Since my husband, Thoron, and I (Myth) have been initiated into two separate Wiccan Traditions, I decided to write something up and share it here in order to define discuss/define some aspects of what is now often referred to as “Traditional Wicca."
We were initiated into the Protean Tradition of the Gardnerian lineage (mid 2000’s) and also into the Faery-Elven Trad (mid 1980’s), and have been active in the Maryland Neo-Pagan community since 1984. (Prior to 1984, we largely read books and practiced meditation/visualization--Thoron was a member of AMORC, an organization of mystics with a branch in Towson, MD.)
I suppose I ought to start with a brief definition of Wicca. Wicca is a Neo-Pagan (also spelled "Neopagan" and sometimes simply refered to as "Pagan") religion. Most Wiccans can be described as duotheistic, or polytheistic. We believe in two deities with many manifestations, or in many deities. Wicca is also described as an initiatory mystery religion. Since Wicca is an experiential religion, it has often been said that Wicca is not a religion of dogma. There is no statement of faith which is learned by rote memorization. Wicca does not have catechism. To walk the spiritual path of Wicca, you have to experience it by practicing it.
Gardnerian Wicca is a Tradition (aka Trad)2 in the Neo-Pagan religion of Wicca, whose members can trace initiatory descent from Gerald Gardner (1884–1964). The name of this Wiccan Tradition was derived from Gardner’s name, although Gardner, himself, initially used other terms, such as “the witch cult," “the Old Religion," "witchcraft," “the Brethren,” “witches,” "Wica" to describe this religion and its adherents. Gardner wrote in The Meaning of Witchcraft (1959), “It is a curious fact that when the witches became English-speaking they adopted their Saxon name ‘Wica.’”
The word Wica is connected to the Anglo-Saxon word wicca (masculine)/wicce (feminine), which meant "sorcerer/sorceress," "wizard," "magician," or "witch." Gardner seemed to be fascinated with archaic and unusually spelled words. Aidan Kelly and some others have speculated that Gardner was dyslexic. Other scholars in the Wiccan community disagree. (Personally, I favor the dyslexic theory.) Gardner may have used the spelling of Wica because he was dyslexic or, as a folklorist, he knew spellings often change over time. At some point, some Gardnerians decided to use the proper Anglo-Saxon spellings of Wicca and continued capitalizing to denote the name of their religion. However, some Gardnerians continued to use the spelling, "Wica."
Not all Wiccans, and likewise not all Gardnerian Wiccans, agree on all points of theology--as well as spelling. I am certain that someone will contact me that what Thoron and I have summarized here is inaccurate. This is a highly complex subject. Below is an over-simplified summary.
Very briefly, Wiccan theology focuses on the female and male aspects of divinity known as the Goddess and the God who manifest in the universe. These deities may be identified with the ancient images of Venus of Willendorf and the Dancing Sorcerer of Trois Freres. In Gardnerian Wicca, these two principal deities can be generally referred to as the Lady/gracious Goddess/ Mother Goddess and Lord/powerful God/Horned God. In ritual, Gardnerians use specific names for the Goddess and the God.
The following quote about teachings provided to Janet and Stewart Farrar by Alex Sanders, founder of the Alexandrian Tradition of Wicca, illuminates the Wiccan duotheistic concept. The Farrars were originally third degree initiates in the Alexandrian Trad. (Later, Alex Sanders had a falling out with them.)
Janet and Stewart were originally taught there were only two true deities of witchcraft, Aradia and Karnayna. Aradia is Italio-Etruscan in origin, and Karnayna, often thought by Stewart to be Alex Sanders' mispronunciation of Cernunnos, was in fact an egotistical joke: it was the name given to Alexander the Great by the Carthaginians on his reaching godhood. After moving to Ireland, Janet and Stewart changed the god name to Cernunnos, a more generic term of Gaelic/Latin origin meaning simply "horned god." The dogma of only two true names for the God and Goddess continues today among some hard-liners of Alexandrian and Gardnerian Wicca. On moving to Ireland, Janet and Stewart were faced with the realization that they were surrounded by a country full of its own mythology. Aradia began to take a back seat in their practices as the old Irish gods demanded recognition.Returning to Gerald Gardner, he is often acknowledged as the founder/father of Gardnerian Wicca or the "Grand Old Man of Wicca." Gardner claimed to have learned English “witchcraft” from the “New Forest Coven” whose HPS was “Old Dorothy.” The New Forest Coven initiated him into their ranks in 1939. “Old Dorothy” has been identified as Dorothy Clutterbuck—although which practices he learned from the “New Forest Coven” and whether Dorothy Clutterbuck was the HPS of that coven remain points of ongoing discussion among historians, as well as Gardnerians and other Wiccans.--Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone, Progressive Witchcraft (2004), p. 79
It is commonly known that Gardnerians observe the esbats and sabbats. The standard ritual format includes, preparation, casting the circle, calling the four directional quarters, invoking Godddess and God, simple feast of cakes and ale/wine/juice, thanking Goddess and God, biding farewell to the four directional quarters, erasing the circle, and cleanup.
