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| Seax-Wica was the inspiration of Raymond
Buckland. In 1973 fed-up with the egotism and power trips exhibited by others
within the craft, he decided to leave the Gardnerian tradition feeling it
no longer met his religious needs. He developed and founded Seax-Wica as
a new tradition at Samhain that same year. While he claimed no direct descent
from Saxon times, he chose a Saxon background as a foundation for the new
tradition with "Woden and Freya" as its main deities.
After his experiences in other traditions, Buckland determined to make Seax-Wicca more open and democratic. There are no degree structure and no oath of secrecy, and to alleviate any possibility of the abuse of power, the priesthood is chosen democratically by the coven members. Priests and priestesses are elected annually to serve for a year and a day only, after which new leaders may be elected. It is possible however for leaders to continue for more than one term, if acknowledged by the coven as being good leaders. The coven can be lead by either a priest or priestess, or by both acting together, in which case neither is regarded superior to the other. In the Saxon tradition, non-initiates, or cowans, are referred to as Theows (pronounced thoe) and are permitted to attend ritual meetings by invitation. A neophyte training to enter a coven is known as a Ceorl (pronounced cawl), and once initiated becomes a Gesith. As there is no degree structure for further advancement all Saxon Wiccans are known as Gesiths. Once Gesith has been attained, he or she may break away and form a new coven, or start their own coven by doing a simple self-dedication rite before initiating others to join them. The Book of Shadows is called The Tree, and is usually bound in a green cover. Buckland was known as the Faeder, or Founder/Father of Seax-Wica and for many years ran a correspondence course for the tradition, believing that individuals unable to join or contact a coven should not be excluded. As a result, Seax-Wica is now a worldwide tradition with covens operating in such places as Japan, Russia, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and all across England, Europe and the United States. In 1993 at Lughnasadh, Buckland decided to retire from active participation in the Craft, and handed the leadership of the tradition on to an ex-student, Michael B. Smith. |
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