How do you write an oath?

Answer 1

Before you begin to write an oath, you need to realize that there are different types of oaths: 1. There are general oaths that serve to provide a statement of general agreement amongst people in a similar field (e.g. the Hippocratic Oath); 2. There are oaths of loyalty to a particular country or nation (e.g. The Oath of Allegience, U.S.A., taken by imigrants) 3. There are Oaths of Leadership or Office (e.g. The U.S. Presidential Oath) 4. There are Oaths to a particular leader (e.g. the Bay'ah used in Islamic traditions) 5. There are Oaths to uphold particular ideolgies and principles (the Bay'ah serves this purpose as well) 6. There are Oaths of Secrecy or Conformity to a particular tradition (e.g. Freemasonry) 7. There are Oaths to uphold Laws or Traditions of a particular government or social body. 8. Ironically, there are also Oaths that renounce former Oaths or the making of further Oaths (typically in practice though, most people do not follow through with this latter one.)

It is impossible to list all the many different types of Oaths that exist in the world. Most converge several elements into one unified code. Some Oaths are even created to counter the nature of other Oaths, in opposition or disfavor to them. For you to write an Oath, you have to know what type of Oath yours is going to be. What is its primary purpose? What exactly is the Oath-taker supposed to do after the swearing of the Oath? Who can make this Oath, and who are not entitled to? Furthermore, what is the proposed purpose of the Oath over the course of a lengthy period time? Is it one that is going to be made annually, monthly, or only one time, perhaps indefinately? Secondarily, you need to consider its weight; how heavy is it? Is it an extremely important Oath, that you believe every person in the world should heed, or is it simplistic or mundane, and relatively unimportant (e.g. An Oath of Loyalty to Watch the Stephen Colbert show on t.v., is not as important as an Oath to try to save one's friend's life if he or she is known danger {irregardless if one puts his own self in danger.}) Is The Oath one that can be made by anyone, or is it one that can only be made by a select group of people?

All Oaths are basically "promises", or "swears" to use an older term. The person is "bound" to the principles or courses of action the Oath-taker states agreement to. It can serve two major functions: 1. Allow a person to examine his or her true beliefs in accordance with the Oath, and 2. Provide a forum for which others can observe the Oath and understand the person's beliefs. As you can probably already see, there can be a third possibility that is created by a person who does not believe in the Oath... 3. It can serve as a disguise by a person who wants to give the appearance that he believes in the Oath he has taken, when in fact he does not. Some societies have taken the concept of Oaths , extremely seriously... even to the death or loss of a limb (or several) if the Oath was not with-held. A well written Oath is one that is thought about over the course of a lengthy period time. In other words, you may should seriously consider why you are writing the Oath and judge the importance of writing it according to your own belief patterns. I suggest you to not write an Oath that you yourself would not agree to.

Now, on to the actual writing part:

1. Examine other Oaths, see how they are written. Borrow the elements that help you write yours, and discard those you don't agree to, or need. Don't copy a person's or organization's Oath word for word, even if you are going to replace a few words or phrases... this is still plagarism. Examine them, to understand them, but not to copy them.

2. Read Books about writing in general. These will help you to learn how to learn to write for the sake of writing, rather than just because the teacher told you to write an essay.

3. Oaths should be written in prose or prose-like nature. In other words, while there may be symbolic language within the Oath, it should only be symbolic language that the Oath-taker already understands. {e.g. "I swear unto you, O' my Lord, that I shall touch heaven with all of my heart, through the kindness to my family." The Oath-taker is not meaning that he is litterally going to touch heaven with his physical heart, by way of being kind to his family.}

4. Longer Oaths should repeat affirmation phrases (i.e. repetition of the words "I swear", "I promise", "I hearby reaffirm", "I solemnly swear", "I acknowledge" etc.

5. In the Oath, you should state the time-line the Oath is to be "in place"... "I swear until the time of my death" has a different conotation from "I swear until the time of my successor" or "I swear by way of the next three years." This practice is often underscored in Oaths, or given vaguely. Don't be afraid to be specific.

6. Generally, don't make an Oath more than two to three pages long, nor less than one paragraph long. For most Oaths, One to two pages or less is adequate. The more concise the Oath, the better, unless there are certain principles or concepts or agreeements that cannot be expempted. With that said, on the flip side Oaths should be at least One paragraph long, of at least four to five sentences. An Oath that is too short cannot adequately state its intended purpose or meaning. And an Oath that is too long, is quite cumbersome and laborious for the Oath-taker, and the "witnesses".

7. Most Oaths begin with "I------, do solemnly swear" or something of the sort. Do not forget to include a blank portion in which the person will be asked to "state" his or her "name." Depending on the nature of the Oath, this may or may not be his legal or birth name; it may be a code-name, nickname, or religious name. {It is okay to repeat this in longer Oaths, but don't overdo it.}

*Note: For a briefer version of this, I have coded this via bold-face. If you read only the bold parts from top to bottom, you will read a more condensed version of this.