The Meaning of Witchcraft
Encyclopedia
The Meaning of Witchcraft is a non-fiction book written by Gerald Gardner
, the, known to many in the modern sense as the "Father of Wicca", based around his experiences with the religion of Wicca
and the New Forest Coven
. It was first published in 1959, not long after laws punishing witches were repealed, and proved to be Gardner's final book.
It is a sequel to Gardner's previous book on the subject, Witchcraft Today
, which was published in 1954. Chapters include: Witch's Memories and Beliefs, The Stone Age Origins of Witchcraft, Druidism and the Aryan Celts, Magic Thinking, Curious Beliefs about Witches, Signs and Symbols, The Black Mass, Some Allegations Examined. When Gardner died in 1964, the copyright for the book was left to the High Priestess of his coven, Monique Wilson.
Gardner wrote the book in order to publicise Wicca, which he believed would die out unless more converts could be attracted. Gardner himself believed that Wicca was the survival of an ancient pagan Witch-cult
, a theory originating from historian Margaret Murray
which has now largely been discredited by historians like Ronald Hutton
and Jeffrey Russell.
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Gerald Gardner
Gerald Brousseau Gardner , who sometimes used the craft name Scire, was an influential English Wiccan, as well as an amateur anthropologist and archaeologist, writer, weaponry expert and occultist. He was instrumental in bringing the Neopagan religion of Wicca to public attention in Britain and...
, the, known to many in the modern sense as the "Father of Wicca", based around his experiences with the religion of Wicca
Wicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
and the New Forest Coven
New Forest coven
The New Forest coven were a group of Neopagan witches or Wiccans who allegedly met around the area of the New Forest in southern England during the 1930s and 1940s...
. It was first published in 1959, not long after laws punishing witches were repealed, and proved to be Gardner's final book.
It is a sequel to Gardner's previous book on the subject, Witchcraft Today
Witchcraft Today
In the book Gardner also repeats the claim, which had originated with Matilda Joslyn Gage, that 9 million victims were killed in the European witch-hunts." Current scholarly estimates of the number of people executed for witchcraft during this time period vary between about 40,000 and 100,000.The...
, which was published in 1954. Chapters include: Witch's Memories and Beliefs, The Stone Age Origins of Witchcraft, Druidism and the Aryan Celts, Magic Thinking, Curious Beliefs about Witches, Signs and Symbols, The Black Mass, Some Allegations Examined. When Gardner died in 1964, the copyright for the book was left to the High Priestess of his coven, Monique Wilson.
Gardner wrote the book in order to publicise Wicca, which he believed would die out unless more converts could be attracted. Gardner himself believed that Wicca was the survival of an ancient pagan Witch-cult
Witch-cult hypothesis
The Witch-cult is the term for a hypothetical pre-Christian, pagan religion of Europe that survived into at least the early modern period. As late as the 19th and early 20th centuries, some scholars had postulated that European witchcraft was part of a Satanic plot to overthrow Christianity; most...
, a theory originating from historian Margaret Murray
Margaret Murray
Margaret Alice Murray was a prominent British Egyptologist and anthropologist. Primarily known for her work in Egyptology, which was "the core of her academic career," she is also known for her propagation of the Witch-cult hypothesis, the theory that the witch trials in the Early Modern period of...
which has now largely been discredited by historians like Ronald Hutton
Ronald Hutton
Ronald Hutton is an English historian who specializes in the study of Early Modern Britain, British folklore, pre-Christian religion and contemporary Paganism. A reader in the subject at the University of Bristol, Hutton has published fourteen books and has appeared on British television and radio...
and Jeffrey Russell.
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