479 lines
25 KiB
Plaintext
479 lines
25 KiB
Plaintext
THE NEW BOOK OF THE LAW
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Commentary by J. Random Folksinger
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I have to preface this by stating that I was first drawn to this
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work by Leigh Ann Hussey, and reacted very negatively to it. This will
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be my second time through these Laws, with comments that are SOLELY MY
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OWN OPINION. I know that Lady Galadriel put a lot of work (translate:
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sweat blood) into these Laws, and I am not attacking her or her work.
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Making my points without sounding negative would have been nice, but I
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have not been very successful at this; since several people have been
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asking me to put down *WHY* I didn't like them, I felt that getting the
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project over with would be better than struggling with a novel-length
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exercise in not offending anyone. To Lady Galadriel: I, too, have sweat
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blood over a reconstruction project similar to this (and I got lots of
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negative feedback, too). My finished copy, which includes the old
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"Burning Times" laws as a historical source or what to do when things
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*really* get bad, can be had from Leigh Ann, Judy Harrow, or downloaded
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from WeirdBase in St. Louis as "JRFLAWS.TXT". My heart goes out to you,
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but I am commenting on your Laws from my head only.
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Notes:
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On the Preface: The Book of the Law, or Liber Al, which Lady G. refers
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to as a primary source, is not the same as Craft law in most traditions
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as it was written by Aleister Crowley; it is, therefore, hardly a
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wonder why it was not found to be very pertinent by Lady G. If, indeed,
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Lady G.'s Book of the Law was *not* Liber Al, it is hard to understand
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where many of these Laws originated.
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The Laws:
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1. Form and Order? Ask a Discordian or Shamanic Craft type. The Laws
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were created for guidance, as the latter part of this Law attests.
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2. Channels, and manifestation of the Source? This sounds more like New
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Age Xtianity than Wicca. I should stop talking about the flowers in the
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language, although they are disconcerting and very distracting from the
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original goal of "readable, usable, and pertinent to the needs ..." I
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suppose I can just use the term "flowers" as my way of saying that the
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language is unnecessarily complicated when it really bothers me -- and
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most of these laws do fall in this category.
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3. Oh, no. Not the Xtian "Ye are as children" routine again. The Gods,
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in my training, wish us to grow, not perpetually remain children. To
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not test what they say is the same as channelling some unknown spirit
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and believing everything he/she says. We are growing, making the Gods
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proud, not belittling or mocking them.
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4. This law is over-judgemental (something I am accused of being at
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times), and ignores the need for working with our shadow-side; I
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suppose naivete is the worst I can say about this Law. I can easily
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find better in Marion Weinstein's POSITIVE MAGIC...
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5. The "Mothership" routine smacks of Close Encounters, but other than
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the children routine and some language problems, this one isn't too bad
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-- but isn't there something in an initiation ritual about us and the
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Gods being the same "but for a difference of power"? I would think
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Brothers and Sisters of the Gods would be better terminology --
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feminists are welcome to reverse the wording.
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6. Hmmm. Sounds like tithing to me. While it is certainly a good idea,
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we give back to the Gods all the time -- this would be making the
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meaningful ritual a mechanical one. Sustain its Priests and
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Priestesses? Paid (or fed) clergy? Shades of Paul! This part would
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still work in my tradition, since we are all priests and priestesses,
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but I know some that are different...
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7. I can't see the purpose of this Law, and know of no corresponding
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Law in the Laws I have come across. It sounds like the God of the
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Xtians again, making people the way they are and then judging them for
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being that way.
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8. A direct statement would be better. Who do you know in these times
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that goes around weighing silver? Is this a modern metaphor? I don't
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think so.
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9. Does not parse. Sounds good, though...
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10. This sounds like it's setting up the teacher as infallible -- shut
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up and listen. Also, while I hear Karma used frequently in Craft
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discussions, it is because it is a useful concept for us; however, this
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is the first time I have seen the Lords of Karma enthroned in Craft
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Law.
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11. I could have taken the Golden Rule in one of its permutations, but
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this is much more akin to the concept of "Sin" than that of Karma.
