From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - View original article

Jump to: navigation, search

Wicca (English pronunciation: /ˈwɪkə/) is a modern pagan, witchcraft religion. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and it was introduced to the public in 1954 by Gerald Gardner, a retired British civil servant. It draws upon a diverse set of ancient pagan and 20th century hermetic motifs for its theological structure and ritual practice.

Wicca is a diverse religion with no central authority or figure defining it. It is divided into various lineages and denominations, referred to as "traditions", each with its own organisational structure and level of centralisation. Due to its decentralized nature, there is some disagreement over what actually constitutes Wicca. Some traditions, collectively referred to as British Traditional Wicca, strictly follow the initiatory lineage of Gardner and consider the term "Wicca" to apply only to such lineaged traditions, while other eclectic traditions do not.

Wicca is typically duotheistic, worshipping a god and goddess traditionally viewed as a mother goddess and horned god. These two deities are often viewed as facets of a greater pantheistic godhead[disambiguation needed]. However, beliefs range from "hard" polytheism to even monotheism. Wiccan celebration follows approximately eight seasonally based festivals known as Sabbats. An unattributed statement known as the Wiccan Rede is the traditional basis of Wiccan morality. Wicca involves the ritual practice of magic.

Terminology[edit source | edit]

The term "Wicca" first achieved widespread acceptance when referring to the religion in the 1960s and 70s. Prior to that, the term "Witchcraft" had been more widely used. Whilst being based upon the Old English word wicca, a masculine term for sorcerers, the actual individual who coined the capitalised term "Wicca" is unknown, though it has been speculated that it was Charles Cardell, who certainly used the term "Wiccen" during the 1950s.

Application of the word Wicca has given rise to "a great deal of disagreement and infighting".[1] Gardnerian and Alexandrian Wicca are often collectively termed British Traditional Wicca, and many of their practitioners consider the term Wicca to apply only to these lineaged traditions. Others do not use the word "Wicca" at all, instead preferring to be referred to only as "Witchcraft," while others believe that all modern witchcraft traditions can be considered "Wiccan."[2]

Popular culture, as seen in TV programmes like Buffy the Vampire Slayer tends to use the terms “Wiccan” and "Wicca" as completely synonymous with the terms “Witch” and “Witchcraft” respectively.[citation needed]

Beliefs[edit source | edit]

Beliefs vary markedly between different traditions and individual practitioners. However, various commonalities exist between these disparate groups, which usually include views on theology, the afterlife, magic and morality.

Theology[edit source | edit]

Altar statues of the Horned God and Mother Goddess as crafted by Bel Bucca, and owned by the 'Mother of Wicca', Doreen Valiente.

Wiccan views on theology are numerous and varied and there is no universally agreed-upon religious canon, but Wicca is traditionally a duotheistic religion that venerates both a "Triple Goddess" associated with the Moon and stars and fate, and a Horned God associated with forests and animals and the realm beyond death. These two deities are variously understood through the frameworks of pantheism (as being dual aspects of a single godhead), duotheism (as being two polar opposites), hard polytheism (being two distinct deities in a larger pantheon which includes other pagan gods) or soft polytheism (being composed of many lesser deities). In some pantheistic and duotheistic conceptions, deities from diverse cultures may be seen as aspects of the Goddess or God.[3] However, there are also other theological viewpoints to be found within the Craft, including monotheism, the concept that there is just one deity, which is seen by some, such as Dianic Wiccans, as being the Goddess, whilst by others, like the Church and School of Wicca, as instead being genderless. There are other Wiccans who are atheists or agnostics, not believing in any actual deity, but instead viewing the gods as psychological archetypes of the human mind which can be evoked and interacted with.[citation needed]

According to the Witches Janet and Stewart Farrar, who held a pantheistic, duotheistic and animistic view of theology, Wiccans "regard the whole cosmos as alive, both as a whole and in all of its parts", but that "such an organic view of the cosmos cannot be fully expressed, and lived, without the concept of the God and Goddess. There is no manifestation without polarisation; so at the highest creative level, that of Divinity, the polarisation must be the clearest and most powerful of all, reflecting and spreading itself through all the microcosmic levels as well".[4]

Duotheism[edit source | edit]


The God and the Goddess[edit source | edit]

For most Wiccans, the God and Goddess are seen as complementary polarities in the universe that balance one another out, and in this manner they have been compared to the concept of yin and yang found in Taoism.[5] As such they are often interpreted as being "embodiments of a life-force manifest in nature"[6] with some Wiccans believing that they are simply symbolic of these polarities, whilst others believing that the God and the Goddess are genuine beings that exist independently. The two divinities are often given symbolic associations, with the Goddess commonly being symbolised as the Earth (i.e. Mother Earth), but also sometimes as the Moon, which complements the God being viewed as the Sun.[7]


Gerald Gardner (1959)[8]

Traditionally the God is viewed as a Horned God, associated with nature, wilderness, sexuality, hunting and the life cycle.[9] The Horned God is given various names according to the tradition, and these include Cernunnos, Pan, Atho and Karnayna.

