History of Wicca

Before I begin I would like to clarify something. Paganism is not a term used to describe one single religion, but rather as an umbrella religion for all those other than Abrahamic faiths of Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

Many Wiccans, Witches and Reconstructionists identify themselves as Pagan or Neo-Pagan. They find it easier to do rather then try to explain their own complex beliefs and systems. By doing this though it gives the impression that Paganism itself is the religion, but actually it’s the collection of several religions. People who believe in the power of nature, and in the Great Mother (known by many names) these are just a couple of things that describe a Pagan Religion and Wicca is one of the many earth based practices, they incorporate a magical system into their beliefs, although this is not a requirement.

Much like the Pagan religions of long ago Wiccans believe in both male and female Gods and Goddesses, they are believed to be sacred and immanent with nature. Often referred to as Mother Earth and Father Sky or the Lord and Lady. Beginning thousands of years ago, they thought the forces of nature were Spirits or Deities, today we call this Animism. They had a different God for everything wind, sky, water and hunting, The people or Pagans of this time were great hunters and for the most part the animals they hunted were horned. Therefore when creating the image of their God of Hunt it seemed only natural he too would be horned. In time they developed simple rituals, in which they acted out the hunt using models they made of the animals. They believed if their ritual went well then the hunt would also be successful. These simple rituals by the fire, probably with chants and music of some sort were the first step to realizing and developing magick.

Being a primitive people they had no understanding of what actually happened when a female became pregnant. This of course led them to believe in the Goddess of Fertility. She was responsible for replenishing all life from the plants and animals, to the humans of the tribes. They also created images of the Goddess that can be seen today. Although it is clear the Pagans of long ago were not Wiccans, however the similarities they share does make it clear that Pagans paved the way for what we know today as Wicca.

How Old is Wicca?

Many years passed between those of the first primitive people and the times I am about to explain. A new religion was spreading it’s word, and Christianity was it’s name. They brought with them the years of persecutions, a time when anyone who believed something different from the Book (Bible) must be a witch and by this point in time it was believed by the followers of the Book that all witches were evil and up to no good.

For the next few hundreds years this opinion did not change and things only got harder for the craft to survive. The church was very persistent in it’s war against the old religions refusing to stop until they were wiped out entirely. These persecutions spread all across Europe and even to the new colonies of America. The most famous of these being the Salem Witch trials of 1692.

Through propaganda, torture, and executions what was left of the old religions had been driven underground. During this time the church took the opportunity to destroy most texts and any other physical evidence they could find proving these old religions did in fact exist and were not evil like the church was brain washing people to believe. The disappearance of this evidence made it quite easy for them to make up their own definitions and theories, an example of this would be how their so called “Devil” often resembles the image of the Pagans Horned God, is this a coincidence, maybe but, I don’t think so. Add all those things together and it’s no wonder the history of the craft is so difficult to trace back. With no solid proof it makes it very hard to say whether or not Wicca has ancients roots or if it was completely made up by a man named Gerald Gardner. Although if you ask them, most Wiccans will tell you it doesn’t matter to them either way. It’s the fulfillment that it brings which makes it so attracting to people.

That all being said there is some truth to be found, and one of these truths is that Gardner did use older religions for the source of his own Wicca. A man named J. Gordon Melton said that “research suggests that Gardner did discover a pre-existing Witchcraft group”. A paper at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! which was published by Gardner himself declares that he took the magical resources he acquired in Asia, mixed with a selection of Western magical texts and thus created a new religion, which centered upon the worship of the Mother Goddess. Thus proving that although it was a mixture of ancient practices, Wicca itself was no older than the 1940’s when Gerald Gardner first created it.

Who Was Gerald Gardner and What Were His Creative Influences?

Gerald Gardner born in 1884 accomplished a number of things in his life time. In this paper I will focus on those which pertain to the creation of Wicca. Gardner was an archaeologist and because of this he was able to accumulate an extensive occult background. While spending time in Southeast Asia Gardner learned the secrets of the Malaysian magical knife, also while there he became a Mason and a nudist.

In 1939 Gardner returned home to England now an avid occultist. He than became a member of the Corona Fellowship of Rosicrucian although there are some who dispute that point. However if true the Fellowship is where he met Dorothy Clutterbuck and it was Dorothy who initiated Gardner into the Craft.

Sometime in the late 1940’s is when Gardner created Wicca, however it wasn’t until the 1954 when Gardner published his second book but the first that was non-fiction entitled “Witchcraft Today”, this is when Wicca as we know it today really began to flourish.

Gerald Gardner lived until 1964, while traveling home to England from his yearly vacation in Lebanon, he unfortunately did not make it there. His body was taken to the next port (Tunis). The original burial site has since been redeveloped and is now a park. When a High Priestess named Eleanor Bone heard this was happening, she raised enough money to have him moved to another cemetery where his body remains to this day.

When creating Wicca Garner used a variety of resources, I will be focusing on the ones he himself has said to use. The first of course being his coven, here is where he would have learned about the old religion. The writings of Aleister Crowley was another big influence especially in Gardner’s earlier works. Gardner used several other influences as well including the Celts, and various elements of Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, Egyptian and Classical Mythology were all adapted into one, what we know today as the religion of Wicca.

Who Was Doreen Valiente and What Was Her Role in Wicca?

