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Neopagan witchcraft, sometimes referred to asThe Craft, is an umbrella term for someneo-pagan traditions that include the practice ofmagic.[1] They may also incorporate aspects ofnature worship,divination, andherbalism.[2] These traditions began in the mid-20th century, and many were influenced by thewitch-cult hypothesis, a now-rejected theory that persecutedwitches in Europe had actually been followers of a survivingpagan religion. The largest and most influential of these movements wasWicca. Some other groups and movements describe themselves as "Traditional Witchcraft" to distinguish themselves from Wicca. The first is viewed as more ancient-based, while the latter is a new movement of eclectic ideas.
IncontemporaryWestern culture, some adherents of these religions, as well as some followers ofNew Age belief systems, mayself-identify as "witches", and use the term "witchcraft" for theirself-help, healing, or divination rituals.[3] Others avoid the term due to its negative connotations.Religious studies scholars class the various neopagan witchcraft traditions under the broad category of 'Wicca',[4][5] although many within Traditional Witchcraft do not accept that title.[6]
These Neopagans use definitions ofwitchcraft which are distinct from those used by many anthropologists and from some historic understandings of witchcraft, such as that ofpagan Rome, which had laws against harmful magic.[7]
Most societies that have believed inharmful witchcraft orblack magic have also believed in helpful orwhite magic orcunning craft.[8] In these societies, practitioners of helpful magic provided services such as breaking the effects of witchcraft,healing,divination, finding lost or stolen goods, andlove magic.[9] In Britain they were commonly known ascunning folk or wise people.[9] Alan McFarlane writes, "There were a number of interchangeable terms for these practitioners, 'white', 'good', or 'unbinding' witches, blessers, wizards, sorcerers, however 'cunning-man' and 'wise-man' were the most frequent".[10] Ronald Hutton prefers the term "service magicians".[9] Often these people were involved in identifying alleged witches.[8]
In the 1920s, thewitch-cult hypothesis gained increasing attention inoccult circles when it was popularized byMargaret Murray.[11] The witch-cult hypothesis was the idea that thosepersecuted as witches were not workers of harmful magic, but followers of apagan religion (the "Old Religion") that had survived theChristianization of Europe. This has been proven untrue by further historical research.[12][13] Though the theory of accused witches being followers of an organized pagan religion was discredited in academia, it spurred renewed interest in witchcraft.[14]
From the 1930s, occult neopagan groups began to emerge who re-defined the term 'witchcraft' and applied it to their religion. They wereinitiatorysecret societies inspired by Murray's witch cult theory,ceremonial magic,Aleister Crowley'sThelema, and historical paganism.[15][16][17] The earliest group was theBricket Wood coven of English occultistGerald Gardner. Gardner said he had been initiated by a group of pagan witches, theNew Forest coven, who he said were one of the few remnants of this pagan witch cult.[18] His story is disputed by academics.[19][20][16][21][22]Gardner's neopagan witchcraft religion, later known as Wicca, adopted many of the traditions ascribed to Murray's witch cult.[23]
Gerald Gardner was not the only person who believed they were a member of a surviving pagan witch-cult. Others such asSybil Leek,Charles Cardell,Raymond Howard,Rolla Nordic,Robert Cochrane andPaul Huson also said they had been initiated by surviving witchcovens. They considered themselves to be following "hereditary" or "traditional" forms of pagan witchcraft.[24][25]
English historianRonald Hutton notes that neopagan witchcraft is "the only full-formed religion which England can be said to have given the world."[26]
Following its establishment in Britain,Gardnerian Wicca was brought to the U.S. in the early 1960s[27] by English initiateRaymond Buckland and his then-wife Rosemary, who together founded a coven inLong Island.[15][28] In the U.S., numerous new variants of Wicca then developed.[29]
