Welcome to the Library

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Webweaver’s Note: This page is still under construction. Links will appear as the related pages are updated and uploaded. Most pages will have a link to download a PDF copy of the article. All links will also be available in the menu above. The purpose of this page is to give you a brief overview of each resource.

The Proteus covenstead was located in a big old house in northern New Jersey. Like so many other covensteads, it was filled with books. Nearly every room had at least one bookshelf (although the kitchen and bathrooms were exceptions to this rule), and the back of our house held a large library.

As with the covenstead, so this site: here you will find links to many articles and essays that might be of use and interest to you in your exploration of our Path. For your convenience, we have sorted them into a few broad categories and many sub-categories.  In addition, each offering can be downloaded in PDF format for ease in reading. Enjoy!

1. Earth Religion: neo-Paganism

Although most Pagans were raised in other faiths, we typically feel like we didn’t change our religion. Instead we found a name for the religious impulse we always had, and a community of other people who share the same feelings. We call this discovery the “Pagan homecoming” experience. If you have just recently found your way home, welcome! This site is your homecoming gift and a legacy of Proteus Coven. We of the Protean downline hope what you find here will be useful as you deepen your knowledge and practice of the Old Ways.

Overview: the Thealogical framework

  • a very brief introduction to Liberal Theology
  • Pagan Musings by Tony Kellywritten back in 1970, this isa classic and foundational neo-Pagan text
  • Defining Paganism by Michael York
  • Goddess-Talk : creating a thealogy of our own
  • Pagan Deism by Margarian Bridger and Stephen Hergest – a thoughtful description of three different concepts that people have about Deity.

Ethics and Values: guideposts

The most important religious question is also the most basic: what does it mean to live by this? Here are some preliminary explorations of that question.

Earth spirituality: the heart of our Path

Myth and Symbol: our working vocabulary

Personal development: our toolbox

2. Going deeper: priest/ess training

Witchcraft is not so much a separate religion as a closely-related cluster of dedicated Pagan religious orders. When a Pagan seeks Wiccan training and Initiation, this is not a religious conversion; it is a deepening, an intensification of practice. It is also a commitment to serve the Gods, the people and the Earth as Witch and Priest/ess. If you feel drawn to make this additional commitment, here are some things to ponder as you begin your preparation.

What does “Witch” mean?

  • Thou Shalt Not Suffer a Witch to Live : An Enquiry into Biblical Mistranslation by Alexei Kondratiev –Many different words in the Hebrew Bible all gottranslated as “Witch.”
  • A Witch Among the Navajos by Malcolm Brenner Learning to resolve linguistic confusion

Becoming a Witch in truth

  • Sustaining Growth : for solitary (and all other) seekers
  • Choosing a Coven : what to look for, and what to avoid
  • Isaac Bonewits‘ Cult Danger Evaluation Frame : a useful tool to help you identify, and avoid, dysfunctional or pathological groups
  • Risking Dedication : what does Dedication mean? what does it require?
  • Self-dedication : the first offering

3. Proteus Coven: one of many doors

Protean Tradition?

Please note: Proteus Coven, and the covens descended from it, comprise a distinctive branch of the larger Gardnerian family tree. This section explores what identifies us as Proteans. It does not imply any severance from our Gardnerian rootstock.

  • Who are the Proteans?
  • Protean Witchcraft : some history of our lineage

The Ethics Proteans Share

  • What Protean students pledge  at the start of training.
  • Tis Evil Luck to Speak of It: Secrecy and the Craft
  • Be Not As These: The Wiccan Case for Unpaid Clergy
  • Only if None Be Harmed: Getting Specific About Magical Ethics

Proteus Coven’s training system

  • Overview of Proteus Coven’s training program

4. More Resources:

  • Workbooks for Elders:
    • Cherishing our Elders: sustaining continuity in community
    • Counseling Basics for Wiccan/Pagan Clergy
    • The Front Gate: finding, screening, orienting and dedicating new students
    • Endings : dealing with departures from and dissolutions of Pagan groups
    • Rites of Passage: Crossing Life’s Thresholds
    • Storming: Working Through our Conflicts
    • We Gather Together: group dynamics for Pagan Leaders
    • When Helping Hurts: self-care for caregivers

  • Cherry Hill Seminary: on-line education for Pagan clergy, now legally able to offer Masters degrees in Pagan ministry, counseling, and religious studies
  • Good stuff at other sites:

The Wild Hunt: Pagan news blog featuring in-depth reports on news about Pagan issues

 Michael Nielsen’s Psychology of Religion site –anyone who fully uses the resources of this amazing site will get an excellent education in the psychology of religion. Webweaver’s Note: The original site went dark in 2004. This link will take you to an archive of its contents.

updated: February 18, 2012; © 2009, 2012 by Judy Harrow , HPs, Proteus Coven

updated: October 12, 2020; © 2020 by Geoffrey W. Miller