I. An Harm None, Do
What Thy Will
Okay, it may not be your tradition, but you know how it works. If you can’t
follow this, try the Golden Rule, The Rule of 3, or anything that will mean
basically the same thing.
II. No public discussion (online or off) of personal disputes among members or council members of FHP is tolerated in any form.
III. No intentional abuse or malicious talk which might constitute an affront to any religious, gender, sexual preference, racial or ethnic group.
IV. All Flinthills Pagans Alliance activities will be conducted with socially acceptable ethical and moral behavior, including, but not limited to, the following:
A. No ritual nudity at FHP sponsored events, unless the land and property are owned or legally leased by FHP and afford reasonable security and privacy during all ceremonies or events. Any nudity shall be entirely optional, not required; shall be approved in advance by the FHP Council, and shall be announced in advance by the group hosting the event.
B. All representations of sexual magick rites will be symbolic only. The organization will regard private consensual sexual activities between adult members of FHP to be their own private business, but exploitive behavior, such as pressure on a reluctant or unwilling being to engage in sexual activity of any kind, is entirely unacceptable and constitutes grounds for termination of FHP membership and any positions of responsibility or authority which the offender may hold within the organization .
C. Sacrificial rites will be symbolic only. Ritual sacrifice by any person is expressly prohibited. While FHP recognizes that the ritual slaughter of an animal or animals intended for consumption may be a valid expression of religious belief, absolutely no animal slaughter shall be allowed at FHP functions under any circumstances. Acceptable sacrifices might include, but are not limited to, songs, poems, dances, and portions of prepared foods, as offerings given to the God and Goddess with love and respect. To engage in any animal slaughter at a FHP function constitutes grounds for termination of FHP membership and any position of responsibility or authority that the offender may hold within the organization .
D. No substance abuse will be tolerated at FHP functions. FHP recognizes that the use of chemical substances for religious purposes may be a valid expression of religious belief, but such use is not acceptable at FHP functions. To engage in any illegal drug activity at a FHP function constitutes grounds for termination of FHP membership and any position of responsibility or authority that the offender may hold within the organization .
E. Serving alcoholic beverages as a sacrament at a FHP ritual is acceptable as long as a non-alcoholic beverage is available for all under-age attendees and those not wishing to consume alcohol. FHP recognizes that consumption of alcohol in small quantities during ritual is a religious tradition, but any disruptive, abusive, exploitive or intoxicated behavior is prohibited. Such behavior includes refusal to comply with reasonable requests of the Event Coordinator or any Council Member regarding behavior related to drinking and any exploitive behavior, such as pressure on an unwilling person to consume alcohol or offering alcohol to under age attendees. Such behavior will result in immediate reprimand from a corporate representative, possible expulsion from the event, and possible termination of FHP membership upon the review of the FHP Council.
F. Should behavior outside FHP events by any member present an unfavorable image of FHP and such behavior threatens the organization , the FHP Council shall have the option of terminating the membership privileges of the offending party or parties.
V. Essential Pagan Etiquette
A. You should never touch someone else's magickal tools and items without their
express permission. If you see something you like and want to touch, then ASK.
Don't just hold out your hand for it, or just pick it up. A person leaves an
imprint of their energy on what they touch, and they may not want someone else's
energy on their magickal items. This includes athames all the way to stones
and jewelry. And do not take offense if you ask and are told no.
B. The way you live reflects on our whole community. You should always respect
others, no matter their path. Inside your own religion there is a certain higher
respect given each other. This comes from a basic understanding of the hardships
of the path, and the process we all go through in some way to evolve. It can
be equated to any secret society and it's initiation process and path of self-discovery.
This path is not for everyone, and, if you take it seriously, it will change
your life in ways you could never imagine. Any path that causes growth can be
difficult, and when we link with others that are going through the same thing
we are, we can take strength from and learn from them.
C. We endeavor to hold ourselves to a higher standard of living in our spiritual
lives that the mundane world does not. Therefore we support each other, lending
a hand when the pitfalls of the world come about.
D. When someone gives of themselves to teach or guide, we recognize that person's
giving and we respect it. Not all of us are called to teach, and those who are
offer a valuable service that should not be taken for granted.
E. When you are called to teach or guide, you have been given a very serious
part to play in your community. You should never abuse it in any way. It also
does not mean that you may use it as a way to gain power over, or look down
upon, any other person. We are all where we should be on our path, and it does
not mean a thing that you have 10 or 20 years of service and someone else has
one. We are all equal in the eyes of the Gods. If you are a teacher, you are
held to an even higher state of conduct. You must never involve yourself in
anything that could cause harm to your students or to the Craft. You should
never do anything that would bring a bad light on us. For instance, you should
never become romantically involved with one of your students. You should not
condone the use of illegal drugs or alcohol if the person is not of age. You
should not use your position to control your students or make them dependent
on you. The goal is to aid a person on this path. You supply the seed as a teacher.
You cannot take them by the hand and learn from them or be easy on them when
you should be honest.
F. In that same light, those who would be considered an elder in our faith are
given a large amount of respect. The wisdom that is gained from following this
path for 10, 20 or 30 years is an asset to our community, and we should respect
the Elders of the community for what they have learned and what they teach us.
G. Due to the advent of the internet, there is a phenomenon growing among new
seekers that is very disturbing. It involves not understanding the hard work
it takes to learn the Old Ways or the dedication and self sacrifice those who
follow, and especially those who teach and guide give to the path. From this
lack of understanding, new seekers think they can go to any page on the net,
learn what they can and be done with it. It also leads them to think that they
can ask for what they want and someone will just hand it over. They want to
skip the hard work, the dedication, the pitfalls and the trials and get right
to the reward. This is simply not how it's done. Be mindful of what you are
asking. You can't go to the net, read a page or two, then go ask someone for
their BOS, or even ask them to teach you. There must be effort on your part.
You are not an adept after reading a page or a book or even ten books. The mysteries
cannot be handed to you on a silver platter and you are a master of the universe.
If you do this you will never come to experience the mysteries because they
come through dedication, hard work and a personal dedication to the gods.
H. Those who are out of the closet must NEVER give away the secrets of their
brothers and sisters. You should never give any personal information. You should
never tell the secrets of a coven, who it's leaders are, who the members are
or any other information. We must honor our vows and protect those who for whatever
reason have chosen to remain hidden from the eyes of the world.
I. For those who are out of the closet, your life and your actions must be above
reproach in the eyes of the world. As an open pagan, you may be the only one
that a non pagan ever sees. They will see every Pagan in you. So in all things
you must be truthful. You must live with dignity and honor.