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Types of Paganism: Pagan Denominations and Pagan Organisations

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Below are some short introductions. Click on the blue hyperlinked word to get more related articles.


American Traditional Wicca- The groups that have no initiatory connection to Gardner or Sanders, but who have based their rituals and practices on what has been published about the Gardnerian and Alexandrian Traditions; they therefore follow a Wiccan practice based upon Gardnerian or Alexandrian without having initiatory lineage.

These groups are also sometimes described as British Traditional Wicca, although this usage is generally found only in the U.S., and that term is rarely used that way by British Traditional Wiccans who regard descent, whether by birth, or by Initiation or Initiatory adoption, as essential to being "of the Blood", and therefore to being "of the Wicca". Again British Traditional Wiccans would not identify this group as Wiccan and would refer to them as American Traditional Witchcraft.

Book Of Shadows- BOOK OF SHADOWS: (
1) a compendium of Witch rituals, spells, training techniques, procedures, guidelines, and other materials important to a Witch and, or coven. There are many types of these books in existence, a large number of them have been published even though most witches consider the contents a secret. (
2) a Wiccan book of rituals, spells and other magickal lore. Best when handwritten. This is a very personal item, some say it should be destroyed at the ''passing over'' of its owner, preferably by their Coven or Circle members. (
3)Traditionally hand copied book of rituals, recipes, training techniques, guidelines, and other materials deemed important to a Witch or a coven. Each tradition has it''s own standard version of the Book and each Witch''s book will be different as he or she adds to it with time from many different sources. Only another Witch can see your book of shadows. Also, traditionally, it may never leave your hands or possession until death, when it should be destroyed, or (in some traditions) returned to the coven to be disposed of.

British Traditional Wicca- The groups of Wiccan Traditions that trace their lineage to Gerald Gardner, and/or to Alex and Maxine Sanders. Some British Traditional Wiccans practice the arts of Traditional Witchcraft from ancestors in ancient Europe, that have been preserved and passed on by the Ordo Anno Mundi, a magical order of Initiates dedicated to the training of its members in the arcane sciences of nature.

British Traditional Wiccans experience the same Mysteries, using substantially the same rituals and techniques. Variations may exist between individual Covens, Lineages and Traditions but it is the same Initiatory Mystery Path. The British Traditional groups view Wicca as an Initiatory, Oathbound, Magick-using, Pagan Mystery Priesthood celebrating the Mysteries contained in the Legend of the Descent of the Goddess and in the Charge of the Goddess.

British Traditional Wicca- The groups of Wiccan Traditions who can trace their lineage to Gerald Gardner, and/or to Alex and Maxine Sanders.

Some British Traditional Wiccans practice the arts of Traditional Witchcraft from ancestors in ancient Europe, that have been preserved and passed on by the Ordo Anno Mundi, a magical order of Initiates dedicated to the training of its members in the arcane sciences of nature.

British Traditional Wiccans experience the same Mysteries, using substantially the same rituals and techniques. Variations may exist between individual Covens, Lineages and Traditions but it is the same Initiatory Mystery Path. The British Traditional groups view Wicca as an Initiatory, Oathbound, Magick-using, Pagan Mystery Priesthood celebrating the Mysteries contained in the Legend of the Descent of the Goddess and in the Charge of the Goddess.

Council Of American Witches- The Council of American Witches finds it necessary to define modern Witchcraft in terms of the American experience & needs.

We are not bound by traditions from other times & other cultures, & owe no allegiance to any person or power greater than the Divinity manifest through our own being.

As American Witches, we welcome & respect all life-affirming teachings & traditions, & seek to learn from all & to share our learning within our Council.

It is in this spirit of welcome & 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 & practices contradictory to these 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 & beliefs, regardless of race, color, sex, age, national or cultural origins, or sexual preference.

