The Seeker’s Bill of Rights

This is a statement of ethics in the Pagan world, how many do you know that are broken in some way by your group? If they are totally ethical then all of these statements should be true within your group.

1. The Right to Verify Credentials
Seekers shall not be obstructed from contacting persons who can substantiate of disavow the claims made by a group or teacher. In the case of elders who were inspired to create a new tradition, the seeker has a right to know the circumstances surrounding the inception of that tradition.

2. The Right to Anonymity
Seekers have the right to keep their involvement in the occult a secret to preserve their professional and personal lives. At the time this was written a parent in Texas could still lose their children if it was discovered that the parent was involved in a non-Christian religion.

3. The Right to Financial Security
Seekers shall not be required or coerced to take on financial burdens on behalf of a teacher or a group.

4. The Right to Compensation For Goods and Services
Seekers have a right to be paid for goods produced from and/or skilled labor from which they would normally receive income. Seekers shall not be required or coerced to provide “freebies” or discounts on behalf of a teacher or a group.

5. The Right to Sexual Freedom
Seekers shall not be required or coerced to have sexual relations with unwanted persons. Nor shall seekers be restricted from sexual relations with consenting adults.

6. The Right to Physical Well-Being
Seekers shall not be required to submit to any form of physical injury.

7. The Right to Abide by the Law
Seekers shall not be required or coerced to commit any illegal act.

8. The Right to Consistency
Seekers have the right to expect consistent practices from a teacher or a group. Seekers shall be informed in a timely manner of any policy changes.

9. The Right to Separation Without Impunity
Seekers have the right to discontinue association with any teacher or group without the fear of harassment or reprisal.

10. The Right to Be At Peace With One’s Conscience
Seekers shall not be required or coerced to commit any action contrary to their own sense of ethics and morality.

The Seeker’s Bill of Rights © Charles Mars 1998 Hern’s Wood Coven, published in The Accord © C.M.A.

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Postcards from my “staycation”

Well, I had a nice day off yesterday after my night out at the North Texas Irish Fest. NTIF had great food, great music and a decent selection of vendors, and I had a good time there watching the people. I didn’t have money for my annual pint of Guinness so I had to miss out on that. I have faced worse deprivations than missing a pint of beer, this won’t kill me. But there was some good music, even if I had never heard of the artists until they stepped on the stage.

Then I went to get ready to put in a community garden, but the weather forecast was for thunderstorms and nasty cold weather, followed by freezing temperatures, which put the kibosh on planting vegetables, so I helped my host clean up after finding mice nesting in her linen closet. This required a trip to the laundromat to use one of their commercial-sized machines to disinfect the bedding with baking soda and use the commercial dryers to get all that stuff dry again. The ironic thing was none of that weather actually made it to the garden site and we had sunny weather with lows that night about 35 instead of the forecast sub-freezing temperatures. So we lost a week for planting the garden, and I don’t know if I’ll be able to get there to plant next week.

The a quick trip home to change clothes for a trip to the church for the monthly round of D&D, where we lost about half the party to a pair of ogres. “Stuff” happens, and it happened to our party last night. I’m playing a character with a high propensity towards “rule of funny” fighting, but I haven’t had the opportunity yet. There is a spell that I haven’t used yet that can cause the victim’s clothing to fall in a heap around their ankles, possibly tripping and drastically reducing the Armor Class of the victim. This can cause a difficult time for the victim, and it can be hilarious… But “rule of funny” applies in this character’s arc. I can only do this when it would be funny to do so…

And then I’m in a normal Sunday, morning services at church this morning followed by a committee meeting, then home for lunch and making the blog post, and here I am…

Billed @$0.02, Opus