At other times the God is viewed as the Green Man,[10] a traditional figure in European art and architecture, and they often interpret him as being associated with the natural world. The God is also often depicted as a Sun God,[11]particularly at the festival of Litha, or the summer solstice. Another expression of the God is that of the Oak King and the Holly King, one who rules over winter and spring, the other who rules over summer and autumn.[10] He has also been seen in the roles of the Leader of the Wild Hunt and the Lord of Death.[12]

The Goddess is usually portrayed as a Triple Goddess, thereby being a triadic deity comprising a Maiden goddess, a Mother goddess, and a Crone goddess, each of whom has different associations, namely virginity, fertility and wisdom.[13] She is also commonly depicted as a Moon Goddess,[14] and is often given the name of Diana after the ancient Roman deity. Some Wiccans, particularly from the 1970s onwards, have viewed the Goddess as the more important of the two deities, who is pre-eminent in that she contains and conceives all. In this respect, the God is viewed as the spark of life and inspiration within her, simultaneously her lover and her child.[15] This is reflected in the traditional structure of the coven.[16] In one monotheistic form of the Craft, Dianic Wicca, the Goddess is the sole deity, a concept that has been criticised by members of other more egalitarian traditions.


The concept of having a religion venerating a Horned God accompanying a goddess had been devised by the Egyptologist Margaret Murray during the 1920s. She believed, based upon her own theories about the early modern witch trials in Europe, that those two deities, though primarily the Horned God, had been worshipped by a Witch-Cult ever since western Europe had succumbed to Christianity. Whilst now widely discredited, Gerald Gardner was a supporter of her theory, and believed that Wicca was a continuation of that historical Witch-Cult, and that the Horned God and Goddess were therefore ancient deities of the British Isles.[18] Modern scholarship has disproved his claims, however various horned gods and mother goddesses were indeed worshipped in the British Isles during the ancient and early medieval periods.[19]

Pantheism, Polytheism and Animism[edit source | edit]


Many Wiccans believe that the God and Goddess are merely two aspects of the same godhead, often viewed as a pantheistic deity, thereby encompassing everything in the universe within its divinity. In his public writings, Gardner referred to this being as the Prime Mover, and claimed that it remained unknowable,[20] although in the rituals of his tradition, Gardnerianism, it is referred to as Dryghten,[21] which had originally been an Old English term meaning The Lord. Since then it has been given other names by different Wiccans, for instance Scott Cunningham called it by its name in neoplatonism, The One.[22] Other Wiccans such as Starhawk use the term Star Goddess to describe the universal pantheistic deity that created the cosmos, and regard her as a knowable deity that can and should be worshipped.[23][24]

As well as pantheism and duotheism, many Wiccans accept the concept of polytheism, thereby believing that there are many different deities. Some accept the view espoused by the occultist Dion Fortune that "all gods are one god, and all goddesses are one goddess" —that is that the gods and goddesses of all cultures are, respectively, aspects of one supernal God and Goddess. With this mindset, a Wiccan may regard the Germanic Ēostre, Hindu Kali, and Christian Virgin Mary each as manifestations of one supreme Goddess and likewise, the Celtic Cernunnos, the ancient Greek Dionysus and the Judeo-Christian Yahweh as aspects of a single, archetypal god. A more strictly polytheistic approach holds the various goddesses and gods to be separate and distinct entities in their own right. The Wiccan writers Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone have postulated that Wicca is becoming more polytheistic as it matures, tending to embrace a more traditionally pagan worldview.[25] Some Wiccans conceive of deities not as literal personalities but as metaphorical archetypes or thoughtforms, thereby technically allowing them to be atheists.[26] Such a view was purported by the High Priestess Vivianne Crowley, herself a psychologist, who considered the Wiccan deities to be Jungian archetypes that existed within the subconscious that could be evoked in ritual. It was for this reason that she said that "The Goddess and God manifest to us in dream and vision."[27]

Wicca is essentially an immanent religion, and for some Wiccans, this idea also involves elements of animism. A belief central to Wicca is that the Goddess and the God (or the goddesses and gods) are able to manifest in personal form, most importantly through the bodies of Priestesses and Priests via the rituals of Drawing down the Moon or Drawing down the Sun.

Afterlife[edit source | edit]

Belief in the afterlife varies among Wiccans,[28] although reincarnation is a traditional Wiccan teaching dating back to the New Forest coven in the 1930s. The influential High Priest Raymond Buckland said that a human's soul reincarnates into the same species over many lives in order to learn lessons and advance spiritually,[29] but this belief is not universal, as many Wiccans believe in the reincarnation of the soul through different species. However, a popular saying amongst Wiccans is that "once a witch, always a witch", indicating a belief that Wiccans are the reincarnations of previous witches.[30]

Typically, Wiccans who believe in reincarnation believe that the soul rests between lives in the Otherworld or Summerland, known in Gardner's writings as the "ecstasy of the Goddess".[31] Many Wiccans believe in the ability to contact the spirits of the dead who reside in the Otherworld through spirit mediums and Ouija boards, particularly on the Sabbat of Samhain, though some disagree with this practice, such as the late Alexandrian High Priest Alex Sanders, who stated that "they are dead; leave them in peace."[32] This belief was likely influenced by Spiritualism, which was very popular at the time of Wicca's emergence, and with which Gardner and other early Wiccans such as Buckland and Sanders had some experience.[33]


Magic[edit source | edit]

Many Wiccans believe in magic, a force they see as being capable of manipulation through the practice of witchcraft or sorcery. 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. Indeed, many Wiccans agree with the definition of magic offered by ceremonial magicians,[35] such as Aleister Crowley, who declared that magic was "the science and art of causing change to occur in conformity with will", while another prominent ceremonial magician, MacGregor Mathers stated that it was "the science of the control of the secret forces of nature".[35] Many Wiccans believe magic to be a law of nature, as yet misunderstood or disregarded by contemporary science,[35] and as such they do not view it as being supernatural, but being a part of the "super powers that reside in the natural" according to Leo Martello.[36] Some Wiccans believe that magic is simply making full use of the five senses that achieve surprising results,[36] whilst other Wiccans do not claim to know how magic works, merely believing that it does because they have observed it to be so.[37]

"The point [of magic in Witchcraft] is to make the "bendable" world bend to your will... Unless you possess a rock-firm faith in your own powers and in the operability of your spell, you will not achieve the burning intensity of will and imagination which is requisite to make the magic work."