Doreen Valiente (1922-1999) was initiated into the craft around 1953 by Gerald Gardner, after which she worked directly with him. Shortly after her initiation she became the High Priestess of the main coven. Valiente was a wise woman who studied and learned many things. You could say Gardner was somewhat threatened by this, which of course is only hear say. If this were true however it wouldn’t have made him very happy when Valiente very early demonstrated to him, that she recognized the sources he used for many of his rituals. In fact she was concerned with what she perceived as a preponderance of “Crowleyanity” in the Book of Shadows. This statement again is only hear say but, is probably true because we know for a fact Gardner used many Crowley influences. Valiente then proposed she make some changes and although reluctant Gardner agreed.

The changes Valiente made did great things for the Wiccan religion. She began by stripping away most of Crowley words and terms from the Book of Shadows, she then replaced them with more creative and poetic versions. One piece of hers that is particularly moving and is well known is the “Charge of the Goddess”. In addition to the changes she made in the Book of Shadows she also wrote several of her own books and papers on the subject, including a book she wrote in 1989 entitled “The Rebirth of Witchcraft”. It has been the core of many Wiccan covens historical data. What better source then someone who was actually there to experience it. Much of what Modern Wiccans use in their rituals stems from the changes and contributions of Doreen Valiente.

How Did Wicca Branch Off?

Not all political views are universal among Witches, but one thing that is, is their support of neo-tolerance. There is no absolute truth what feels right and true for me, may not feel the same for you. Therefore among the Wiccan religions all are accepted as long as you follow a few basic beliefs or laws.

Wiccans believe in the Goddess and God they also believe nature should be sanctified and protected. Wiccans follow the cycles such as personal, seasonal and physical. They also believe that the visible and invisible worlds are united as one.

Probably one of the most major rules to remember is “An it harm none, do as ye will” Another rule that falls under this category is the Threefold Law” what you do to others be it good or bad comes back to you 3 times. Remember those few things and really the rest is personal choice. Which only makes sense to me, there are no two people the same so how could we expect everyone’s belief systems would be exactly the same.

Like most other religion (ie; Christianity), although they will share common threads groups will spread out to form new religions, based on the older ones only with slightly different philosophies. Wicca is no different and it too over the years has split into various groups.

The first form of course being Gardnerian Wicca created by Gerald Gardner. After this several others emerged. Beginning in the 1960’s a man named Alex Sanders (1926-1988) and his wife Maxine founded Alexandrian Wicca. Alex was known for calling himself the “King” of his coven and he loosely based his religion on Gardnerian Traditions. Then in 1970 another form was created in Bakersfield California by a man named George Patterson. This tradition was known as several different names throughout the years. At first it was chartered by the Universal Church, than in 1972 it became chartered as the Church of Wicca in Bakersfield. Finally in 1980 they settled on the name Georgian Wicca after it’s creator. Algard Wicca was founded in 1972 by a woman named Mary Neswick. She was an American who had been initiated into both Gardnerian and Alexandrian Wicca. By molding these two similar traditions together she created her own form of Wicca. In 1973 a man named Raymond Buckland came out with his own form called Seax. Buckland based his traditions on the ancient Seax religion, and it is also very similar to that of the Gardnerian Wicca.

Although none of these were officially recognized until 1985 when Wicca became a legalized religion by the Federal Appeals Court. Today there are many different forms of Wicca such as; Faery Wicca, Dragon Wicca, the Kitchen or Green Witch, Dianic Wicca an all female based form of the craft, also Eclectic Wicca where a practitioner is free to mix and match and take only what suits them from each of the forms. The list really could go on, a person who is interested in practicing really has to research and find out which path will best suit there needs and desires as an individual.

Wicca Today

In 1974 the Council of American Witches was formed, this group was made up of approximately 73 witches from various traditions and beliefs. They formed a statement of 13 common principals and definitions that were shared within their different groups. The Council did this in an attempt to dispel the misinformation that had been either said or written about their religions.

Although the Council no longer exists their belief system still stands. Most Wiccans today follow at least some or all of the Wiccan Rede. Since the times of Gerald Gardner Wicca has flourished and today is the fifth largest religion in America. Many believe the numbers are even higher but, even in these modern times many Wiccans are still afraid to reveal their true religion. On the brighter side things are getting better all the time and the more that Wiccans and other Pagan religions reach out the further their word will spread, it being much easier now a days with such modern advances as computers.

Conclusion

From what I have learned it is my conclusion that everyone should be free to practice what feels right to them. As long as you mean no harm to anyone else I can’t see why any God, Wiccan or otherwise will get mad and punish you. I think it is silly to be afraid of your religion. To live in fear of being punished for your sins by some over sized immortal being who dwells in a burning hell.

I believe we are all here to learn and we come from nature, so it seems only natural to focus our worship towards it as well. From what I have learned the only animosity Wiccans hold towards Christians and others like them is that their institutions claim to be “the one true God” or “their way is the right way”. They seek to deny others and to suppress their ways of religious beliefs and practices. I should not say this is true for all Christians, that would be hypocritical, but what I do know is true is that even to this day in Christian churches they still speak very negatively about the Craft and it’s belief system.

It is my opinion that Wiccans for the most part just want to live peacefully, they don’t want to convert anyone but most are happy to share. All they really want is the freedom to make their own religious choice without being judged or hated because of it.