Wicca, Wicca, Who's Got the Wicca?

                                 or

                       My Tradition, or Yours?

 [An article which attempts to make sense of all the various Traditions, 
Brands, Denominations, ect., which may confuse the unwary new-comer to 
Neo-Paganism (Wicca in particular).] 

                            By: Hurn


   Greetings, and Bright Blessings...

  Welcome to this, the next in a series of introductory pieces on Alternate 
Religions.  Today, we shall take a look at the many varied Traditions in the 
Wicca Family of Faiths.  Whilst there is, indeed, a large number of groups who 
profess one set of tenants, or ideas; one soon begins to see why they may all 
be lumped together as one Religion.

  Obviously, to start, one must define Religion as it applies to these groups 
of people.  Next, a listing of some of the more Popular Traditions, giving a 
basic description of each.  Lastly, some comments on the "cords which bind 
these groups together", ie. a discussion on the Underlying Philosophies of the 
New Age Movement, Neo-Paganisms in particular.


  I. What is a Religion?

  A dictionary definition of religion looks something like:

    Religion, n.; An organized system of Beliefs and/or Rituals,
    centering on a Supernatural Being or Beings.

  Everyone with me so far? Good. I think we can all agree on definitions for 
"Beliefs" and "Supernatural", so the only sub-definition will be

     "Ritual": any ordered sequence of events or actions, including   
    directed thoughts, especially one that is repeated in the 'same'  
    manner each time, and that is designed to produce a predictable   
    altered state of consciousness, within which certain magical or   
    religious results may be obtained.

  Now, by using these definitions, the astute reader may realize that
one need not "believe" in anything in order to belong to a Religion,
although most 'established' churches do require that one has
conforming beliefs in order to become 'accepted into' that Religion.
One of the beauties of the Pagan/NeoPagan/Wiccan Religion is that the
majority of the sects do not require one to have 'conforming' beliefs.
One need not Believe in the God/dess in order to worship them, and
this is the key to being a New Age type Religion.
  New Age Religions acknowledge that there are many paths to Godhood,
and that each person should find his/her own way.  Thus, while there
is communication and discussion between the diverse ways of Wicca,
there is generally no cause for religious persecution or Holy Wars.
Also, there are very little 'missionary' type efforts, since there is
no Prime Directive stating that everyone who does not believe a
certain piece of Dogma is Wrong, and will burn in Hell forever, unless
saved, or made to see the light.
  Contrary to most religions, it is Not the shared set of Beliefs, or
similar Dogma which holds the Wiccan Religions together.  Rather, it
is the Attitudes of the people involved, and their common Heritage
which provide the bonds of cooperation among the Pagan Peoples. These
points of agreement shall be further addressed following a brief list
of some of the more popular Traditions, with a description of each.


  II. Traditions/Branches/Gatherings/Sub-Groups/Interpretations/ect.
           [nb. This is not, by any means, an all inclusive list]

     A. Gardnerian:
  Started by G. Gardner, in England, in the mid 1950's, this Tradition
claims to have existed, in secret, since the Witch-Burnings began
during the Middle Ages.  While there is some doubt as to whether or
not it is as old as it claims, there is no denying that the Gardnerian
Sect has been one of the most Influential of the Traditions.  In fact,
many of the groups which follow were started by people who had been
introduced to Paganism and the Worship of the Lord and Lady as members
of a Gardnerian group.
  Characteristics:
  A structured religion with definite hierarchy within each group
(known, as a Coven), but little to no Authority of one coven over
another.  Within the coven, a Matriarchy exists, with the High
Priestess generally being considered the leader (there are, of course,
exceptions to this, but these descriptions are, for the most part,
only generalizations based upon information gathered from many
sources).
  The typical Gardnerian view of the God/dess is that of a Dominant
Three-Faced Goddess (Maid, Mother, and Crone) with a Male Consort (Who
has 2 sides: the Young Summer King, and the Old Winter King).
  Ceremonies include a series of initiations into higher levels of the
Craft, various Holiday Celebrations (based, of course, upon the "Wheel
of the Year" calendar of Feast days.

     B. Alexandrian:
   Started about the same time as Gardner's, this tradition is fairly
similar, with a little more emphasis upon Ceremonial Magick.  There
are numerous Covens in both US and Europe.

     C. Dianic:
  This is more of a Sub-class, rather than a particular Tradition.
There are several Feminist Traditions which are considered Dianic.
This sub-class tends to emphasize the Female aspect of the Goddess,
sometimes to the exclusion of the Male God.  Some feel that these
groups are rather reactionary and self limiting.  Be that as it may,
the Dianic Covens tend to be more politically active.

     D. School of Wicca:
  Headed by Gavin and Yvonne Frost, this School is the largest
correspondence school of Witchcraft in the US.  Numerous Covens have
resulted from this School, although it is somewhat unconventional (if,
that is, anything dealing with Wicca could be called conventional).
The Frosts' views on Wicca as a religion do differ with the majority;
in that they do not consider Wicca as "Pagan", but rather as
Monotheistic.

     E. Seax (or Saxon) Wicca:
  Started by Raymond Buckland, who was originally a leader in
promoting the Gardnerian Tradition, as an alternative to the existing
Covens.  Unlike most traditions, which consider the Coven group to be
the normal unit of division (ie. all ceremonies/Rituals = Group
Rites), the Seax version has provision for lone witches (often
referred to as Solitares). Another thing which sets this particular
brand apart is its non-reliance upon being properly initiated into the
Wiccan community.  Many of the other groups require that new members
be brought to existing covens to be ceremonially initiated into that
Tradition, and that only after years of study within the group is one
ready to start a new coven.  The Seax tradition, recognizing that
there may not be a friendly, neighborhood Coven, allows for
self-initiation, and Auto setup of a Coven.

    F. Traditionalist (Welsh, Scots, Greek, Irish, ect...)
  Like Dianic, this is a sub-class.  Each Traditionalist group is
based upon the traditions, literature, myth, and folktales of that
particular geographic/demographic area.  This is evident in the Names
of the God/dess used by individual groups.


   III. Common ties/beliefs/Ideals/ect...

 As stated earlier, it's not doctrine/dogma similarities which tend to
hold these diverse groups together, rather, it is the common Ideals
and feelings expressed by the Pagan Peoples themselves.  Here are some
examples:
  The Wiccan Rede: "An it harms none, do what thou will." is almost
universally accepted amongst the groups.
  Most groups tend to be polytheistic, animists, pantheists, ect.
  One is not "converted" to Wicca, rather, the newcomer feels a sense
of "Coming Home", or, more poetically, "The Goddess calls to Her own".
  Nature plays a big part in most Traditions, either as direct
personification of the God/dess, or as aspects of them.
  There is no counterpart to the Devil, as such, in the Pagan
religions... no personification of All Evil, rather, the choice is
there for all to make.  However, there is the Law of Three Fold
Return, which states "That which thou dost send out shall return three
fold", so good begets good, and evil befalls those who are evil (a
horrendous understatement / simplification, but true).



Author's note:
 Whew!  That was a long haul of writing in one sitting... if there are
any big errors noticeable, mail me, and I'll make a second draft of
this.. or perhaps even expand it some.. (my time is limited in as far
as when I have opportunities to just sit down and write something like
this, but I can usually squeeze in some time, here or there.)
   I hope that this is somewhat enlightening... there are some other
files, here, which give more basic explanations of the terms
used.. (Witch, Coven, Magick, ect..) ... I did assume a small amount
of familiarity present within the reader... if anyone wishes, I can
append a Preface covering that which was presupposed knowledge.

                                         Blessed Be...
                                                        Hurn