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12. "You must not be a teller of tales..."? What, we are to have no
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Bards in the Craft? If this law means that gossipping is not a good
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thing, why doesn't it say so? And "must hold no malice" indicates that
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we are not allowed to be human again -- true, it is better for the
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Craft that we all be as a loving family, but there are other ways to
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deal with the problems caused by personality conflicts than to outlaw
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legitimate feelings.
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13. Flowers. Old Law. (Meaning that, other than difference in wording,
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this is the same as the "Old Laws", i.e., Lady Sheba and others.)
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14. Oh, boy! Priestess Knows Best (and will be happy to be responsible
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for *you*). If someone asks me a question, give them the straightest
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answer I can, and without phoning up my Priestess for permission to do
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so. I am a trained, adult Witch, and am capable both of making my own
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decisions *and* taking the consequences for making a wrong decision.
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The "You must not put stumbling blocks..." sounds like the old parental
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admonishment, "Don't put beans in your ears." The Xtians have enough
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stumbling blocks of their own; I don't think ours would even be
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noticed, and so are unnecessary.
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15. The key words are in the Preface: readable, usable, and pertinent.
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"Fetters" and "woe" are not very meaninful words in this half of the
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20th century. Not sure about the use of "souls", either, since that
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seems to be mostly a Xtian concern. Remember, Lady G. said that she
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reworded some of these laws "to make them clearer and more
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understandable". I think she missed here.
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16. Sounds like "Trust in God; He will provide." Where is the Craft
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basis for this Law?
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17. If you kill someone magickally, accidentally or otherwise, you
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should be sacrificed to atone for it? My Goddess demands nothing in
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sacrifice. It would be far better to get into therapy and see how you
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could forgive yourself and help others to forgive you (I'm using
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"forgive" as a psychological, not religious, term). No problem with the
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first sentence.
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18. Could be said more clearly.
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19. The source for this, especially the final sentence, seems to be
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Jesus in Revelation. "Many say, Lord, Lord, but I know them not..."
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etc.
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20. Sounds like, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord, thy God in
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vain". Either that is what this law is saying, or it needs to be
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clearer.
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21. Old Law. I would have worded it, "In any disputes among the
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Wicca..."
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22. Old Law.
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23. To me, my magickal tools are channels between what is within me and
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what is outside of me (on the magickal planes, which frequently
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intersect with the planes of reality). Still, Do Not Haggle is Old Law.
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24. Old Law, except for the semantical substitution of "Power" for
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"Art" and the use of the judgmental terms "evil" and "unworthy".
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25. "Thou shalt not steal"? Hinted-at consequences are unnecessary.
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26. I don't understand "Show honor" as a phrase, and the last phrase is
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not comprehensible to me.
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27. "Those who are of the Wicca shall not own slaves," -- good idea,
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although I have never seen it included in Craft Law. The rest of this
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sentence is again unclear and/or unnecessary justification. "Nor shall
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you take as a pledge any person's life,"; well, the Laws of Karma (if
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you accept them, which these Laws purport to) demand otherwise from
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time to time, and again, this has not been found necessary in any other
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set of Craft Laws I have seen.
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28. This is the second time the Golden Rule has been quoted in a faulty
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permutation. "If a stranger sojourns with you...they shall be as one of
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the Circle..." What, we're going to invite total strangers into our
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rites just because this Law says so? There are enough Laws that
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contradict this already. This doesn't sound right.
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29. This came straight out of Leviticus, and also exists in Baha'i law
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in a slightly clearer form. It's nice that we're getting ecumenical,
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but what is the need for this in Craft Law? The Threefold Law applies,
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and is easier to understand.
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30. The Good Wiccan Houskeeping Seal is required for Circle?
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31. Not a Wiccan Law. "Cleanliness is next to god/dessliness" would be
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a shorter way of phrasing this. Although the old customs (NOT laws)
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require bathing prior to a ritual, even that has been used to "find"
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Witches with in some areas (they're clean and smell nice -- they must
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be seducing our men for Satan!).
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32. Not Law, but a start; I believe none should die without someone
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having cared for them; and that death with dignity is the hoped-for
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ideal. Many of you already know that I'm initiating action toward Pagan
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hospice, funeral, and cemetery care. The judgement about "their
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actions" is for the Dark Lord to make.
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33. Threefold Law is all you need here. Anything else is moral
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judgement.
