Traditional Wicca - Seeking, Initiations and Priesthood

[scorplett]

I thought I would introduce a thread that, rather than outlining what Wicca is and what it is not (that is well covered in other threads), is directed more at how to go about seeking Wicca, how to find out more, or more simply put: being a seeker.
For the most part however, seeking is with one primary goal. Figuring out if Wicca is for you. This involves finding a coven to train with, usually with the goal of taking initiation. How does this process work, what can someone expect, what are the pitfalls and most of all, how to progress towards initiation and achieving the very nebulous concept of proper personhood.
One thing that constantly arises with regard to seeking, training and initiation, is the concept of priesthood. What does that mean? Why would you want to be a member of a priesthood?
There are many questions and many ways.
Over the next while I hope to shed a little light on this often confusing process in the hope that those who are seeking can do so with a little more clarity and focus. There will I am sure be some degree of crossover with other threads but that is to be expected, however I would try to keep this thread to the seeking, evaluation and training processes that are most frequently used in Wicca.

In no particular order I will hope to cover the following topics:

*A little about me, my tradition, being a HPS, coven leader & elder and the roles and responsibilities therein.

*Traditions. What are the various traditions of Traditional Wicca

*Finding out about Wicca- learning resources and reading

*Becoming a seeker

*Finding a group that fits

*Developing personal practice

*Seeking training from a group/coven

*The evaluation process

*Proper person-hood

*Risking Dedication

*The training process

*Properly Prepared

*Initiation into the Priesthood of the Wica

If there are questions, post them and I'll do my best to answer. If there are topics or subjects you would like me to cover, I'll see what I can do...
Please remember that following any informatoin provided will not make you Wiccan. It may however help you figure what you might expect if you do choose to become a seeker and prepare you for that seeking.  

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A little about me, my tradition, being a HPS, coven leader & elder and the roles and responsibilities therein.

I am a 3rd Degree High Priestess and Elder of the Alexandrian Tradition of Wicca. I run a coven in Ireland with my High Priest, who is also my initiator. I hold a dual lineage, one directly through my initiator to a HPS of Alex Sanders and the other via two branches from Stuart Fararr. The Alexandrian Tradition of Wicca is considered to have the largest number of initiates and as such is often the most commonly found.

Alexandrian Wicca is one of the British Traditional Witchcraft Traditions - a group of related religious traditions that share a common initiatory history tracing back to Gerald Gardner, one of the first people to start writing about Witchcraft as the Mystery Religion that it is - basing his writings on the teachings he had received as an Initiate of a coven in the New Forest in the 1940's.
The Alexandrian line itself has grown from the work of Alex Sanders since the 1960's - and all those within the line trace a direct Initiatory lineage to him and his covens.
Alex himself claimed to have been initiated into the Craft as a teen by his Grandmother, the substance of this claim is unprovable and largely unimportant, it seems to have been quite popular to have a "grandmother" story and all the main personalities told such stories. He is believed to have been initiated by a Witch named Medea who was an initiate of Gerald Gardner. There is also evidence to the effect that he received initiations from Pat Kopanski and Patricia Crowther, both Gardnerian initiates. He developed his broad knowledge and practice in areas such as the Qabalah, Egyptian Lore and the Magick of Abramelin. In 1965 he was proclaimed "King of the Witches" in a Traditional ceremony attended by 12 Witch Queens from all over the Country. In the same year he was handfasted to Maxine - his Wife and High Priestess for many years.
There is a common misconception that the Alexandrian Tradition takes it's name from Alex Sanders himself. This however is not the case: the name Alexandrian is in fact was first used as a derogatory comment that was then taken by initiates of Alex in defiance and interpreted to refer to the legendary Library of Alexandria - which was founded by Alexander the Great to collect, share and advance all knowledge; it was sadly destroyed in the 2nd Century, and rebuilt by the Shining Ones on the other side of the Veil - it is now said to house the Akashic records, and can be rediscovered on the 30th path of the Tree of Life.
In naming our Tradition after the great Library, Sanders hoped that his Craft could be a conduit through which these great ideals of furthering knowledge and understanding could be continued.