We therefore ask only that those who seek to identify with us accept these few basic principles

Fairy- (1) Any of several traditions of Mesopagan and/or Neopagan Witchcraft started by the blind poet and scoundrel guru Victor Anderson since the 1970s, mixing British and Celtic folklore about the fairies, Gardnerianism, Voodoo, Hawaiian Huna (itself a Mesopagan invention of Max Freedom Long), Tantra, Gypsy magic, Native American beliefs, and anything else he was thinking about at the time he was training the founders of each trad.
(2) Varieties of Neopagan Witchcraft focused around homosexual or bisexual images and magical techniques rather than the heterosexual (and often homophobic) ones used in most Wiccan traditions.
(3) Other sects of Neopagan Witchcraft focused around real or made-up fairy lore, often taken from romantic poems, plays, and novels about the fairies. In most of these traditions, there is usually an assumption that the ancient associations between fairies and witches were true, and that the fairies were originally the Paleopagan nature spirits and/or deities.

Gardnerian Tradition- GARDNERIAN TRADITION: a Wiccan tradition originated in the 40''s and 50''s by Gerald Gardner with the help of Doreen Valiente and others; This tradition is Celtic in origin, encompassing rituals as practiced in the south of England. It incorporates within its rituals and philosophy, certain ideas first published by Charles Leland (Aradia - Gospel of the Witches). It also refers to one who traces linage directly back to Gerald Gardner and one of his High Priestesses in an unbroken line. There are three known fully recognized Gardnerian lineages in the United States. In the U.S., The Long Island Line, The Kentucky Line and the Donna Cole Line are most prominent. A fourth line, the emerging California Line, is an offshoot of the Long Island Line. Gardnerians in the United States tend to be highly attentive to lineage and its traceability. Some Gardnerian Witches will not recognize the initiation of another if the initiation was through a male.

Gardnerian Wicca- A Wiccan tradition founded by Gerald Gardner, and the first denomination of Wicca to make itself known publicly. It is disputed to be the original form of Wicca versus Alexandrian Wiccan. Gardner claimed to have been initiated into a surviving Coven of Traditional Witches in the New Forest by "Old Dorothy" Clutterbuck in 1939. Gardner was accused of inventing the whole concept of Wicca and of getting Aleister Crowley to write its rituals although the Gardnerian Book of Shadows is a compilation from various sources, much of it actually contributed by Doreen Valiente.

The Gardnerian tradition places emphasis on the Goddess over the God, has a degree system of advancement and does not allow for self-initiation. Covens work skyclad and aim to equal numbers of male and female, paired. Covens are autonomous and are found in most countries around the world.

Gardnerian Wiccans are considered to be Traditional Witches who trace their line of initiatory descent from Dorothy Clutterbuck through Gerald Gardner and through a line of Gardnerian High Priests and High Priestesses. The adhere to the rituals laid out in the Gardnerian Book of Shadows.

Gardnerian Wicca- Founded by Gerald Gardner, this was the first denomination of the Craft to make itself known publicly. Because of that, many people think that it is the only "true" Wicca. Gardner claimed to have been initiated into a surviving Coven of Traditional Witches in the New Forest by "Old Dorothy" Clutterbuck in 1939; which makes Gardnerian Wicca a branch of Traditional Witchcraft.

For many years Gardner was accused of inventing the whole concept of Wicca and of getting Aleister Crowley to write its rituals. Today he has been pretty well cleared of both these charges. The Gardnerian Book of Shadows can now be seen as a compilation from various sources, much of it actually contributed by Doreen Valiente.

The Gardnerian tradition places emphasis on the Goddess over the God, with the female generally lauded over the male. It has a degree system of advancement and does not allow for self-initiation. Covens work skyclad and aim to have "perfect couples" - equal numbers of male and female, paired. Covens are, theoretically at least, autonomous. Gardnerian Wicca is found in most countries around the world. Gardnerian Wiccans are considered to be Traditional Witches who trace their line of initiatory descent from Gerald Gardner, through a line of Gardnerian High Priests and High Priestesses, according to the Gardnerian Book of Shadows, and who practice the Gardnerian Tradition of Wicca.

Gematria- Of all the ancient magickal languages, the mysticism surrounding biblical Hebrew is the best known in the West. The body of esoteric teachings concerning the Hebrew language is known as the Qabalah (meaning that knowledge which can only be imparted orally in secret, handed down from one generation to the next). In modern occultism, the term Qabalah, which originally meant Hebraic secret wisdom, has now come to mean any secret, esoteric system of thought which uses alphabet letter, color, symbol, sound, and number as the basic building blocks of its philosophical system. Thus modern writers will refer to a "Greek" Qabalah, a "Celtic" Qabalah, or even a "Wiccan" Qabalah.

