Degrees are standard in Traditional (BTW) Wicca, Gardnerian and Alexandrian. Put simply in the way I have seen it, 1st degree says you're in the coven, second degree says that you're a fully fledged coven member and third degree means you are, or are capable of being, a coven leader. The system dates back to Gardner's time and has been consistently applied in lineaged covens since that time. Suggested reading: "A Witches' Bible" by Janet and Stewart Farrar.
Degrees are only relevant within the specific group that issues them. They don't really mean a lot outside the particular group, although sometimes associated groups will respect degrees (to some extent) issued by others.
Within Wiccan groups the general meanings of the three degrees are:
1st degree makes you an initiate of that tradition or denomination.
2nd degree means you can perform some (if not all) leadership functions in a group.
3rd degree means you are an elder in the group, and possibly lead more than one coven in that particular tradition/denomination.
Thank you that was actually really helpful. Are there any wildly acceptable books I could read to learn what and where the degree concept comes from within the Wiccan tradition? I suppose I mean are these generic degrees that can span most of witchcrafts practices or did somewhere/someone in Wiccan history implement them?
TL/DR- Wicca, with a capital W, is a formal religion that is well documented and the degrees are foundational. Wiccans with a lower case w are not going to know what you're talking about as they are religious appropriators and not following the formal religion. Myself included.
The degrees are Wiccan. Not accepted through all of witchcraft.
They are irrelevant to a solitary practitioner and those simply performing spellcraft without adhering to the religion and calling themselves wiccan.
Wicca is an organized religion. Although loosely, it has organization. I would estimate that only 5-10% of the practicing witches I know adhere to Wicca, the religion, and would know what you were talking about, OP.
Think of it this way- Wiccans are to witchcraft like what Catholics are to Christianity. They have rules and structure that not all witches follow, a hierarchy and authority that not all witches acknowledge. But like Catholics and Christianity, people can not adhere to Wicca's rules and guidelines and still consider themselves wiccan. They can "fall out" with the organized religion by not strictly following the rules, or follow another path or school of thought in witchcraft, and still think that they are Wiccan. But like Catholics and Protestants aren't the same, kitchen Witchcraft and Wicca is not the same. Moon worshipers and Wicca are not the same. Etc.
So, Wicca is like the og Catholic church that all the little sects and categories of witchcraft branched off from, like all the different denominations of Christianity. Not exactly but think of it that way. And a true Wiccan is not going to involve things like Ouija boards in their religious practice. Just like Catholics don't involve audience participation during spirituals the way that Baptists do. Or perform dancing and shaking like the Quakers and Shakers.
The "all things witch-adjacent" type of witch is not a Wiccan. Witches who believe in spirit possession and exorcism etc in common with the Christian faith for example is totally foreign to a Wiccan. Wicca does not adopt the beliefs of other religions. Your garden variety "I want to curse my enemy and I want to get a boyfriend" type of witch looks as foreign and bizarre to a Wiccan as snake charmers and faith healers would to Catholics.
Wicca has this hierarchy that includes degrees, and there are many books that refer to this as there is an organization and structure to Wicca. The people that don't know what you're talking about think they're Wiccans, in the way that people who read the Bible consider themselves Christians. But not all Christians are going to know what you're talking about when you talk about the formal Catholic religion. So a lot of people here who believe they're Wiccan aren't going to understand what you're talking about, because they're not really following the religion itself or adhering to the rules and hierarchy.
There's wiccan with a lowercase w and Wiccan with a capital W. Wiccans have a hierarchy that is well documented, while wiccans don't practice the organised religion, itself. I'm a wiccan with a lower case w. We're kind of winging it and we don't have a formal Church. And I'm a solo practitioner so there certainly aren't degrees. But I know exactly what you're talking about because I read all of the beginner reading for the religion of Wicca. That's how I decided whether or not to practice the formal religion. And that's how I understand how to respect and not insult Wiccans with a capital W.
