The Levels of Recognition

There are five levels of recognition, each culminated by a ceremony which marks it -- a rite of passage celebrating its achievement. The first level is dedication; a person who wishes to study with the Gaia Tradition and has been accepted by a coven or grove as a student is dedicated as part of the group. The next three levels recognize and celebrate the attainment by an individual of succeeding stages in her personal growth. These are called simply the first, second, and third degrees. The fifth level, usually attained between the first and second degrees, is bonding to a coven.

A course of preparation and study is laid out for each of the five levels. Dedication requires only that the candiate make an informed committment to the Wiccan path and the Gaia Tradition. Training for the first degree is usually in the form of a series of classes for a small number of students at one time. For the advanced degrees, the preparation is individual: the candidate reads assigned readings, studies or masters a set of specific topics, and acquires required skills. A prospect for coven bonding prepares by taking a set of steps to make sure that s/he is emotionally mature enough to work in harmony with the current members of the coven, folloiwng the objectives of the Gaia Tradition. An experienced teacher is assigned to the candidate to work with him/her as the course of preparation is followed.

Dedication

This is the first level through which one who aspires to the Gaia Tradition passes. It requires no knowledge of the Craft, just a heart dedicated to the God and Goddess and to the study of Wicca as understood by the Gaia Tradition. It means that the candidate is committed to Wicca, the Gaia Tradition, and the coven, and also that the coven is commited to guiding the candidate's progress in Wicca as appropriate.

After a person has visited at least one ritual and one class by a community (a grove or coven), and has decided in her heart that both Wicca and the Gaia Tradition are her path, s/he may request dedication into that community.

When such a request is made, each member talks with the candidate enough to satisfy herself that the candidate understands and is serious about both the commitment to Wicca and the choice of the Gaia tradition. Once that is done, the community votes on whether to accept the candidate. If the candidate is accepted, the ritual of dedication is held at the next public ritual by the community.

The First Degree -- Witch

A candidate for the first degree undergoes the three kinds of training listed below. The teacher for this degree is a second-degree witch who concentrated on teaching during his/her preparation for the second degree or a third-degree priestess or priest.

• First, the student goes through a course of study that covers Paganism, Wicca in general, and the Gaia Tradition specifically. In the course of study, the student receives classes in Wiccan teachings and reads appropriate chapters of the Book of Shadows.
  
  
• The second part of the study covers the basics of our understandings of the four worthies: the self, the community, the Earth, and the Divine. We teach how to care for and nurture oneself physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally; how to be an active and supportive member of one's grove or coven community, as well as of the political communities in which s/he lives; how to work in support of actions and policies that respect and honor the Earth, rather than pillaging her; and how to celebrate the presence of the Divine in our lives.
  
  One book is assigned for reading in each of these four areas:
  • The Self -- The 22 {Non-Negotiable} Laws of Wellness by Greg Anderson
  • The Community -- Obedience to Authority by Stanley Milgram
  • The Earth -- If You Love This Planet by Helen Caldicott
  • The Divine -- The Spiral Dance by Starhawk
  
  
• The third part of the training for the first degree is not given by the tradition; it is the training offered by the social services agencies in the area of the coven <NOBR>--</NOBR> such as rape crisis centers, battered women's centers, Planned Parenthood, or some other healing agency. To be admitted to the first degree within the Gaia Tradition, a candidate must either (a) have taken such a course and have participated, or be participating, in the program of the agency, or (b) have formally studied a healing or service discipline and have practiced, or be practicing, that discipline in service to others.

The objectives of the first-degree training are (a) to give the student a fundamental understanding of Wiccan history, philosophy, rituals, and ethics; (b) to give her the information and guidance to make an intelligent and informed decision that Wicca, whether of the Gaia Tradition or not, is her spiritual path; (c) to introduce her to the four worthies and their importance in our lives; and (d) give her the knowledge and skills to be a good representative of Wicca and Paganism in the world at large. We sometimes call the first degree the "license to (really start to) learn."

The first-degree initiation ceremony centers around recognizing that the initiate has finished the preparation to become a witch, and celebrating this accomplishment by a "rite of passage" symbolizing his/her symbolic death and rebirth. The ceremony gives the initiate the means to openly pledge him/herself to the Four Worthies, conveys to him/her some new insights into the craft, and ends, as all good Pagan ceremonies do, in a feast of celebration.

Coven Bonding

Coven bonding is not a level of recognition, but it is included here to give a complete description of the steps through which a person normally progresses. It is the process by which a witch becomes a member of a Gaia coven.

The preparation for this step includes a more detailed introduction to Gaia Wicca than was given for the first degree. It also includes training in spiritual sexuality and conflict relolution. Procedures are followed to allow the prospect and the coven to evaluate each other, to make sure that the prospect (a) is in accord with our goal of bringing the Goddess back into society, (b) is committed to actively working to nurture the four worthies in his life, and (c) can work as a member of the coven in perfect love and perfect trust with its other members.