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Wicca is asyncreticmodern pagan religion that draws upon a diverse set ofancient pagan andmodern hermeticmotifs for itstheological structure andritual practices. Developed in England in the first half of the 20th century,[26] Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s byGerald Gardner. Gardner was a retired British civil servant, and an amateur anthropologist and historian who had a broad familiarity with pagan religions, esoteric societies and occultism in general. At the time, Gardner called it the "Witch Cult" and "Witchcraft", and referred to its adherents as "the Wica".[30][independent source needed] From the 1960s onward, the name of the religion was normalised to "Wicca".[31][better source needed]
Various forms of Wicca are now practised as a religion with positive ethical principles, organised into autonomouscovens and led by a High Priesthood. A survey published in 2000 cited just over 200,000 people who reported practicing Wicca in the United States.[32] There is also "Eclectic Wicca", a movement of individuals and groups who share key Wiccan beliefs but have no formal link with traditional Wiccan covens. While some Wiccans call themselves witches, others avoid the term due to its negative connotations.[33]
Gardnerian Wicca, or Gardnerian Witchcraft, is the oldest tradition of Wicca. The tradition is itself named after Gerald Gardner (1884–1964). Gardner formed theBricket Wood coven and in turn initiated many Witches who founded further covens, continuing the initiation of more Wiccans in the tradition. The term "Gardnerian" was probably coined byRobert Cochrane, who himself left that tradition to found his own.[34]
Alexandrian Wicca is the tradition founded byAlex Sanders (also known as "King of the Witches")[35] who, with his wifeMaxine Sanders, established it in Britain in the 1960s. Alexandrian Wicca is similar to and largely based upon Gardnerian Wicca, in which Sanders was trained to the first degree of initiation.[36] It also contains elements ofceremonial magic andQabalah, which Sanders studied independently. It is one of Wicca's most widely recognized traditions.[37]
While the origins of modern Wiccan practice lie in coven activity and the careful handing on of practices to a small number of initiates, since the 1970s a widening public appetite made this unsustainable. From about that time, larger, more informal, often publicly advertised camps and workshops began to take place and it has been argued[38] that this more informal but more accessible method of passing on the tradition is responsible for the rise of eclectic Wicca. Eclectic Wiccans are more often than not solitary practitioners. Some of these solitaries do, however, attend gatherings and other community events, but reserve their spiritual practices (Sabbats, Esbats, spell-casting,worship, magical work, etc.) for when they are alone. Eclectic Wicca is the most popular variety of Wicca in America[39] and eclectic Wiccans now significantly outnumber lineaged Wiccans; their beliefs and practices tend to be much more varied.[40]
Some strands of neopagan witchcraft refer to themselves as "Traditional Witchcraft",[4][5] "Traditional Pagan Witchcraft"',[41] or the "Traditional Craft". Their beliefs and practices are similar to Wicca, but they use these terms to differentiate themselves from mainstream Wicca. They may wish to practice neopagan witchcraft differently from mainstream Wicca and outside national Wiccan networks.[41]Religious studies scholars consider these traditions to fall under the umbrella or broad category of Wicca;[4][5] treating Wicca as a religion withdenominations in the same way Christianity has denominations like Catholicism and Protestantism.[4] Religious studies scholar Ethan Doyle White described Traditional Witchcraft as:
a broad movement of alignedmagico-religious groups who reject any relation to Gardnerianism and the wider Wiccan movement, claiming older, more "traditional" roots. Although typically united by a shared aesthetic rooted in European folklore, the Traditional Craft contains within its ranks a rich and varied array of occult groups, from those who follow a contemporary Pagan path that is suspiciously similar to Wicca, to those who adhere toLuciferianism.[42]
I am a witch descended from a family of witches. Genuine witchcraft is not paganism, though it retains the memory of ancient faiths.
It is a religion mystical in approach and puritanical in attitudes. It is the last real mystery cult to survive, with a very complex and evolved philosophy that has strong affinities with many Christian beliefs. The concept of a sacrificial god was not new to the ancient world; it is not new to a witch.