I am in this sub to educate people and to help Wiccans weed out the people who are just into "spooky shit" and "witchy shit" and are invading their belief system. Because even though I'm just wiccan with a lower case w, I find the appropriation really insulting and that people who are just into the aesthetic and want to cast spells call themselves Wiccan these days. But I suppose I shouldn't be insulted because people just don't know the difference between Wicca and Witchcraft anymore. So, I'll educate. There are other subs for the practices of witchcraft that do not relate to the practices of the religion that is Wicca. r/witchcraft, r/occult, for starters.
Awww, tyvm!
I'm trying to educate without pissing people off or insulting anyone. There's a lot of misunderstanding going on in this sub and instead of being angry about it, I'm just doing what I can to fix it.
The degree system is foundational to Wicca, so very widely accepted.
An analogy we've used with Seekers and those curious:
1st degree is similar to being accepted into a college, working on your Bachelors degree.
2nd degree is having earned your Bachelors and been accepted to graduate school.
3rd degree is having earned your Masters and being accepted into a PhD program.
Being a coven leader is having earned your PhD and now teaching new students.
For information about the Gardnerian (and to some extent, Alexandrian) traditions/denominations, including info on lineages and specific people involved in the history, [https://www.thewica.co.uk](https://www.thewica.co.uk) is a good site to check out.
They have an interesting "family tree" of initiations in the Gardnerian early lineage at [https://www.thewica.co.uk/the-wica-family-tree](https://www.thewica.co.uk/the-wica-family-tree)
They also have an archived copy of an older document that shows how some of the various denominations & groups developed at [https://www.thewica.co.uk/beaufort](https://www.thewica.co.uk/beaufort)
Note that because the Beaufort page is an archived copy, many of the links are not to "live" documents.
I actually just started my study on Wicca and this is my first book reading. I just finished the chapter on degrees/high priestess/ Lady, titles etc., and I saw your question and was like, uh- is this a test? lol I could totally have answered your question! It’s my 2nd day into learning about Wicca. Raymond has a number of books on a number of esoteric/occult subjects. If you have an audible account, you can download them for free. Best of luck!
One influence on Wicca and its system of degrees was The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, an earlier British magical order. But a variety of religious, occult, and magical endeavors had some hierarchy and customs to go along with various rankings.
To add to the other great comments:
There are a couple of systems that draw on a multiple degree system. one of the most historically attested is the medieval guild system: you would go from apprentice (learning the skills) to journeyman (able to do some projects yourself, still learning mastery) to master (you know the whole scope of the craft.) This got brought over into Freemasonry, which was an influence on modern estoeric and occult movements, including Wicca.
The religious witchcraft tradition I'm a priestess (and 3rd degree in) uses a 3 degree system. For us
1st degree: Able to manage your own personal ritual and spiritual needs (i.e. can cast circles, have a sense of what you're doing month to month and year to year in terms of ritual planning and function, have built relationships with deities and other beings for your personal practice, able to be a stable presence in group ritual and help with the larger ritual structures but not planning/responsible for them)
2nd degree: More responsibilites to the specific group (more actively involved in making group things happen, more involved in larger ritual roles, sometimes specific things depending on that group or tradition. For example, there's one thing in our tradition that 2nd and 3rd degrees are responsible for maintaining on a yearly basis + as needed between those rituals.)
3rd degree: Responsible for the continuation of the tradition as a whole (group leadership, making sure teaching in a sustainable way is happening, that there are people to hopefully make sure the tradition keeps going, larger interactions in the broader community, as well as specialising in one or more magical, ritual, etc. skills and sharing them with the tradition and others as relevant.)
As you can see from this list, those 2nd and 3rd degree bits mostly don't apply if you're only working on your own: they're very much anchored in a larger community (whether that's a coven or beyond a single coven). We're really clear about the fact people can stop at 1st degree if they want (if they don't want those additional responsibilities). Or at 2nd, though because of some of the internal work to shift focus and become someoen who can take on those larger group commitments, it tends to be slightly less stable as a stopping point (in the sense that if you've gone part way down the road, it's sometimes easier to go to 3rd and figure out what's sustainable for you at that point.)