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34. Amended version: "Let those who desire union as a couple (or other
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forms as might be desirable, such as a triad or a group relationship)
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be handfasted, sharing their love in a manner they and the Gods find
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pleasing." Children are not necessary for shared love (and often
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separate the parents from their mutual desires), and there is no need
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to deny handfasting to couples not wanting children. I also am not
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certain that this needs to be a Law.
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35. "The Law of the Goddess is that none of the Wicca shall take and
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wed someone who they do not love." Period.
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36. Not Law. Also uses "brethren", another male term. (Anyone who has
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read my revision of Gardnerian Craft Law should have noticed the
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near-total lack of gender terminology.)
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END OF PART ONE
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-------------------
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PART TWO
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37. The first sentence is incomprehensible, immaterial, or both. This
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law is very flowery, and I would love to know what Lady G. extracted it
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from.
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38. Old Law: "Never boast, never threaten..." seems to be the root here
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- and is much clearer in that form.
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39. The concept of magickal purity is one of ritual magick, not the
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Craft. This Law is, in letter and spirit, one of ritual magick. While
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some traditions of the Craft do get into ritual magick, that still does
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not make this "proper" as Craft Law.
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40. Old Law was both clearer and less "new-agey".
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41. WHERE hath the Goddess said these things? Nowhere in my tradition,
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and they sound more like things She may have said in circle --
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certainly no need to canonize them.
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42. Back to Leviticus. This is far too judgemental for any tradition I
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am familiar with. There also seems to be confusion between "work" as in
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make money and "work" as in learning and teaching the things of the
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Craft.
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43. A sacred trust? This explains why Grove of the Unicorn built a
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sanctuary in Georgia, but I have never seen this expressed as a
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requirement. Most traditions are not getting over being hidden; this
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Law requires total openness. I think it's dangerous to do this in most
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areas, and having the Goddess decree (here) that we should do something
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that could harm Her Witches (something She expressly forbids us to do
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in the Old Laws) doesn't feel right. What is the source of this one? It
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appears to be the inner feelings of some Witch or Witches, which is not
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good enough to pass off as Craft Law.
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44. While I have been taught this, it was under "What We Do" rather
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than "The Law". The style of presentation sounds too much like what
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YHWH would have written as a law rather than the Goddess I know...
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45. Am I reading this wrong, or is this saying "Honor the Sabbath and
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keep it holy"? We need to set aside a whole day(s)? I don't think
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that's realistic in these times, although it might have been in
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paleolithic times.
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46. Not necessary. Any teacher will give you this information.
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47. Definitely flowers. Let each Witch keep a book (she even dropped
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the "in their own hand" part). What else is necessary?
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48. Clumsy, with too many "they"s in spots; How about, "Study the signs
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of the Gods in all their forms; these shall guide your thoughts to the
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Gods and the Gods will take notice of you. Turn your thoughts and
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worship to the Gods, not the signs and statues of them."
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49. The original here says "If *any* in the Craft owns any land...guard
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all monies of the Craft..." thus widening the circle of love beyond
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just the Circle you are a part of.
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50. Old Law. I feel this could be done a bit more clearly.
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51. Extremely Crowleyian in content, where the content can be
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determined. It sounds like it is favoring asceticism "for the good of
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the Craft...". Unclear rules like this have led to excesses in other
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religions they have appeared in.
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52. NOT CRAFT LAW. Paul would have loved to have this kind of law as
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stated by Christ, but it wasn't true then and it isn't true now. IF
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WE'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO TAKE MONEY FOR THE ART, HOW COME WE CAN BE
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ALLOWED TO TAKE GIFTS?????
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53. Taken as an extension of #52, this law repulses me; however, having
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deleted #52, and deleting "offerings of ... money", it could be OK. But
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it is totally unnecessary unless you're trying to set yourself up as
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the First Church of Wicca, N.A., complete with Xtian abuses of power.
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In any loving circle, poeple will bring the incense, or the cakes
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and/or wine, or work together on building a new altar. This is already
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covered in the laws above, though.
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54. Harmony will be restored by working toward harmony, not by donating
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to your favorite non-profit Temple. Again, the emphasis on giving makes
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me think of televangelists ("I need to make the payment on my
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Inspirational Cadillac"). I don't know what problems Grove of the
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Unicorn has been having in keeping up their payments on the land or
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whatever, but their problems should not be used as a lever to change
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Craft Law (if indeed this is the object of these laws).
