Purchase this book at

  

Inside The
Witches' Coven
Exploring Wiccan Rituals

By Michael B. Davie

 

 

 

 
     The chill from a cold hardwood floor is making its way up through the soles of my bare feet as I join a coven of witches to practice witchcraft ceremonies intended to call forth ancient gods.
     All of us are clad only in hooded robes. The room is dark save for the persistent flickering of a small candle. An eerie silence fills the room as I reflect for a moment on how I came to visit this remarkable coven.
I first encountered the Hamilton witches' coven in the early 1990s while attending McMaster University, also in Hamilton.
     The examination of deviant or near deviant behaviour and the application an implications of sociological paradigms concerning this behaviour was the theme of an intriguing assignment I undertook while immersed in a fascinating Sociology course taught by professor Jack Haas.
     The paradigms to be applied to a case study of a deviant or near deviant group included structural functionalism, defined by sociologist Robert Hagedorn as a perspective that primarily "stresses order and stability in society." 1.
     Structural functionalism emphasizes that a society cannot survive unless its members share some common values, attitudes and perceptions; that each part of the society contributes to the whole; that the various parts are integrated with each other and that this interdependence keeps societies relatively stable and functional.
     Another paradigm to be applied was conflict perspective, which, as Hagedorn points out, "emphasizes that societies are always changing, that conflict and dissention are always present in society, that parts of every society contribute to change, and that coercion is always present in society because some people have more power than others. 2.
     The third and final paradigm to be applied in the exercise was that of symbolic interaction, which, as Hagedorn notes "focuses on people and how they create, use and communicate with symbols, especially language." 3.
     I was to apply the three paradigms to explore the coven's problems and gain some insight and understanding regarding its difficulties existing and coping within society.
     Simply put, my task was to observe a coven in action, take notes, and scrutinize their actions during the four month period running from late October 1989 to February 20, 1990, a period that spanned a number of ceremonies and special Wiccan days, weeks and months.
     But I soon found myself being drawn into a larger role than that of a completely detached observer examining Wiccan culture.
     After first researching the subject of Wiccan and Pagan culture, then conducting a series of very detached interviews with each of the four members of the Hamilton coven, I broadened my scope to include a dozen other members of the city's Wiccan community.
     The Hamilton coven that I studied most intently also faced a complexity of problems. These included: alienation from the dominant culture, prejudice, real and/or perceived discrimination, real or perceived persecution by society, societal apprehension, intolerance and suspicion, disorganization and infighting within the Wiccan community in Hamilton.
     The infighting was of a non-violent and subtle, yet no less damaging, form that served to undermine to undermine the credibility of the Wiccan community and its members.
     Without repeating all of the slanderous remarks, sarcastic comments and expressions of disbelief I encountered, let me bluntly state that I found very few witches who held those outside their own coven in high regard.
No sooner would I mention the name of a witch I had interviewed or read about when another witch would dismiss the first as a pretender or novice or flake.
     Most of the witches I encountered suggested other Hamilton area witches outside their own coven were somehow going about witchcraft the wrong way and should not be taken seriously.
     The witches doubted each other's stated credentials and had difficulty in agreeing on who - if anyone - from the local community could be relied on as a truly credible spokesman or expert on The Craft.
     As well, each coven tended to operate in relative isolation from the others. This disorganization within the Pagan community, combined with the verbal backbiting I've mentioned, served to fragment the community into splinter groups, which held each other in somewhat low regard.
     This was a community very much at odds with itself. And it was this community in which I would immerse myself for several months.
     I took on the role of participant-observer, engaging in the Hamilton coven's ceremonies, observances and celebrations.
     In so doing, I gained a fuller understanding of why these very different people came together to embrace an ancient religion that is today far removed from mainstream religions.
     I also acquired a deeper understanding and appreciation of paganism, the art of witchcraft and Wicca as an enduring form of religion.
     For this book, I'll avoid lingering at great length on the application of the three paradigms and how this coven might be construed by each.
     Instead, I'll focus more on my own observations and experiences as I set forth on a journey into the often secret world of Wiccan culture.
     This book contains the details of this journey of discovery.
     It is a journey I wish to share with anyone professing a curiosity towards matters Wiccan. And our journey begins now.
- Michael B. Davie.

Chapter 1:
What is Wicca?

