The Status of Silver RavenWolf

by Luthaneal

Silver Ravenwolf has attained a fair degree of notoriety in the witchcraft community from the masses of easy-to-read witchcraft books that she has written. In turn, this has led many to consider her a good source of information on Wicca and indeed, that she herself is a noteworthy Wiccan. However, there are also a lot of Wiccans out there who find that Miss Ravenwolf has been promoting an image of Wicca that is far from accurate and they have often had to point out that Silver Ravenwolf is not a Wiccan, nor has she ever been.
If this situation were simply a misunderstanding on the part of Ravenwolf’s readers then that would be an easily rectified issue, as Ravenwolf herself could explain that she has never received an initiation into the priesthood of the Wicca. But unfortunately, Ravenwolf seems unwilling to do so and actually appears to prefer perpetuating this idea that she is a Wiccan. It is possible that this is simply due to Ravenwolf not understanding what “Wicca” actually means (an inheritance that she has now passed on to her readership) or it could be the case that her deceit is intentional. Either way, in this short article we will seek to unravel the many strands of who this woman is and to show her actual relationship to Wicca.

Firstly, a clarification is required and I am sad to say that it is one that many people reading this article will not like to hear. But regardless it is necessary at this point to explain what Wicca is, so that we can then understand Ravenwolf’s relationship to it.

For this explanation, I am going to momentarily step back in time a few thousand years, to the regions of Egypt, Greece and Rome. At this time there existed many different forms of Paganism, much as there is today, and among these forms of Paganism there were religious groups known as “Mystery Cults”. I do not have the space here to fully explain the ins and outs of these groups, but I will touch upon the most relevant details briefly: Mystery Cults (or simply “the Mysteries”) were all different, but they worshiped the same Gods as the rest of society. However, what was different about them is the way in which they approached those Gods. In the Mysteries, it was believed that by being initiated into their secret groups, an individual would experience certain profound revelations about themselves, nature and the Gods. As an individual continued to engage in these secret rites, these revelations continued and the initiate would eventually ascend the ranks of the group over a series of degrees. The Mysteries were groups that believed that one could gain direct experiences of the divine through engaging in the secret practices of the group. These “Mysteries” grew out of a process of veiled meanings, wrapped in esoteric rites and symbolic imagery. In short, the entire theology of these groups rested upon undergoing certain group experiences that brought them into a greater understanding of the cosmos. It was (and is) an entirely unique kind of religion.

This theology is what Wicca is based upon. Wicca is the name of the Mystery group founded by Gerald Gardner between 1930-1954. It began as a Mystery Cult (and in many ways it still is) with a strong emphasis on the importance of magic, now however, the Wicca is so large that it is commonly referred to as a Mystery Tradition or a Mystery Religion. Gardner referred to the religion he publicised as “Witchcraft”, but he always referred to the Mystery priesthood of that religion as “The Wicca” (though he spelt is “Wica”).
That is what Wicca is. It is an initiatory priesthood modelled on the ancient Mystery Cults and possessing the same theological principles. This means that one must be initiated to be a member and that upon initiation one receives the larger part of the religion through a combination of written text, oral tradition and Mystery experiences.

So the question now becomes: Is Silver Ravenwolf a part of the Wicca?

On the cover of her book “To Ride a Silver Broomstick” a description of the author is given, saying:

“Silver Ravenwolf (Pennsylvania) has attained Wiccan Priesthood, is the Tradition Head of the Black Forest Clan, and an Elder of the family of Serphant Stone.”
- To Ride a Silver Broomstick, 2004

As one can see, it is directly claimed her that she is a member of the Wiccan priesthood. So where did she attain this status in the priesthood? Is she part of the Gardnerian Tradition, the Alexandrian Tradition, the Protean Tradition, etc? Luckily, inside the cover of the same book (To Ride a Silver Broomstick), under the heading ‘About the Author’ it informs us as to how she came to this status:

“In November 1991 she received her First Degree from Bried Foxsong of Sacred Hart and is on the rolls of the International Red Garters. She also carries Second and Third Degree status from the Temple of Hecate Triskele of the Caledonii Tradition, and now heads the Back Forest Clan in four states.”
- To Ride a Silver Broomstick, 2004
- Also repeated on Silver Ravenwolf’s website (as of Oct, 2008)