Gardner eventually formed his own Bricket Wood coven, and in turn initiated a number of “witches,” aka “Witches” or “Wiccans.” This resulted in the founding of more covens and continuing the initiation of more Wiccans into his Tradition. What and how much of the original materials Gardner received from the “New Forest Coven,” then used in the Bricket Wood coven, remains a subject of debate—one we are not going to get into here. According to HPS Doreen Valiente, Gardner told her that he had fleshed out some of the original materials, because they were very fragmentary.
Gardner did indeed borrow from other written sources. Two well known examples follow. He drew on materials in Leland’s Aradia or the Gospel Of Witches (1899). The famous May Day chant is borrowed from Rudyard Kipling's poem, "A Tree Song," in Kipling's book, Puck of Pook's Hill. That Gardner recreated/created Wicca neither invalidates Gardnerian Wicca as a Tradition, nor Wicca as a religion.
Among those initiated was Doreen Valiente, who is credited for re-writing many Wiccan texts. For this reason, Doreen Valiente is often referred to as the "Mother of Modern Witchcraft" or the "Mother of Wicca." Raymond and Rosemary Buckland were initiated by Monique Wilson, with Gardner in attendance. It was Raymond Buckland who brought the practice of Gardnerian Wicca to the USA with Gardner's blessing. Raymond Buckland is often called the "Father of American Witchcraft" or the "Father of American Wicca."
Whether Gardner found some British witches or simply worked with other magical folks to rediscover what was done by earlier practitioners is--as I said--a debate. It is possible Gardner had an epiphany and thus recreated what he thought must surely be the Old Religion, using of pieces he gathered here and there--putting those pieces together like a grand puzzle. Some alternatively still claim that Gardnerian Wicca is a pre-Christian Old Religion, a nature/earth-based or fertility religion that survived the witchcraft persecutions.3
The Wiccan Traditions, which trace initiatory descent from Gardner, include not only Gardnerian Wicca, but likewise certain derived branches, such as Alexandrian Wicca4 or Algard Wicca. In the USA, these Traditions are sometimes referred to as "British Traditional Wicca."5
Proteans trace their Gardnerian lineage specifically through Margot Adler, who initiated Judy Harrow, HPS, Proteus Coven.
Proteans celebrate diversity, as well as creativity in expression. Judy Harrow wrote: “As Witches, we dedicate ourselves to the re-creation of Pagan community and culture, to the service of the Gods, the People and the Earth.” Judy Harrow also explained:
Proteans are geocentric. We are practitioners of Earth religion, nature spirituality. We find primary religious meaning and value within this life, in these bodies, on this Earth, here and now. We perceive Deity as immanent and seek to deepen, clarify and extend our conscious contact with the living spirit of Mother Earth. Because She is now wounded and threatened, we dedicate our energies to defending and healing Her. --Judy Harrow “What is the Protean Tradition?” 1997, 1998 Protean Tradition, accessed 9/16/12.Like most Gardnerian Trads, Proteans practice skyclad. This makes us all equal, having shed the reminders of status that come with clothing. Also, Gardner was a naturist, who believed being nude was good for the health.
Our experiences with Wicca began with the Faery-Elven Trad, which does not have a Gardnerian lineage.
In the early 1980's the terms, "Wicca" and "Witchcraft," were used almost synonymously in the Maryland Neo-Pagan community. "Witchcraft" was spelled with a capital "W" and meant the "Old Religion." Both Witches and Wiccans were followers of the Old Religion of Europe and the British Isles. "Witchcraft" was also referred to as "Neo-Pagan Witchcraft."
The HPS of the Faery-Elven Trad, Tapestry Coven, had studied with, but did not initiate into, an Alexandrian coven in the late 1970's. She worked with another Wiccan for a while and received a "Craft Initiation" from him. As she had read Starhawk's Spiral Dance (1979), she then formed her own coven in the early 1980's using materials from Starhawk, the Farrars, Buckland, Gardner's Witchcraft Today, English and European Fairy lore and Elf lore, lots of singing, music, and drumming, and using Tolkien's Elvish language and Elvish names. It was primarily a celebratory coven and a teaching coven. Since we worked not only with the Goddess and God, but also with faery/elf spirits, Tapestry had a rule that athames could not have iron or steel blades.
The HPS of Tapestry would honestly answer questions about all of her sources. As the practice had mutated quite a bit from what was written in Starhawk's Spiral Dance (1979), she renamed it the "Faery-Elven Trad" in the 1980's. (Other labels used by the HPS included "Elvish-Faery Wicca," "Faerie-Elvish Tradition," and "Faerie-Elvish Witchcraft.") We both find it interesting that by today's standards, Tapestry's Faery-Elven Trad would be considered "Neo-Wicca." Neo-Wicca refers to any Tradition that does not have a "lineage traced back to the New Forest area of England." This definition is a bit vague. Near as I (Myth) can tell, it's intended to differentiate Neo-Wicca from Traditional Wicca.
