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INVENTING WITCHCRAFT

by Aidan A. Kelly

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321754,125 (2.67)None
When the first edition of this book was released, conservative Gardnerian Witches attempted to suppress it, claiming that it discredited their religion. Dr. Aidan A. Kelly has thoroughly investigated the history, rituals, and documents behind the evolution of modern Witchcraft, and has concluded that Gerald Gardner invented Wicca as a new religion. Although Wicca claims to be a persecuted pagan religion dating from before the rise of Christianity, it draws upon controversial historical sources, modern occult practices, including those of Alistair Crowley and the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, 19th century translations of medieval grimoires, and the poetry of Gardner's priestess, Doreen Valiente.This extensively revised edition contains new research which was unavailable at the time, as well as detailed textual comparisons of Gerald Gardner's own manuscripts, magical books, and rituals that could not be included in the earlier edition.… (more)
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Read the original in 1991 to add to my NRM studies collection, it certainly turned some seekers away from wicca, and angered many wiccans. This is the one book you'll ever need to understand the early history of Gerald Gardner's wica, later wicca. You will learn how and why he, with help from Doreen Valiente, invented his new "old religion". You will learn that the other denominations of wicca can be said to be "Gardnerian", meaning the core ritual elements (circle casting, etc...) are taken from Gardnerian practices. This book is certainly known to have angered some wiccans because of it's objective straightforwardness. Some wiccan authors were ridiculously upset that the author had gone back to the Catholic faith, and expressed this in writing. Why recommend this book to wiccan readers? Because everyone should know about the origins of their chosen spirituality.
There is very little in the early wiccan material on the subject of ethics. The common recited phrase is, "If it harms none, do as you will". Unfortunately although it looks similiar to the golden rule, it is not. The golden rule has a safeguard whereas the wicca phrase only appears to have one.
  CriticalThinkTank | Jul 23, 2022 |
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When the first edition of this book was released, conservative Gardnerian Witches attempted to suppress it, claiming that it discredited their religion. Dr. Aidan A. Kelly has thoroughly investigated the history, rituals, and documents behind the evolution of modern Witchcraft, and has concluded that Gerald Gardner invented Wicca as a new religion. Although Wicca claims to be a persecuted pagan religion dating from before the rise of Christianity, it draws upon controversial historical sources, modern occult practices, including those of Alistair Crowley and the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, 19th century translations of medieval grimoires, and the poetry of Gardner's priestess, Doreen Valiente.This extensively revised edition contains new research which was unavailable at the time, as well as detailed textual comparisons of Gerald Gardner's own manuscripts, magical books, and rituals that could not be included in the earlier edition.

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