A Few Basic & Simple Facts About
Our Coven
The Silver Serpent Coven is
an initiatory Coven that is very selective of it’s
prospective Members
and demands a serious time commitment, as well as a serious outlook toward your
spiritual growth. Walking into our Coven is not as easy as signing a membership
card at your local church and becoming a member. The energies of all our
Members must mesh together well to ensure that a bond of love & trust can
form and grow within the Coven. Achieving this is not an easy task as we have
come to recognize over the years, but is a vital and uncompromising ingredient.
Our Coven is our family, and to keep it
happy & harmonious, there are certain facts that must be observed and
criteria we must insist upon for the good of all. The following issues are very
important to us, and anyone seeking membership with our Coven should consider
the following...
*No one in our Coven is
on this path because it's "intimidating" or "the cool thing to
do" or "because we want to wield our power around". We take our
spiritual path very seriously. If you do not like structure, or dedication, or
if you are not ready to take a serious outlook
toward your life path, then our Coven would never be the right place for you.
Yes, we have our time for having fun, and socializing, but it is not the
driving force behind what we do.
*People who enjoy
creating drama or strife within groups for the purpose of their own enjoyment
or amusement (referred to as "Trolls" by many) will not be tolerated
in our Coven. If you are looking for amusement that way, find it elsewhere. We
will not associate with people who use others or this path to feed their own
vanity and cause dissention among content individuals.
*Many people make the
mistake of thinking that joining a Coven is like joining a Metaphysical or
Pagan study group. That is absolutely not the case. In a Serpent Tradition
Coven, you have a High Priestess and/or a High Priest that makes the overall
decisions for the good of the Coven. If your opinion is asked about certain
decisions or circumstances, don’t misunderstand that to be the final decision
in the matter. If you are confident enough in your HPS and/or HP to want to
join their Coven, you should extend them the courtesy of trusting their judgment
where their Coven is concerned. A person’s growth in “leadership stature”
within the Coven depends on many things such as personal growth within your
spiritual path, completion of lessons and learning material, leadership
abilities, and various other skills necessary for whatever positions may arise
within the Coven. In other words... If it is your desire to be “the shot caller”
or if you have the overwhelming compulsion to impose your own will even though
Coven protocol has long been established before you came along, or if you think
that you already know everything that there is to know about this path, there
would be no need to seek membership with us. Creating your own Coven or Group
will be a better option in your particular case. Our Coven is not the place for
a power struggle. Everyone in our Coven desires to expand their knowledge &
learn from each other and their lessons in this path, and as individuals we
give that knowledge freely to our Coven sisters & brothers, and grow
together.
*The infrastructure of
our Coven is based on the faith of our beliefs, trust, & honesty. Without
these things, our foundation & integrity is compromised. The things that we
have & will state here on our Coven's Website, is constructed of all these
components. It is not meant to be offensive or harmful, but honest. And now, on
with the questions...
*Q: What are
your tenets & beliefs?
*A: The best
explained information on us & our basic path outlook is described in The Serpent’s Tale.
*Q: How
often does your Coven gather?
*A: We meet
regularly on a bi-weekly basis & for all major Sabbats, as well as several
Esbats.
*Q: What are
the specific dates of your Open Meetings?
*A: All our
Open Meetings and Rituals are by invitation only. One of the big reasons for
this is the amount of space we have at the Covenstead. If you are interested,
contact us by email and we will inform you of the nearest
date available. Please keep in mind that since our space is limited, it's
always a good idea to let us know A.S.A.P. that you are interested in coming.
*Q: If I am invited
to an Open Meeting, may I invite other family members or friends to come along
as well?
*A: As it is
most of the time in life, it is most certainly expected to ask beforehand. If
it is arranged previous to the meeting we usually do not have a problem with
it. However, we must discuss this matter prior to the meeting due to the
limited amount of space at the Covenstead.
*Q: How old
must you be to be an invited guest or Member of your Coven?
*A: We
prefer that our members be at least 21 years old. We may on some occasions
allow for an individual to join between the ages of 18 and 20 if the proper
level of maturity exists. No one under 18 is allowed to attend our private
gatherings or participate in Open Meetings unless they are children of either
invited guests, or Coven Members.
*Q: If I am
invited to an Open Coven Meeting or Ritual, am I considered a potential Coven
Member?
*A:
Unfortunately, No. We know that there are a lot of good Pagan people looking
for a group or Coven to join & work with. Although we do enjoy
visiting with & talking to people of all kinds of paths & perceptions,
it cannot be possible for us to offer membership to everyone we meet. We must
& will consider the feelings of all our Coven Members before such a decision
is made. There are a lot of Covens & Groups out there, and (in our opinion)
everyone searching for them should try visiting several before even approaching
with the idea of membership in mind. To help find some local groups here in
*Q: Is your
Coven currently accepting new members now?
*A: The
Silver Serpent Coven is not accepting new members at the present time. When we
reach our maximum Dedicate & Member capacity, we close membership
opportunities so that we can devote the proper amount of time, attention &
energy to our Members. We will be posting as openings become available.
However, the time in which we choose to accept new members is reserved for the
Spring & Summer months (March-August). It is our custom to reserve the
Autumn & Winter months (September-February) specifically for established
Coven Members & Dedicates only. We will not be hosting any Open Coven
Meetings, Open Rituals, or looking at the prospect of new members in the Autumn
& Winter.
*Q: Suppose
I don't want to become a Coven Member...may I come to your Open Meetings &
Rituals for the purpose of learning more about The Craft?
A: Since we
are a Coven practicing our own particular tradition, we have chosen not to take
on students to teach unless they are being considered for Coven Membership. Our
Open Meetings are the times we have designated to give people the opportunity
to get to know more about us, our path, and just share some good Pagan company.
On occasion, we will invite fellow Pagans & Witches we have met to certain
Esbats or Sabbats to join with us in visitation & celebration, and it is
our custom to aid solitaires in our area with handfasting,
passing over, and other rites of passage ceremonies. We are always willing to
answer any questions you may have via email.
For any other questions that have not been
answered in this section, or to contact us concerning Handfasting, rites of
passage ceremonies or any other issues,
Please proceed to our email page & submit your inquiries.
Blessed Be!