“She is,” the woman repeated.
I reacted with absolute amazement. “Wait a minute!” I said. “I've just stepped off the street from another country, from another tradition. I have never been in an Alexandrian circle in my entire live. I have no idea what you even
do!
I just don't think this is right at all, and anyway, I don't know how you conduct your rituals!” I was babbling by this time.
“Oh, it's all right,” she replied. “It's all in the book, just follow the book!”
“No,” I replied. “I won't do it. I just don't think it's right.” And I began to repeat my arguments. “Here I am, a complete stranger, I just don't think this is right.”
Meanwhile Jane was standing against the wall, bound and blindfolded, awaiting her sublime experience of initiation and hearing this unbelievable exchange. All of a sudden Maxine Sanders appeared, almost out of nowhere. She was dressed in a long white gown; her blond hair flowed down past her waist. She looked even more beautiful than any of the pictures I had seen of her. “What's the matter?” asked Maxine.
“She won't do it,” said the woman in black, pointing at me.
I repeated my arguments to Maxine who told me, “None of the other women have shown up.”
Soon several things became clear. The circle-to-be was Maxine's training coven and, within their tradition, first-degree initiations took place in this training group. The priestess of the training group had apparently left after a tantrum over some minor matter. Jane, myself, and six or seven men remained. Jane, by the way, was still standing bound and blindfolded while this explanation was going on. I still refused. Maxine accepted this and said they would make do without a priestess.
One strange event superseded another. For a few moments after we entered the room where the circle was to be held there didn't seem to be an available priest for this training group either, until Maxine threw a small fit. “What kind of Witches do we have here?” she shouted at the seven men in the room. “Why is it always the same person who volunteers?” Finally, someone put his hand up, and everything could begin.
Finally the circle was cast and the ritual was begun. Maxine Sanders listened from outside, on the other side of the room. Power was raised through dancing and chanting: “Eko, eko Azarak, Eko, eko Zamilak, Eko, eko Karnayna, Eko, eko Aradia.”
The circle was fairly monotonous. The energy level seemed low, as one might imagine after the disputes. Lines were read and chants chanted without much feeling. If I hadn't still been in a state of shock, I would have been slightly bored.
Then Jane was led through the initiation ceremony. She was consecrated in the names of the God and the Goddess of the tradition: Karnayna and Aradia. She was asked if she wanted to go through with it. She did. She was welcomed with the passwords, “Perfect love and perfect trust.” She was ceremonially scourged. She was given an oath. She was anointed with water and wine. She was presented each of the circle tools and welcomed into the coven. The details of this ritual can be found in Stewart Farrar's book.
At the end of the ritual everyone dressed and convened at the local pub, which seemed a much livelier place than the circle. But there was Jane, dressed once more, and her eyes positively glowing in that peculiar and extraordinary way that betokensâas sure as anythingâa powerful experience inside oneself, an experience that may have begun a process of great change in her life.
And so we come to the peculiar fact that even if Sanders's story is bogus, even if there was no priestess to cast the circle, even if all the “traditions” were violated, even if untalented students botched the event, still Jane may have gone through a true rebirth.
Many in the Craft have come to see initiation as an inner process. Leo Martello, writing in the
WICA Newsletter,
notes that whereas European traditions say, “A Witch is born, not made,” Anglo-American covens say, “A Witch is made, not born.” Martello has often observed that a valid initiation depends more on the one receiving it than on the initiator.
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And New York City Craft priest Myrdden wrote:
I don't think that our Goddess would deny worship . . . to someone . . . just because they were not initiated by an initiated witch. . . . Also who can tell whether the “witch” doing the initiating has really been initiated herself? . . . Many of our origins are obscure and documentary evidence . . . is not usually available, . . . [Sometimes it is] extremely difficult to locate someone who will initiate.
Initiation is primarily a method to protect the institution of the Craft from people calling themselves “witches” who are insincere, “evil” or would give the Craft a bad name. But does it really stop anyone from calling himself a witch? No. . . . The mysteries and secrets of the Craft can be discovered independently of the Craft: we do not have the only way. The Gods can be discovered independently of the Craft. . . . The Gods, only, can make a witch; man can only confirm it.