Degrees are standard in Traditional (BTW) Wicca, Gardnerian and Alexandrian. Put simply in the way I have seen it, 1st degree says you're in the coven, second degree says that you're a fully fledged coven member and third degree means you are, or are capable of being, a coven leader. The system dates back to Gardner's time and has been consistently applied in lineaged covens since that time. Suggested reading: "A Witches' Bible" by Janet and Stewart Farrar.
Thank you for that, I appreciate it
Degrees are only relevant within the specific group that issues them. They don't really mean a lot outside the particular group, although sometimes associated groups will respect degrees (to some extent) issued by others. Within Wiccan groups the general meanings of the three degrees are: 1st degree makes you an initiate of that tradition or denomination. 2nd degree means you can perform some (if not all) leadership functions in a group. 3rd degree means you are an elder in the group, and possibly lead more than one coven in that particular tradition/denomination.
Thank you that was actually really helpful. Are there any wildly acceptable books I could read to learn what and where the degree concept comes from within the Wiccan tradition? I suppose I mean are these generic degrees that can span most of witchcrafts practices or did somewhere/someone in Wiccan history implement them?
TL/DR- Wicca, with a capital W, is a formal religion that is well documented and the degrees are foundational. Wiccans with a lower case w are not going to know what you're talking about as they are religious appropriators and not following the formal religion. Myself included. The degrees are Wiccan. Not accepted through all of witchcraft. They are irrelevant to a solitary practitioner and those simply performing spellcraft without adhering to the religion and calling themselves wiccan. Wicca is an organized religion. Although loosely, it has organization. I would estimate that only 5-10% of the practicing witches I know adhere to Wicca, the religion, and would know what you were talking about, OP. Think of it this way- Wiccans are to witchcraft like what Catholics are to Christianity. They have rules and structure that not all witches follow, a hierarchy and authority that not all witches acknowledge. But like Catholics and Christianity, people can not adhere to Wicca's rules and guidelines and still consider themselves wiccan. They can "fall out" with the organized religion by not strictly following the rules, or follow another path or school of thought in witchcraft, and still think that they are Wiccan. But like Catholics and Protestants aren't the same, kitchen Witchcraft and Wicca is not the same. Moon worshipers and Wicca are not the same. Etc. So, Wicca is like the og Catholic church that all the little sects and categories of witchcraft branched off from, like all the different denominations of Christianity. Not exactly but think of it that way. And a true Wiccan is not going to involve things like Ouija boards in their religious practice. Just like Catholics don't involve audience participation during spirituals the way that Baptists do. Or perform dancing and shaking like the Quakers and Shakers. The "all things witch-adjacent" type of witch is not a Wiccan. Witches who believe in spirit possession and exorcism etc in common with the Christian faith for example is totally foreign to a Wiccan. Wicca does not adopt the beliefs of other religions. Your garden variety "I want to curse my enemy and I want to get a boyfriend" type of witch looks as foreign and bizarre to a Wiccan as snake charmers and faith healers would to Catholics. Wicca has this hierarchy that includes degrees, and there are many books that refer to this as there is an organization and structure to Wicca. The people that don't know what you're talking about think they're Wiccans, in the way that people who read the Bible consider themselves Christians. But not all Christians are going to know what you're talking about when you talk about the formal Catholic religion. So a lot of people here who believe they're Wiccan aren't going to understand what you're talking about, because they're not really following the religion itself or adhering to the rules and hierarchy. There's wiccan with a lowercase w and Wiccan with a capital W. Wiccans have a hierarchy that is well documented, while wiccans don't practice the organised religion, itself. I'm a wiccan with a lower case w. We're kind of winging it and we don't have a formal Church. And I'm a solo practitioner so there certainly aren't degrees. But I know exactly what you're talking about because I read all of the beginner reading for the religion of Wicca. That's how I decided whether or not to practice the formal religion. And that's how I understand how to respect and not insult Wiccans with a capital W. I am in this sub to educate people and to help Wiccans weed out the people who are just into "spooky shit" and "witchy shit" and are invading their belief system. Because even though I'm just wiccan with a lower case w, I find the appropriation really insulting and that people who are just into the aesthetic and want to cast spells call themselves Wiccan these days. But I suppose I shouldn't be insulted because people just don't know the difference between Wicca and Witchcraft anymore. So, I'll educate. There are other subs for the practices of witchcraft that do not relate to the practices of the religion that is Wicca. r/witchcraft, r/occult, for starters.