Roy Bowers, a.k.a.Robert Cochrane (1931–1966), founded a strand of neopagan witchcraft known as "Cochrane's Craft", in opposition toGardnerian Wicca. Cochrane'sClan of Tubal Cain worshipped aHorned God and aTriple Goddess, much akin to Gardner'sBricket Wood Coven. Cochrane himself disliked Gardner and his strand of Wicca, and often ridiculed him and his tradition.[34] While Cochrane's Craft uses ritual tools, they differ somewhat from those used by Gardnerians, some being the ritual knife (known as anathamé), a staff (known as astang), a cup (or commonly a chalice), a stone (used as a whetstone to sharpen the athame), and a ritual cord worn by coven members.[44]
At a gathering atGlastonbury Tor held by theBrotherhood of the Essenes in 1964, Cochrane metDoreen Valiente, who had formerly been a High Priestess of Gardner's Bricket Wood Coven.[45] The two became friends, and Valiente joined the Clan of Tubal Cain. Cochrane often insulted and mocked Gardnerians, which annoyed Valiente. This reached an extreme in that even at one point in 1966 he called for "aNight of the Long Knives of the Gardnerians", at which point Valiente "rose up and challenged him in the presence of the rest of the coven".[46]
TheFeri Tradition (not to be confused with Faery, Fairy, Faerie, or Vicia, which are different traditions) is anecstatic (rather thanfertility) tradition founded by Cora andVictor Anderson. Scholars of Paganism like Joanne Pearson and Ethan Doyle White have characterised Feri as a Wiccan tradition.[47] The latter noted however that some neopagans restrict the termWicca toBritish Traditional Wicca, in which case Feri would not be classified as Wicca; he deemed this exclusionary definition of the term to be "unsuitable for academic purposes".[48] Instead, he characterised Feri as one form of Wicca which is nevertheless distinct from others.[49]
The Sabbatic Craft is described by its founderAndrew D. Chumbley as "an initiatory line of spirit-power that can inform all who are receptive to its impetus, and which – when engaged with beyond names – may be understood as a Key unto the Hidden Design of Arte."[50] Chumbley sometimes referred to theNameless Faith,[51]Crooked Path, andVia Tortuosa.[50][52] He reserved "Sabbatic Craft" as a unifying term to refer to the "convergent lineages"[50] of the "Cultus Sabbati," a body of neopagan witchcraft initiates.[52]
Chumbley's works and those of Daniel Schulke on the Cultus Sabbati's "ongoing tradition of sorcerous wisdom"[51] continue to serve as the prototypical reference works. The craft is not an ancient, pre-Christian tradition surviving into the modern age. It is a tradition rooted in "cunning-craft," a patchwork of older magical practice and later Christian mythology.[citation needed]
'Sabbatic Craft' describes a corpus of magical practices which self-consciously utilize the imagery and mythos of the "Witches' Sabbath" as a cipher of ritual, teaching and gnosis. This is not the same as saying that one practises the self-same rituals in the self-same manner as the purported early modern "witches" or historically attestedcunning folk, rather it points toward the fact that the very mythos which had been generated about both "witches" and their "ritual gatherings" has been appropriated and re-orientated by contemporary successors of cunning-craft observance, and then knowingly applied for their own purposes.
