[url=http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BeginningWicca/message/32215]Beginning Wicca[/url]
I have been thinking about the concept of oath bound lately and realized that some of the newcomers to the Pagan/Wiccan paths may not have a good understanding about just what the Oath is and why Initiated Wiccans take it so seriously. I'm sure there are folks sitting in front of their monitors out there shaking their heads and mumbling "What are these crazy old crones on about NOW!" LOL.
I can't reveal the Georgian Oath, because it is, well, oath bound. It's not even given to my students until just before initiation and I'm breaking with
tradition there. But I personally believe that no one should be asked to swear an oath they do not know the content of. It goes against my honor. So I tell the students the Oath with the understanding that should they decline to initiate, the Oath stays confidential. My goddess is the Lady Morrigan and she values honor above all things, so I don't think she will take me to task or see that I have broken faith with MY oath on this matter.
What I can do is go over the wording of the Oath in a published source. In Janet & Stewart Farrar's "Witches Way" on page 19, they give the wording of the Oath as follows:
"I (legal name) in the presence of the Might Ones, do of my own free will
and accord most solemnly swear that I will ever keep secret and never reveal the Secrets of the Art, except it be to a proper person, properly prepared within a Circle such as I am now in; and that I will never deny the secrets to such a person if he or she be properly vouched for by a brother or sister of the Art.
All this I swear by my hopes of a future life, mindful that my measure has been taken; and may my weapons turn against me if I break this my solemn oath."
I can't speak for whether this is the actual wording of any particular Trad's path. I can say that the essence of the Oath is not in conflict with my own Oath.
So what the heck does this MEAN? Well, let's break it down:
"I (legal name) in the presence of the Might Ones, do of my own free will and accord most solemnly swear"
This identifies you to the God and Goddess and Lords of the Watchtowers, the Elementals, by your legally binding name and certifies that no one coerced you into doing this. It is made as a free choice, which is a very important thing in Wicca.
"I will ever keep secret and never reveal the Secrets of the Art"
EVER keep secret and NEVER reveal. This means that those initiates who HAVE written books for public consumption may have technically broken their Oaths. I know certain people on Trad lists view it that way. Be that as it may, the Gods will deal with those people as they see fit. What this does mean is that an Initiate may not, EVER reveal the things that are meant to be kept secret to anyone who is NOT an initiate. Not their parents, their children, their spouses, their best friends or ANYONE except under certain circumstances.
Ok. Just what are the "Secrets of the Art"?
Well, for one, the contents of the BOS. These are sometimes powerful magickal techniques that are not meant for anyone not properly trained to use them. These also include the names and other identifying information of other Initiates, including locations, etc. This also includes the Mysteries, which leads into the next phrase:
"except it be to a proper person, properly prepared within a Circle such as I am now in"
Who is a "proper person"? Well, one who has proven themselves trustworthy to the Initiator. One who has worked hard and diligently at the lessons, who has given of themselves in time and energy to learn the proper ways of the Wicca and how to handle the Mysteries.
What is "properly prepared"? This places the burden on the teacher to make sure that the students are not only "proper people" but that they are prepared properly in a step by step instruction in how to handle the Mysteries. You wouldn't, for instance, take a brand new person first time at a ritual and ask them to be the vessel for Drawing Down the Goddess!!! Likewise, you wouldn't introduce someone who hadn't been properly trained to the Mystery of the"Great Rite". MY earliest training was in classical ballet, which is surprising like Wicca in the ways in which it is handed down by oral tradition. Before I was allowed to do advanced work in toe shoes for instance, I had to work for years to strengthen my muscles and bones so that they would be properly prepared for the stresses of advanced work. And I STILL suffered from blisters and stress fractures. It behooves the teachers to make SURE the students have thorough training in energy work such as grounding and centering, energy manipulation, etc. BEFORE introducing them to the advanced Mysteries. And you certainly wouldn't introduce a brand new SEEKER to that! So, in taking the Oath and being made a member of the Priesthood, you're swearing that you will be diligent in passing on this knowledge only to
those people who are ready for it.
"Within a Circle such as I am now in" means an Initiate. Period. Now some traditions interpret it liberally to mean an initiate of ANY tradition, so long as you can verify their initiation. Hard Gards, on the other hand, interpret it very narrowly as ONLY Gardnerians.