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55. Once more, this law either comes out of ritual magic or
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televangelism (or both). Every Witch should know (or know how to look
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up) the proper times for a ritual, and should be able to offer it up
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themselves ("thru the most proper medium" could mean "Pay the
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Priestess" or it could mean "use the right tools" -- if it is *not*
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intended to mean the latter, then this law has no basis in the Craft).
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56. Old Law, and one of the most important Craft Laws.
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57. Separating this Law from the previous one causes a minor problem --
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it now becomes "Never break the Laws" (and there are some dillies in
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this set) instead of "Never break *this* Law".
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58. The "Mighty Ones" decided for us "in days of old" that we cannot
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use the Art against anyone? A shirking of responsibility is again
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evident. While the same precept occurs in my set of the Laws, it is
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obviously a decision made in the light of persecutions, not something
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decreed from on high.
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59. Sentence fragments. (sic) This is a subject that is not in the Laws
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(but is in the Charge of the Goddess, without the God's side of
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things).
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END OF PART TWO
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-------------------
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PART THREE
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60. Why do we need "the dimly remembered dawn of ages past" and
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Atlantis to make this point? This is the only version I've seen that
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goes beyond remembered history.
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61. Should be combined with #60, and have more of the excessive
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verbiage dropped. Oh, no! Not another cry of "the evil of chaos" again!
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How can these people even *talk* to Discordians??? Any set of Laws that
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is intended to be Craft-inclusive must not include value judgements,
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especially using the words "good", "evil", and "chaos". This law seems
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to be wishing for the time when we were in power; every set of Laws
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I've seen prior to this one would settle for a time in which we are
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tolerated or accepted.
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62. I don't understand what this is trying to say -- it seems to
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fluctuate between "No more secrets", "Only a few secrets", and "Don't
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tell anybody anything". Since all three of these have been expressed
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above, I'm not sure this law is needed; it hardly even adds to the
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confusion.
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63. The change from "always heeding the Messenger" to "always heeding
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the messages" is a little dangerous, but otherwise, this is Old Law.
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64. This law sounds pretty Gardnerian in tone, but it does not agree
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with Gardnerian myths -- i.e., while Goddess created everything, she
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did not create Death itself. Life without Death offers no regeneration,
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as Life could not continue on its own; the God was outside of Her
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creation, and so He had things to teach Her about Death. (Those of you
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who prefer Starhawk's version of this myth are TOTALLY ignored in this
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law.)
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65. I thought an HPs was only concerned mainly with what happens in Her
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Circle -- this Law seems to state that She is concerned with an
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unstated, but large-sounding, community. Other than that, this is Old
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Law.
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66. I don't think this needs to be in the Laws, but it's a good idea
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for each Circle to consider.
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67. This seems to be based upon the Old Laws' "If any in the Craft has
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any land...", but it does take that additional step into demi-deified
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clergy. I wish I knew whether Grove of the Unicorn was an authoritarian
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structure or not, but these Laws go a long way toward making its sound
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like one. (I'm not sure this group could "pass" Isaac Bonewits' Cult
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Danger Evaluation Frame after having read this many of their Laws.)
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68. Aha! Almost Old Law, and a "Burning Times" law! This is still a
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good Law , but it was formulated to keep anyone from knowing more than
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one group to "give away" if they cracked under pressure of Inquisition.
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69. Old Law; probably should be included in #68.
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70. Are we talking about pneumonia, herpes, or a cold here? You can do
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a lot better healing work *in* Circle (in my experience) than outside
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of it in many cases, and any Witch can decide for her/himself whether
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they are too sick to be in Circle and ask (or not ask) for healing. I
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suppose I find this law too judgemental, or too general.
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71. Old Law.
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72. There is no definition of Council given (the "Old Law" says "the
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Elders"), and the "Old Law" states that either the High Priest or the
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High Priestess can convene the Elders (useful if the HPs is out of
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town...) Otherwise, Old Law.
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73. Generally, Old Law. Some of the restatements are difficult or
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unwieldy, but no real problems.