As a High Priestess and Elder of this tradition, I have taken oath to defend and protect it. To me, this does not mean keeping it a closed shop where no one but a select few may experience it. However, with that in mind, my oaths also dictate that I ever keep secret the teachings, except to a proper person properly prepared and in such a case to never deny those teachings. It's a constant tight rope walk, balancing what can and cannot be freely shared. For the majority of elders this is safeguarded by providing teachings to initiates alone. However, becoming a dedicant and working towards initiation can be a midfield and so it is with this in mind that I post this pathway's thread.

Within a coven, the High Priestess is considered the first among equals. While all coveners are valued as individuals, all opinons are heard, the final arbitrator of all decisions is the High Priestess. Therefore the ultimate responsibility for the direction and work of a coven rests on the shoulders of the High Priestess. There is a tremendous responsibility with such a role and it is this responsibility that will make many High Priestesses incredibly protective of their coveners making it seem impossible to an outsider to gain acceptance. The role of High Priestess commands many responsibilities. The High Priestess of a Coven leads the coven in all matters, with the assistance and guidance of the High Priest and Elders. She casts the circle or delegates this task and as such is responsibly for the energetic safety of the space and all energetic interactions therein. She delegates duties within the circle and so is responsible for the smooth running of all ceremonies. She conducts ritual and as such is the keeper of tradition and craft knowledge within the coven. She takes on the mantle of the Goddess and is her representative, including allowing her body to be used as a vessel in a trance posession like state. The High Priestess may take on the mantle of the God where she wears the sword. She brings teachings and instruction and oversees all training for the coven. She initiates male candidates for initiation and officiates at the initiation of female witches. The High Priestess designates all other roles to be held within the coven (Maiden, summoner, scribe etc) She is responsible for the setting of the temple and Altar. The High Priestess may call for and hold council within the coven. The High Priestess is responsible for the setting and upholding of rule within the coven and in all decisions the word of the Coven High Priestess is final.
So, having to put that much effort, consideration and energy into doing the job, having such huge responsible, not only for herself and fulfilling her duties, but how the coven's work impacts on it's members, it's not hard to understand why HPS's can and are VERY protective of their coven's and while we do want to welcome and invite in those who are called, we are very weary and at times just down right suspicious of anyone looking to join.
Many covens will have lengthy meet and greet processes, getting to know a person, many will also have 101 classes which lead to outercort. There may be questionaires or pointed questioning to ensure that a candidate is good for the coven and the coven is good for the candidate.
With these processes in mind, and that it is equally important on both the seekers and the HPS's end, to be sure that they are both right for the other, I think it helps to have thought about the various processes that are undertaken as part of the seekers journey.

While this thread is intended to assist the seeking journey with practical information and advice, there is one thing that MUST be understood at all stages of a path towards or within Wicca.
"And thou who thinkest to seek Her, know thy seeking and yearning shall avail thee not unless thou knowest the mystery; that if that which thou seekest thou findest not within thee, then thou wilt never find it without thee."  

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Traditions: What are the various traditions of Traditional Wicca?

There have come to be numerous traditions of Wicca. These traditions do not include "eclectic", "Celtic" or whatever... the following are the only traditions which have a certain and provable claim to being Wicca.

*Gardnerian
*Alexandrian
*Mohsian
*Central Valley (a collective term for the traditions named below)
-Silver Crescent
-Kingstone
-Daoine Coire
-Assembly of Wicca
-Majestic

*Algard (although there do not seem to be any active covens of this trad)
*Protean (A very controverscial lineage amongst "hard gard's")
*BlueStar (the tradition itself is not Wicca, however it's members are initiates of other traditions of Wicca and as such are capable of passing their individual lineage)

Gardnerian
In the 1950's, after England repealed its witchcraft laws, Gerald Gardner went public about his practice of witchcraft. He rewrote the rituals of the coven he belonged to so that they would be more complete as a functional body of ritual work. Gardnerian covens have a degree system in which one learns about the craft.