The period of preparation should last at least three months after the request is made, to allow time for everyone to learn enough to make an effective evaluation. The teacher for the coven bonding step is a second-degree member of the coven, of the opposite gender if at all possible. Coven-bonding training is always one-to-one. During this time, the candidate must spend at least two sessions of at least two hours each in soul-level interaction with each current member of the coven, and must actively participate in all coven and/or grove events which s/he is allowed to attend.

The coven bonding ceremony itself offers one last trial, of both the prospect and the coven, so that both can reassure themselves that the bond should be formed. If both the prospect and the coven agree that it should, the ceremony then creates and cements a bond among them that is lasting, intimate, and sure.

The Second Degree -- Adept

The Gaia Tradition's work for the second degree, like that for the first degree, has three parts, listed below. Training is one-to-one at this level. The teacher for this degree is either a second-degree witch who has completed the work in the skill area on which the student chooses to work or a third-degree priest/ess.

• First, the student receives more training about each of the four worthies. A second book is assigned for each of them; the student reads and discusses those books and their implications for her life with her teacher. The books are:
  • The Self -- Reclaiming our Health by John Robbins
  • The Community -- The Chalice and the Blade by Riane Eisler
  • The Earth -- An Inconvenient Truth by Albert Gore
  • The Divine -- A Witch's Bible by Janet & Stewart Farrar
  
  The student also creates positive tools that will help her live her life in a way that supports, enhances, and empowers herself, her community, the Earth, and the Goddess and God.
  
  
• Next, the student is given a fundamental knowledge of the arts and skills associated with witchcraft. As discussed earlier in this chapter, we group these skills into four areas: leadership, healing, teaching, and magickal working. As an example of the kind of work required, in the leadership area the student must create and lead, with help as needed, an inner ritual for a Sabbat and one special ritual whose purpose is selected by the student.
  
  
• Finally, the student selects one of the four skill areas to "major" in. S/he does in-depth research and work in that area, to the point where s/he is competent to be a leader, healer, teacher, or magician without assistance. A list of books is assigned for the specific area, in addition to practical exercises and discussions with the teacher.

The objectives of second-degree training are to give the person the knowledge, skills, and experience to (a) be an effective representative of Wicca and the Gaia Tradition to the public at large; (b) participate fully in the public and private life of the coven; and (c) be an effective practitioner of the skill area chosen for second degree study. In addition, with the second degree a person is eligible for election to be the coven's High Priest or Priestess, as appropriate.

The second-degree initiation ceremony is designed to make the candidate re-evaluate her assumptions about herself, her place in the community, her life on this earth, and her relationship with the Goddess and God. It then offers the chance for the candidate to rebuild or adjust her attitudes where s/he discovers it to be appropriate, and for the coven to celebrate the candidate and her achievement in reaching this level.

The Third Degree -- Priest/ess

Those who wish to work towards the third degree must gain mastery in all four of the skill areas, so the study concentrates on the three skill areas that were not studied for the second degree. Only when a person can be an effective practitioner of all four skill areas is that person ready to receive the third degree in the Gaia Tradition, and become a full Priest or Priestess of the Craft.

The purpose of the third degree is to "certify" to Wiccans everywhere that the holder of the degree is completely ready and fully competent to independently form and lead a new Wiccan community (or take on the independent leadership of an existing Wiccan community), and to train new people into all levels of recognition.

The course of study for the third degree consists of these elements:

• A third book is assigned for each of the four Worthies; the student reads and discusses those books and their implications for his or her life with the teacher. The books are:
  • The Self -- Radical Honesty: How to Transform Your Life by Telling the Truth by Brad Blanton
  • The Community -- Webs of Power: Notes from the Global Uprising by Starhawk
  • The Earth -- Sacred Land, Sacred Sex: Rapture of the Deep by Dolores LaChapelle
  • The Divine -- The Witches' Goddess and The Witches' God by Janet and Stewart Farrar
  
  
• The student serves as the Coven's High Priestess or Priest for one full quarter, taking responsibility for all aspects of running the coven. This includes taking complete responsibility for teaching (though s/he may use other people, for example second-degree students, to teach some of the classes); ritual leadership (including recruiting people for ritual roles and supplying the bread, wine, etc., for the ritual); and any other needs that may come up during the quarter.
  
  
• The student studies the three skill areas that s/he did not cover in the study for the second degree. Because a student is encouraged to do the second degree in the skill area of most interest to him or her, and in order to make it possible to obtain the third degree in the standard "year and a day," the other three areas are studied in less detail than the second-degree area.

The third-degree initiation ceremony has certain elements that are common to all Wiccan third-degree initiations, but it also contains a section that the candidate him/herself has written. This part includes such things as the oath that the candidate takes about his/her future in Wicca and the form that s/he wishes to use for the Great Rite that is a part of the third-degree ceremony. I wil