Feel a bit guilt

I was raised as an Ortodox Christian and I haven't doubted my religion a lot until I found out about magic. In Ortodox Christianity, it is forbidden to use magic,saying that magic comes from the devil. Of course, I do not believe in that. However, I sometimes feel guilty for giving up that religion and looking for new paths,probably because I'm so used to Ort. Christianity.

How to get rid of that feeling?

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By knowledge. You need to learn to judge what is good and what is not. Sometimes, (acutally most times) religions are full of lies. The christianism is not the one of Christ, after so many centuries, it has been corrupted by the religion leaders who mostly wished to fit their religions to their benefit. Just to know, I raised as an orthodox too.

What you need to do is doupt those who seem to have no logical base. For instance:

Cleric: Magick is evil.
You: Why?
Cleric: Because.

Such beliefs could be turned down without much effort.

Well,thank you.. :)

Not all ortodox believe magick is evil(or at least not all magick) there are christan occultists out there and some of them are ortodoxs.

I was raised as an orthodox too. (I am Greek.) Though, I never actually believed Christ was a God. So, I don't really feel guilty. :)

Praying is a form of magick. And I would say get in to chirstian Mysticism

You have the right idea. You have to make your choice.

It really depends how you feel about it .I was raised in this religion from my beloved grandgrandmother but in same time she was herbalist and used to cure people .I never totaly denaunced my religion ,because of respect toward her and because it is part of my roots .However i am open minded person i can not be forced to follow to extreme one path so now i am eclectic practicioner keeping my roots to extend and exploring all that is to be explored .I do not feel guilt about it and i do not believe that whoever divine power is out there wish us to think only in the box and never explore anythink out of it .We do not need to follow restriction to find the divine if everything have come out of divine no matter what we do we are still on journey toward it and its countless aspects .I do not believe that one book no matter how much sacred is all that Divine is .You need to decide for yourself what God is for you ?Is it the strict rules that need to be followed or is it much more to it than that .I have made my own choice if divine had made me full of desire for knowledge it could not have possible expected of me to be restricted in one box .What about you ?

Just remember that praying is magic and as such then magic is praying so it isn't bad what you're doing its just different

Orthodox Christianity believes very much in magick, they just do not call it that. Usually the magick is that of using religious figures to carry out their desires through prayer and symbolism. Much of it is sympathetic magick.

For instance the use of religious medals as amulets and the act of kissing them. They aren't kissing an object but showing reverence and love. Crossing themselves not once but three times (3 is a very powerful number of divinity). Using color and objects as representations of sacred significance. Prayer is done through meditation which can even lead to trance when performing the rosary the proper way while focusing on one's wish. Instead of stating "I bless" "I heal" "I protect" they choose the name of the "holy" figure they feel will do the job. "God bless" "Jesus protect you" "Mary heal and comfort you" etc. The will, the belief, and the focus is still there. The only difference is, the person speaking becomes a middle man of higher power. This is seen in a lot of magick, especially that of Native American shamanism where the shaman will provoke certain spirits to come through symbolism and prayer and then work with them to create the results. The person is the middle man, not the directly effecting factor.

This is actually why I sought out witchcraft when being brought up around Cherokee and Christian family members. I did not like feeling like I could do nothing without help, and liked how witchcraft empowered the self, with the option to include other beings for aid but not the requirement.

Here is what I wrote a few days ago about the basic idea behind why magick works. Perhaps it will help you to gain a peace of mind over your predicament.

"Most magickal practioners of past and present believe one specific thing. Everything in the world originated from a single source and the energy of that single source connects us to all things. Each individual is a part of the whole. We effect it each and every day. This leads into cause and effect (which goes by many names). What we do is a ripple in the water or a vibration on a strand of the web."

So in essence, what we do, the energy we use, is connected with everything, including the source (in your case "God"). Some choose to pinpoint certain parts of nature or certain beings to connect with. Others go straight to the center (God, Goddess etc). And still others merely use the connection to those they personally contact to effect their surroundings through association. Some use all three ways. Regardless, it is all still the same web of life, and we all use it. It's just a matter of opinion as to which is the right way and of course style.