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And Craft priest Phoenix made a similar observation:
I have come across those who have carefully and proudly constructed their own “Traditions,” initiated themselves, and have gone on to keep their secrets and to function with inspiration, sincerity and effectiveness. On the other hand, I think we have all, from time to time, had contact with those who are apparently well able to substantiate a so-called “valid initiation” (in fact, more than likely a dozen initiations, the majority being “honorary” or otherwise non-working and non-learning) but to whom the Wicca means little or no more than a publicity gimmick, or a way of supporting themselves, a power/ego excursion. . . . Who of these, then, is
truly
of the Wicca?
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How do modern Witches define themselves?
Since the Craft is decentralized and each coven is autonomous, no single definition applies to all Wiccans. In the United States most attempts to create a common set of principles and definitions have met with failure, with the exception of adherence to “the Wiccan Rede.” Most of those who join the Wicca do so, in part, because of its implicit autonomyâ“It is religion without the âmiddleman,' ” to repeat the words of one Craft priest. Despite this, there have been several attempts by United States Witches to meet and define this slippery term
Witch.
One early attempt to create an ecumenical definition of modern Wicca that would be acceptable to many traditions began in the fall of 1973 when Llewellyn Publications, the occult publishers, sponsored a meeting of Witches in Minneapolis. Seventy-three Witches from different traditions attended. They formed the Council of American Witches and, during the winter of 1974, began collecting statements of principle from various groups. These were printed in the Council's newsletter,
Touchstone.
Carl Weschcke, publisher of Llewellyn, wrote in
Touchstone
that many Witches felt that a common definition was necessary as a “self-policing” mechanism “to protect ourselves from misunderstanding brought about by those whose personal power trips have exposed all of us to ridicule and injury.”
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It was also felt that a common statement would help dispel the sensationalist image pushed in the media, which continued to link Wicca with satanism.
It turned out that there were many differences among Wiccan groups, a few of them conflicting. Here are some of the answers to the question, “What is a Witch?”
Â
A Witch
above all
worships the Triple Goddess and her Consort, The Horned God, in one form or another. A Witch works Magick within a definite code of ethics. A Witch acknowledges and uses the male-female polarity in his/her rites. A Witch takes
total
responsibility for her actions, herself, and her future.
âNROOGD (New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden Dawn)
Â
Witchcraft is an initiatory mystery religion whose adherents seek, through selfdiscipline, to live a life dedicated to the pursuit and practice of knowledge, wisdom and compassion under the guidance of the Gods.
âCOVEN OF GWYNVYD, St. Louis, Missouri
Â
A Witch is a member of a religion which by its own internal definition is monotheistic. [This definition was obviously in conflict with the others.]
âSCHOOL OF WICCA
Â
Wicca can be defined as a pagan mystery religion with a polarized deity and no personification of evil.
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âLADY CYBELE
Â
Â
Â
Some Witches refused even to take part in this process of defining the Craft, feeling that a common statement of principles implied an unacceptable degree of centralization. One Witch wrote to
Touchstone:
In the early days of the Church, we of the Wicca were persecuted for not joining with the common belief of the church fathers because we refused to join, be baptized or pay our tithes to their God. We were tortured, burned, hanged and placed in vats of ground glass. We preferred to live simply, worshipping our old Gods of Harvest, and doing as we had for years before, and as our fathers had done. . . .
The Church sent in spies who reported on us into our worship circles, and those of us who were caught were humiliated and killed because we were as we were . . . and of course the Church wanted the money and wanted to oppress the people.
Now it seems to us old Wicca that that is what you younger's are doing . . . oppressing us, trying to force us to join in an organization, and criticizing us for wanting our freedom and our belief in freedom. . . .
Let us not quarrel among ourselves. Leave us be and we shall do the same for you. Worship as you see best and allow us also the same right. This is the true Wicca way . . . and the free way.
