by Searles O'Dubhain
Searles O'Dubhain was the founder of the Summerlands and one of the most active voices in Celtic Reconstructionism on Usenet from 2003 to 2014. By 2007, the question of how Druidry differed from Wicca — which had become the dominant form of Western contemporary Paganism — was one of the recurring live issues on alt.religion.druid. Searles here provides a systematic answer organized around three areas: belief system, internal structure, and lineage. He opens with statements from Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone — among the most respected authorities in modern Wicca — and then develops nine doctrinal distinctions of his own. The piece is comparative theology in the living tradition: Searles writing not as a scholar describing two religions from the outside, but as a practitioner explaining to other practitioners what he believes distinguishes the path he walks.
Here's what some noted Wiccans have to say about one particular Druidic organization:
Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone:
"Our Relationship with An Conradh Draoithe na h-Éireann (CDE): We are not, nor ever have been members of CDE, although Adge was one of the many founding members. We have never attended any of the convocations (meetings) nor do we hold any sway in the day to day running, political structure or democratic processes that exist within CDE. We have, at no time, ever called ourselves Druids."
"CDE is clearly a Druid Organisation and not Wiccan. It does not have a Wiccan belief system nor Wiccan internal structures. It has no connection with Gardnerian, Alexandrian or any other forms of British Wicca. It is a convocation, a joining together not a Coven, Grove or Order. Many of its listed members run independent Groves, Orders or Colleges of Druidry. The majority of its membership are Irish, but it does not differentiate on the grounds of nationality or race."
Since these people come from a small group of folks who pretty much "wrote the book" on modern Wicca, their testimony and statements about Wiccans and Druids being different carries considerable weight and importance.
Farrar and Bone distinguish Wicca from Druidry in three specific areas:
- Belief System
- Internal Structure
- Lineage
A Contrast Between Wiccan and Druidic Belief Systems
Here are nine ways that I personally see the above specific areas manifesting differently for Wiccans and Druids:
1. Druids teach that the gods are many and that they exist as families of individual beings. Wicca sees the gods as being manifestations of The God and The Goddess.
2. Druids believe that the gods are individuals, have many different powers and attributes and not just a single power or representing only a single attribute or being of power. More than one deity can provide one assistance or inspiration in Druidry while in Wicca the essence of a deity is considered to be uniquely singular and the property of a single entity. This distinction seems to blur when one gets to a few specific "many-skilled" deities of the Celts (who were seen as possessing power and excellence in everything). Even here, however, the deities were seen as many who could have such power and these deities could actually fight and war with one another for control of the skill, power, essence, and natural manifestation. In Wicca, the control of power is seen as having an ultimate in a god or goddess, while in Druidry this ultimate power is known simply and in complexity as truth. In Wicca it seems this ultimate is known as "The Goddess."
3. While Druids acknowledge Mother and Father deities in the families of deities, they do not see these deities as being "The God" or "The Goddess" of everything as Wiccans do. Druids see relationships to deities almost like being born into a family relationship with them; being adopted or fostered by them; being dedicated or even married to them.
4. Druids consider sex and sexuality to be wonderful and marvelously different but do not differentiate on the basis of sex or sexuality in terms of their leaders, members or group structures.
5. Druids believe in doing no evil vs. the Wiccan Rede of "harm none." The difference is subtle and is inextricably bound up in the ideas of law, society and order. The basis of any justice system is that there are crimes that occur against society, people and property. Enforcing justice admits that harm can and will sometimes occur when wars occur, crimes are committed or property and life are damaged. Even the paying of restitution, incarceration of law breakers or defending of one's home, tribe or homeland involve acts that can be harmful to others.
6. Druids work within the social order and structure while Wiccans consider their ways to be apart from the normal order and society. As such Druids conduct public rituals as a normal part of their practices while most Wiccan rituals are either secret or only open on a select basis. In modern times, this is more a tendency than a hard and fast rule for either Wiccans or Druids. As the world becomes a more open and accepting place, the need for secrecy will most probably be sublimated to the abilities of people to choose and to actively participate based on individual affinities.
7. Druids do not base their understanding of cause and effect on the Wiccan "Law of Three." The Law of Three states that anything done will bring a threefold return to the person doing the action. In Wiccan belief, this return can be three times harmful or three times a reward depending on the nature and effect of the original action. Druids tend to see truth as the central power within everything and believe that the truth within one's actions will determine whether they have the power to help one's self or others or to do harm or evil. The ultimate truth for Druids would be the power of existing or actual being, with death being the transmutation of this truth from one state of existence to another.