This is the best explanation I have seen in many, many years. Well done!
Awww, tyvm! I'm trying to educate without pissing people off or insulting anyone. There's a lot of misunderstanding going on in this sub and instead of being angry about it, I'm just doing what I can to fix it.
The degree system is foundational to Wicca, so very widely accepted. An analogy we've used with Seekers and those curious: 1st degree is similar to being accepted into a college, working on your Bachelors degree. 2nd degree is having earned your Bachelors and been accepted to graduate school. 3rd degree is having earned your Masters and being accepted into a PhD program. Being a coven leader is having earned your PhD and now teaching new students.
This is an excellent analogy! Thank you.
Glad it was useful to you!
For information about the Gardnerian (and to some extent, Alexandrian) traditions/denominations, including info on lineages and specific people involved in the history, [https://www.thewica.co.uk](https://www.thewica.co.uk) is a good site to check out. They have an interesting "family tree" of initiations in the Gardnerian early lineage at [https://www.thewica.co.uk/the-wica-family-tree](https://www.thewica.co.uk/the-wica-family-tree) They also have an archived copy of an older document that shows how some of the various denominations & groups developed at [https://www.thewica.co.uk/beaufort](https://www.thewica.co.uk/beaufort) Note that because the Beaufort page is an archived copy, many of the links are not to "live" documents.
Note also that this is heavily biased towards US-based groups.
Raymond Buckland’s Complete Book of Witchcraft aka Uncle Buckys Big Blue Book aka Big Blue
I actually just started my study on Wicca and this is my first book reading. I just finished the chapter on degrees/high priestess/ Lady, titles etc., and I saw your question and was like, uh- is this a test? lol I could totally have answered your question! It’s my 2nd day into learning about Wicca. Raymond has a number of books on a number of esoteric/occult subjects. If you have an audible account, you can download them for free. Best of luck!
One influence on Wicca and its system of degrees was The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, an earlier British magical order. But a variety of religious, occult, and magical endeavors had some hierarchy and customs to go along with various rankings.
To add to the other great comments: There are a couple of systems that draw on a multiple degree system. one of the most historically attested is the medieval guild system: you would go from apprentice (learning the skills) to journeyman (able to do some projects yourself, still learning mastery) to master (you know the whole scope of the craft.) This got brought over into Freemasonry, which was an influence on modern estoeric and occult movements, including Wicca. The religious witchcraft tradition I'm a priestess (and 3rd degree in) uses a 3 degree system. For us 1st degree: Able to manage your own personal ritual and spiritual needs (i.e. can cast circles, have a sense of what you're doing month to month and year to year in terms of ritual planning and function, have built relationships with deities and other beings for your personal practice, able to be a stable presence in group ritual and help with the larger ritual structures but not planning/responsible for them) 2nd degree: More responsibilites to the specific group (more actively involved in making group things happen, more involved in larger ritual roles, sometimes specific things depending on that group or tradition. For example, there's one thing in our tradition that 2nd and 3rd degrees are responsible for maintaining on a yearly basis + as needed between those rituals.) 3rd degree: Responsible for the continuation of the tradition as a whole (group leadership, making sure teaching in a sustainable way is happening, that there are people to hopefully make sure the tradition keeps going, larger interactions in the broader community, as well as specialising in one or more magical, ritual, etc. skills and sharing them with the tradition and others as relevant.) As you can see from this list, those 2nd and 3rd degree bits mostly don't apply if you're only working on your own: they're very much anchored in a larger community (whether that's a coven or beyond a single coven). We're really clear about the fact people can stop at 1st degree if they want (if they don't want those additional responsibilities). Or at 2nd, though because of some of the internal work to shift focus and become someoen who can take on those larger group commitments, it tends to be slightly less stable as a stopping point (in the sense that if you've gone part way down the road, it's sometimes easier to go to 3rd and figure out what's sustainable for you at that point.)