âFrom an anonymous Witch (because it is my right to be so)
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Other conflicts arose between people bound by strict oaths of secrecy and others who wished to share their information openly. Some felt that little should be “secret” except for the names used for deities and initiation rituals, so that their psychological impact would not be lost. Another problem was “validity.” Many felt that initiation was an internal process and that one could receive a valid initiation in a dream or vision, or even at the hands of frauds. Others felt that only certain traditions were “valid.”
The groups were closest on ethics. All agreed with the basic Wiccan Creedâ“An ye harm none, do what ye will.” Most affirmed Aleister Crowley's famous statement: “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love under will.” Most agreed that it was unethical to “forcefully violate a person's autonomy.” Most affirmed the divinity of all living beings. NROOGD's statement was the strongest.
An it harm no one, do you as you will.
You may not alter another's life/karma without his permission.
Solve the problem, no more, no less. All power comes from the Goddess.
You must help your brothers and sisters in the Craft as best you can.
If you stick your hand in a flame, you'll get burned.
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The Council of American Witches, meeting April 11â14, 1974, in Minneapolis, finally did hammer out a statement of principles:
PRINCIPLES OF WICCAN BELIEF
The Council of American Witches finds it necessary to define modern Witchcraft in terms of the American experience and needs.
We are not bound by traditions from other times and other cultures, and owe no allegiance to any person or power greater than the Divinity manifest through our own being.
As American Witches we welcome and respect all Life Affirming teachings and traditions, and seek to learn from all and to share our learning within our Council.
It is in this spirit of welcome and cooperation that we adopt these few principles of Wiccan belief. In seeking to be inclusive, we do not wish to open ourselves to the destruction of our group by those on self-serving power trips, or to philosophies and practices contradictory to those principles. In seeking to exclude those whose ways are contradictory to ours, we do not want to deny participation with us to any who are sincerely interested in our knowledge and beliefs, regardless of race, color, sex, age, national or cultural origins or sexual preference.
1. We practice Rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the Phases of the Moon and the Seasonal Quarters and Cross Quarters.
2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility toward our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in ecological balance offering fulfillment to life and consciousness within an evolutionary concept.
3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than that apparent to the average person. Because it is far greater than ordinary, it is sometimes called “supernatural,” but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all.
4. We conceive of the Creative Power in the Universe as manifesting through polarityâas masculine and feminineâand that this same Creative Power lives in all people, and functions through the interaction of the masculine and feminine. We value neither above the other, knowing each to be supporting of the other. We value Sex as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of life, and as one of the sources of energies used in magical practice and religious worship.
5. We recognize both other worlds and inner, or psychological, worldsâsometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconscious, the Inner Planes, etc.âand we see in the interaction of these two dimensions the basis for paranormal phenomena and magical exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other, seeing both as necessary for our fulfillment.
6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who teach, respect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom, and acknowledge those who have courageously given of themselves in leadership.
7. We see religion, magick, and wisdom-in-living as being united in the way one views the world and lives within itâa worldview and philosophy-of-life which we identify as Witchcraft, the Wiccan Way.
8. Calling oneself “Witch” does not make a witchâbut neither does heredity itself, or the collecting of titles, degrees and initiations. A Witch seeks to control the forces within him/herself that make life possible in order to live wisely and well, without harm to others, and in harmony with Nature.
9. We acknowledge that it is the affirmation and fulfillment of life, in a continuation of evolution and development of consciousness, that gives meaning to the Universe we know, and to our personal role within it.
10. Our only animosity toward Christianity, or toward any other religion or philosophy-of-life, is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be “the only way” and have sought to deny freedom to others and to suppress other ways of religious practice and belief.
11. As American Witches, we are not threatened by debates on the history of the Craft, the origins of various aspects of different traditions. We are concerned with our present, and our future.
12. We do not accept the concept of “absolute evil,” nor do we worship any entity known as “Satan” or “The Devil” as defined by the Christian tradition. We do not seek power through the suffering of others, nor do we accept the concept that personal benefit can only be derived by denial to another.
13. We acknowledge that we seek within Nature for that which is contributory to our health and well-being.
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