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What is Wicca? What is Witchcraft?

© Karen Mitchell

The two title questions are often hotly debated in Pagan circles. There really is no one ultimate definition of either Wicca or Witchcraft, only definitions that most people can agree with most of the time. I will give you my answers to these two questions. I can promise you that these answers are agreed upon most of the time by many of the Pagans, Wiccans, and Witches I associate with. Others may use the terms differently. Ultimately, it is up to you to decide how you'd like to define them.

Let's start with the easiest of the pair. Witchcraft is exactly what the word implies: the craft of Witches. This includes skills such as casting spells, healing with herbs, working with spiritual energies, divination, and a host of other things. Witchcraft is not a religion in its own right; the skills I've listed can be combined with lots of religious frameworks, including Christianity (provided that you don't think the practice of Witchcraft is a sin, of course).

With that definition in mind, you'll realize something very important: not all Witches are Wiccan. For that matter, not all Witches are Pagan. Most of the people you'll run across who call themselves Witches probably are, in fact, Pagan. And many of those will indeed be Wiccan. But it isn't always the case, and it's better not to assume. Are you confused yet? I hope not. Remember... this was the easy question to answer.

In contrast, Wicca is a religion. You may think of it as "religious Witchcraft", if you like. Wicca was "created" by Gerald Gardner and a group of colleagues in the early 50s. I put created in quotes because it almost implies that these people plucked the concepts of Wicca out of the air, which isn't true. Gardner was an initiate of a Witchcraft group in Great Britain, and a lot of the first writings of Wicca came from the knowledge of that group, as well as incorporating practices by other groups, like the Golden Dawn. Gardner and his friends took these materials and crafted the path we call Wicca today.

For more information on the earliest days of Wicca, I suggest reading "Witchcraft Today" by Gerald Gardner, "Witchcraft for Tomorrow" by Doreen Valiente, and "Triumph of the Moon" by Ronald Hutton. The latter is a scholarly look at the history of Pagan Witchcraft in Great Britain. Although I haven't finished reading it at this time, it's come highly recommended by many of my friends.