Adherents refer to themselves as practitioners , not believers. A yearly cycle of rituals, known as sabbats, celebrate the beginning and height of each of the four seasons of the Northern Hemisphere. Each ritual encourages participants to celebrate the changes the seasons bring to nature and to reflect on how those changes are mirrored in their own lives. The rituals are constructed to not only celebrate the season but to put the participant in direct contact with the divine.
Most Wiccans practice alone and are free to develop their own unique practice. They are nonetheless in regular contact, networking on the internet and congregating at large gatherings to conduct rituals, learn about magical and spiritual practices from one another, and enter what they see as a magical space where they can more readily encounter and embrace divinity. Although many Wiccans claim to draw inspiration from ancient cultures, such as pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon and Celtic traditions, it can be seen very much as a religion of our times.
As you might be able to conclude from the definition, pagan is an umbrella word that influences or encompasses many other types of spirituality. The word has existed in its modern sense for centuries, and its beliefs have existed for even longer. Today, the neopaganism spiritual movement centers on pre- Christian rituals and traditions, as well as a deep respect for nature.
Neopaganism can be traced back to the s, and versions known today were strongly shaped in the s in the United States, United Kingdom, and Scandinavia as a revival of nature and fertility worship. Followers have a diverse set of beliefs that focus on connection with the natural environment and treating people equally. By definition, wicca is part of the broader category of neopaganism.
Spirituality, nature, and fertility are at the heart of both neopaganism and wicca. Both of these terms have helped move the modern connotation of paganism away from the negative historical Christian connotation of pagans as people who worship false gods. Pagan once primarily referred to people who followed a polytheistic religion—meaning they observed more than one god.
The ancient Romans and Greeks were pagans , for example. The time for that sense of the word has long come and gone, and pagan is no longer primarily used as an insult.
Wiccans embraced and built on the teachings and beliefs of paganism to form their own neopagan set of practices. Witches have been a fixture in the popular imagination for centuries: And from Snow White to The Crucible to Melisandre in Game of Thrones , beauty, sexuality, and the quest for eternal youth have been baked into our perception of witches.
The mainstreaming of mysticism makes sense when you consider how it overlaps with the interests of the millennial women. As Wicker noted, witchcraft is the perfect religion for liberal millennials who are already involved in yoga and meditation, mindfulness, and new-age spirituality. With that foundation, they might show up for pagan holidays or new moon gatherings , or begin to explore the more serious spiritual concepts at the root of these practices.
The numbers on Wicca and Paganism may well undercount the total number of witches. By providing your email, you agree to the Quartz Privacy Policy. Skip to navigation Skip to content. Discover Membership. Editions Quartz. Known as a publicity seeker, he catapulted to fame following an autobiography and a film in , Legend of the Witches. Sanders attracted a younger generation of followers, and the lurid stories about him are considered to have had the effect of popularizing Wicca as an alternate lifestyle in the s.
The s saw the American version of Wicca transform from the magic-based pagan discipline claiming British heritage to a natured-based spiritual movement, with heavy tones of environmentalism and feminism. In turn, this influenced the religion in England. In Wiccan activist Z. Budapest started the Susan B.
Anthony coven, which practiced Dianic Wicca, a form of matriarchal lunar worship. Budapest wrote the Feminist Book of Shadows. In , Wicca was recognized as an official religion in the United States through the court case Dettmer v. In the case, incarcerated Wiccan Herbert Daniel Dettmer was refused ritual objects used for worship. In , a Wiccan student in Texas enlisted the aid of the ACLU after the school board tried to prevent her from wearing Wiccan jewelry and black clothes.
The board reversed its view. In , U. Army Sgt. Patrick D. Stewart became the first Wiccan serving in the U. His family was refused a Wiccan pentacle on his gravestone. As a result of a court case initiated by the Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, Wiccan symbols are now accepted by the Veterans Administration.
The number of practicing Wiccans in the United States has proven difficult to estimate, with sources reporting anywhere from , to three million practitioners.
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