1. New-Age religion/priesthood formed by Gerald Gardner, and English civil servant, around the 1950s, possibly the 1940s. The theology and practices were already established in the '40s, but the name Wicca was not applied until Gardner's publications in the '50s. Wicca is a mix of paganism based on theories of ancient practices (namely Celtic traditions), nature worship, and ceremonial magic. Masonry is also believed to play a part in Wicca. Influences on the creation of Wicca are Dr. Margret Murray (debunked theorist), Aliester Crowley, the Golden Dawn and the O.T.O. Traditional Wicca is more about the preisthood, and requires initiation from a liniaged coven and involves several "mysteries" that are only supposed to be learned in three degrees through a coven. While Wicca certainly promotes the belief in magic, it doesn't require the practice of it. The religion/priesthood has as much credibility as, say, Christianity and NAtive American Shamanism.
2. Neo-Wicca. Any form of Wicca that deviates from the liniage of Gardner's Wicca and the traditions that grew from them. Neo-Wicca focus more on the religious aspect of Wicca and does not require initiation and can be practiced solitary. Though the pracitioners of Neo-Wicca tend to be more ecclectic, there are traditions of Neo-Wicca, and practitioners still have to follow the core tenants of Wicca to be defined as such, namely the worship of a God and Goddess, adherance to the Wiccan Rede, belief in the Threefold Law/Law of Return, etc. Neo-Wicca is no less credible than Traditional Wicca.
3. Supposed ancient religion that lived "underground" society until "Old Dorthy" initiated Gerald Gardner, who later "exposed" the tradition by publishing his books. Whether or not that Old Dorthy existed is unknown, and even if this ancient path existed, it is not the Wicca that Gardner published.
4. The title given to a priest of Wicca, also called "Wiccan".
5. Old English term for "wise one" in a masculine form. The femenine is "wicce". Whether or not this is factual is debated.
6. Not what Silver RavenWolf is selling...
7. Practice often abused by teenagers and bored housewives who want to 1)rebel against their traditional roots, 2) want to have extreme power (hah!), not spiritualism, 3) are too absorbed in "the love and light" side of the New-Age and call it the wrong fackin' thing, 4) be Willow from Buffy. These people usually never really research Wicca more than a single book, if you're lucky.
2. Neo-Wicca. Any form of Wicca that deviates from the liniage of Gardner's Wicca and the traditions that grew from them. Neo-Wicca focus more on the religious aspect of Wicca and does not require initiation and can be practiced solitary. Though the pracitioners of Neo-Wicca tend to be more ecclectic, there are traditions of Neo-Wicca, and practitioners still have to follow the core tenants of Wicca to be defined as such, namely the worship of a God and Goddess, adherance to the Wiccan Rede, belief in the Threefold Law/Law of Return, etc. Neo-Wicca is no less credible than Traditional Wicca.
3. Supposed ancient religion that lived "underground" society until "Old Dorthy" initiated Gerald Gardner, who later "exposed" the tradition by publishing his books. Whether or not that Old Dorthy existed is unknown, and even if this ancient path existed, it is not the Wicca that Gardner published.
4. The title given to a priest of Wicca, also called "Wiccan".
5. Old English term for "wise one" in a masculine form. The femenine is "wicce". Whether or not this is factual is debated.
6. Not what Silver RavenWolf is selling...
7. Practice often abused by teenagers and bored housewives who want to 1)rebel against their traditional roots, 2) want to have extreme power (hah!), not spiritualism, 3) are too absorbed in "the love and light" side of the New-Age and call it the wrong fackin' thing, 4) be Willow from Buffy. These people usually never really research Wicca more than a single book, if you're lucky.
1. Doreen Valiente was an initiate of Gardner's and is often called the "Grandmother of Wicca."
2. Traditional Wiccans credit Scott Cunningham for the Neo-Wicca movement.
3. Many Pagans, Wiccan or not, debate the belief of an ancient Wicca religion.
4. George will become a Wicca after his initiation into the Golden Star Coven.
6. The local "Wiccan" coven is liniaged with Silver RavenWolf. My friends and I often have to stiffle our laughter as we pass their "temple".