The traditional Qabalistic science from which modern numerology has evolved is called gematria. Gematria is the art of substituting a number value for any given word in Hebrew and finding a corresponding meaning in any other word equal to that specific number value. Gematria is a Rabbinical Hebrew term derived from Greek roots. It is a combination of gramma (letter) and metria (measure), to denote the measurement (or counting) of the letters composing any word, just as geometry is the measure (metria) of earth (geo).

Gerald B Gardner- (1884-1964) An amateur English anthropologist and folklorist whom many consider the person most responsible for the revival of witchcraft as a Neo-Pagan religion.

After his retirement in 1936, Gardner moved to the New Forest area of England, where he became involved in an occult society, The Fellowship of Crotona. There, he said, he met a more secret group that claimed to be hereditary witches and after the last witchcraft acts were repealed in Britain in 1951, Gardner founded his own coven.

Gardnerian Wicca, one of the most important traditions of Neo-Pagan Witchcraft, which many modern Wicca groups have unknowingly assimilated, includes the Goddess as the preeminent deity, the circle as a place to contain magical energy, ritual work done in small intimate groups, and the idea that the priestess of the coven becomes the Goddess through a ceremony known as "drawing down the moon. "

Mesopaganism- A general term for a variety of movements both organized and nonorganized, started as attempts to recreate, revive or continue what their founders thought were the best aspects of the Paleopagan ways of their ancestors (or predecessors), but which were heavily influenced (accidentally, deliberately and/or involuntarily) by concepts and practices from the monotheistic, dualistic, or nontheistic worldviews of Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, or early Buddhism.

Examples of Mesopagan belief systems would include Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, Theosophy, Spiritualism, etc., as well as those forms of Druidism influenced by those movements, the many Afro-Diasporatic faiths (such as Voudoun, Santeria, Candomble, etc.), Sikhism, several sects of Hinduism that have been influenced by Islam and Christianity, Mahayana Buddhism, Aleister Crowley’s religion/philosophy of Thelema, Odinism (most Norse Paganism), most “Family Traditions” of Witchcraft (those that aren’t completely fake), and most orthodox (aka “British Traditionalist”) denominations of Wicca.

Some Mesopagan belief systems may be racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. There are at least a billion Mesopagans living and worshiping their deities today.

See Paleopaganism and Neopaganism.

Neopaganism- A general term for a variety of movements both organized and (usually) nonorganized, started since 1960 c.e. or so (though they had literary roots going back to the mid-1800’s), as attempts to recreate, revive or continue what their founders thought were the best aspects of the Paleopagan ways of their ancestors (or predecessors), blended with modern humanistic, pluralist and inclusionary ideals, while consciously striving to eliminate as much as possible of the traditional Western monotheism, dualism, and puritanism.

The core Neopagan beliefs include a multiplicity of deities of all genders, a perception of those deities as both immanent and transcendent, a commitment to environmental awareness, and a willingness to perform magical as well as spiritual rituals to help both ourselves and others.

Examples of Neopaganism would include the Church of All Worlds, most heterodox Wiccan traditions, Druidism as practiced by Ár nDraíocht Féin and the Henge of Keltria, some Norse Paganism, and some modern forms of Buddhism whose members refer to themselves as “Buddheo-Pagans.” Neopagan belief systems are not racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. There are hundreds of thousands of Neopagans living and worshiping their deities today. As “Neo-Paganism,” this term was popularized in the 1960’s and 1970’s by Oberon Zell, a founder of the Church of All Worlds.