Paul Huson (1970)[38]

Wiccans cast spells or workings during ritual practices, often held inside a sacred circle, in an attempt to bring about real changes in the physical world (these rituals are further explained in the "Ritual practices" section below). Common Wiccan spells include those used for healing, for protection, fertility, or to banish negative influences.[39] Many early Wiccans, such as Alex Sanders, Sybil Leek and Doreen Valiente, referred to their own magic as "white magic", which contrasted with "black magic", which they associated with evil and Satanism. Sanders also used the similar terminology of "left hand path" to describe malevolent magic, and "right hand path" to describe magic performed with good intentions;[40] terminology that had originated with the occultist Helena Blavatsky in the 19th century. Some modern Wiccans however have stopped using the white-black magic and left-right hand path dichotomies, arguing for instance that the colour black should not necessarily have any associations with evil.[41]

The scholars of religion, Rodney Stark and William Bainbridge, claimed, in 1985, that Wicca had "reacted to secularisation by a headlong plunge back into magic" and that it was a reactionary religion which would soon die out. This view was heavily criticised in 1999 by the historian Ronald Hutton, who claimed that the evidence displayed the very opposite, that "a large number [of Wiccans] were in jobs at the cutting edge [of scientific culture], such as computer technology."[33]

Morality[edit source | edit]

"Bide the Wiccan laws ye must, in perfect love and perfect trust... Mind the Threefold Law ye should - three times bad and three times good... Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill - an it harm none, do what ye will."

Lady Gwen Thompson[42]

There exists no dogmatic moral or ethical code followed universally by Wiccans of all traditions, however a majority follow a code known as the Wiccan Rede, which states "an it harm none, do what ye will" (a variation of the Thelemic abjuration put forward by Aleister Crowley:"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law; Love is the Law, Love under Will"). This is usually interpreted as a declaration of the freedom to act, along with the necessity of taking responsibility for what follows from one's actions and minimising harm to oneself and others.[43] Another common element of Wiccan morality is the Law of Threefold Return which holds that whatever benevolent or malevolent actions a person performs will return to that person with triple force, or with equal force on each of the three levels of body, mind and spirit,[44] similar to the eastern idea of karma. The Wiccan Rede was introduced into Wicca by Gerald Gardner and formalised publicly by Doreen Valiente, one of his High Priestesses. The Threefold Law was an interpretation of Wiccan ideas and ritual, made by Monique Wilson[45] and further popularised by Raymond Buckland, in his books on Wicca.

Many Wiccans also seek to cultivate a set of eight virtues mentioned in Doreen Valiente's Charge of the Goddess,[46] these being mirth, reverence, honour, humility, strength, beauty, power, and compassion. In Valiente's poem, they are ordered in pairs of complementary opposites, reflecting a dualism that is common throughout Wiccan philosophy. Some lineaged Wiccans also observe a set of Wiccan Laws, commonly called the Craft Laws or Ardanes, 30 of which exist in the Gardnerian tradition and 161 of which are in the Alexandrian tradition. Valiente, one of Gardner's original High Priestesses, argued that the first thirty of these rules were most likely invented by Gerald Gardner himself in mock-archaic language as the by-product of inner conflict within his Bricket Wood coven[47][33] - the others were later additions made by Alex Sanders during the 1960s.

Although Gerald Gardner initially demonstrated an aversion to homosexuality, claiming that it brought down "the curse of the goddess",[48] it is now generally accepted in all traditions of Wicca, with certain groups like the Minoan Brotherhood openly crafting their philosophy around it,[49] and various important figures in the Craft, such as Alex Sanders and Eddie Buczynski, being openly homosexual or bisexual.

Five elements[edit source | edit]

Five Elements with Pentagram

Many traditions hold a belief in the five classical elements, although they are seen as symbolic as representations of the phases of matter. These five elements are invoked during many magical rituals, notably when consecrating a magic circle. The five elements are air, fire, water and earth, plus aether (or spirit), which unites the other four.[50] Various analogies have been devised to explain the concept of the five elements; for instance, the Wiccan Ann-Marie Gallagher used that of a tree, which is composed of earth (with the soil and plant matter), water (sap and moisture), fire (through photosynthesis) and air (the creation of oxygen from carbon dioxide), all of which are believed to be united through spirit.[51]

"Darksome Night and Shining Moon,
East and South and West and North,
Hearken to the Witches' Rune;
Hear me now, I call thee forth."

Doreen Valiente

Traditionally in the Gardnerian Craft, each element has been associated with a cardinal point of the compass; air with east, fire with south, water with west, earth with north and the spirit with centre.[3] However, some Wiccans, such as Frederic Lamond, have claimed that the set cardinal points are only those applicable to the geography of southern England, where Wicca evolved, and that Wiccans should determine which directions best suit each element in their region, for instance, those living on the east coast of North America should invoke water in the east and not the west because the colossal body of water, the Atlantic ocean, is to their east.[52] Other Craft groups have associated the elements with different cardinal points, for instance Robert Cochrane's Clan of Tubal Cain associated earth with south, fire with east, water with west and air with north,[53] and each of which were controlled over by a different deity who were seen as children of the primary Horned God and Goddess. The five elements are symbolised by the five points of the pentagram, the most prominently used symbol of Wicca.[54]

Natural cycles[edit source | edit]

The natural cycles are significant in Wicca. The lunar and solar cycles are most often the basis around which Wiccans place ritual celebrations. While both the God and the Goddess are usually honoured at both kinds of rituals, the Goddess is mainly associated with the Moon, and the God is mainly associated with the Sun.

