Brief history and Demographic information: The history of modern-day Wicca starts out as a religious movement the happen around the mid-twentieth century in England, soon then expanded into the rest of Europe and North America. Though recently new, Wicca has some traditions, practices, and beliefs that originated thousands of years ago. According to Cantrell, Wicca is “a religion rooted in the mists of Neolithic history… it is basically a fertility and agrarian society. It is a religion of nature worship and the subsequent interaction with nature that is dissented from that practice by the Celtic clans of Western Europe and the indigenous peoples of the British Isles, the builders of such monuments as Stonehenge” (16-17). Wicca expanded thanks
…show more content…
Quest for the sacred: Wiccans tend to engage with numinous objects, mostly nature, acknowledging them as divine, or mana-filled. The sacred nature, or object, can act as a connection to a greater being or divine experience. The process of the connection can be called “mysterium tremendum”, named by Rudolf Otto in 1917, which is an awe-filled and indescribable sensation that occurs when one finds the divine (Wilson 133). Wiccans, or Pagans, also use altars, rituals, and other tools to connect with the sacred; these practices do not have to be affected with worship. This experience allows Wiccans to see the ultimate reality; the universal one …show more content…
Doreen Valiente was a member of an early Wicca movement, led by Gerald Gardner. Valiente was also one of the most influential writers in the Wicca movement; sometimes was referred to as the “Mother of Modern Witchcraft”. She and Gardner wrote many of the Wicca rituals and other publications that helped shape modern witchcraft and Wicca; however, she was shunned publicity for shining light on the movement, to which many believe that some parts of the coven should stay hidden from outsiders. At a young age, Valiente was convinced that she had the power to use magic; claims that she experienced her first spiritual experience while gazing at the moon and, at the age of thirteen, began to experiment with simple magic. As she became more aware of her own magic abilities she began to read and study occult material, including the works of Charles Godfrey Leland, Aleister Crowley, and Margaret Murray; whom she particularly admired (Mastin, “Famous Witches - Doreen Valiente”). In 1952, after the repeal of witchcraft laws, Valiente joins High Priestess, Dafo, and Gardner’s coven; Valiente’s new craft name is Ameth. Valiente then helps Gardner formulate the Wiccan Rede, which was credited with a stronger emphasis on Goddess worship, and thus transform the craft, or Wicca, into an official religion. Unfortunately, in 1957, Valiente and others left Gardner’s coven, due to his relentless need for publicity; Valiente set up her
Quest for the sacred: Wiccans tend to engage with numinous objects, mostly nature, acknowledging them as divine, or mana-filled. The sacred nature, or object, can act as a connection to a greater being or divine experience. The process of the connection can be called “mysterium tremendum”, named by Rudolf Otto in 1917, which is an awe-filled and indescribable sensation that occurs when one finds the divine (Wilson 133). Wiccans, or Pagans, also use altars, rituals, and other tools to connect with the sacred; these practices do not have to be affected with worship. This experience allows Wiccans to see the ultimate reality; the universal one …show more content…
Doreen Valiente was a member of an early Wicca movement, led by Gerald Gardner. Valiente was also one of the most influential writers in the Wicca movement; sometimes was referred to as the “Mother of Modern Witchcraft”. She and Gardner wrote many of the Wicca rituals and other publications that helped shape modern witchcraft and Wicca; however, she was shunned publicity for shining light on the movement, to which many believe that some parts of the coven should stay hidden from outsiders. At a young age, Valiente was convinced that she had the power to use magic; claims that she experienced her first spiritual experience while gazing at the moon and, at the age of thirteen, began to experiment with simple magic. As she became more aware of her own magic abilities she began to read and study occult material, including the works of Charles Godfrey Leland, Aleister Crowley, and Margaret Murray; whom she particularly admired (Mastin, “Famous Witches - Doreen Valiente”). In 1952, after the repeal of witchcraft laws, Valiente joins High Priestess, Dafo, and Gardner’s coven; Valiente’s new craft name is Ameth. Valiente then helps Gardner formulate the Wiccan Rede, which was credited with a stronger emphasis on Goddess worship, and thus transform the craft, or Wicca, into an official religion. Unfortunately, in 1957, Valiente and others left Gardner’s coven, due to his relentless need for publicity; Valiente set up her