Wicca is a Neopagan religion. The prefix "neo" emphasizes the fact that this is a modern movement. Neopaganism began in the 19th century Romantic movement. At this time the British Order of Druids was created. More neopagan religions emerged in the 20th century, influenced by the works of psychiatrist Carl Jung and the writer Robert Graves.
Many magical fraternities emerged, such as the Golden Dawn, and Thelema. The main tenet of Thelema was to discover one's true Will and live in accordance with it. It's central right was the Gnostic Mass. Gnosticism is a pre-Christian syncretic religion which combines Roman, Greek, Egyptian, and Judaic themes and philosophy. Its central tenet is that the liberating experience of knowing oneself profoundly and intuitively - gnosis - is essential in knowing and experiencing the Divine. Its central rite is the Eucharist, which is the manifestation of incarnate Divinity in the form of a god-man. While much of Gnosticism resembles Christianity aesthetically and structurally (particularly since the Gnostic Revival of the 19th Century), it is an older and distinct religion in its own right.
In the 1950s a law changed in Britain so that no one could be persecuted for Witchcraft anymore. Instead the Fraudulent Mediums act was created. This prompted Gerald Gardner to come out with his own Witchcraft religion, Wicca. Gerald Gardner based his religion largely on the forerunning Golden Dawn and Thelema, as well as the Co-Masons. Gardner called his group "Wicca" after the ancient anglo-saxon word for a male witch.
Gerald Gardner's ceremonies combined information from Aleister Crowley's Book of the Law, Charles Leland's Aradia, Rudyward Kipling, Margaret Murray, and Christianity.
Gardner's Wicca flourished in the 60s and 70s when Britain became more liberal towards religion. There emerged new strands of the religion and its beliefs and rituals became publicised. At this point it was important to unify Wicca with a common rede, which reads "And harm ye none, do what ye will".
Lady Gwen Thompson, a Celtic Traditionalist, had the 26 line poem published in a magazine in 1975. She said it was given to her by her Grandmother, and it was unknown who had written it. There were a few other versions among Wiccans at the time, and it may have been an attempt to standardise it to avoid confusion.
Gardner has mentioned the rede in 1954, in his book The Meaning of Witchcraft. He had adopted it from Aleister Crowley's "Do what thou wilt is the whole of the law" which he preached to his followers in the mid 1900s. Gardner also referenced a sexual epic written by Pierre Louys in 1901 which read "Do no wrong to your neighbour, Observing this, do as thou pleasest". The same advice is given in a fiction called Gargantua written in 1532 by Francois Rabelais. The idea is that in a utopian society, there is no need for restriction
Wicca began as a small outhbound group, but has developed today so that members may practice "solitary" and received most of their information from books and the internet. Although members of Wicca may call themselved Witches, they do not strictly reconstruct ancient Witchcraft. They have their own version which is highly ceremonial and can worship gods and goddesses from any culture.
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