Practices[edit source | edit]

The Neopagan researcher and High Priestess Margot Adler, who defined ritual as being "one method of reintegrating individuals and groups into the cosmos, and to tie in the activities of daily life with their ever present, often forgotten, significance" noted that rituals, celebrations and rites of passage in Wicca are not "dry, formalised, repetitive experiences", but are performed with the purpose of inducing a religious experience in the participants, thereby altering their consciousness.[55] She noted that many Wiccans remain sceptical about the existence of the gods, afterlife etc but remain involved in the Craft because of its ritual experiences, with one, Glenna Turner, saying that "I love myth, dream, visionary art. The Craft is a place where all of these things fit together - beauty, pageantry, music, dance, song, dream."[56]

The High Priest and Craft historian Aidan Kelly claimed that the practices and experiences within Wicca were actually far more important than the beliefs, stating that "it's a religion of ritual rather than theology. The ritual is first; the myth is second. And taking an attitude that the myths of the Craft are 'true history' in the way a fundamentalist looks at the legends of Genesis really seems crazy. It's an alien head-space."[57] Similarly, Adler stated that "ironically, considering the many pronouncements against Witchcraft as a threat to reason, the Craft is one of the few religious viewpoints totally compatible with modern science, allowing total scepticism about even its own methods, myths and rituals".[58]

Ritual practices[edit source | edit]

An athame, ritual knife or dagger used in Wiccan practices.

The practice of Wicca often involves the ritual practice of magic, ranging from the "low magic" or "folk magic" of shamanism and witchcraft to more elaborate and complex rites influenced by the ceremonial magic of the Western Hermetic Tradition.



One of Wicca's best known liturgical texts is "The Charge of the Goddess".[12] The most commonly used version used by Wiccans today is the rescension of Doreen Valiente,[12] who developed it from Gardner's version. Gardner's wording of the original "Charge" added extracts from the works of Aleister Crowley's work, including The Book of the Law, (especially from Ch 1, spoken by Nuit, the Star Goddess) thus linking modern Wicca irrevocably to the revelations of Thelema. Valiente rewrote Gardner's version in verse, keeping the material derived from Aradia, but removing the material from Crowley.[62]

Wheel of the Year[edit source | edit]


Wiccans celebrate several seasonal festivals of the year, commonly known as Sabbats. Collectively, these occasions are termed the Wheel of the Year.[46] Most Wiccans celebrate a set of eight of these Sabbats; however, other groups such as those associated with the Clan of Tubal Cain only follow four. In the rare case of the Ros an Bucca group from Cornwall, only six are adhered to.[63] The four Sabbats that are common to all British derived groups are the cross-quarter days, sometimes referred to as Greater Sabbats. They originated as festivals celebrated by the ancient Celtic peoples of Ireland, and possibly other Celts of mainland Europe.[64] In the Egyptologist Margaret Murray's The Witch-Cult in Western Europe (1921) and The God of the Witches (1933), in which she dealt with what she believed to be a historical Witch-Cult, she stated that these four festivals had survived Christianisation and had been celebrated in the pagan Witchcraft religion. Subsequently, when Wicca was first developing in the 1930s through to the 1960s, many of the early groups, such as Robert Cochrane's Clan of Tubal Cain and Gerald Gardner's Bricket Wood coven adopted the commemoration of these four Sabbats as described by Murray. Gardner himself made use of the English names of these holidays, stating that "the four great Sabbats are Candlemass [sic], May Eve, Lammas, and Halloween; the equinoxes and solstices are celebrated also."[65]

The other four festivals commemorated by many Wiccans are known as Lesser Sabbats, and comprise the solstices and the equinoxes, and were only adopted in 1958 by members of the Bricket Wood coven,[66] before subsequently being adopted by other followers of the Gardnerian tradition, and eventually other traditions like Alexandrian Wicca and the Dianic tradition. The names of these holidays that are commonly used today are often taken from Germanic pagan and Celtic polytheistic holidays. However, the festivals are not reconstructive in nature nor do they often resemble their historical counterparts, instead exhibiting a form of universalism. Ritual observations may display cultural influence from the holidays from which they take their name as well as influence from other unrelated cultures.[67]

SabbatNorthern HemisphereSouthern HemisphereHistorical OriginsAssociations
Samhain, aka Halloween31 October30 April, or 1 MayCeltic paganism (see also Celts)Death and the ancestors.
Yuletide21 or 22 December21 JuneGermanic paganismWinter Solstice and the rebirth of the sun.
Imbolc, aka Candlemas1 or 2 February1 AugustCeltic paganism (see also Celts)First signs of spring.
Ostara21 or 22 March21 or 22 SeptemberGermanic paganismSpring Equinox and the beginning of spring.
Beltaine, aka May Eve or May Day30 April or 1 May1 NovemberCeltic paganism (see also Celts)The full flowering of spring. Fairy folk.[68]
Litha21 or 22 June21 DecemberPossibly NeolithicSummer Solstice.
Lughnasadh, aka Lammas1 or 2 August1 FebruaryCeltic paganism (see also Celts)The harvest of grain.
Mabon, aka Modron[69]21 or 22 September21 MarchNo historical pagan equivalent.Autumn Equinox. The harvest of fruit.

Rites of passage[edit source | edit]

Bust of Diana wearing a moon crown.




A handfasting ceremony at Avebury in England, which occurred during Beltane in 2005.





