The Demeter Coven section contains a series of essays which have been written by the Fetch, or Summoner of a Somerset based Wiccan coven. We have included them here as they give an insight into what a coven is about but wish to emphasise that they are only one point of view and written by one individual.
Below is the introduction which accompanies the essays:
Demeter Coven is a "closed" coven – that is, membership is never
invited or encouraged, but is only by recommendation through the
advocacy of an existing coven member who must have been freely
approached without undue encouragement.
At the present time we have
some 15 members, all of whom are over 30. We tend not to initiate
members below that age, as experience has shown that many younger
people find great difficulty in adopting the true spiritual nature of
Wicca as a religion, being generally more influenced by what we
sometimes refer to as "Buffy Wicca".
We are therefore, as a group,
quite conservative, and maintain a careful level of secrecy. The coven
has existed in Somerset for 15 years, having hived-off from another
which is still active elsewhere.
Demeter Coven has descended from two types of witchcraft, Gardnerian
Wicca and Traditional Wicca.
During this evolution, and
notwithstanding our conservative nature, various new ideas and options
were introduced from time to time by earlier covens in our "family
tree", and indeed also by Demeter Coven itself. We believe that such
changes – provided they befit the basic essential character and spirit
of Wicca – are a good thing, for without development there is
stagnation, and a tradition that remains rigid and aloof from changes
becomes fossilised by dogma (a fate that has befallen most other major
religions in the world).
We are therefore a neo-Gardnerian coven.
We
appoint the traditional "coven officers", such as:
Maiden (handmaiden
to the HPS),
Armourer (safeguards all coven equipment), Loremaster
(research and rituals),
Herbmaster (incenses, medicinal herbs etc.),
Puck (outside location manager), and I have the honour to be Fetch (or
Summoner), the herald of the HPS who acts as Her secretary,
intermediary with outsiders and emissary to other covens if required.
