Looking to join a Pagan group?

We receive a lot of enquiries about join groups of pagans, often in a specific path, wicca, witchcraft, druidism etc. Here is some general advice about how to go about joining a group:

Most Pagans celebrate their spirituality privately, and are so loosely organised that they donÕt have any Ôneutral territoryÕ that belongs to the group. Groups meet and celebrate in peopleÕs homes or on private land. You wouldnÕt expect your neighbour across the road to invite you to a family party or let you invite yourself, just because you were interested in their habits or traditions, and it isnÕt reasonable to expect any Pagan group to invite you to a celebration without coming to know you first.

Learn as much as you can about various paths if you want to work in a group, not specifics of ritual or spellcraft - but why a person chooses that Pagan path before you try to join a group. By knowing these basics, even if it is just in theory, you show any prospective group that you are serious, have thought this through and are willing to learn.

Magical/Ritual groups (Groves, Hearths or Covens) are closely knit working groups who celebrate their spirituality, and sometimes practice magic, together. To enter one involves a commitment to the spiritual path, but also a commitment to the people involved. Every person in a group brings a different energy and dynamic to that group, so most groups are very, very careful about changing an existing dynamic by including anyone new. Most often, people will not even say whether or not they are in a magical working group. This is part of the ethos of privacy and protection for oneÕs self and others.

So if you want to work in a magical group, first you have to meet the folk. They need to come to know you well enough to see if you would fit into their group, and you need to come to know them well enough to be certain you are comfortable with them and trust them. This takes a lot of time. Ethical folk will take this process slowly and in social contexts a long time before suggesting sharing anything magical. Be very, very wary of anyone who invites you to a ritual on first meeting, unless they make it clear that it is an open ritual, usually a seasonal celebration, and you can ask others at the moot about the ritual and the folk.

It will help if you decide beforehand what you want from a magical group. What are you interested in doing? What are you not interested in doing? Feel free to ask questions, while bearing in mind that there will be some matters members will not discuss with an outsider. You might ask: What will be expected of me as a member - and ask yourself if these are commitments you can willingly fulfill? Is the group hierarchical, fully democratic, or somewhere in between? Does it follow a particular pantheon and mythos (Egyptian, Celtic, Greek, Norse, Saxon etc.) and do these call to your heart? Does the group ever work skyclad (naked)? Is entry to the group by formal initiation, and if so, can you take the oaths involved with honour and sincerity?

No genuine group will consider formally inviting you to join their group Ð through initiation or any other process Ð until theyÕre certain that you are right for them and they are right for you. DonÕt try to rush things. It is far better, and more honourable, to spend years making certain of what is right for you, than to plunge headlong into things you donÕt understand and havenÕt thought through.

Joining the PF will give you contacts which may lead to entry to a magical group. There are training courses in many paths available, and there are networks of groups who are prepared to make contact with seekers (see the contact advertisements in PF District Newsletters or Pagan Dawn). None of this can guarentee anything. It only means that the folk involved are prepared to either write to you or talk to you about your spirituality, what you are looking for, what you already know, to see if they think their style of practice would suit you. If for any reason they donÕt think you are right for each other that may be an end to the contact. This isnÕt a reflection on you, it is simply an acknowledgement of the dynamic between you and them, there is no ÒfaultÓ on either side.

All the various Pagan paths are still minority spiritual paths and always will be, so with the best of intentions there simply may not be any folk near you who can guide your learning or share ritual or celebration with you.

Good luck - we hope you find what you seek . . . but please do contact us if you need some help . .