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74. Old Law. (Actually, a bit of another Old Law is grafter in for
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clarification, but it doesn't hurt anything.)
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75. In conflict with English(/American) Law, "Ignorance is no excuse,"
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includes threefold law (which is NOT included in the Old Laws), and
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throws in the Lords of Karma again; rephrased, this could be an
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excellent law or rule, but I do not recognize a single source for this
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one. Some ritual magic, a little Hinduism, no Craft per se.
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76. Nice thought; sounds like a personal addition.
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77. As above, the "want of an offering" is not an issue in Old Law; the
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"lack of a robe" has never been discussed, since most groups I am
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familiar with generally work skyclad or negotiate the issue. Personal
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addition?
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78. Nice thought; sounds like a personal addition.
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79. So many flowers that (I feel) most would miss the point. I'm afraid
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I did, and I'm a musician.
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80. Sounds like the Apostle Paul. The qualities I was taught to look
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for in a High Priestess were caring, leadership, patience, ability, and
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knowing when to ask for help. This cuts out faith (something Goddess
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says in Her Charge is not asked for) and belief (something she wouldn't
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be in Circle without). More flames on the topic of children.
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81. Source? Sounds clergy-like to me...
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82. Old Law states that a requirement of being High Priestess is youth;
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while this is not easily practiced in all covens, going to the opposite
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extreme is probably not much better. My personal experiences have been
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in covens where everyone takes their hand at practicing HP and HPs,
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with the HPs acting more like organizer and running coven meetings.
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83. Ouch. Based upon Old Law, this Law removes the aspect of Love as an
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excuse (or Glands, if you like the Wombat Wicca version) -- and demands
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both judgement *and* atonement for a HPs who has left and come back --
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even uses the judgemental term, "deserts", in dealing with the issue.
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The Old Law may have its drawbacks, but is a much better guide (I feel)
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than getting nasty about it. Oooh, they don't even get to hold office
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again! Many things are sacred, and certainly being High Priestess is
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one of them, but in my teaching, Love is a higher ideal, and the Craft
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has always allowed for it.
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84. Old Law, with flames as above. "It is the lives of all of the Craft
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they endanger." Honor is still undefined in this context.
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85. The use of the word, "Sabbatical" is cute in this context, but this
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should be a part of #83 rather than separating them out. Also, the
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phrase, "the Maiden should continue in that office" confuses the reader
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as to which office -- the law has already stated that she should reap
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the reward; does election of another person invalidate the election? It
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should read, "...the Maiden shall be the Maiden for the new HPs."
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86. This is a new idea, and probably a good one: the Priestess and the
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Priest need not be the consort of the other, but are selected each by
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the coven or circle and are free to choose their own consorts. The one
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possible negative I can think of concerns the few times when Great Rite
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is held, and the feelings of their consorts on this matter. But then it
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lets the coven decide whether the choice was right nor not! If we're
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dealing with private lives, let them remain private. Based on Old Law,
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except that in Old Law the Priestess is chosen and She selects the
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Priest. This law again contains too many value judgements -- if you
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need a perfect person to run your circle, you will never meet.
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87. Adapted from the Letters of Paul the Apostle, not the Old Laws. It
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is nice to state that we should be responsible for ourselves, but that
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is a part of being a Witch (oops, by these Laws, Witches are only
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children, so I suppose making "those of the Priesthood" adults is what
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this law is about). This also seems to state (per Xtianity) that their
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mates, children, and house are all possessions; hardly a feminist or
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Craft perspective.
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88. Reverse Xtian. Extremely sexist, and no more or less bad than
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making the Man ruler of the world.
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THE NEW BOOK OF THE LAW is published by:
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The Grove of the Unicorn PO Box 13384 Atlanta, GA 30324
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To order, send a legal size SASE. A small contribution towards
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printing/handling costs will be appreciated.
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These comments have been made by Gerald L. Bliss, who is also known as
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J. Random Folksinger. Address further comments to Lady Galadriel at the
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above address and/or myself. My address is P.O. Box 1842, Colorado
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Springs, CO 80903. Also, please feel free to give pointers on how to
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make some of these comments in a less-judgemental manner (especially
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since my major complaint on these Laws was their own jundgemental
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style). I need all the help I can get...
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