— Andrew Chumbley defining Sabbatic Craft[50]
In hisgrimoireAzoëtia, Chumbley incorporated diverse iconography from ancientSumerian, Egyptian,Yezidi, andAztec cultures.[52] He spoke of a patchwork ofancestral andtutelary spiritfolklore which he perceived amidst diverse "Old Craft" traditions in Britain as "a gnostic faith in the Divine Serpent of Light, in the Host of the Gregori, in the Children of Earth sired by the Watchers, in the lineage of descent via Lilith, Mahazael, Cain, Tubal-cain, Naamah, and the Clans of the Wanderers."[50] Schulke believed that folk and cunning-crafts of Britain absorbed multicultural elements from "Freemasonry,Bible divination,Romany charms, and other diverse streams,"[52] what Chumbley called "dual-faith observance," referring to a "co-mingling of ‘native’ forms of British magic and Christianity".[52]
An Italian neopagan religion similar to Wicca emerged in the 1970s, known asStregheria. While Wicca was inspired by Murray's witch cult,Stregheria closely resemblesCharles Leland's controversial account of an Italian pagan witchcraft religion, which he wrote about inAradia, or the Gospel of the Witches (1899). Its followers worship the GoddessDiana, her brotherDianus/Lucifer, and their daughterAradia. They do not see Lucifer as the evilSatan that Christians see, but a benevolent god of the Sun.[36]
Wiccans often consider their beliefs to be in line with liberal ideals such as theGreen movement, and particularly withfeminism, by providing young women with what they see as a means for self-empowerment, control of their own lives, and a way of influencing the world around them.[53][54] Feminist ideals are prominent in some branches of Wicca, such asDianic Wicca, which has a tradition of women-led and women-only groups.[55] The 2002 studyEnchanted Feminism: The Reclaiming Witches of San Francisco suggests that some branches of Wicca include influential members of the second wave of feminism, which has also been redefined as a religious movement.[53] As of 2006, many within British Traditional Wicca do not believe that feminist Witches should be called Wiccan.[6]
Reclaiming is a tradition of feminist neopagan witchcraft. It is an international community of women and men working to combine neopagan witchcraft, theGoddess movement, earth-based spirituality, andpolitical activism. The tradition developed in the classes andrituals of its predecessor, theReclaiming Collective (1978–1997). It was founded in 1979, amidst thepeace andanti-nuclear movements, by two neopagan women of Jewish descent,Starhawk (Miriam Simos) and Diane Baker, to explore and develop feminist neopagan emancipatory rituals.[56] Today, the organization focuses on progressive social, political, environmental and economic activism.[57]
Deborah Willis writes that "the magical practices of modern feminist and New Age witches closely resemble those of early moderncunning folk", whose work involved thwarting witchcraft. Yet she notes that the ideology of these neopagan movements "would be quite alien to the sixteenth-century cunning woman, whose magical beliefs coexisted comfortably with her Christian ones".[58]
Some of the recent growth in Wicca has been attributed to popular media such asCharmed,Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and theHarry Potter series, with their depictions of "positive witchcraft",[55] which differs from the historical, traditional, andIndigenous definitions.[55] A case study, "Mass Media and Religious Identity: A Case Study of Young Witches", found that the portrayal of positive witchcraft in popular culture is one reason young people are choosing to become Wiccans or self-identify as witches. The Internet is also thought to be driving growth in Wicca.[59]
Neopagan witchcraft has been extremely difficult to pinpoint due to many religious surveys grouping it with general Paganism, stigmatization from much of the outside world, poor public opinion, and the secrecy prevalent among Neopagan Witches (and Pagans as a whole). This causes the demographics to fluctuate drastically and become difficult to track. Establishing exact numbers pertaining to witchcraft is difficult.[60] Nevertheless, there is a slow growing body ofdata on the subject.[61] Based on studies conducted in the United States, all that can be said accurately of the growth rate of Neopagan Witchcraft in the U.S. is that "as of 2001 the ARIS organization reports that contemporary witchcraft saw a 1.575% growth rate between 1990 and 2001, effectively a doubling of adherents every two years."[62] The limited tracking by ARIS has kept Neopagan Witchcraft from being continually and accurately tracked. However, there have been spikes over the years. These are attributed to growth as well as an increase in practitioner's willingness to report, and increasingly positive views of Wicca in America.[63]
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Based on the most recent survey by thePew Research Center, conducted in 2014, there are approximately 1 million Pagans in the United States, comprising 0.3% of the population.[64]
According to Dr.Helen A. Berger's 1995 survey, "The Pagan Census", mostAmerican Pagans are middle class,educated, and live in urban/suburban areas on theEast andWest coasts.[65]
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{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)In essence, the Crooked Path Teachings intend a direct means of autonomous initiation into the Knowledge of the Magical Quintessence.[permanent dead link]
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