Texas Local Council Covenant of the Goddess
Wiccan Information Resource Guide/COG Overview
The Covenant of the Goddess is one of the largest and oldest Wiccan
religious Organizations, with members in North America, Europe and Australia.
Wicca, or Witchcraft is the most popular expression of the religious movement
known as Neo-Paganism, which according to the Institute for the Study of
American Religion, is the fastest growing religion in the United States.
Its practitioners are reviving ancient Pagan practices and beliefs of
pre-Christian Europe and adapting them to contemporary life. The result is a
religion that is both old and new, both "traditional" and creative.
Witchcraft: A Spiritual and Ethical Overview
Witchcraft is a life-affirming, earth- and nature-oriented religion
which sees all of life as sacred and interconnected, honors the natural world
as the embodiment of divinty, immanent as well as transcendent, and experiences
the divine as feminine and often as masculine, as well. Like the spiritual
world view and practices of Native Americans and Taoists, Wiccan spiritual
practices are intended to attune humanity to the natural rhythms and cycles of
the universe as a means of personally experiencing divinity. Rituals, therefore, coincide with the phases of the moon, the change of the seasons,
solstices and equinoxes and days which fall in between these such as May Day
and Halloween. This calendar of celebrations is referred to as the Wheel
of the Year. Most witches consider their practice a priest/esshood, akin
to the mystery schools of classical Greece and Rome, involving years of
training and passage through life-transforming initiatory rituals.
All Witches agree on an
ethical code known as the Wiccan Rede,
"An it harm none, do what ye will", which honors the freedom of each individual to do what she or he believes is right, but also recognizes
the profound responsibility that none may be harmed by one's actions.
Background and Formation
In the 1970's there was a marked rise of interest in Witchcraft not only in the United States, but throughout the world, reflecting a growing feminist awareness and global concern for the environment. In the Spring of 1975, a number of Wiccan elders from diverse traditions, all sharing the idea of forming a religious organization for all practitioners of Witchcraft, gathered to draft a "covenant" among themselves. These representatives also drafted bylaws to administer this new organization now known as the Covenant of the Goddess. At the 1975 Summer Solstice, the bylaws were ratified by thirteen
member congregations (or covens). The Covenant of the
Goddess was incorporated as a nonprofit religious organization on October 31st, 1975.
Organization and Activities
The Covenant is an umbrella organization of cooperating autonomous
Witchcraft congregations and individual practitioners with the power to confer
credentials on
its qualified clergy. It fosters cooperation and mutual support
among Witches and secures for them the legal protections enjoyed
by members of other religions. The Covenant is non-hierarchical
and governed by consensus. Two-thirds of its clergy are women.
The Covenant is coordinated by a national board of directors. Many of its activities are conducted at the regional level by local councils. The Covenant holds an annual open to
the Wiccan community, as well as regional conferences, and
publishes a newsletter. In recent years, the Covenant has taken
part in spiritual and educational conferences, interfaith outreach, large public rituals, environmental activism, community projects and social action, as well as efforts to correct negative stereotypes and promote accurate media portrayals. Its clergy perform legal marriages (handfastings), preside at funerals and other rituals of life-transition, and provide counseling to Witches including those in the military and in prisons. The Covenant also provides for the need of its members and their families with disaster relief, health insurance, youth awards, sponsorship of college and university student groups, and legal assistance in instances of discrimination.
For more information, see our
contact info page. Or email us at
texas@cog.org.
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