Phillip Emmons Isaac Bonewits (October 1, 1949 – August 12, 2010) was an influential American Druid who published a number of books on the subject of
NeopaganismNeopaganism is an umbrella term used to identify a wide variety of modern religious movements, particularly those influenced by or claiming to be derived from the various pagan beliefs of pre-modern Europe...
and
magicMagic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
. He was also a liturgist, singer and songwriter, and founded the Druidic organisation
Ár nDraíocht FéinÁr nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
, as well as the Neopagan civil rights group, the Aquarian Anti-Defamation League. Born in
Royal Oak, MichiganRoyal Oak is a city in Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a suburb of Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 57,236. It should not be confused with Royal Oak Charter Township, a separate community located nearby....
, Bonewits had been heavily involved in occultism since the 1960s. He died in 2010.
Personal life
Bonewits was born in 1949 in
Royal Oak, MichiganRoyal Oak is a city in Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a suburb of Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 57,236. It should not be confused with Royal Oak Charter Township, a separate community located nearby....
, as the fourth of five children. His mother and father were Roman Catholics. Spending much of his childhood in
FerndaleFerndale is adjacent to the cities of Detroit to the south, Oak Park to the west, Hazel Park to the east, Pleasant Ridge to the north, Royal Oak Township to the southwest, and Royal Oak to the north....
, he was moved at age 12 to
San Clemente, CaliforniaSan Clemente is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 63,522 at the 2010 census. Located on the California Coast, midway between Los Angeles and San Diego at the southern tip of the county, it is known for its ocean, hill, and mountain views, a pleasant climate and its Spanish...
, where he spent a short time in a Catholic high school before he went back to public school to graduate from high school a year early. He enrolled at UC Berkeley in 1966; he graduated from the university in 1970 with a
Bachelor of ArtsA Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Magic, becoming the first and only person to have ever received any kind of
degreeAn academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
in
MagicMagic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
from an accredited university.
Bonewits was married five times. He was married to Rusty Elliot from 1973 to 1976. His second wife was Selene Kumin Vega, followed by marriage to
Sally EatonSally Eaton is a Wiccan High Priestess, liturgist, singer and actress, whose credits include creating and playing the role of Jeanie in the stage production of the hit Broadway musical Hair, and, as a member of Doric Wilson's professional theater company TOSOS , acting in the Doric Wilson plays Now...
(1980 to 1985). His fourth wife was author
Deborah LippDeborah Lipp is a Wiccan High Priestess of the Gardnerian Tradition and an American author. She was initiated into a traditional Gardnerian coven of Witches in 1981, became a Wiccan High Priestess in 1986, and has been teaching Wicca and running Pagan circles ever since...
, from 1988 to 1998. On July 23, 2004, he was married in a
handfastingHandfasting is a traditional European ceremony of betrothal or wedding. It usually involved the tying or binding of the right hands of the bride and groom with a cord or ribbon for the duration of the wedding ceremony.-Etymology:...
ceremony to a former vice-president of the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans, Phaedra Heyman Bonewits. At the time of the handfasting, the marriage was not yet legal because he had not yet been legally divorced from Lipp, although they had been separated for several years. Paperwork and legalities caught up on December 31, 2007, making them legally married.
Bonewits' only child, Arthur Shaffrey Lipp-Bonewits, was born to Deborah Lipp in 1990.
Illness and Death
In 1990, Bonewits was diagnosed with
Eosinophilia-myalgia syndromeEosinophilia–myalgia syndrome is an incurable and sometimes fatal flu-like neurological condition that is believed to have been caused by ingestion of poorly produced L-tryptophan supplements...
. The illness was a factor in his eventual resignation from the position of Archdruid of the
ADFÁr nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
.
On October 25, 2009, Bonewits was diagnosed with a rare form of colon cancer, for which he underwent treatment. He died at home, on August 12, 2010, surrounded by his family.
