So is there really no difference between the words neopaganism and Wicca?

[Dervill Crow]

I really pissed off my covenmates last night when I said we shouldn't really call ourselves wiccan because we're not oathbound or lineaged or any of that other traditional wiccan stuff. I sent an e-mail non-apology today apologizing for making them mad when I told them they were wrong.

Of the four there besides myself, two told me I was wrong, that if you call yourself wiccan you are wiccan. The two others just sat there watching to see what would happen.

I expect I will be invited to leave the coven; another covenmate was "shunned" basically for not making enough effort to socialize.

So what do you think, should I just let it blow over or take the initiative to find a less fluffy group? I love hanging out with these women, but sometimes they say things that really bug me and it's getting harder to keep my mouth shut.

[Behind the Aegis]

1. SOLITARY!

It's the way to go! :)

Seriously though, if you are unable to communicate with your coven, you must ask yourself, is this the right coven for me?

[Dervill Crow]

2. Yep, you're right.

Just wanted to hear it from a neutral source.

:dilemma: I can see definite advantages to solitary magick.

[intheflow]

3. There's a lot to be said for

naming oneself/reclaiming tradition. But I would not consider myself a Taoist just because I called myself one--I'd have to practice actual Taoism, in a Taoist community.

I think to answer your question, there is no definable difference between wicca and neopaganism since true wicca was wiped entirely out and anything practiced today is reconstructed and therefore "neo".

On the other hand, I think you have a valid point about being "oathbound" as you call it, or "covenanted" as I'd refer to it. Indeed, the work coven shares the same root (obviously) as covenant, which is a spiritual contract between believers and their God/desses. If your coven isn't bound by a sacred agreement, what differentiates it from a club diddling with magick?

I agree with Behind the Aegis. Don't wait for them to "invite" invite you to leave, just leave. Maybe you can start another coven with the other person they shunned.