Howdy. I failed, this was supposed to be last weeks post and…I failed. Anyway – here you go!
Today is probably the last part I’m going to do on Ethics, since I think I’ve hit on the three biggest topics that Wiccans deal with. The third being The Wiccan Rede.
The biggest “mistake” I see people making is treating the Rede (first recorded in 1964 in a speech made by Doreen Valiente) like it is set in stone: LAW.
It’s not. Many of you may be gasping in horror over such blasphemy. I’ll write it again. The Rede is not law. The word “rede” itself means “advice.”
That’s all it is. It’s simple advice to Wiccans on how to live their lives according to what Doreen thought would make for happy Wiccans. It’s just like the Golden Rule, only written in a fancy, rhyming format.
Rhymes are easier to remember and the rede was probably written in that way so that memorization would be easier.
In all seriousness though, I see a lot of people freaking out over the Rede for no reason. You don’t have to adhere to it. You can still call yourself Wiccan if you don’t follow one poem full of advice. A lot of it is common sense. To me, it just seems like busy work for Wiccans, much like I had to do in Sunday School when I was forced to go to church. We memorized a bunch of verses that were picked out to teach us lessons and that was that.
The main tenant I think we need to come away from is the most famous part, which is written in a few different ways but basically “as long as it harms none, do what you will.” If you live your life in a way that harms as few beings as possible, then rock it out. You do you boo. If, however, you’re living life in a way that isn’t so nice to others then you might want to take a look, re-prioritize and make some changes.
That’s it! Nothing totally crazy right? Some advice, fancy Wiccan Golden Rule: don’t be a jerk to others and live life as your true self.
Love and Light,
Ristoria
The Samhain Sisters 