7. Please stop calling yourselves Wiccans just 'cause you skimmed through Uncle Buck's Big Blue Book.
2. Traditional Wiccans credit Scott Cunningham for the Neo-Wicca movement.
3. Many Pagans, Wiccan or not, debate the belief of an ancient Wicca religion.
4. George will become a Wicca after his initiation into the Golden Star Coven.
6. The local "Wiccan" coven is liniaged with Silver RavenWolf. My friends and I often have to stiffle our laughter as we pass their "temple".
7. Please stop calling yourselves Wiccans just 'cause you skimmed through Uncle Buck's Big Blue Book.
by CerridwenStorms July 30, 2008
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A polytheistic Neo-Pagan nature religion inspired by various pre-Christian western European beliefs, whose central deity is a mother goddess and includes the use of herbal magic and benign witchcraft. Wicca is a very peaceful, harmonious and balanced way of life which promotes oneness with the divine and all which exists. Wiccans have great reverence for the Earth and for their Goddess and her consort, the horned God. Their main rule of behavior is the Wiccan Rede which forbids them from harming people, including themselves, except in some cases of self-defense. Many, perhaps most, are solitary practitioners. Others form small groups of believers, called covens, groves, etc. Because of centuries of religious propaganda and misinformation, many conservative Christians, and others, associate Wiccans with Satanists even though the two belief systems are as different as Christianity and Atheism. Much of modern-day Wicca can be directly traced back to the writings of Charles Leland, Margaret Murray, and Gerald Gardner. There are many beliefs concerning the origins of Wicca.
According to Gardner, Wicca: 1) began in prehistory, as ritual associated with fire, the hunt, animal fertility, plant propagation, tribal fertility, and the curing of disease; 2) developed into a religion which recognized a Supreme Deity, but realized that at their state of evolution, they "were incapable of understanding It" . Instead, they worshipped what might be termed "under-Gods": the Goddess of fertility and her horned consort, the God of the hunt; 3) continued their predominately Moon based worship, even as a mainly Sun-based faith of priests, the Druids, developed and evolved into the dominant religion of the Celts. They never formed a single political entity, but remained as many tribes who shared a common culture and religions; 4) survived the Roman, Saxon, and Norman invasions by going underground; 5) suffered major loss in numbers during the active Christian genocides, which continued into the 18th Century; 6) reached a low ebb by the middle of the 20th century. Much of the theology and ritual had been lost. Wiccan covens had become so isolated that they had lost contact with each other; and 7) was revived in the UK by himself, his High Priestess Doreen Valiente, (1922-1999) and others, who took the surviving beliefs and practices, and fleshed them out with material from other religious, spiritual and ceremonial magick sources.
by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ July 19, 2010
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A religion that does not force others into it or try to persuade them to believe in it. Is often stereotyped as a religion where scary looking women dance around a fire in the middle of night chanting and worshiping the devil. That is not true. Wiccans believe there is both a goddess and a god, and they dont worship the devil. Wiccans are both male and female. They don't just practice spells either, some practice herblore and so on.
* Ewwwww she's all dressed in black and looks scary so she must be a witch!
* Wow, you're a witch! go on cast a spell, make me invisiblle or something!
* Wow, you're a witch! go on cast a spell, make me invisiblle or something!
by philippa August 10, 2004
Get the wicca mug.A follower of the neo-pagan religion wicca. Wiccans are polytheistic nature worshippers. They worship a 'moon' goddess and horned god. They observe 8 sabbats, Samhain, Yule, Imbolc, Ostara, Midsummer, Beltane, Mabon and Lammas. They are based off of seasonal changes and harvests which also repersent changes in their god and goddess.
Wiccans are not evil, and generally do not do 'bad' magic, they follow the rule of three (Belief that what ever you do comes back to you three times as bad or good depending on what it was you did).
In some respects Wicca is a old religion, as it is the revival of religions that perished when Christianity was spread like a plague through out europe, but wicca as we know it now didn't show up until the nineteen-hundreds.
Wiccans are not evil, and generally do not do 'bad' magic, they follow the rule of three (Belief that what ever you do comes back to you three times as bad or good depending on what it was you did).
In some respects Wicca is a old religion, as it is the revival of religions that perished when Christianity was spread like a plague through out europe, but wicca as we know it now didn't show up until the nineteen-hundreds.
by A. Delano September 19, 2005
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