first witches’ cemeteries was dedicated near Los Angeles.

There are organizations to promote the public image of witches, including legal defense funds to help witches fight court battles, and a Witches League for Public Awareness, which points out misrepresentations about witchcraft that appear in media and movies.

Fitch’s group tries to meet every other Friday night, “depending on baby sitter,” and average attendance is about eight. The group was started 15 years ago, and most of the members have been together for 13 years.

“The personalities mesh perfectly,” he said. “We’re more close than you would be with your own blood relatives.”

Need Right Atmosphere

The gatherings last about an hour and a half, he said, “but it’s hard to tell because nobody ever wears a watch,” and “the atmosphere has got to be exactly right” in order to proceed.

There are discussions, meditation and ancient rituals said Fitch, who is a Vietnam veteran with a black belt in karate.

Covens in Orange County are spread out geographically, Fitch said, and although “most of us know each other” there are no regularly scheduled, countywide gatherings.

“People are rather low profile,” he said.

Occasionally Fitch and other members of his coven visit other pagan groups, and some even visit Christian churches.

A fundamental church, however, “will tend to rub people the wrong way,” said Fitch, whose hobbies include dressing in armor and fighting with broadsword and hammer.

For Halloween, Fitch dresses up, but he doesn’t go out. He puts on a top hat and tails and performs magic shows.

Times research librarian Susanna Shuster contributed to this story.