Advisory to Seekers

Seeking a coven in the Gardnerian tradition can be an intimidating experience. Here are a few tips to make the process a little bit easier.

Obtaining a Vouch

The only way to become a Gardnerian is to be initiated by another Gardnerian; the tradition is a magical current that is passed through particular ritual experiences, and there’s simply no way around that. There is no such thing as self-initiation in Gardnerian Wicca, and a coven is only Gardnerian if it possesses legitimate Gardnerian lineage. Unfortunately, it sometimes happens that people lay fraudulent claim to that lineage and try to pass themselves off as Gardnerian initiates or coven leaders. Because of this, it’s important to act with discernment and vet anyone you encounter who claims to be a Gardnerian initiate.

Anyone making such a claim should be happy to provide you with something called a vouch: another member of the Gardnerian community who can confirm their initiatory status. Gardnerians know each other; the community is quite small, all things told. Any legitimate Gardnerian can provide references to confirm that they are who they say they are. If someone refuses to provide a vouch, or if their vouch doesn’t check out, that’s a major red flag, and they probably aren’t what they claim to be.

The internet has made vouching easier in many ways, and some social media resources exist to help seekers vet groups claiming to offer Gardnerian training. The go-to resource for this is the Gardnerian Wicca Seekers and Initiates Facebook group.

Two things are important to keep in mind when it comes to vouching. The first is that a vouch is only a confirmation of someone’s initiatory status, not of their character. If you secure a vouch for someone, that confirms that their claim to Gardnerian lineage is authentic, but it says nothing about whether they’re a trustworthy or pleasant person. Exceptions may be made in extreme cases (e.g. if someone is dangerous or abusive), but generally speaking a vouch entails nothing more or less than “This person was brought through the degrees by someone qualified to do so.” The onus is on you to judge their character for yourself.

The second thing to keep in mind is that vouching is a process whereby you can verify a claim that someone else is making about their initiatory status. It is not an excuse to strip someone of their privacy in order to satisfy your curiosity. Many Gardnerian initiates choose not to be public about practicing Wicca. The identities of initiates are among the most important secrets of the Craft, and it is never appropriate to ask (or tell!) about someone’s initiatory status if they have not volunteered that information themselves.

Writing a Seeker Letter

When reaching out to this or any other coven, take some time to introduce yourself properly. Emails that just say “I want to be a witch” with no salutation or context are likely to get deleted without a reply. You don’t need to write out your whole life story, but it’s important to introduce yourself to the coven leaders and provide a little bit of context about who you are and why you’re interested in their group. There’s no one-size-fits-all formula, but a few things that are generally good to include are:

  • Your name

  • How long you’ve been interested in Wicca

  • Why you are interested in joining a coven

  • Why you are interested in this particular tradition

Also, don’t demand initiation right out of the gate. A coven is an intimate community of people who know each other well, and joining a coven is a slow process. You have to get to know your coven leaders and build a bond of mutual trust with them. That takes time, and there’s never a guarantee that you’ll end up being initiated; you may spend a few months with a group and decide that they’re not the right fit for you. Have patience when seeking and try to understand that the timeline for your involvement in Wicca is measured in years, not weeks.

For more helpful pointers on this, see these videos by Artemis NYC and Thorn Mooney, which do an excellent job of breaking down the dos and don’ts of writing a seeker letter.

Red Flags

Because of the oaths of secrecy involved, there’s an informational asymmetry between Gardnerian initiates and the people seeking the tradition. Unfortunately, this informational asymmetry can lead to a power imbalance, and unscrupulous people may try to take advantage of that imbalance for their own ends. Be attentive and critical when engaging with people who are claiming to lead a coven; always check for signs that a group is abusive or untoward, and use your own judgment about whether a situation feels right. Here are a few major red flags to look out for:

  • Sex is never, ever, ever required as a part of Gardnerian training or initiation. If someone tries to pressure you into sex under the pretense that it is a requirement for Gardnerian Wicca, that person is a predator. Get the hell out.

  • Likewise with money. Gardnerian Wicca does not cost money. Depending on the group you’re in, you may be asked to contribute in small ways—for example, by bringing candles for ritual or preparing a dish for the pot luck dinner—but if someone is trying to charge you money for Gardnerian training or initiation, they’re taking advantage of you. Gardnerian Wicca is always free of charge.

  • Be wary of anyone claiming that they have the only true, legitimate, or authentic version of the Gardnerian tradition. The Gardnerian community is incredibly diverse in its theology and ritual practice, and totalizing claims like these are often a manipulative way of trying to control seekers and stymie critical thinking. In particular, you may encounter this kind of rhetoric with covens that want to exclude LGBTQIA+ individuals from the Craft and are trying to dress that stance up as traditional theology rather than just political discrimination.

  • Be wary of any religious environment that tries to exercise a high degree of control over your day-to-day life. A coven leader is responsible for your training in the context of the tradition, but their authority does not extend further than that. Your coven should never be telling you how to spend your money, who to spend your time with, or how to make major life decisions.

  • Coven leaders are human beings just like everyone else. Anyone claiming infallibility, omniscience, or perfection is on an ego trip at best and potentially abusive at worst. Steer clear of religious leaders who demand unquestioning obedience and act like they are better than you.

  • Look, there’s no way to dance around it. Some legitimate Gardnerians are just lousy people. Exercise your best judgment and remember that the vetting process with a coven is a two-way street. The coven is judging whether you fit with them, but equally you are judging whether they fit with you. If you don’t like the people in a group or find that the group is fundamentally not aligned with your values, you should leave.