by: Rick Johnson 
PO Box 40451
Tucson, Az.
85717
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Comments on Ye Boke of Ye Art Magickal by Gerald Gardner
Why are Athame Runes Different?
The answer is simple yet complex, very much like the religion itself.
For our purposes, I will define a Gardnerian Witch as:
Obviously, this list is deliberately vague. For example, you can ADD to the Gardnerian Ritual (as doing a Maypole Dance at Beltane) but you cannot delete from it (as in deleting the $ from the Initiation). And all additions should enhance and fit into the theme of the rite (a sweatlodge is probably inappropriate)
The Charge of the Goddess Conference aka the Gerald Gardner Conference.
Basics of Gardnerian Witchcraft
Lineage
Gardnerian Contacts
How far can we go and still retain the Gardnerian essence to our religion?
Witchcraft is like a skeleton, clothed in an infinite variety of flesh and clothing.
Just as it would be a very dull world indeed were we all to be the Aryan ideal of humanity or wear the same dark suit, so is it with religion.
Just as people are different, so are their beliefs and one common belief among witches is that each person should follow the faith that makes them happy. With myself and others, that is Witchcraft. But just as people prefer different styles of clothing, so do they prefer differing religious forms.
The skeleton of Witchcraft is its core beliefs that include, among others:
But the flesh is the Tradition, be it Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Eclectic, Sheban, Dianic or whatever. And the Clothing is the Lineage, be we derived from Valeinte or Wilson.
In these pages I will attempt to explain some basic Gardnerian beliefs and workings. But be aware that although we all took the same Oath of Secrecy
, we also interpret that Oath differently. So much of what is written here will be argued by other Gardnerians of differeing Lineages. Hopefully, some of those people will offer writings to be added here.
With that said, the immediate question is: "What is a Gardnerian Witch?"
So, rather than make a long descriptive list that will exclude anyone who I dislike and include only my close personal friends, I will keep it as simple as possible and let the following pages answer in detail.
a) using the established Gardnerian Initiation Ritual.
b) with the intent to confer Gardnerian Validity.
c) who can trace their Gardnerian Lineage back to Gardner via one of his many High Priestesses between the years of 1952 to 1964.
And when do your additions move you from the Gardnerian Tradition into something else? Witch Wars have been fought over this question.
I hope that I can answer some of these questions here.
To contact me or to request topics to be covered, send to RikJohnson39@gmail.com
by: Rick Johnson
PO Box 40451
Tucson, Az.
85717