Book of Shadows[edit source | edit]



Gerald Gardner to his followers.[76]


Today, adherents of many non-BTW traditions have also adopted the concept of the Book of Shadows, with many solitaries also keeping their own versions, sometimes including material taken from the published Gardnerian Book of Shadows. In other traditions however, practices are never written down, meaning that there is no need for a Book of Shadows.

In certain Traditional Witchcraft traditions, different forms of literature are used, for instance in the 1734 Tradition, the published articles of Robert Cochrane along with letters he wrote to Joseph Wilson, Robert Graves[80] and others are held in high esteem[81] whilst in the Sabbatic tradition, various grimoires are followed, such as the Azoetia of Andrew Chumbley.

Symbols[edit source | edit]

Triple Moon symbol of the Triple Moon Goddess.

A range of symbols are used by Wiccans. The most common is the pentagram, the five pointed star, as a representation of (microcosmic) quinaries. Each of its points are associated with one of the five classical elements, the five human appendages, etc. Other common symbols include the triskelion, triquetra, Three hares, and Triple moon.

Traditions[edit source | edit]

In the 1950s through to the 1970s, when the Wiccan movement was largely confined to lineaged groups such as Gardnerian Wicca, a "tradition" usually implied the transfer of a lineage by initiation. However, with the rise of more and more such groups, often being founded by those with no previous initiatory lineage, the term came to be a synonym for a religious denomination within Wicca. There are many such traditions[82][83] and there are also many solitary practitioners who do not align themselves with any particular lineage, working alone. There are also covens that have formed but who do not follow any particular tradition, instead choosing their influences and practices eclectically.


Many traditions, including those of British Traditional Wicca, require formal initiation within an established coven for membership of their respective traditions. In this manner, all BTW's can trace a direct line of descent all the way back to Gardner. Other traditions, however, do not hold this to be necessary.

Covens[edit source | edit]


A commonly quoted Wiccan tradition holds that the ideal number of members for a coven is thirteen, though this is not held as a hard-and-fast rule.[29] Indeed, many U.S. covens are far smaller, though the membership may be augmented by unaffiliated Wiccans at "open" rituals. When covens grow beyond their ideal number of members, they often split (or "hive") into multiple covens, yet remain connected as a group. A grouping of multiple covens is known as a grove in many traditions.[citation needed]


Eclectic Wicca[edit source | edit]

A large number of professed Wiccans do not exclusively follow any single tradition. These eclectic Wiccans each create their own syncretic spiritual paths by adopting and reinventing the beliefs and rituals of a variety of religious traditions connected to Wicca and broader Paganism.

While the origins of modern Wiccan practice lie in covenantal activity of select few initiates in established lineages, eclectic Wiccans are more often than not solitary practitioners uninitiated in any tradition. A widening public appetite, especially in the United States, made traditional initiation unable to satisfy demand for involvement in Wicca. Since the 1970s, larger, more informal, often publicly advertised camps and workshops began to take place.[85] This less formal but more accessible form of Wicca proved successful. Eclectic Wicca is the most popular variety of Wicca in America[86] and eclectics now significantly outnumber lineaged Wiccans.

Eclectic Wicca is not necessarily the complete abandonment of tradition. Eclectic practitioner may follow their own individual ideas and ritual practices, while still drawing on one or more religious or philosophical paths. Electic approachs to Wicca often draw on Earth religion and ancient Egyptian, Greek, Saxon, Anglo-Saxon, Celtic, Asian, Jewish, and Polynesian tradition.[87]

History[edit source | edit]

Origins, 1921–1935[edit source | edit]

In the 1920s and 30s, the Egyptologist Dr. Margaret Murray published several books detailing her theories that those persecuted as witches during the early modern period in Europe were not, as the persecutors had claimed, followers of Satanism, but adherents of a surviving pre-Christian pagan religion - the Witch-Cult. These hypotheses, which were argued over by academics for decades, have since been widely rejected.[88]

It was during the 1930s that the first evidence appears for the practice of a pagan Witchcraft religion[89] (what would be recognisable now as Wicca) in England. It seems that several groups around the country, in such places as Norfolk,[90] Cheshire[91] and the New Forest had set themselves up as continuing in the tradition of Murray's Witch-Cult, albeit with influences coming from disparate sources such as ceremonial magic, folk magic, Freemasonry, Theosophy, Romanticism, Druidry, classical mythology and Asian religions.

Early development, 1936–1959[edit source | edit]

The history of modern Wicca starts with Gerald Gardner (the "Father of Wicca") in the mid-20th century. Gardner was a retired British civil servant and amateur anthropologist, with a broad familiarity in paganism and occultism. He claimed to have been initiated into a witches' coven of New Forest, Hampshire, in the late 1930s. Intent on perpetuating this craft, Gardner founded the Bricket Wood coven with his wife Donna in the 1940s, after buying the Naturist Fiveacres Country Club.[92] Much of the coven's early membership was drawn from the club's members[93] and its meetings were held within the club grounds.[94][95] Many notable figures of early Wicca were direct initiates of this coven, including Dafo, Doreen Valiente, Jack Bracelin, Frederic Lamond, Dayonis, Eleanor Bone and Lois Bourne.

The Witchcraft religion became more prominent beginning in 1951, with the repeal of the Witchcraft Act of 1735, after which Gerald Gardner and then others such as Charles Cardell and Cecil Williamson began publicising their own versions of the Craft. Gardner and others never used the term "Wicca" as a religious identifier, simply referring to the "witch cult", "witchcraft", and the "Old Religion". However, Gardner did refer to witches as "the Wica".[96] During the 1960s, the name of the religion normalised to "Wicca".[97][98] Gardner's tradition, later termed Gardnerianism, soon became the dominant form in England and spread to other parts of the British Isles.

