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wiccan, but I have to talk about it.
I've run into lots of people who seem to have very simplistic notions of what the Rede is. 'Harm none?' they say. 'That's not possible! If I wanted to feel bad because I can't reach an unattainable goal, I'd stick with being a Catholic!' I never was able to clearly express why this bothered me, and wondered about it myself. So I read and recommend to anyone who asks about it a book by Robin Wood, which as far as I know is the only book ever written about the Rede.
Then I ran across this rant in a website that I absolutely love, but the convoluted explanation of the Rede was hard for me to wrap my brain around. It didn't help that the author referred to people that even needed the longer explanation as 'literacy impaired', and basically implied that anyone that doesn't understand is a moron. Looking past the acidic writing style, I agreed with what I read, as much as I could figure out. Then I noticed a link that went to another explanation that said almost exactly the same thing but for some reason the concept immediately snapped into focus in my tiny brain, crystal clear. Here it is:
The Wiccan Rede states "An it harm none, do as you Will," although occasionally it reads "and ye harm none, do as ye will." The Wiccan Rede DOES NOT mean that one must tiptoe through life afraid to accidentally cause harm. The use of "an" is very deliberate, and in modern English is closer to "as long as." An expanded reading of the Rede, using both its implicit and inferred meaning, could read: "An it harm none, do as you Will, An it harm SOME, do as you ought." This "ought" is defined by the remainder of the ethics of Wicca and the life experiences of the individual. Put in modern words and form, the Rede says "If an action will cause no harm, do it freely, but if it has the capacity to cause harm, use your religious and other experiences to decide the best course of action that causes the least amount of harm to yourself and others." It should be here noted that most Wiccans also believe in the Star Trek maxim "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.
Hooray! I don't know why that went down so much easier than the other, but there you are. I am really pleased that I stumbled across this.
wiccan, but I have to talk about it. I've run into lots of people who seem to have very simplistic notions of what the Rede is. 'Harm none?' they say. 'That's not possible! If I wanted to feel bad because I can't reach an unattainable goal, I'd stick with being a Catholic!' I never was able to clearly express why this bothered me, and wondered about it myself. So I read and recommend to anyone who asks about it a book by Robin Wood, which as far as I know is the only book ever written about the Rede.
Then I ran across this rant in a website that I absolutely love, but the convoluted explanation of the Rede was hard for me to wrap my brain around. It didn't help that the author referred to people that even needed the longer explanation as 'literacy impaired', and basically implied that anyone that doesn't understand is a moron. Looking past the acidic writing style, I agreed with what I read, as much as I could figure out. Then I noticed a link that went to another explanation that said almost exactly the same thing but for some reason the concept immediately snapped into focus in my tiny brain, crystal clear. Here it is:
The Wiccan Rede states "An it harm none, do as you Will," although occasionally it reads "and ye harm none, do as ye will." The Wiccan Rede DOES NOT mean that one must tiptoe through life afraid to accidentally cause harm. The use of "an" is very deliberate, and in modern English is closer to "as long as." An expanded reading of the Rede, using both its implicit and inferred meaning, could read: "An it harm none, do as you Will, An it harm SOME, do as you ought." This "ought" is defined by the remainder of the ethics of Wicca and the life experiences of the individual. Put in modern words and form, the Rede says "If an action will cause no harm, do it freely, but if it has the capacity to cause harm, use your religious and other experiences to decide the best course of action that causes the least amount of harm to yourself and others." It should be here noted that most Wiccans also believe in the Star Trek maxim "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.
Hooray! I don't know why that went down so much easier than the other, but there you are. I am really pleased that I stumbled across this.
