Leo Ruickbie

Leo Ruickbie is an historian and sociologist of magic, witchcraft and Wicca. He is the author of "Witchcraft Out of the Shadows" [Ruickbie, Leo. "Witchcraft Out of the Shadows" (2004) London: Robert Hale. ISBN 0-7090-7567-7 ] , a 2004 publication outlining the history of witchcraft from ancient Greece until the modern day. Ruickbie was born in Scotland and took a Master's degree in Sociology and Religion at the University of Lancaster. He then studied at King's College London and was a awarded a PhD for his thesis entitled "The Re-Enchanters: Theorising Re-Enchantment and Testing for its Presence in Modern Witchcraft". [Selig, Martina, "Forum Gelb", October 2006] [ [http://www.witchology.com/info/leo_ruickbie.php Personal biographical information on WICA website, accessed 27 May 2007.] ] [Michelot, Luc, 'C’est pas sorcier', "Les Ardennes en Marche", April 2008.] In 1999 he established the Witchcraft Information Centre and Archive which runs a website (see External Links below) and offers courses in witchcraft studies as well as acting 'as a research consultancy and education provider specialising in the areas of Witchcraft, Wicca, Paganism, Magic (Magick) and the Occult' [Bird, Jerry, 'Out of the Shadows', "Merry Meet", Issue 22, Autumn, 2005, pp. 23-5. ] . On Samhain 2007 he launched Open Source Wicca, a project inspired by the Open Source software movement aimed at making the founding texts of Wicca more readily available by releasing them under a Creative Commons licence. [ [http://www.witchology.com/contents/opensourcewicca/opensourcewicca.php Open Source Wicca project page, accessed 04 November 2007.] ] In 2008 he exhibited on the subject of witchcraft in France. ['Mouzon: Les sorcières s'invitent au colombier', "L'Ardennais", 19 juin 2008]

Written Works

"Witchcraft Out of the Shadows" (2004)

"Witchcraft Out of the Shadows" begins with a survey of historical influences from classical times, northern European paganism, and medieval and early modern Europe. It then describes the roots of modern neopagan witchcraft in groups such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and individuals such as Aleister Crowley and Doreen Valiente. Particularly important is the critical analysis of the claims made by Gerald Gardner about Wicca, as well as a detailed discussion of the liturgical content of Gardner's "Ye Bok of Ye Art Magical" and its sources.

The final part of the book is an overview of modern neo-pagan witchcraft belief and practice, drawing principally on Ruickbie's own doctoral research. Using both original research and secondary analysis of a broad range of anthropological and sociological findings, Ruickbie gives estimates for the numbers of people involved in neo-pagan witchcraft in the UK, their age, gender and income distribution. He also asked participants in his own research about the nature of their religious experience, their relationship with the gods, their practice of magic and their beliefs about its effects.

According to Murphy-Hiscock, "the true value in this book lies in the second and third sections. "Born of Shadows: The Origins of Modern Witchcraft", focuses on the influential figures within witchcraft and their contributions within the last century, offering concise depictions of the contributions (both positive and negative) each figure has made throughout their involvement with the movement. In this section, Ruickbie clearly illustrates that modern witchcraft is not a revival, but an invention based on traditional symbols and actions, an important distinction. "Empire of Shadows: Witchcraft in the World Today", reports various statistics and compares them to earlier similar studies, then attempts to isolate how today's witches define their practice, their spirituality, and experiences. This third section is particularly thought-provoking for modern practitioners in re-evaluating their perception of what they practice." [ [http://www.owldaughter.org/reviews/witchcraftoutofshadows.html Murphy-Hiscock, A., "WynterGreene", Beltane (May) 2005.] ]

The book has also attracted attention due to its position on the relationship between Aleister Crowley and Wicca's founder Gerald Gardner. [Bird, Jerry, 'Out of the Shadows', "Merry Meet", Issue 22, Autumn, 2005, pp. 23-5. ] [ [http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/features/faith/story/278075.html Smith, Raymond F., 'Aleister Crowley lived a life of rebellion', Victoria Advocate, July 11, 2008] ]

"The Re-Enchanters" (2005)

"The Re-Enchanters: Theorising Re-Enchantment and Testing for its Presence in Modern Witchcraft" is a sociological analysis of modern witchcraft (including Wicca) that builds a theory of re-enchantment using Max Weber's famous disenchantment hypothesis and then tests this using a sample group drawn primarily from practitioners of modern witchcraft and other forms of contemporary paganism. [Ruickbie, Leo, 'Weber and the Witches: Sociological Theory and Modern Witchcraft'. "JASANAS", 2 (February, 2006)] [Blain, Jenny, and Robert J. Wallis, "Sacred Sites -- Contested Rites", Sussex Academic Press, 2007 p.26]

"Open Source Wicca: The Gardnerian Tradition" (2007)

Original ritual texts of the Wiccan Gardnerian Tradition from 1949 to 1961, released under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike licence similar to that which is used in the Open Source software community. [ [http://www.lulu.com/content/1373598 Ruickbie, Leo, (ed.), "Open Source Wicca: The Gardnerian Tradition". 2007.] ]

References

External links

* [http://www.witchology.com/ Leo Ruickbie's education and research website specialising in witchcraft and Wicca]
* [http://www.asanas.org.uk/files/002ruickbie.pdf Leo Ruickbie, "Weber and the Witches"]