The Cauldron: A Pagan Forum

Can I be Wiccan and worship a deity?

Short answer: Of course.

Longer answer:
Traditional initiatory Wicca is actually focused on being the priesthood for two specific deities whose names are not shared with non-initiates, and who you'll usually see referred to as "the Lady" and "the Lord". (But these are terms used to refer to specific people, like you might say "My teacher" or "My doctor" or even "My parents", even though all those people also have specific individual names and identities. Same thing with the deities in question.)

Many people who are Wiccan also honour other deities besides those two, in their personal practices, as part of larger community events and rituals, etc.

You'll notice I'm saying 'honour' and 'work with' and other terms: some people who are Wiccan, like some people who are Pagan, avoid the term 'worship' because it has some specific baggage along with it for many people who grew up in Christian communities.

I tend to say 'work with' because sometimes I'm worshipping, sometimes I'm honouring, sometimes I'm doing stuff for the deity, sometimes I'm doing stuff they care about but it's not at all in a ritual context, and so 'work with' is a good general phrase that includes all of that.

Where it gets slightly trickier is that people use the term Wicca in a wide variety of different ways, and some of the people who identify as Wiccan don't include deities in their practice. I tend to think that finding another name for what they do is probably more useful for everyone. More on the variant ways people use the word Wicca on my website.

(Some options include terms like 'pantheistic witchcraft', 'animistic witchcraft', 'atheistic witchcraft', 'non-religious witchcraft', or just plain 'witchcraft' depending on someone's particular interests. Someone might also identify as a kitchen witch, hedge witch, etc. that doesn't imply anything about deities in their practice.)

I'm guessing you've maybe come across some information from people like that, and that's why you're confused, but I'm curious where you got the idea that being Wiccan meant you couldn't or shouldn't worship deities. (Because that's the kind of thing I like to track down and maybe figure out how to explain better to other people.)

(I should probably also note: most traditional Wiccan groups won't take students under a certain age - 21 or able to live independently is pretty common for a variety of reasons. But there's lots of other forms of religious witchcraft you can learn and practice.)