Priest- A male dedicated to both the service of his chosen deity(ies) and humankind. a High Priest is the male leader of a coven or Wiccan organization and plays the role of the God in certain ceremonies. He is usually chosen by the High Priestess. Although it is true neither male nor female has dominion over the other in the Craft, the High Priestess has the last word, for Her word is Law. The High Priest and High Priestess in a coven environment should work as a balanced team. On occasion they draw the energy of the God and Goddess respective to their sex in order to further a positive magickal working or celebrate a holiday/ These people must be skilled in magick and ceremony, but they also need maturity, wisdom and a great deal of humility. They are required to be diplomatic and merciful when the situation demands. Their job is not an easy one. You will hear reference to the Great Rite, wherein the High Priest and High Priestess magically draw the energy of the God and Goddess through sexual interaction, either simulated or real. However, if intercourse actually takes place, it is almost always done in privacy, out of sight of the other coven members. In the 1970s sexual intercourse among coven members was prominent in some traditions. In the 1990s with the threat of the AIDS virus and society''s shift to more conservative views on sexuality, actual intercourse is not as widely practiced. Sex magick is NOT a requirement for any individual to practice Witchcraft.

Runes- Symbols of ancient Norse and Germanic alphabets the symbols of which were ascribed magical properties and used mainly for charms and inscriptions, on stone, wood, metal, or bone. Perhaps derived ultimately from the Etruscan alphabet, the runic alphabet was spread throughout Europe, Russia and Britain by Viking invaders, and Rune usage was at its height during the Dark Ages.

There were several different systems of runes. In Britain the earliest alphabet had 24 letters divided into three groups of eight. The groups were named after Norse deities: Freya, Hagal, and Tiu.

The use of runes had died out by the fifteenth century as the Roman Catholic Church eclipsed paganism. In the late nineteenth century German occultists revived interest in runes, which became associated with Teutonic racial superiority. The Nazi swastika is the runic symbol for Thor''s hammer, also symbol of the Earth Mother, and the runic S symbol was used by the SS, the Nazi secret police.

There are many types of runes, alphabets of Anglo-Saxons, and Norse, and modern Wiccan runes, are just a few. To "read" the runes, they are usually tossed randomly after deciding a subject, and then deciphered based on their positioning

Wicca- WICCA:
1) The contemporary pagan religeon predating Christianity. Expresses reverence for Nature, viewing Diety in all natural things; uses magick; worship is of God (Lord) and Goddess (Lady). A follower of Wicca, is a Wiccan.
2) Meaning: wise ones, and, or to turn, bend & shape. Wicca is often termed the ''new name'' for Witches, and there seems to be some argument as to its proper use.
3) "A religion of experience rather than dogma."
4) from an old Anglo-Saxon word Wiccae, a masculine noun meaning "wizard"; the feminine form of the word is Wicce.
4) the British Traditional family of Witchcraft religions derived from Gerald Gardner''s tradition.
5) any of the modern eclectic Witchcraft traditions obviously related to the Witchcraft described by Gerald Gardner in his published books.
6) a Word which has come to mean Witch or Magick worker.
7) the Shamans or "Medicine Men" of the Celtic Tribe or the "Witches" of the village. This was the Herb Woman or Cunning Man of the English community of medieval times. NOTE: Anglo-Saxon, wicca is masculine & wicce, feminine; and means a person who Divines information. Old English, wicce & Saxon, wych; means ''to turn, bend, and shape''. Indo-European root word of ''wic'' & ''weik''; also means ''to bend or shape''. Germanic ''wit'', means knowledge, or to know. Including ''witch'' as one of its derivatives.

Witches Sabbath- Witches'' Sabbath [from Anglo-Saxon wicca from wit-ga seer, prophet; later, wizard, witch]

A gathering of witches for the purpose of celebrating their orgies, one of the functions of which was dancing around a goat, undoubtedly a remnant of the ancient worship of Pan. Every race and people believed that witches conferred directly with the devil, "and some believe in it still. Thus the chief headquarters and place of meeting of all the witches in Russian is said to be the Bald Mountains (Lyssaya Gora), near Kief, and in Germany the Brocken, in the Harz Mountains. In old Boston, U. S. A., they met near the ''Devil''s Pond,'' in a large forest which has now disappeared. At Salem, they were put to death almost at the will of the Church Elders, and in South Carolina a witch was burnt as late as 1865. In Germany and England they were murdered by Church and State in thousands, being forced to lie and confess under torture their participation in the ''Witches'' Sabbath'' " (TG 371).

One of the mystical and popular meanings in medieval times of the Hebrew sabbath -- signifying rest, inactivity, and therefore applicable in the cosmic scale to pralaya -- is a midnight meeting.