Welcome to Gaia! ::

A quick note... a lot of your questions are difficult to give good answers to, because the actual answers vary greatly between cultures/traditions. They aren't something that there is a general "all-purpose" answer too. biggrin




Not exactly sure what you are asking for in this question (at least that isn't already covered in one of the other ones), unless you want an Etymology of the word.



Traditional Wicca is a specific pagan religion, that has specific core beliefs and practices. It is an orthopraxic, mystery religion, that is oath bound and requires coven initiation (usually man to woman, woman to man). It has specific deities (in this case the Lord and Lady of the Isles) and is fertility centered - not earth/nature centered.



Wicca was founded in the 1940's by a man named Gerald Gardner. It is based on the practice of witchcraft (as passed down by the New Forest Coven), as well as bits and pieces from other older pagan religions/practices, free-masonry and ceremonial magic.



Wicca is the priesthood of the Lord and Lady of the Isles. Those who practice it, have been called to serve them.



In theory, anyone...however in order to claim the "title" one must be initiated via lineaged coven. This lineage is an initiatory lineage (not "bloodline"), that traces back to Gerald Gardner and the New Forest Coven. In order to be initiated, one must first find a coven that is accepting students for training and also be found a "proper person".



Covens can circle almost anywhere.



You will not find all that much info on Trad Wicca from books or on the internet, and a large bit of what is discussed in this guild (and most others for that matter) does not refer to Trad Wicca. Most of what is discussed refers to Eclectic Neo-Paganism paths (which are often mislabeled as Eclectic, Solitary or Neo-Wicca), which are based on the non-oath bound (outer-court) parts of Wiccan practices. It is always good to note the difference between the two, as there are many who won't recognize any claim of "Wiccan" outside of traditional paths. That isn't to say that one's practices and beliefs are necessarily invalid, but simply that they have often been mislabeled.



Paganism is an umbrella term that encompasses all non-Abrahamic faiths.



There are any number of different Pagan paths/religions (as solitary, eclectic paths are included - you could almost say an infinite number). The major ones are Wicca, Asatru, Neo-Eclectic Paganism, Hellenic Recon, Celtic Recon, and Kemeticism. For an overview of some of them you can check out the intro in this thread.



Being that there are so many different paths, this isn't really something that can be answered for "Pagan". One would need to first define what specific branch of Paganism one is talking about.



A lot depends on what culture one is talking about. While some maybe similar to others, each culture has it's own ideas, myths/lore regarding the nature of their Gods. So again one would need to define what Pantheon one was talking about, before the question could really be answered.



Also depends on what path/religion you are interested in. Some of the major Pantheons are...

Greek
Kemetic
Celtic (though the Gael culture is a closed one, so many of these Gods/Goddess are not open to be worshiped outside of that culture)
Norse
Wiccan (actual names are oath-bound to non-initiates)



Some paths already have related Gods/Goddesses, so if you are on one of those paths, then you would have to follow as required by whatever path you are on.

If one is on an eclectic path, you would study various pantheons, the myths/lore and see which ones you seem to be drawn to. Once you are feeling pulled in a direction - you can try communication with said God/ess - either though prayer, ritual, offerings, etc... to see if they are interested in you.

In general - unless there are any tradition specific prohibition from worshiping other Gods, you can worship as many different Gods/esses as you want. The key is that if you are working with different Pantheons/Cultures - keep them separate. Each culture has/has their own practices, beliefs, myths/lore, etc..., they don't usually mix all that well with others.



This is something that would be tradition/culture specific. It's a matter of studying/communicating with the Gods you have been called to, and using the forms of worship that are appropriate to them.

thank you both for anwsering most of my questions smile
though your anwsers have made me question more haha

Wicca
1 what is the Etymology of the word Wicca
2 how does it get initiated from man to woman, woman to man?
3 what does ''fertility centered - not earth/nature centered'' mean?
4 what is, Eclectic Neo-Paganism, Trad Wicca, Eclectic, Solitary or Neo-Wicca? (all those terms really confuse me)

Paganism
5 what is Asatru, Hellenic Recon, Celtic Recon, and Kemeticism?
6 Greek, Kemetic, Celtic , Norse

i got to go now will do rest later sorry

If you have questions about definitions we have a running list in the Library here. We are always welcoming new information on these definitions and new words to define. All we need is a few sources that support your claims.