Adaptation and spread, 1960–present[edit source | edit]


It was in the United States and in Australia that new, home-grown traditions, sometimes based upon earlier, regional folk-magical traditions and often mixed with the basic structure of Gardnerian Wicca, began to develop, including Victor Anderson's Feri Tradition, Joseph Wilson's 1734 Tradition, Aidan Kelly's New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden Dawn and eventually Zsuzsanna Budapest's Dianic Wicca, each of which emphasised different aspects of the faith.[99] It was also around this time that books teaching people how to become Witches themselves without formal initiation or training began to emerge, among them Paul Huson's Mastering Witchcraft (1970) and Lady Sheba's Book of Shadows (1971). Similar books continued to be published throughout the 1980s and 1990s, fuelled by the writing of such authors as Doreen Valiente, Janet Farrar, Stewart Farrar and Scott Cunningham, who popularised the idea of self-initiation into the Craft. Among witches in Canada, anthropologist Dr. Heather Botting (nee Harden) of the University of Victoria has been one of the most prominent, having been the first recognized Wiccan chaplain of a public university.[100] Original high priestess of Coven Celeste, she is one of the founders of the Canadian Aquarian Tabernacle Church.[101]


Debates over the origin of Wicca[edit source | edit]

According to Gerald Gardner's account in Witchcraft Today and The Meaning of Witchcraft, Wicca is the survival of a theoretical European witch-cult that was persecuted during the witch trials.[102] Theories of an organised pan-European witch-cult, as well as mass trials thereof, have been largely discredited, but it is still common for Wiccans to claim solidarity with witch trial victims.[103]

The notion of the survival of Wiccan traditions and rituals from ancient sources is contested by most recent researchers, who suggest that Wicca is a 20th-century creation which combines elements of freemasonry and 19th-century occultism.[104] However, historians such as Ronald Hutton have noted that Wicca not only predates the modern New Age movement but also differs markedly in its general philosophy.[33]


Modern scholarly investigations have concluded that Witch trials were substantially fewer than claimed by Gardner, and seldom at the behest of religious authorities. For example, in the 1996 book Witches and Neighbors, Robin Briggs examines the history of witchcraft in medieval Europe and refutes the widely-told story that large numbers of independent women were burned at the stake by vindictive Christian ecclesiastics for the crime of practising naturalistic healing or neopagan religion. Most scholars estimate that a total of 40,000 people were executed as witches during the entire medieval period, and that church authorities participated reluctantly in this process, which was largely fuelled by the political turmoil of the Reformation.[106][107]

Demographics[edit source | edit]

The actual number of Wiccans worldwide is unknown, and it has been noted that it is more difficult to establish the numbers of members of Neopagan faiths than many other religions due to their disorganised structure.[108] However, Adherents.com, an independent website which specialises in collecting estimates of world religions, cites over thirty sources with estimates of numbers of Wiccans (principally from the USA and UK). From this, they developed a median estimate of 800,000 members.[109] In the United States population alone, there have been many attempts at finding a figure, with the 2001 American Religious Identification Survey estimating that at least 134,000 adults identified themselves as Wiccans, compared to 8,000 in 1990.[110] Wiccans have also made up significant proportions of various groups within that country; for instance, Wicca is the largest non-Christian faith practised in the United States Air Force, with 1,434 airmen identifying themselves as such.[111]


Leo Ruickbie (2004)[112]

In the United Kingdom, census figures on religion were first collected in 2001. A campaign by the Pagan Federation before the 2001 Census encouraged Wiccans, Heathens, Druids and others to describe their religion simply as "Pagan"[citation needed] but no deatiled statistics were reported outside of the six main religions.[113] For the 2011 census a more detailed breakdown of responses was reported with 56,620 people identifying themselves as Pagans, 11,766 as Wiccans and a further 1,276 describing their religion as "Witchcraft".[114]

Acceptance of Wiccans[edit source | edit]


Wicca emerged in a predominantly Christian country, and from its inception suffered opposition from certain Christian groups and from the popular tabloids like the News of the World. Some Christians still believe that Wicca is a form of Satanism, despite important differences between these religions,[115] such as the lack of a Satan-like figure in Wiccan theology. Due to negative connotations associated with witchcraft, many Wiccans continue the traditional practice of secrecy, concealing their faith for fear of persecution. Revealing oneself as Wiccan to family, friends or colleagues is often termed "coming out of the broom-closet".[116] In a similar way, some people have accused Wicca of being anti-Christian, a claim disputed by Wiccans such as Doreen Valiente, who stated that whilst she knew many Wiccans who admired Jesus, "witches have little respect for the doctrines of the churches, which they regard as a lot of man-made dogma".[117]

In the United States, a number of legal decisions have improved and validated the status of Wiccans, especially Dettmer v. Landon in 1986. However, Wiccans have encountered opposition from some politicians and Christian organisations,[118][119] including former president of the United States George W. Bush, who stated that he did not believe Wicca to be a religion.[120][121]

In Canada, Dr. Heather Botting ("Lady Aurora") and Dr. Gary Botting ("Pan"), the original high priestess and high priest of Coven Celeste and founding elders of the Aquarian Tabernacle Church, successfully campaigned the British Columbian provincial government and the Canadian federal government in 1995 to allow them to perform recognised Wiccan weddings, to become prison and hospital chaplains, and (in the case of Heather Botting) to become the first officially recognized Wiccan chaplain in a public university.[122][122][123] The Bottings had been initiated into Wicca in 1966 by Gerald Gardner's London-based high priestess, Lysbeth Turner.

