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An' It Harm None, Do What Thou Will.-- The Wiccan Rede
Judge not, lest ye be judged.
-- Matthew 7:1
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
-- The Golden Rule
...and don't do what you hate...
-- The Gospel of Thomas
What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. This is the law: all the rest is commentary.
-- Talmud, Shabbat 31a
Whatever is disagreeable to yourself do not do unto others.
-- Shayast-na-Shayast 13:29
May I do to others as I would that they should do unto me.
-- Plato
What you would avoid suffering yourself, seek not to impose on ohters.
-- Epictetus
What all these quotes have in common is the basis of the moral code that we live by, no matter what our faith. By examing the teachings of most religions in the world, we see that The Divine has revealed this same truth to all peoples. Can we say that this is not so when the evidence is piled before us in the sacred texts and traditions of the world?
So, we keep this as the root of our moral values that we will respect all others in the same manner that we hope to be respected by others. By following this simmple guidleline in all we do, we will be at peace with the world and The Divine.
The Outline and Free Will
We are children of the Divine and as such, we are part of a Divine plan. This is only a basic outline that we can affect with our free will. For everythingwe do, we affect that outline and alter it's path through our own energy. With this, comes the belief of what we do will come back to us. Keeping this in mind, we should work at ensuring that our lives have a possitive afect on the overall tapestry of life.
Honor, respect, and commune with God, Goddess, and the One.
When we honor the Divine, through rituals, rites, ceremonies, prayers and spells, we should spill no blood, animal nor human. The Divine does not require this of us, for it would be a violation of the basis of our moral code. The time for blood sacrifice is long past and it is no onger needed to honor the Divine.
Following our beliefs, we will not harm oursleves or others, this is the heart of our moral existance and the best way of honoring the Divine who gave us life.