Christie was fascinated by the "self-actualization" concepts of Abraham Maslow, a renowned American psychologist, and after meeting then-Timothy Zell at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, he began experiments in extrasensory perception.

It was during this time that the group read Heinlein's science fiction novel, Stranger in a Strange Land (1961), which became the inspiration for CAW.

[1] Heinlein's book, combined with Maslow's self-actualization concepts, led to the formation of a "waterbrotherhood" that Zell and Christie called Atl, the Aztec word for "water", and also meaning "home of our ancestors".

[2][3] CAW modeled its organization after the group in Heinlein's novel, as a series of 9 nests in circles of advancement that were each named after a planet.

An outgrowth of Forever Forests was founded in 1983 by Anodea Judith, past president and high priestess of CAW, called Lifeways.

The Holy Order of Mother Earth (HOME), founded in 1978 by the Zells, is another subsidiary, dedicated to magical living and working with the land.

Anodea Judith assumed presidency until 1991, and the structure of the organization was revamped with plans for more nest meetings, training courses, new rituals, and publications.

[citation needed] In August 2004, the board of directors decided to terminate CAW due to financial and legal struggles.

[8] In January, 2006, due to the effort of Jack Crispin Cain to help save the organization, CAW was reestablished with Zells again assuming a leadership role.