I can't concur that magick is religion. It seems to me that magick is a parallel to religion and as Hutton points out in his book Triumph of the Moon, religious practice makes a supplication to the divine powers whereas magick attempts to control those same forces.
I also don't know whether Thelema is what is being practiced by those who perform Crowley's rituals such as the Gnostic Mass, after all the Book of the Law makes no mention of any such practice. It seems that there are those who would follow Crowley as some sort of messiah, following his compendium of practices without questioning Crowley's ability to actually understand the Book of the Law. The text of the Book of the Law is quite clear about Crowley's limited understanding of the Law which, to my mind at least, casts doubt on the practices that he devised for it. Whilst the ideas behind Thelema are not new it can be said that Thelema as we know it began in 1904 and so it is a modern interpretation of spirituality and not an ancient one.
Also, I can understand Wicca trying to make a connection with a tradition that predates its public emergence in the 1950s but in light of the findings of modern historians it seems unlikely. It would seem to me to make more sense to embrace the modernity of Wicca as a strength, not everything of value spiritually has to have its roots in a long forgotten past. Perhaps, like everything else, religion must evolve with us in order to remain relevant in the present day.
David G Mattichak jr
Author of A Comment on the Verses of the Book of the Law
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