At its heart Wicca is about learning about yourself. A good teacher is merely guiding you and you're doing all the work. Almost all Wiccans believe that charging to teach is wrong, and many traditions actually forbid it.

You may see the phrase "Real Wiccans don't charge" on this website. This comes from the fact that early traditions of Wicca, and those that respect those early traditions, do not believe in taking money for teaching Wicca. When money is needed, there are other ways to earn it, even things other than Wicca that you can teach, if that is the way you lean.

AUEWC/CUEW runs on donations. The closest we come is a $5 filing fee on our membership applications, which barely defrays the cost of postage and the free cuew.org email accounts all auewc members get.

Is it a strong statement? Yes.

Are we saying that ALL people who charge aren't really Wiccans? Yes.... and no. Their traditions may've changed or bent the rules. At the least, those who DO charge should be able to tell you WHY...

And be careful, and forwarned, of those who turn every question about WHY they charge into a slam about why others don't. We don't charge because that's not what Wicca is about, not historically, and not in our tradition. It has NOTHING to do with hippy economics, a Christian dislike of money or anything else you may've heard. We don't charge because that's just not the Wiccan way. People may've changed their Wicca, and changed their traditions, in order to charge, but we say that if it ain't broke, don't fix it.