Spirit Walk Ministry
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
United States
email
Neo-Pagan (New Age) Movements.
One of the primary differences between Traditional Witchcraft and the "New Age" or "Neo-Pagan" movements is that these modern movements are primarily "hegemonic" assemblies, with a sacrosanct hierarchy and an immutable doctrine of beliefs. Traditional Witches, by contrast, are more autonomous and solitary in the nature of their practice.
Wiccans and other neo-pagan movements will refer to their assemblages as “covens”, though historically the word "coven" did not come into usage until 1921 when Margaret Murray promoted the idea, now much discredited, that all witches across Europe met in groups of thirteen which they called "covens".
Traditional Witches usually refer to their gatherings as "clans".
The difference between a coven and a clan is that a coven is a clique that shares common interests or activities, while a clan is an extended family descended from a common tradition of ancestral lineage or native homeland.
See our webpage ...
Paganism - Neo-Paganism
Asatru: Asatru is regarded as a modern day attempt to revive the old Norse faith, primarily begining with the formation of the "Thule Society", an anti-semetic Germanic study group based in Munich, that came to prominence in Germany during and after World War I and is often cited as a motivating force in the founding of the National Socialist (Nazi) Party. Strangely, many of its supposed founders, (and that of its companion group the "Vril Society", including the now legendary Maria Ostric), now appear to have never really existed. The Nazi Party in Germany under Adolf Hitler attempted to pervert Ásatrú by grafting parts of the religion onto the Aryan beliefs of the Thule Society, but this died away for the most part at the end of World War II.
Its followers today hold as closely as possible to the original religion of ancient Norse paganism. Modern Asatru is polytheistic and centered around the worship of eight main deities, along withother minor deities and supernatural beings of varying importance and their rites and rituals are centered upon the exchange of gifts with the Gods and one's kinfolk.
Odinism: The modern revival of an ancient Germanic folk religion widely practiced by various people throughout northern Europe, primarily dedicated to the gods of the Norse pantheon. (Some modern day Odinists often mistakenly refer to themselves as followers of Asatru). Ancient Odinism had the shamanic attributes of Odin and the “trickster god” Loki, as well as the ancient Germanic ‘honor and shame” nature of its warrior centered belief system. Organized Germanic groups such as the Germanische Glaubens-Gemeinschaft began a revival in Germany in the early 20th century, which was first overshadowed and then suppressed by the Nazis Aryan movement. A second revival came in the late 1960s and early 1970s. An extremist element of Odinism (Wotanism) has emerged primarily in the United States over the past few decades, attracting white supremacists who see it as a racially "pure white” religion.
Dievturība – Dievturība is a neopagan movement which claims to be a modern revival of the ethnic religion of the Latvians before Christianization in the 13th century. Adherents call themselves Dievturi, literally "' keepers", "people who live in harmony with the god Dievs". The movement is mainly based on Latvian folklore, old folk songs (dainas) and Latvian mythology. The Dievturi movement was founded in 1925 by Ernests Brastiņš and Kārlis Marovskis-Bregžis. It was forcibly suppressed by Soviets in 1940, but lived on in émigré communities and was re-registered in Latvia in 1990. In 2018, approximately 600 to 800 persons were officially active members of the Dievturi movement. The main dieties are the god Dievs and the cow goddess Māra, who takes a person's body after their death while Dievs takes the soul.
Feri Movement: A modern movement that was begun in the 1940’s by Victor Anderson and originally called the 'Vicia Tradition'. It has its own theology with its own Gods, known as the Star Goddess, the Divine Twins and the Blue God. It utilizes ecstatic sexual practices which seek to raise and use “Feri energy” which is seen as a specific power that is passed between members of the movement. This movement is often confused as being Wiccan and while Feri members make no claims to a Wiccan lineage, a case could be made that Wicca is a child of the Feri Movement.