So, her First Degree in Wicca was, so she says, gained through an initiation by Breid Foxsong. But who exactly is Breid Foxsong? Although it is certainly fair to say that she is a popular writer in the Pagan community, having written items such as the Pagan Alphabet rhyme, it is somewhat harder to ascertain what Breid Foxsong’s initiatory lineage actually is.
In a 1997 interview, Silver Ravenwolf states:

“…Bried came down and did my initiation and I started in the traditional craft. …she’s Brit Trad (British Tradition). So I started Brit Trad. And then I went to Caledoni through Ariel, and then I went to Family of Serpentstone, with Lord Serpent, and we are still a part of Family of Serpentstone. We are also Black Forest Clan.”
- Moonbeams Journal, Issue 2, 1997

So the suggestion here is that Breid Foxsong is of “British Tradition” and of this I have no doubt. But being as in the same interview Ravenwolf states that she primarily learnt Wicca from reading Sybil Leak’s “Diary of a Witch” and chatting to her friends, I feel it would be prudent to examine what she actually means when she says “British Tradition”.
Now, it is entirely possible that what Silver actually means here is that Breid Foxsong belongs to a British Tradition, which would mean probably either Gardnerian or Alexandrian. Alternatively, in addition to Gardnerian and Alexandrian, it could mean any Tradition of Wicca that is lineaged to those Traditions, which is the common meaning when someone refers to “British Traditional Witchcraft”. However, although it may be possible that this is what is meant, I should nonetheless provide Ravenwolf’s own definition of “British Traditional Witch” as given (once again) in “To Ride a Silver Broomstick”:

“British Tradition Witch: A mix of Celtic and Gardnerian beliefs. Most famous organization at this time is the International Red Garters. British Traditionals move mostly from within the Farrar studies (the famous witch husband and wife from England.) They too are fairly structured in their beliefs, and train though the degree process. Their covens are also co-ed”
- To Ride a Silver Broomstick, 2004

The first thing that should be pointed out here is that Janet and Stewart Farrar are initiates of Alexandrian Tradition; however, never at any time have they founded a Tradition called “British Traditional”. All I can imagine is that the group Ravenwolf is referring to must tend to draw a lot from the work of the Farrars and indeed, it is good work to draw from.
But if the above is how Ravenwolf defines this “Brit Trad”, then it should be quite evident to see that although it is a perfectly valid form of initiatory witchcraft, it is not part of the Wicca. In other words, Ravenwolf’s initiation into this Tradition does not constitute attaining Wiccan Priesthood.

But what of her Second and Third Degree initiations into the Caledonii Tradition? Well, I should probably assume that these followed on from a First Degree initiation into the Caledonii Tradition, as to go straight to a Second Degree would be incredibly strange.
But nonetheless, the obvious question here is whether or not the Caledonii Tradition (also known as the Hecatine Tradition) is lineaged to the Wiccan priesthood. The short answer her is “no, they are not”.
It seems, according the Beaufort House Listings, that the Caledonii Tradition grew out of (and away from) Seax-Wica, though there is nothing to clarify this possibility. What can be said with certainty is that this Tradition bases itself around Scottish lore and though it may have a passing connection and influence from other Wiccan Traditions, it does not appear to possess any initiatory lineage with the Wiccan priesthood. However, one may argue that due to its primarily Scottish focus, it is at least a British Witchcraft Tradition, even if it isn’t Wicca.


A Wiccan Elder?

And what about Ravenwolf’s position as an “Elder of the family of Serphant Stone”? This is certainly very true and she was ‘Eldered’ by Lord Serphant himself. However, as nice as it may be that she has been recognised as an Elder, this really doesn’t mean too much when it comes to Wicca.
Lord Serphant was initiated into the Y Dynion Mwyn Tradition of Welsh Witchcraft (not a Wiccan Tradition) and then later created his own Tradition (The Serpentstone Tradition) by combining elements of Y Dynion Mwyn, with elements from other Witchcraft Tradition, such as the Northwind Tradition (which does possess Wiccan Lineage). Serphant himself, however, was never a Wiccan. So although his Tradition may have some popularity, his Eldering of Silver Ravenwolf was in no way conferring any kind of Wiccan title.


