Wicca and Gerald Gardner
Various Wiccan lineages or 'traditions' have since branched out of that popularised by Gardner, which came to be called Gardnerian Wicca. Each lineage has distinctive beliefs, rituals, and practices, and most remain secretive and require that members be initiated. Other traditions have also formed independently of Gardnerian lineage, including a growing movement of Eclectic Wiccans who do not believe that any doctrine or traditional initiation is necessary in order to practice Wicca.[3]
The term 'Wicca' has somewhat different usage between Britain and North America. In Britain 'Wicca' has traditionally referred only to initiatory witchcraft in the lineage of Gerald Gardner and the New Forest coven (e.g. Gardnerian and Alexandrian Wicca), sometimes referred to as British Traditional Wicca in North America. In North America the term 'Wicca' has become more inclusive and encompasses a number of traditions inspired by but independent of that lineage
Wicca is a pagan religion with distinctive ritual forms, seasonal observances and religious, magical[5] and ethical precepts. Other forms of witchcraft exist within many cultures, with widely varying practices. Many Wiccans call themselves Pagans, though the umbrella term Paganism encompasses many faiths that have nothing to do with Wicca or witchcraft. Wicca has also been described as a Neopagan or a Mesopagan path.[6] Because there is no...
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