Humanistic Movement: Adhering to an ideal of “Religious Humanism”, Humanistic practitioners follow a Nature-centered path, as contrasted with a deity-centered path. Humanistic practitioners tend to be atheistic or non-theistic and they define their approach to their interpretation of the Craft through the direct existential experience of the Natural world and not through the intervention of any Gods or Goddesses as they seek direct attunement with the power of Nature.
Indigo Children: (Often mistakenly referred to as Star People (Starseeds); and though appearing similar in nature there is a fundamental difference between the two groups.) Indigo Children commonly believe their souls come from another planet, galaxy or dimension and/or that they are the hybrid offspring of extra-terrestrial beings with whom they are in psychic communion. Most Indigo Children feel a sense of misplacement, like they are "aliens" dropped here on Earth in human form with no sense of belonging, so they harbor an emptiness and a longing to return to their "true home". There are many different theories as to the origins of the Indigo Children and they themselves often claim to have come into this existence with no "memory" 0f their origin or identity until they have gone through an awakening process, which can occur instantaneously or over an extended period of time. They generally believe themselves to be lightworkers and empaths sent to Earth to raise the planetary vibrations in preperation for a coming new age of humanity upon the return of "their people".
New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden Dawn: An American denomination founded by researcher Aiden Kelly of the Covenant of the Goddess, drawing its foundation on the Victorian era Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. It was established 1967 as a poetic theater arts project for San Francisco State College, and has developed into a fully acknowledged religion by 1976. It has an emphasis on poetry, individual intuition, and experiential ritual.
Rosicrucian Order: Rosicrucianism is a spiritual and cultural movement which arose in Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts which purported to announce the existence of a hitherto unknown esoteric order to the world and made seeking its knowledge attractive to many. The mysterious doctrine of the order is "built on esoteric truths of the ancient past", which "concealed from the average man, provide insight into nature, the physical universe, and the spiritual realm." Their manifestos do not elaborate extensively on the matter, but clearly combine references to Kabbalah, alchemy, Hermeticism, and Christian mysticism.
Wiccan Movement: Wicca is not"Witchcraft". Witchcraft and Wicca are two separate and distinct paths. Though many Wiccans often incorrectly refer to themselves as whereas, traditional practitioners will never call themselves Wiccan, but will refer to themselves as being a witch, a heathen or they will use another label altogether.
Wicca as a modern organized religion (or some say cult) was developed around 1954 by Gerald Gardner. Wicca, as created by Gardner, is a concoction of ancient Western European folk traditions, mixed with ancient Egyptian and Kabbalistic mysticism. The general public, (and many Wiccans themselves), are under the mistaken belief that Wicca has been brewing up over the millennia in some witch's cauldron rather than it being a mid-20th Century “concoction”. However, historically speaking, there is no evidence of the usage of the word "wicca"prior to 1920 when it first appeared in ‘An Encyclopedia of Occultism’ compiled by Lewis Spence. The word was later usurped by Gardner as a label for his Wiccan Movement and he erroneously claimed “wicca” to be a synonym for the word witchcraft.
Although initially Wicca was based more in magickal pursuits, it has since evolved into more of a New Age religious movement centered around a hegemony of priests and priestesses who administer rites and practices based on a doctrinal system of beliefs (a Wiccan Rede), and with a shifting ethics base within each seperate group or “coven". To be of Wicca you must swear an oath of allegiance and secrecy to the coven in a structured ritual initiation. In short, if no Wiccan priest or priestess with proper initiation themselves puts you through the process, you are not Wiccan. This stands in complete contrast to Witchcraft's tradition of self-awakening and self-empowering in the craft. A Traditional Witch does not swear an oath to another human and is bound only by personal allegiance to their own moral codes and ethics.
Witta: Said to have been "created" by author Edain McCoy in 1992, Witta is basically Wicca simplified. The most important belief in Witta is that a Witch (Wittan) must connect and work with nature. This leads to a belief that rituals and covens are secondary to one's love for and connection with nature. It has a similarity to traditional Irish witchcraft and because of it's more "solitary" nature Witta, (or rather McCoy herself), has become controversial among some Wiccans.
Spirit Walk Ministry
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
United States
email