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There are two separate definitions of the term Wicca that have been used in Paganism and Pagan studies since circa 1980. [1] The first developed in England during the 1960s. Broad and inclusive, it covers most, if not all, forms of modern Pagan Witchcraft, especially if they share sufficient theological beliefs and ritual practices to be considered denominations within a common religious movement.
Historian, religious scholar, and ethnologist A. V. Gurko believed that the concept of "neo-paganism" "can be defined from the term 'paganism,' which refers to heterogeneous polytheistic religions, cults, beliefs, and the definition of new religious movements characterized by syncretism, active use of mass media, communications, apocalypticism ...
Wicca (English: / ˈ w ɪ k ə /), also known as "The Craft", [1] is a modern pagan, syncretic, earth-centered religion.Considered a new religious movement by scholars of religion, the path evolved from Western esotericism, developed in England during the first half of the 20th century, and was introduced to the public in 1954 by Gerald Gardner, a retired British civil servant.
Included in these publications are several Germanic pagan symbols that have been used by Nazi and neo-Nazi groups, but have also always been used by non-racist pagan religions. The ADL emphasises that these symbols are not necessarily racist and has amended its publications to categorise these symbols as "pagan symbols co-opted by extremists". [66]
The Wiccan Rede / ˈ r iː d / is a statement that provides the key moral system in the new religious movement of Wicca and certain other related witchcraft-based faiths.A common form of the Rede is "An ye harm none, do what ye will" which was taken from a longer poem also titled the Wiccan Rede.
The 2014 Pew Research Center's Religious Landscapes Survey included a subset of the New Age Spiritual Movement called "Pagan or Wiccan," reflecting that 3/4 of individuals identifying as New Age also identified as Pagan or Wiccan and placing Wiccans and Pagans at 0.3% of the total U.S. population or approximately 956,000 people of just over ...
A second, less common definition found within pagan studies – promoted by the religious studies scholars Michael F. Strmiska and Graham Harvey – characterises modern paganism as a single religion, of which groups like Wicca, Druidry, and Heathenry are denominations. [10]
Gardnerian Wicca, or Gardnerian witchcraft, is a tradition in the neopagan religion of Wicca, whose members can trace initiatory descent from Gerald Gardner. [1] The tradition is itself named after Gardner (1884–1964), a British civil servant and amateur scholar of magic .