"and that I will never deny the secrets to such a person if he or she be properly vouched for by a brother or sister of the Art"
This passage insures that the initiate will not go on an ego trip and refuse the knowledge to someone who has every right to know it. But, it also requires a vouch. We don't just go around taking someone's word for the fact that they are initiated. All traditions that I know of have ways to trace the lineage of a person. I know the Georgians and Gardnerians do and most others that I've heard of can eventually trace down who initiated who. In Anam Taith, we've taken to letting the Initiate invite two guests from different traditions who are verified initiates to their first degree initiation. This is just in case something happens and those of us who did the initiation die or move away, there's somebody here in the community who can say Yes, this person is an initiate. I witnessed it.
"All this I swear by my hopes of a future life"
Wiccan believe in reincarnation and that we come back in groups time and time again. This is a very serious thing to swear by. Are you willing to give up your hopes of reincarnating, or to risk reincarnating without your most beloved ones simply to tell secrets to someone? We take this VERY seriously.
"mindful that my measure has been taken"
This has to do with a previous part of the initiation. Look it up in the
Farrar's book for further details of what it involves.
"and may my weapons turn against me if I break this my solemn oath."
The "Weapons" spoken of her are not just the athame and sword, but your very magick itself. If you are foresworn, your magick can and will turn against you. I've seen it happen and it's a scarey thing to witness.
So, we Initiates are not just being old stick in the muds when we say things are Oath bound or that we don't recognize anyone as Wiccan unless they are Initiates. We take it very, very seriously. Becoming an initiate is becoming a Priest/ess, and that means your FIRST and FOREMOST duty of care is to the Gods you serve. Before yourself, before your family, before anything. You are sworn clergy. Sometimes this can be demanding and cause a lot of problems in your personal life, because the Gods will ask you to do things you wouldn't choose to do otherwise. But as sworn Clergy, it's your job to do so. So, when we take you to task for calling yourself Wiccan without having done the training and initiation, it's not that we're speaking from a position of the "old boys and girls club". It's that we know how hard that position is to live up to. And if you go around claiming the title without the work and preparation, the Gods just might take you up on it. And wouldn't THAT just be scary as all get out????
Speaking for myself, I WANT the Craft to grow. I WANT someone here to perform Her duties when I've gone on to Summerland because when I come back, I want competent teachers again for myself in the next life. But I want to see people do it RIGHT. To see them learn the proper ways of handling energies and to not miss some of the incredibly powerful and beautiful things about Wicca simply because they only learned it out of a book instead of having it passed on person to person.
BB
I can't reveal the Georgian Oath, because it is, well, oath bound. It's not even given to my students until just before initiation and I'm breaking with
tradition there. But I personally believe that no one should be asked to swear an oath they do not know the content of. It goes against my honor. So I tell the students the Oath with the understanding that should they decline to initiate, the Oath stays confidential. My goddess is the Lady Morrigan and she values honor above all things, so I don't think she will take me to task or see that I have broken faith with MY oath on this matter.
What I can do is go over the wording of the Oath in a published source. In Janet & Stewart Farrar's "Witches Way" on page 19, they give the wording of the Oath as follows:
"I (legal name) in the presence of the Might Ones, do of my own free will
and accord most solemnly swear that I will ever keep secret and never reveal the Secrets of the Art, except it be to a proper person, properly prepared within a Circle such as I am now in; and that I will never deny the secrets to such a person if he or she be properly vouched for by a brother or sister of the Art.
All this I swear by my hopes of a future life, mindful that my measure has been taken; and may my weapons turn against me if I break this my solemn oath."
I can't speak for whether this is the actual wording of any particular Trad's path. I can say that the essence of the Oath is not in conflict with my own Oath.
So what the heck does this MEAN? Well, let's break it down:
"I (legal name) in the presence of the Might Ones, do of my own free will and accord most solemnly swear"
This identifies you to the God and Goddess and Lords of the Watchtowers, the Elementals, by your legally binding name and certifies that no one coerced you into doing this. It is made as a free choice, which is a very important thing in Wicca.
"I will ever keep secret and never reveal the Secrets of the Art"
EVER keep secret and NEVER reveal. This means that those initiates who HAVE written books for public consumption may have technically broken their Oaths. I know certain people on Trad lists view it that way. Be that as it may, the Gods will deal with those people as they see fit. What this does mean is that an Initiate may not, EVER reveal the things that are meant to be kept secret to anyone who is NOT an initiate. Not their parents, their children, their spouses, their best friends or ANYONE except under certain circumstances.