References[edit source | edit]

Notes[edit source | edit]

  1. ^ Doyle White 2010.
  2. ^ Adler 1979.
  3. ^ a b Gallagher 2005.
  4. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1987, pp. 2, 3.
  5. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1987, p. 59.
  6. ^ Pearson, Joanne; Roberts, Richard H; Samuel, Geoffrey (December 1998). Nature Religion Today: Paganism in the Modern World. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 6. ISBN 0-7486-1057-X. OCLC 39533917. 
  7. ^ Ravenwolf, Silver (1998). Teen Witch: Wicca for a New Generation. St Paul, Minnesota: Llewellyn. p. 25. ISBN 1-56718-725-0. 
  8. ^ Gardner 1988, p. 260.
  9. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1989, pp. 32-34.
  10. ^ a b Farrar & Farrar 1989, pp. 35-38.
  11. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1989, pp. 15-17.
  12. ^ a b c Pearson, Joanne E. (2005). "Wicca". In Jones, Lindsay. Encyclopedia of Religion 14. Detroit: Macmaillan Reference USA. p. 9730. 
  13. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1987, pp. 29-37.
  14. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1987, pp. 38-44.
  15. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1989, pp. 7-10.
  16. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1981, pp. 181, 182.
  17. ^ Gardner 1988, pp. 26–€“27.
  18. ^ Gardner 1988, pp. 260–261.
  19. ^ Hutton 1991, pp. 260-261.
  20. ^ Gardner 1988, pp. 26–27.
  21. ^ Crowther, Patricia (1974). Witch Blood! The Diary of a Witch High Priestess!. New York City: House of Collectibles. ISBN 0-87637-161-6. OCLC 1009193. 
  22. ^ Cunningham, Scott. Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner. ISBN 0-87542-184-9. 
  23. ^ "Charge of the Star Goddess-Starhawk". Wicca-spirituality.com. 2013-04-20. Retrieved 2013-05-02. 
  24. ^ "Charge of the Star Goddess-"Book of the Goddess" (Co-edited by Julie Ann Rhoads and Ann Forfreedom in 1979-80):". Barsoomfishrap.org. Retrieved 2013-05-02. 
  25. ^ Farrar & Bone 2004.
  26. ^ Adler 1979, pp. 25, 34–35.
  27. ^ Crowley, Vivianne. Wicca: The Old Religion in the New Millennium. p. 129. ISBN 0-7225-3271-7. 
  28. ^ Gallagher 2005, pp. 34-39.
  29. ^ a b c Buckland 1986, pp. 17, 18, 53.
  30. ^ Valiente, Doreen (1973). An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present. Hale. pp. Introduction. ISBN 0-919345-77-8. 
  31. ^ Hutton 1999, p. 392.
  32. ^ Farrar, p. 88.
  33. ^ a b c d e f Hutton 1999.
  34. ^ Hutton 1999, p. 393.
  35. ^ a b c Valiente 1973, p. 231.
  36. ^ a b Adler 1979, pp. 158-159.
  37. ^ Hutton 1999, pp. 394-395.
  38. ^ Huson, Paul (1970). Mastering Witchcraft. Page 27. Putnam.
  39. ^ Gallagher 2005, pp. 250-265.
  41. ^ Gallagher 2005, p. 321.
  42. ^ Mathiesin, Robert; Theitic (2005). The Rede of the Wiccae. Providence, Rhode Island: Olympian Press. Page 60-61,
  43. ^ Harrow, Judy (Oimelc 1985). "Exegesis on the Rede". Harvest 5 (3). Archived from the original on 2007-07-28. 
  44. ^ Lembke, Karl (2002) The Threefold Law.
  46. ^ a b Farrar & Farrar 1992.
  47. ^ Valiente 1989, pp. 70-71.
  48. ^ Gardner 1988, pp. 69, 75.
  49. ^ Adler 1979, pp. 130–131.
  51. ^ Gallagher 2005, pp. 77, 78.
  52. ^ Lamond, Frederic R (2004). Fifty Years of Wicca. United Kingdom: Green Magic. pp. 88–89. ISBN 0-9547230-1-5. 
  53. ^ Valiente 1989, p. 124.
  55. ^ Adler 2005, p. 164.
  56. ^ Adler 2005, p. 172.
  57. ^ Adler 2005, p. 173.
  58. ^ Adler 2005, p. 174.
  60. ^ Leland, Charles (1899). Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches. David Nutt. Page 7.
  61. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1984, pp. 156-174.
  63. ^ Gary, Gemma (2008). Traditional Witchcraft: A Cornish Book of Ways. Troy Books. Page 147.
  64. ^ Evans, Emrys (1992). Mythology. Little Brown & Company. ISBN 0-316-84763-1. Page 170.
  65. ^ Gardner 1988, pp. 10.
  66. ^ Lamond, Frederic (2004). Fifty Years of Wicca. Sutton Mallet, England: Green Magic. pp. 16–17. ISBN 0-9547230-1-5. 
  68. ^ Gallagher 2005, p. 67.
  69. ^ Gallagher 2005, p. 72.
  70. ^ Simpson, Jacqueline (2005). "Witching Culture: Folklore and Neo-Paganism in America". Folklore 116. 
  71. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1984, Chapter II - Second Degree Initiation.
  72. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1984, Chapter III - Third Degree Initiation.
  73. ^ [1] Witchcraft today: an encyclopedia of Wiccan and neopagan traditions - Page 238, by James R. Lewis
  75. ^ Gallagher 2005, p. 370.
  76. ^ Lamond, Frederic (2004). Fifty Years of Wicca. Page 14. Green Magic.
  77. ^ Crowley, Vivianne (1989). Wicca: The Old Religion in the New Age. London: Aquarian Press. pp. 14–15. ISBN 0-85030-737-6. 