Alexandrian
Alex Sanders founded this tradition in the 1960's. Much Alexandiran ritual and practice is similar to Gardnerian practices. Some would note that Alexandrians place more emphasis on ceremonial magick, however this is not the case although it could be said to be true that most of the rituals are quite formal and heavily indebted to ceremonial magick. It is also a polarized tradition and the sexuality of that female/male polarity is emphasized. The biggest most obvious difference as far as the seeker is concerned, is that an Alexandrian Coven does not require you to be an initiate to share in ceremony alongside initiates, however in such instances aspects of true core ritual are altered to greater or lesser extents. Training before initiation is a hallmark of Alexandrian Craft, as is experimentation and addition to core. Although similiar to Gardnerian Wicca, Alexandrian Wicca tends to be more eclectic, and liberal. Some of the Gardnerian strict rules, such as skyclad practice, have been made optional by Alexandrian Wicca although in practice the majority of Alexandrian rituals are performed skyclad with the adaptability should need arise, to work robed.

CVW
Central Valley Wicca (abbreviated as CVW) is not a tradition in itself but rather refers to a particular group of traditions within the Neopagan religion of Wicca which trace their roots to a group of Wiccan practitioners who brought their practice from England to the Central Valley of California at some point in the early 1960s.
Central Valley Wicca shares basic beliefs with, and has similar ritual structures and practices to, other forms of British Traditional Wicca as they are practiced in England. They maintain core teachings. However, their interpretation of some of the material is unique, and their lore is similar but not identical.

Mohsian
The Mohsian Tradition of Wicca was founded in the early 1960's by Bill and Helen Mohs. Mohsian is comprised of many threads from British Traditional and other sources. Much of the ritual is derived from early (pre-U.S.) Gardnerian and Alexandrian, and the initiatory lineage is an offshoot of pre buckland Gardnerian. The matricarch of the tradition identifies it's hallmarks as self-reliance, creativity, study and independent thinking.
There are a number of distinct lines with varied practices as each 3rd has freedom to alter those components that make the tradition distinct from other forms of Wicca.

Algard
In 1972, Mary Nesnick, an American who was initiated into both Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions, combined the Gardnerian tradition with the Alexandrian to form the Algard tradition. Some people think that in practice this combination ends up being very close to the Gardnerian tradition because much of Alexandrian ritual is similar to Gardnerian to begin with.

Protean
This is a very new tradition borne from Proteus Coven, originally a Gardnerian coven. With the aproval of their Queen, Proteus began experementing. The Gardnerian community did not much like this "renegade" behaviour and so a long battle with the "hard gards" began. The majority of Protean's are Gardnerian initiates, some are also initiates of other traditions. The Tradition passes the core as is required by all BTW but has expanded its practice beyond Gardnerian core. This is a newly formed trad so recognition of their lineage and practice is unsure.

BlueStar
Blue Star Wicca is one of a number of neo-pagan traditions created in the United States in the 1970s based loosely on the Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions. It continues to be practiced today in areas of the United States. It in itself is not strictly a Wiccan tradition, however it's members are more often than not initiates of Gardnerian or more often, Alexandrian Wicca.  

[scorplett]

Finding out about Wicca- learning resources and reading  

[scorplett]

Becoming a seeker  

[scorplett]

Finding a group that fits  

[scorplett]

Developing complimentary personal practice  

[scorplett]

Seeking training from a group/coven  

[scorplett]

The evaluation process  

[scorplett]

Proper person-hood  

[scorplett]

Risking Dedication  

[scorplett]

The training process  

[scorplett]

Properly Prepared  

[scorplett]

Initiation into the Priesthood of the Wica