     Wicca is believed by some to be an ancient religion predating Christianity. It's Pagan roots may date back to the Stone Age.
     The earliest versions of Mankind worshipped spirits or gods of earth, wind, fire and water. Paganism - in essence a nature-based religion - has been practiced steadily since prehistoric times. The ancient Romans were Pagans. So were many of the peoples populating our planet then - and now.
     While Paganism embraces a wide array of primitive religions and beliefs, Wicca has is associated with a nature-related religion drawing on powers of gods from Egyptian Greek, Norse and Saxon mythologies.
     Wicca as it is often practiced today tends to draw on diverse elements of its ancient origins and the gods of mythology and combines all of this with New Age teachings and philosophies of 20th century witches.
     By casting woman in the central role of Goddess, Wicca has attracted numerous feminists to its ranks while its loose structure and emphasis on the natural environment have made it an attractive counter-culture magnet for anarchists, back-to-the-land hippies and others who customize it to fit themselves and their own value systems.
     Most followers of Wicca would support the belief of prominent Hamilton-Toronto area witch (not warlock) Charles Arnold who defines the 'craft' as "a nature-oriented fertility religion worshipping the Great Goddess of prehistory and, usually, her male consort, the horned god." 4.
     Arnold further defines a witch as "a member of the Wiccan faith who has been trained and initiated as a priestess or priest of that faith." 5. To place matters in context, Arnold also notes that Pagans or Neo-Pagans constitute an umbrella group under which a wide variety of nature-related religions fall. These religions or belief-systems include Wicca or witchcraft and the Druid religion.
     As Arnold observes, a Pagan is "a believer in any of the nature religions of earth - or a follower of any of traditional Pagan (classical Roman, Greek, Celtic, etc.) beliefs." 6.
     The precise origins of witchcraft are, perhaps not surprisingly, shrouded in the mists of time, as they predate the written word and are not the subject of conscientious record keeping.
     Although there are now many books on witchcraft and Wiccan culture available in the marketplace, all of these books were published in the last century or two.
     The references these books make to the ancient history of Wicca are largely derived from word-of-mouth tellings passed down from one generation to the next.
     Or they may be an interpretation derived from some of the earliest artistic expressions of Mankind, from cave drawings to hieroglyphics to the Writing-On-Stone paintings of Indian tribes in Alberta, all of which would seem to represent the free and honest efforts of Man to understand the world around him.
Such prehistoric origins only lend added mystery to a phenomena long steeped in mystery. Jeffrey Burton Russell, an expert on religions through the ages, notes: "The term witchcraft embraces a wide variety of phenomena. The word witch derives from the Old English noun wicca, 'sorcerer', and the verb wiccan, 'to cast a spell'. The original concept of witchcraft is sorcery, a web of beliefs and practices whose purpose is to manipulate nature for the benefit of the witch." 7.
     Wiccan culture - witchcraft - is indeed the worshipping and manipulation of natural forces. As we'll discover later on in this book, while some societies have long shunned and discredited witchcraft, elements of Wiccan culture are at the heart of virtually every modern society.
Although the many variations of Wicca make it difficult to define as an organized religion, it is precisely this lack of formal organization that gives it much of its enduring appeal. Wicca is not a standard, one-size-fits-all structured religion. It is instead, a very personal and intimate set of chosen beliefs coupled with the adoption of shared values including an appreciation and respect for nature and natural forces.
     Most modern day interpretations of Wicca place a great deal of emphasis on the worship of a Goddess and cast Woman in a central role, which recognizes the nurturing and creative values of the fairer sex. And so, not surprisingly, a great many women have been drawn into the world of Wicca and many hold prominent positions - such as Priestess - in witches' covens.
     Although anyone can call themselves a witch, there are many practicing the Craft (witchcraft) who feel this title can only legitimately be held by people who have been initiated into the Craft by a genuine witch.
     This then raises the question: What is a genuine witch. Some feel it must be someone who has been initiated by a witch whose bloodlines can be traced to someone accused of witchcraft centuries ago. One witch, outside of the subject coven I studied, claimed that her grandmother initiated her and that her grandmother's bloodlines were traceable to an ancient witch. This assertion is greeted with scepticism from other witches who feel such hereditary claims are dubious and irrelevant.
Indeed, many North American witches believe that you can quite legitimately start a coven yourself, from scratch, after reading many books on the subject to become familiar with how it is practiced. Once you've gained an adequate amount of knowledge, you may then initiate and teach others the Craft.
     Many - but not all - covens cast spells and try to manipulate the forces of nature. Others simply worship their chosen set of gods and leave it to the deities to bring about change.
     Regardless of how much - if any - Wiccan values the average person will admit to embracing, there can be no doubt that the ancient spirit of the witch goes to the very core of how we perceive our world. And in many, subtle ways, Wiccan culture continues to help define who and what we are.

4. Charles Arnold, When Halloween Is Spelled 'Samhain' (Toronto: Rags To Witches Vol. 3, 1989) p. 4.
5. IBID p. 4.
6. IBID.
7. Jeffrey B. Russell, The Encyclopaedia Of Religion Vol. 15, (Toronto: MacMillan Publishing Company, 1987) p. 415.