The revival of Western Paganism is mainly due to the creation of Wicca, the nice modern name for Witchcraft. However Paganism is not Wicca; Wicca is an Occult form of Paganism.
The old religion was virtually wiped out by the church of Rome using a combination of propaganda, torture and genocide. Some people held on to the old religion. These were often the wisemen and women or Witches, the root 'wit' meaning 'wise'. The church became impatient and began a purge beginning around 1484 involving the burning of Witches and wholesale slaughter of thousands of people across Europe just on suspicion of being Witches. Not surprisingly, in the face of such oppression the old religion went 'underground' and Witches dedicated to preserving the religion formed themselves into secret groups called covens.
Christianity's purge was so successful that the old religion was virtually extinct by the 1900s but in 1899 a book was published by Charles Leland called 'The Gospel of Aradia' about Witches in Northern Italy who practised 'La Vecchia Religione' - the Old Religion. In 1921 an English historian, Margaret Murray published a book, 'The Witch Cult in Western Europe' in which she maintained that Witchcraft had been a religion. A British ex colonial administrator called Gerald Gardner supposedly revived Witchcraft and called it Wicca. In 1951 the laws against Witchcraft in Britain were repealed and he published a milestone book on the subject, 'Witchcraft Today'.
The old religion was virtually wiped out by the church of Rome using a combination of propaganda, torture and genocide. Some people held on to the old religion. These were often the wisemen and women or Witches, the root 'wit' meaning 'wise'. The church became impatient and began a purge beginning around 1484 involving the burning of Witches and wholesale slaughter of thousands of people across Europe just on suspicion of being Witches. Not surprisingly, in the face of such oppression the old religion went 'underground' and Witches dedicated to preserving the religion formed themselves into secret groups called covens.
Christianity's purge was so successful that the old religion was virtually extinct by the 1900s but in 1899 a book was published by Charles Leland called 'The Gospel of Aradia' about Witches in Northern Italy who practised 'La Vecchia Religione' - the Old Religion. In 1921 an English historian, Margaret Murray published a book, 'The Witch Cult in Western Europe' in which she maintained that Witchcraft had been a religion. A British ex colonial administrator called Gerald Gardner supposedly revived Witchcraft and called it Wicca. In 1951 the laws against Witchcraft in Britain were repealed and he published a milestone book on the subject, 'Witchcraft Today'.
Since that time Wicca has grown in popularity and has encouraged the revival of the original Pagan roots and the re-emergence of other Pagan branches such as the Northern tradition and the modern Druids. Wicca itself has become more eclectic and has absorbed elements of other systems such as the Qabala and elements of Hindu. While Wicca is relatively new, Paganism is as old as mankind and its traditions are still being rediscovered.
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