8. Druids believe that a person should always be truly themselves to be their most powerful, while Wiccans seem to believe that a person achieves ultimate power when channeling a deity or actually "drawing down" or being taken over by this deity. Druids perform works of power through commanding the forces of Nature through themselves becoming the essence of that force or power, rather than the essence of that force of power becoming them. The difference is subtle but very telling. One action is almost exactly the opposite of the other, though the principles of spirit working through a body within a mental, physical and spiritual system are the same. I prefer to consider these ideas as being based on intention and realization. A Druid would request the assistance or help of a deity to accomplish a working themselves or through their people's efforts. They would not expect the deity or deities to do all of the work themselves. The battle goddess gives power and destiny to warriors. She does not actually fight herself, unless she wants to do so. The god of growing things does not make them grow. He protects their natural growth from harm by others and forces. He assists the farmer, the herdsman and the craftsman alike. The gods of Druids assist them in like manner. It's the Druids who perform their workings and not the gods themselves.
9. Druids do not believe or in practice emulate that the highest or ultimate form of ritual is the sexual coupling that occurs between a male High Priest and a female High Priestess. Druidic initiation is not based on a member performing a sexual act or being a part of such a ritual. This is not to say that Druids consider sex to be something that should always be excluded from ritual or magic. Sex is not the overriding factor in any of these activities, though it can and should be pleasant in an infinite number of ways. The highest form of Druidic ritual is the opening of the ways between the worlds and having the deities present for blessings, communions, inspiration and honoring.
Internal Structure
The major differences between Wiccan and Druid groups in terms of internal structures are:
1. Most Druid groves or local groups are chartered by the parent Druid order. The authority for being a particular type of Druid comes from the top down and is not based on a confederation of groups or circles that come together in common belief or acceptance of a Creed, Rede or Book of Shadows as occurs in Wicca. This means that there is a Chief Druid or Ard-Drui in Druid groups while there is no single High Priestess or High Priest who can speak for a particular form of Wicca. Druid groves are distributed forms while Wiccan ways are a confederated entity consisting of many different covens. The leadership and leaders of Druid groups are elected by a vote of the total worldwide membership. Wicca has no such worldwide structure though its Churches, Covens, and Covenants do have individual confederations. Wicca is a decentralized power structure in general while Druidry is more centralized. Of course, in the modern world, this difference is challenged by spin-off, maverick and independent groves and covens alike for both Druidry and Wicca. That's not the traditional structure, however.
2. Within individual Druid groups and groves the levels of rank, achievement and initiation are set at the central level while being administered at the local level. These items within Wiccan traditions are spelled out by the Book of Shadows and interpreted at the local level by the coven High Priestess and High Priest.
3. In Druid groups and groves, the actions of the local leadership are governed by the requirements established by the actual Druid order itself and are not individually established by the covens and groups on a local base as is often the case in Wicca. This does not mean that Druid orders don't allow groves leeway in their local management, nor does it mean that in a Wiccan tradition all coven responsibilities and activities are a free-for-all. Again, it is the difference between central and local organization, intention and structure that guides how things are done and structured as a norm.
Lineage
Druid groups have lineages that trace their origins back to different individuals, places and times than do modern Wiccan groups. Some individuals have been both Wiccans and Druids, however, giving rise to a confusion of lineage. Notable persons of this type are Gerald Gardner, Ross Nichols and Isaac Bonewits. Some modern Druids came to the Druid way from Wicca. Some modern Wiccans came to Wicca from the Druid Way. I suspect that this cross-over in membership has existed since there were things known as Druidry or Wicca.
The Druid way has long existed in the past as an integral part of Celtic society and class structure. The Druids were the memories, teachers, lawyers, doctors and judges of Celtic society. Witches or Wiccans were most often seen as being separated from the social or governing order. There are tales of Druids becoming kings but there are none such of Witches becoming kings within Celtic society or history. This difference is the source of the decentralization of Witchcraft in regard to being governed vs. the central governing bodies of Druids.
Druid lineages were maintained and were public knowledge for a long time in Celtic societies of the past, whereas Witchcraft and Wicca were more of a secret order without a public record. Witchcraft is found in many different societies than Celtic society and is therefore considered to be a more generic term than Druidism or Druidry. The lineages of modern Druid groups and modern Wiccan groups are in general separate from one another and go back to the thematic and philosophical differences of the founders of their traditions and organizations.
The points presented here are my personal observations of the differences (except where previously noted). I look forward to additional discussion, insight and diversity as the fullness of the differences between Wicca and Druidry become known to us on this newsgroup.
Colophon
Written by Searles O'Dubhain ([email protected]) and posted to alt.religion.druid on 9 March 2007. Searles O'Dubhain was the founder of the Summerlands (summerlands.com), a foundational resource for Celtic Reconstructionist practice, and one of the most prolific and thoughtful practitioners on alt.religion.druid over two decades. This essay represents a systematic articulation of Druidic distinctives against the background of contemporary Wicca — comparative theology as practiced by a community elder, grounded in both classical sources and living organizational experience.
Preserved from the Usenet archive for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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