The following personal manifesto was presented by Paul V. Beyerl to the 1987
Harvest Moon Celebration in Woodland Hills, California. It was in no way written
to represent a set of laws to govern the behavior of others, but only as an open
discussion of personal ethics to provoke thought and communication.
A WITCH'S PERSONAL MANIFESTO
I demand these things as a Witch:
- I must pursue my Highest Ideals
- I must strive to elevate my ethics
- I must be as good as my word
- I must demand integrity of myself
- I must be willing to suffer for my religion
- I must willingly embrace discipline
- I must develop financial responsibility and independence
- I must be able to pay my bills
- I must pay attention to my diet & intake of food
- I must LIVE the Hermetic Principle
- I must respect the astral
- I must approach ritual with great care
- I must see ritual work as a disciplined art form
- I must consider seriously the ramifications of reincarnation
- I must conserve fuels
- I must recycle whenever possible
- I must not litter, not even a cigarette butt
- I must avoid negative energy, even within my own thoughts
- I must avoid placing blame for any of the events in my life
- I must take responsibility for my ill health
- I must take myself seriously
- I must have humor
- I must live with my eyes open and my feet grounded
I demand these things of myself as a member of the Wiccan Community:
- I must support the work of making Wicca a respected religion
- I must expect financial accountability from those groups to which I donate
monies
- I must stop the mockery of other religions (including anti-Christian sentiment
sometimes found in modern Paganism)
- I must not support religious plagiarism (such as the teaching of shamanism by
those who have never experienced the wilderness nor studied from a real
shaman).
- I must be respectful of all other's ritual forms
- I must separate myths and reality in our history and in our future
- I must work to contribute towards a reputable public image of Wicca
- I must protest against pagans who use shock tactics in dealing with the public
- I must upgrade standards of Wiccan education
- I must support serious research of our religious heritage
- I must demand quality in pagan literature, newsletters and books
- I must support the assembling of libraries
- I must not be a religious isolationist and I must work to remove pagan ghetto
mentalities from our communities
- I must demand provocative, challenging workshops over entertainment
- I must share my knowledge and skills
- I must make Initiations increasingly difficult, challenging and rewarding
- I must consider the amount of education other religions expect of their clergy
when planning Wiccan training
- I must be willing to network
- I must remain in contact with pagans in other places
I demand these things of myself as a Priest/ess:
- I must prepare for the deaths and burials of our peoples
- I must provide for the future of my consecrated tools beyond my physical death
- I must work towards the establishment of legal ministries
- I must provide for children and their education
- I must provide for the survival of my Tradition
I demand these things of myself as a Wiccan citizen:
- I must promote community service, being of help to all peoples regardless of
their beliefs
- I must be willing to be political
- I must be a knowledgeable, active voter
- I must respect and utilize the system
- I must find value in the political system in which I live or work actively to
promote change
- I must be aware of the world perspective
- I must extend myself to world poverty and hunger
Ravinessa23 Community Member 
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