Career
In 1966, while enrolled at UC Berkeley, Bonewits joined the
Reformed Druids of North AmericaThe Reformed Druids of North America is an American Neo-Druidic organization. It was formed in 1963 at Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota as a humorous protest against the college's required attendance of religious services. This original congregation is called the Carleton Grove, sometimes...
, or RDNA. Bonewits was ordained as a
Neo-druidNeo-Druidism or Neo-Druidry, commonly referred to as Druidism or Druidry by its adherents, is a form of modern spirituality or religion that generally promotes harmony and worship of nature, and respect for all beings, including the environment...
priestA priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
in 1969. During this period, Bonewits was recruited by the
Church of SatanThe Church of Satan is an organization dedicated to the acceptance of the carnal self, as articulated in The Satanic Bible, written in 1969 by Anton Szandor LaVey.- History :...
, but left due to political and philosophical conflicts with
Anton LaVeyAnton Szandor LaVey , born Howard Stanton Levey, was the founder of the Church of Satan as well as a writer, occultist, and musician...
. During his stint in the Church of Satan, Bonewits appeared in the 1970 documentary
Satanis: The Devil's MassSatanis: The Devil's Mass is a 1970 American documentary film about Anton LaVey and the Church of Satan. It was directed and produced by Ray Laurent.- Summary:...
. Bonewits, in his article "My Satanic Adventure", asserts that the rituals in
Satanis were staged for the movie at the behest of the filmmakers and were not authentic ceremonies.
His first book,
Real Magic, was published in 1971. Between 1973 and 1975 Bonewits was employed as editor of
Gnostica magazine in Minnesota (published by Llewellyn Publications), established an offshoot group of the RDNA called the Schismatic Druids of North America, and helped create a group called the Hasidic Druids of North America (despite his life-long status as a "
gentileThe term Gentile refers to non-Israelite peoples or nations in English translations of the Bible....
"). He also founded the short-lived Aquarian Anti-Defamation League (AADL), an early Pagan civil rights group.
In 1976, Bonewits moved back to Berkeley and rejoined his original grove there, now part of the New Reformed Druids of North America (NRDNA). He was later elected Archdruid of the Berkeley Grove.
In 1983, Bonewits founded
Ár nDraíocht FéinÁr nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
(also known as "A Druid Fellowship" or ADF), which was incorporated in 1990 in the state of
DelawareDelaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
as a U.S. 501(c)3 non-profit organization. He made the organization's first public announcement in 1984, and began the membership sign-up at the first
WinterStar SymposiumThe Association for Consciousness Exploration LLC is an American organization based in Northeastern Ohio which produces events, books, and recorded media in the fields of "magic, mind-sciences, alternative lifestyles, comparative religion/spirituality, entertainment, holistic healing, and related...
in 1984. Over the years Bonewits also had varying degrees of involvement with
Ordo Templi OrientisOrdo Templi Orientis is an international fraternal and religious organization founded at the beginning of the 20th century...
,
Gardnerian WiccaGardnerian Wicca, or Gardnerian Witchcraft, is a mystery cult tradition or denomination in the neopagan religion of Wicca, whose members can trace initiatory descent from Gerald Gardner. The tradition is itself named after Gardner , a British civil servant and scholar of magic...
, the
New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden DawnThe New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden Dawn is a Wiccan organization/tradition/denomination that, despite its name, has little or nothing to do with the original Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.The NROOGD Tradition of the Craft originated in 1967 with a group of friends The New Reformed...
(a
WiccaWicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
n organization not to be confused with the
Hermetic Order of the Golden DawnThe Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a magical order active in Great Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which practiced theurgy and spiritual development...
) as well as others. Bonewits was a regular presenter at Neopagan festivals in the US.
Although the illness curtailed many of his activities and travels for a time, he remained Archdruid of ADF until 1996. In that year, he resigned from the position of Archdruid but retained the lifelong title of ADF Archdruid Emeritus.
