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Ritual of the Lips and Throat

For those who wish to commit themselves to the work that faces us all, the work that the girl in the funny tee shirt began, this recipe might be of use. 


You will need:

  • 1 novice, who may wear whatever they like.
  • 1 celebrant, who shall wear an appropriately personal mask and red robes.
  • At least 2 witnesses, who must wear a red article of clothing to signify that they are witnesses. 


[The celebrant speaks:]

Fool who bears the name Freedom,
Under the light of liberty,
Your wrongs shall be forgiven. 
I am [celebrant gives their sacred name]
I have come from the far reaches of eternity. 
It is my duty to bestow freedom! 
Ask, and you shall be set free. 


Fool who bears the name Freedom,
Because of your name, 
You will live a life of betrayal, rejection, and defeat. 
Do you fear the deceit and the torment? 

[Novice is free to answer how they wish.]


Fool who bears the name Freedom, 
Because of your name, 
You will carry the burden of plague, pain, and ridicule.
Do you fear the suffering and the humiliation? 

[Novice is free to answer how they wish.]


Fool who bears the name Freedom, 
Because of your name,
You will wander in the dark,
And be blinded by the light. 
Do you fear the shame and the stumbling? 

[Novice is free to answer how they wish.]


Fool who bears the name Freedom,
Will you reject the name you bear, 
And all that it carries with it? 
Will you take on another name, 
One which is handed down to you from on high?

[The novice must answer no. If they answer yes, they must be told that the offer remains open for them at any time.] 


To reject the name of Freedom does not mean to cast it off. 
All the woes of your name still weigh upon you,
And the yoke of submission, of being defined by another,
Adds itself to their number. 
But by accepting the name of Freedom, 
The burden comes with a pair of wings. Knowing that you are free, knowing that liberty is written upon you, 
shall protect you from the most insidious chains of them all. 
Though your arms and legs may be manacled and weighted, your back bowed, 
your neck stretched, still there is that knowledge, that little flicker which remains. 


Be free! If you have eyes, see with them! If you have a tongue, taste with it! If you have ears, hear with them! Know that there is no one greater than you, and no one lesser! Know that you are a world unto yourself, and your thoughts and your emotions and your sensations populate that world! Cultivate what is beautiful, functional, interesting, or thought-provoking! 


Knowing the taste of freedom and the touch of liberty, will you then swear an oath before me? Will you swear this oath by yourself, and upon yourself, knowing that there is nothing greater than you who shall enforce it, only you, and your willingness to uphold it? 

[The novice may say yes, and the ritual proceeds. If they do not, then they are accepted as a provisional member and may swear the oath later, when they feel ready.]


Place one hand over your heart and one over your eyes, should you have two or more. If you need hands, they will be provided. 

[The witnesses to the ritual perform this task when needed.]

Repeat after me, 

“I, having accepted freedom, do swear by myself and on myself, to myself and to you and to all who witness this, that I shall accept that there are no greaters or lessers than me. I shall never abdicate my freedom and subjugate myself beneath another. I shall never subjugate another, nor shall I delude them about whether they are my equal and I am their equal. I shall aid those who seek freedom, and I shall aid those who need freedom, within the limits of the self I have cultivated and beyond it where I can. If I swear falsely, if I break this oath, then I shall know that I have betrayed my self; attacked my self, and sought to deny my self, and I alone am responsible for this.” 

[Novice swears. The celebrant removes their mask.] 


Now let there be no masks between us, for we have accepted our liberation. 

[The novice must then record the names of the participants, the date, and the general time of the day or the night, for ritual purposes.]


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