Ok. Just what are the "Secrets of the Art"?
Well, for one, the contents of the BOS. These are sometimes powerful magickal techniques that are not meant for anyone not properly trained to use them. These also include the names and other identifying information of other Initiates, including locations, etc. This also includes the Mysteries, which leads into the next phrase:
"except it be to a proper person, properly prepared within a Circle such as I am now in"
Who is a "proper person"? Well, one who has proven themselves trustworthy to the Initiator. One who has worked hard and diligently at the lessons, who has given of themselves in time and energy to learn the proper ways of the Wicca and how to handle the Mysteries.
What is "properly prepared"? This places the burden on the teacher to make sure that the students are not only "proper people" but that they are prepared properly in a step by step instruction in how to handle the Mysteries. You wouldn't, for instance, take a brand new person first time at a ritual and ask them to be the vessel for Drawing Down the Goddess!!! Likewise, you wouldn't introduce someone who hadn't been properly trained to the Mystery of the"Great Rite". MY earliest training was in classical ballet, which is surprising like Wicca in the ways in which it is handed down by oral tradition. Before I was allowed to do advanced work in toe shoes for instance, I had to work for years to strengthen my muscles and bones so that they would be properly prepared for the stresses of advanced work. And I STILL suffered from blisters and stress fractures. It behooves the teachers to make SURE the students have thorough training in energy work such as grounding and centering, energy manipulation, etc. BEFORE introducing them to the advanced Mysteries. And you certainly wouldn't introduce a brand new SEEKER to that! So, in taking the Oath and being made a member of the Priesthood, you're swearing that you will be diligent in passing on this knowledge only to
those people who are ready for it.
"Within a Circle such as I am now in" means an Initiate. Period. Now some traditions interpret it liberally to mean an initiate of ANY tradition, so long as you can verify their initiation. Hard Gards, on the other hand, interpret it very narrowly as ONLY Gardnerians.
"and that I will never deny the secrets to such a person if he or she be properly vouched for by a brother or sister of the Art"
This passage insures that the initiate will not go on an ego trip and refuse the knowledge to someone who has every right to know it. But, it also requires a vouch. We don't just go around taking someone's word for the fact that they are initiated. All traditions that I know of have ways to trace the lineage of a person. I know the Georgians and Gardnerians do and most others that I've heard of can eventually trace down who initiated who. In Anam Taith, we've taken to letting the Initiate invite two guests from different traditions who are verified initiates to their first degree initiation. This is just in case something happens and those of us who did the initiation die or move away, there's somebody here in the community who can say Yes, this person is an initiate. I witnessed it.
"All this I swear by my hopes of a future life"
Wiccan believe in reincarnation and that we come back in groups time and time again. This is a very serious thing to swear by. Are you willing to give up your hopes of reincarnating, or to risk reincarnating without your most beloved ones simply to tell secrets to someone? We take this VERY seriously.
"mindful that my measure has been taken"
This has to do with a previous part of the initiation. Look it up in the
Farrar's book for further details of what it involves.
"and may my weapons turn against me if I break this my solemn oath."
The "Weapons" spoken of her are not just the athame and sword, but your very magick itself. If you are foresworn, your magick can and will turn against you. I've seen it happen and it's a scarey thing to witness.
So, we Initiates are not just being old stick in the muds when we say things are Oath bound or that we don't recognize anyone as Wiccan unless they are Initiates. We take it very, very seriously. Becoming an initiate is becoming a Priest/ess, and that means your FIRST and FOREMOST duty of care is to the Gods you serve. Before yourself, before your family, before anything. You are sworn clergy. Sometimes this can be demanding and cause a lot of problems in your personal life, because the Gods will ask you to do things you wouldn't choose to do otherwise. But as sworn Clergy, it's your job to do so. So, when we take you to task for calling yourself Wiccan without having done the training and initiation, it's not that we're speaking from a position of the "old boys and girls club". It's that we know how hard that position is to live up to. And if you go around claiming the title without the work and preparation, the Gods just might take you up on it. And wouldn't THAT just be scary as all get out????
Speaking for myself, I WANT the Craft to grow. I WANT someone here to perform Her duties when I've gone on to Summerland because when I come back, I want competent teachers again for myself in the next life. But I want to see people do it RIGHT. To see them learn the proper ways of handling energies and to not miss some of the incredibly powerful and beautiful things about Wicca simply because they only learned it out of a book instead of having it passed on person to person.
BB