A songwriter, singer, and recording artist, he produced two CDs of Pagan music and numerous recorded lectures and panel discussions, produced and distributed by the
Association for Consciousness ExplorationThe Association for Consciousness Exploration LLC is an American organization based in Northeastern Ohio which produces events, books, and recorded media in the fields of "magic, mind-sciences, alternative lifestyles, comparative religion/spirituality, entertainment, holistic healing, and related...
. He lived in
Rockland County, New YorkRockland County is a suburban county 15 miles to the northwest of Manhattan and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area, in the U.S. state of New York. It is the southernmost county in New York west of the Hudson River, and the smallest county in New York outside of New York City. The...
, and was a member of the
Covenant of Unitarian Universalist PagansThe Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans is an association of Unitarian Universalists who define themselves as Pagans or Neopagans.-History:...
(CUUPS).
Bonewits was encouraging charity programs to help Neopagan seniors, and in January 2006 was the keynote speaker at the Conference On Current Pagan Studies at the
Claremont Graduate UniversityClaremont Graduate University is a private, all-graduate research university located in Claremont, California, a city east of downtown Los Angeles...
in
Claremont, CAClaremont is a small affluent college town in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States, about east of downtown Los Angeles at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. The population as of the 2010 census is 34,926. Claremont is known for its seven higher-education institutions, its...
.
Contributions to Neopaganism
In his book
Real Magic (1971), Bonewits proposed his
hypothesisA hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. The term derives from the Greek, ὑποτιθέναι – hypotithenai meaning "to put under" or "to suppose". For a hypothesis to be put forward as a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it...
on the
Laws of MagicMagic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
. These "laws" are synthesized from a multitude of
belief systemReligion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
s from around the world, and were collected in order to explain and categorize magical beliefs within a cohesive framework. Many interrelationships of these areas exist, and some are
subsetIn mathematics, especially in set theory, a set A is a subset of a set B if A is "contained" inside B. A and B may coincide. The relationship of one set being a subset of another is called inclusion or sometimes containment...
s of others.
Bonewits also coined much of the modern terminology used to define and articulate many of the conceptual themes and issues which affect the North American Neopagan community.
- Pioneered the modern usage of the terms thealogy
Thealogy, a neologism coined by Isaac Bonewits in 1974, is a discourse that reflects upon the meaning of Goddess and Her relationship to life forms. It is a discourse that critically engages the beliefs, wisdom, practices, questions, and values of the Goddess community, both past and present...
, "Paleo-Paganism", "Meso-Paganism", and numerous other retronymA retronym is a type of neologism that provides a new name for an object or concept to differentiate the original form or version of it from a more recent form or version. The original name is most often augmented with an adjective to account for later developments of the object or concept itself...
s.
- Possibly coined the term "Pagan Reconstructionism
Polytheistic reconstructionism is an approach to Neopaganism first emerging in the late 1960s to early 1970s, and gathering momentum in the 1990s to 2000s...
", though the communities in question would later diverge from his initial meaning.
- Founded Ar nDraiocht Fein
Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
, which was incorporated in 1990 in the state of Delaware as a U.S. 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
- Developed the Advanced Bonewits Cult Danger Evaluation Frame (ABCDEF)
- Coined the phrase "Never Again the Burning."
- Critiqued the Burning Times / Old Religion Murray thesis
The Witch-cult is the term for a hypothetical pre-Christian, pagan religion of Europe that survived into at least the early modern period. As late as the 19th and early 20th centuries, some scholars had postulated that European witchcraft was part of a Satanic plot to overthrow Christianity; most...
(in Bonewits's Essential Guide to Witchcraft and Wicca)
Music
- Be Pagan Once Again! – Isaac Bonewits & Friends (including Ian Corrigan
Ian Corrigan is an American Neopagan writer, teacher, musician and ritualist whose work has influenced both the Wiccan and Neo-druidic branches of the Pagan movement.- Training, teaching and contributions :...