Therefore, Traditional Wicca is intended to include other British groups who claimed descent from other "witches" in the same area that Gardner supposedly met with when he found those British witches in the "New Forest Coven." I do not know if it means that the Witchcraft Trad descended from Sybil Leek also qualifies as Traditional Wicca. (Sybil Leek also claimed to be active in the New Forest area of England.) Traditional Wicca could also be interpreted to mean just the Trads of Gardnerian, Alexandrian, and Algard.
Returning to Tapestry's Faery-Elven Trad, the HPS ran a very active and long-running coven in the area. In the 1980's, everyone in the Pagan community in our neck of the woods considered Tapestry to be a mainstream Wiccan6 coven, despite the lack of a traceable lineage from England. In the Faery-Elven Tradition, we celebrated the moon circles and the eight seasonal holidays, sabbats. We followed the standard Wiccan ritual format. We held classes and initiates were expected to teach. We held both open (outer court) rituals and closed (inner court initiates only) rituals.
As someone who adores language and etymology, I am aware--as stated earlier--terms change and meanings of terms change. New terms are adopted and sometimes older terms fall out of use. I personally find the term, "Neo-Wicca" a little odd, because the religion of Wicca itself was founded in the mid-20th century and was less than a century old at the time of this writing. As religions go, all of it is quite "Neo."
Nevertheless, "Traditional Wicca" does not seem to include those Trads which sprung up in the 1980's and absorbed various other concepts--such as Robert Graves' idea of the Goddess-in-Triad.7 Other things that were not originally part of Traditional Wicca include embracing the environmental movement and Feminism,8 as well as Jungian archtypes and self initiation.9
We're hoping our perspective of 30 years of practice in two different Wiccan Traditions, as well as in the larger Neo-Pagan community of this region, will provide the reader with helpful insights.
Notes
1 I once had a Neo-Pagan tell me language shouldn't work like that. My response was: "But language does work like that. It's well documented by people who study language that it does work like that. Whether you or I think it should work like that is beside the point." It is for that reason I am attempting to find what people mean when they use the term, "Traditional Wicca."
2 In Wicca, the word Tradition (with a capital "T") has been used to denote sects or denominations. I capitalize it to avoid confusion with other defnitions of tradition. In the community, the word is often shortened to "Trad."
3 The use of the term, "Traditional Wicca," may related to some practitioners belief that at its core Wicca predates Gardner.
4 Many Gardnerians and Alexandrians now acknowledge that Alex Sanders did not receive initiation from his grandmother as he reported in his books. Apparently he had a Gardnerian initiation and many Garnderians, including those of the Protean line, now acknowledge Alexandrians as a branch of Gardnerian Wicca. Not all Gardnerians agree.
5 These terms tend to get a tad confusing at this point, because there are also Traditions in the British Isles who claim they predate Gardner and also claim they do not have innovations applied by Gardner. Sometimes, these people are referred to as practicing "British Tradtional Witchcraft" (BTW). Even more confusing, is that what is called "Traditional Wicca" in the USA is sometimes also referred to as "British Traditional Wicca" (BTW). British Traditional Witchcraft and British Traditional Wicca are not the same thing. When I was in communication with some Wiccans in the UK, I asked them about the term, "British Traditional Wicca" and found out many of them didn't use it and several of them did not like it. Upon further inquiry, I learned they did not use the term, "Traditional Wicca." When I asked them what they would call Trads that had lineages stretching back to the New Forest area of England, I was told, "We just say Gardnerian and Alexandrian."
6 I do not remember where I picked up the term "mainstream Wicca." It is a term I have often used to designate a Trad which uses the standard Wiccan ritual format, celebrates the seasons and the moons as reflections of the Divine and the manifestations of the Goddess/God.
7 Robert Grave's Goddess-in-Triad can be found in the Greek Myths Volumes 1 & 2. He used the terms, "Maiden, Nymph, and Crone" to describe the three types of Goddesses that fulfill the three phases of womanhood. Sundry Goddess worshippers, Neo-Pagans, Feminists, and Wiccans adopted this concept from Graves, but changed the term to "Maiden, Mother, and Crone." Some people who describe themselves as Traditional Wiccan state that this was not part of Traditional Wicca and therefore sets aside those without a lineage as practicing an entirely new form of Wicca. However, Protean Gardnerians have also adopted the concept of the three-fold Goddess as aspects of the Great Goddess. Janet and Stewart Farrar also promoted the three-fold Goddess or triple Goddess concept.
8 It is true that not all Neo-Pagans and Wiccans agree on politics. Why should they? I am amazed that anyone agrees on anything. Nevertheless, we (Thoron and I) don't see anything in the original Gardnerian path that forbids one to embrace either environmentalism or Feminism. One thing that drew us to this path was the reverence for the natural world, animism, and women's rights as part of that religious path. Protean Gardnerians also embrace environmentalism and Feminism.
9 The only problem with those who practice "Tradtional Wicca," insisting "Traditional Wicca" does not include any innovations from the 1980's (environmentalism, Jungian archtypes) is some of these ideas were being picked up and incorporated by some Gardnerians and Alexandrians as well as other Witches/Wiccans in the 1970's.
Copyright 2012, 2015 Myth Woodling
Tradition information: Gardnerian
Gardnerian Wicca and American Folk Magic