Rules and Religion

One of the common questions I encounter from new Wiccans concerns "rules." What do I need to do as a Wiccan? What am I not allowed to do? What am I required to do?

It's very hard for a lot of people to comprehend that religion does not have to involve absolute rules. That notion comes from Christianity, which heavily influences Westerners' views of religion in general. Christianity has a very concrete goal - salvation - and Christians generally have very solid conditions required for that goal. But not every religion works as Christianity works.

How can you have a coherent religion if no one is following the same rules? Because religion is inherently about belief, not rules. We share general beliefs, but we may approach those beliefs differently. In fact, many of us feel that we should approach each issue individually. Ethics should be determined by the circumstance, not but some impersonal list of rules, for example.

The notion of solid rules in many ways takes away personal responsibility. Followers feel they do not need to consider the ramifications of their actions so long as they technically remain within the rules. They also expect some sort of guarantee of success: if I accomplish X, Y and Z then I will attain goal Q. Wiccan spirituality simply doesn't work like that. Our goals include the gaining of information and understanding and closer communion with our deities. These things do not come out of celestial vending machines just because we insert the correct quarter. They are things to be sought and investigated and examined. To guarantee that a certain ritual will produce an expected effect is like promising that reading Grey's Anatomy (the anatomical guidebook, not the TV show) will make you a doctor.

There's nothing wrong with Wiccan how-to guides in and of themselves. It all depends on exactly what a specific book is attempting to teach. It can be a fine format for teaching the basics of ritual, so long as the steps are being fully explained, rather than simply scripting steps. But if it promises results, or if it keeps the focus on the actions rather than the understanding of those actions, then such materials have missed the mark entirely.