, Victoria Ganger, and Todd Alan) (CD) (ACEThe Association for Consciousness Exploration LLC is an American organization based in Northeastern Ohio which produces events, books, and recorded media in the fields of "magic, mind-sciences, alternative lifestyles, comparative religion/spirituality, entertainment, holistic healing, and related...
/ADFÁr nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
)
- Avalon is Rising! – Real Magic (CD)(ACE/ADF)
Spoken word
- The Structure of Craft Ritual (ACE)
- A Magician Prepares (ACE)
- Programming Magical Ritual: Top-Down Liturgical Design (ACE)
- Druidism: Ancient & Modern (ACE)
- How Does Magic Work? (ACE)
- Rituals That Work (ACE)
- Sexual Magic & Magical Sex (with Deborah Lipp
Deborah Lipp is a Wiccan High Priestess of the Gardnerian Tradition and an American author. She was initiated into a traditional Gardnerian coven of Witches in 1981, became a Wiccan High Priestess in 1986, and has been teaching Wicca and running Pagan circles ever since...
) (ACE)
- Making Fun of Religion (with Deborah Lipp
Deborah Lipp is a Wiccan High Priestess of the Gardnerian Tradition and an American author. She was initiated into a traditional Gardnerian coven of Witches in 1981, became a Wiccan High Priestess in 1986, and has been teaching Wicca and running Pagan circles ever since...
) (ACE)
Panel discussions
- The Magickal Movement: Present & Future (with Margot Adler
Margot Adler is an author, journalist, lecturer, Wiccan priestess and radio journalist and correspondent for National Public Radio .- Early life :Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Adler grew up mostly in New York City...
, Selena FoxSelena Fox is a Wiccan priestess and activist, psychotherapist, self-published author and lecturer in the fields of Neopaganism, Wicca, New Age and comparative religion.- Circle :Rev...
, and Robert Anton WilsonRobert Anton Wilson , known to friends as "Bob", was an American author and polymath who became at various times a novelist, philosopher, psychologist, essayist, editor, playwright, poet, futurist, civil libertarian and self-described agnostic mystic...
) (ACE)
- Magick Changing the World, the World Changing Magick (with AmyLee, Selena Fox
Selena Fox is a Wiccan priestess and activist, psychotherapist, self-published author and lecturer in the fields of Neopaganism, Wicca, New Age and comparative religion.- Circle :Rev...
, Jeff Rosenbaum and Robert Anton WilsonRobert Anton Wilson , known to friends as "Bob", was an American author and polymath who became at various times a novelist, philosopher, psychologist, essayist, editor, playwright, poet, futurist, civil libertarian and self-described agnostic mystic...
) (ACE)
See also
- Ar nDraiocht Fein
Ár nDraíocht Féin: A Druid Fellowship, Inc. is a non-profit religious organization dedicated to the study and further development of modern, Neo-druidism practice....
- Neo-druidism
Neo-Druidism or Neo-Druidry, commonly referred to as Druidism or Druidry by its adherents, is a form of modern spirituality or religion that generally promotes harmony and worship of nature, and respect for all beings, including the environment...
- Neopaganism
Neopaganism is an umbrella term used to identify a wide variety of modern religious movements, particularly those influenced by or claiming to be derived from the various pagan beliefs of pre-modern Europe...
- Thealogy
Thealogy, a neologism coined by Isaac Bonewits in 1974, is a discourse that reflects upon the meaning of Goddess and Her relationship to life forms. It is a discourse that critically engages the beliefs, wisdom, practices, questions, and values of the Goddess community, both past and present...
- Sympathetic magic
Magical thinking is causal reasoning that looks for correlation between acts or utterances and certain events. In religion, folk religion, and superstition, the correlation posited is between religious ritual, such as prayer, sacrifice, or the observance of a taboo, and an expected benefit or...
- Magic and religion
Magical thinking in various forms is a cultural universal and an important aspect of religion.In many cases it becomes difficult or impossible to draw any meaningful line between beliefs and practices that are magical versus those that are religious, but in general the term religion is reserved for...
External links