Other Claims of Lineage

There is another explanation of Silver’s Lineage which is often exemplified by her own Black Forest Clan and it is generally used to example Ravenwolf’s connection (or lineage?) to Gerald Gardner. It goes thusly:

“From Gardner to Ray Buckland, to Michael Ragan, to Lord Serphant, to Silver RavenWolf.”

What should first be made clear is that if this is meant to demonstrate a chain of initiatory lineage to Wicca, it is a poor attempt, as in Wiccan terms it is impossible. Wicca initiates man to woman and woman to man, so it takes a High Priestess to initiate a new Priest and a High Priest to initiate a new Priestess. Gerald Gardner did not initiate Ray Buckland. Gerald Gardner initiated Monique Wilson and it was Monique Wilson who then initiated Buckland into Wicca. Likewise, Buckland could not have given Michael Ragan a Wiccan initiation; it would have to have been a High Priestess (probably his then wife, Rosemary). However, Buckland has himself said that he did not initiate Ragan into Gardnerian Wicca, but instead into his own Saxon Tradition. But at this point, the lineage breaks. Michael Ragan moved away from Wicca and started doing his own thing, such as his Temple of Danann and Clan Ragan. These were specifically not intended to be Wiccan Traditions, though they were certainly inspired by Wicca with regards to things like ritual structure.

Lord Serphant possesses no Wiccan initiation at all, so when it comes to Ragan and Serphant, any possible claims of lineage to the Wiccan priesthood are completely shattered.
However, despite Ravenwolf possessing no lineage to Wicca, I suppose that she can at least claim an interesting heredity of associated people. But then again, so can a lot of people and so can I. In fact, if we were going to use these kinds of connections as a way to claim a trace to Gardner, then my own would be considerably more “purebred” than Miss Ravenwolf’s. But of course, these kinds of connections aren’t particularly relevant to a discussion of lineage, so it really doesn’t matter.


The Black Forest Clan

So what does this lack of lineage mean for Silver Ravenwolf’s Black Forest Clan? Well, in short, it means absolutely nothing. All it means is that they are not part of the Wiccan Priesthood.
However, they are certainly a large Witchcraft Priesthood in their own right and from what I have seen a perfectly respectable one. Indeed, with all their membership premiums, teaching systems and distribution, they appear a lot more organised than many Wiccan groups. They are made up of a large variety of people from many walks of life, most of whom are very serious about their path. The teachers, likewise, are interested in providing serious information about practical witchcraft and are not the wide-eyed “fluffies” that so often get accused of clinging to Ravenwolf’s books and image. This group has its own rules, rites and organisation, which it seeks to maintain quite strictly through a network of organisers and instructors.
Whatever Silver Ravenwolf may or may not be and whatever roots she may have sprung from, it seems that there are definitely those in the Black Forest Clan who are, as individuals, serious about the path of Witchcraft they have chosen. And good luck to them!


These days, The Black Forest Clan is one of a great many Witchcraft organisations, groups, traditions and communities, all of which are just as valid as Wicca and all its many Traditions. Indeed, you don’t have to be Wiccan to be a Witch and a damned good Witch, at that! If you feel drawn to becoming a Wiccan, then good for you! If you feel drawn to another group, then good for you, too! Or likewise, if you don’t want to join any group and wish to be a solitary witch, then more power to you! These days it seems that Eclectic Witches outnumber all of the Witchcraft groups anyway.

But still, the distinction must be made that although there are a great many Witchcraft groups (all with their own styles and beliefs), there is still only one Wicca (with its own multiple Traditions) and we should not allow books by people like Silver Ravenwolf to cloud the meaning of what Wicca is.
Silver Ravenwolf may produce a large amount of books on Witchcraft and you may find them to be helpful when taking your first steps on that path. But her books are about her own opinion of Witchcraft, not Wicca. Silver Ravenwolf has never been a member of the Wicca and she has no real authority to write about what the Wicca is, what it does or what it believes. It seems that all too often her books bandy around the word Wicca, as if it is interchangeable for the word “Witchcraft”, but in actuality this is not the case. The Wicca is a very specific Mystery Priesthood with its own sacred text, oral tradition, theology and Mysteries. Even if Miss Ravenwolf can’t make that distinction, I would urge other people to keep in mind the reality of it all when reading her books.