  78. ^ Farrar & Farrar 1981.
  79. ^ Gardner, Gerald (2004). Naylor, A R (ed.), ed. Witchcraft and the Book of Shadows. Thame: I-H-O Books. ISBN 1-872189-52-0. 
  80. ^ Grevel Lindop, ed. (24 May 2010). "Robert Cochrane’s Letters to Robert Graves". The Cauldron. Retrieved 8 June 2010. 
  81. ^ Cochrane, Robert; Michael Howard and Evan John Jones (2003). The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into Modern Traditional Witchcraft. UK: Capall Bann Publishing. ISBN 1-86163-221-5. 
  82. ^ "Beaufort House Index of English Traditional Witchcraft". Beaufort House Association. 1999-01-15. Retrieved 2007-04-02. 
  83. ^ "Different types of Witchcraft". Hex Archive. Retrieved 2007-04-02. 
  87. ^ Hutton 1991.
  89. ^ Heselton, Philip (November 2001). Wiccan Roots: Gerald Gardner and the Modern Witchcraft Revival. Freshfields, Chieveley, Berkshire: Capall Bann Pub. ISBN 1-86163-110-3. OCLC 46955899.  See also Nevill Drury. "Why Does Aleister Crowley Still Matter?" Richard Metzger, ed. Book of Lies: The Disinformation Guide to Magick and the Occult. Disinformation Books, 2003.
  90. ^ Bourne, Lois (1998). Dancing With Witches. Hale. Page 51.
  91. ^ Heselton, Philip (2003). Gerald Gardner and the Cauldron of Inspiration. Capall Bann. Page 254.
  92. ^ Hutton 1999, p. 289.
  93. ^ Valiente 1989, p. 60.
  94. ^ Fifty Years of Wicca, Frederic Lamond, page 30-31
  95. ^ Valiente 1989, p. 56.
  97. ^ Hutton 1999, p. vii.
  100. ^ Todd, Douglas. "University of Victoria chaplain marks solstice with pagan rituals | Vancouver Sun". Blogs.vancouversun.com. Retrieved 2013-05-02. 
  101. ^ "ATC Affiliates – Canada". Aquarian Tabernacle Church. Retrieved 2013-05-02. 
  102. ^ Buckland 2002, p. 96.
  103. ^ Buckland 2002, 10: Roots of Modern Wica.
  106. ^ Gibbons 1998.
  107. ^ Briggs, Robin (1998). Witches and Neighbors. Penguin. ISBN 0-14-014438-2. 
  108. ^ Bonewits, Isaac (2005). "How Many "Pagans" Are There?". Neopagan.net. Retrieved 7 April 2012. 
  109. ^ "Statistical summary pages: W". Adherents.com. Retrieved 7 April 2012. 
  110. ^ Banerjee, Neela (16 May 2007). "Wiccans Keep the Faith With a Religion Under Wraps". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 April 2012. 
  111. ^ Holmes, Erik (17 January 2010). "Respect healthy for different faiths". Air Force Times. Retrieved 20 October 2010. 
  112. ^ Ruickbie, Leo (2004). Witchcraft Out of the Shadows. Hale. p. 177. ISBN 0-7090-7567-7. 
  113. ^ [Census 2001 Key Statistics - Local Authorities KS07 Religion (Excel sheet 78Kb) http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/census-2001-key-statistics/local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/local-authorities-ks07--religion.xls], Office for National Statistics
  115. ^ Davis, Derek; Hankins, Barry (2003). New Religious Movements and Religious Liberty in America (2nd ed.). Waco: Baylor University Press. p. 75. ISBN 0-918954-92-4. OCLC 52895492. "Much to the chagrin of practitioners of Wicca, there has been confusion in the minds of many about their religion, which is often linked with Satanism, although there are important differences." 
  116. ^ 'Bewitched' (2003-12-04). "Witch Way". Slate.com. Retrieved 2008-05-16. "Believe me, coming out of the "broom closet" is a one-way trip." 
  118. ^ Silk, Mark (Summer 1999). "Something Wiccan This Way Comes". Religion in the News 2 (2). ISSN 1525-7207. Archived from the original on 2007-05-24. 
  119. ^ "Barr's Witch Project: Lawmaker Wants to Ban Witches from the Military". LawStreet Journal. 1999-11-01. Archived from the original on 2000-02-29. Retrieved 2007-07-11. 
  120. ^ Banerjee, Neela (April 24, 2007). "Use of Wiccan Symbol on Veterans’ Headstones Is Approved". The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2013. 
  121. ^ "George W. Bush Justifies Off-The-Cuff Bigotry". Positive Atheism Magazine. 1999-06-01. Retrieved 2008-11-30. 
  122. ^ a b "Wiccan Chaplaincy | Aquarian Tabernacle Church Canada". Atccanada.org. 2012-11-29. Retrieved 2013-05-02. 
  123. ^ Todd, http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2010/12/16/pagans-celebrate-solstice-with-yule-rituals/

Sources[edit source | edit]

Academic books[edit source | edit]

Journal articles[edit source | edit]

Wiccan literature[edit source | edit]

Further reading[edit source | edit]

Significant historical works
Practices and beliefs
History of Wicca
  • Kelly, Aidan A (1991). Crafting the Art of Magic: A History of Modern Witchcraft, 1939-1964. Llewellyn. ISBN 0-87542-370-1. 76
Wicca in different countries

External links[edit source | edit]