Death to the baby Jesus

In my home when we were children we were of course punished for saying curse words, but in addition to this we were encouraged to also speak considerately and with respect to people who were or believed differently then we did. But it seems this concept was more of a way to avoid scandal then to show any actual respect for differences. I am noticing a new trend in “entertainment” video games like god of war, shows like supernatural, movies like clash of the titans. 

The common element is attacks on pagan beliefs because it is perfectly acceptable to viciously disembowel Apollo in the general opinion. As I logged on to face book like most of you I saw a app ad on the side of the screen and being addicted to them like most everyone else. I viewed it in the app center the premise? Ra forces his divine blood in to you and makes you fight rival gods for him until you through off the shackles of his oppression and then you embark on a quest to slay every god it even uses the phrase “kill them kill them all” the option of champions to join you look like a bunch of Christian saints and angels.   

Now some of you (the ones in my opinion that have become complacent as second class believers) will think well what’s the big deal its just entertainment a muse. Consider this depictions of the prophet Mohammad are considered sacrilege and can start riots. Imagine for a moment if the theme of the above mentioned video game was to slay the baby Jesus before man kind feel under his tyrannical rule. If to slay him you rapidly mash your x button to bludgeon his face of a pillar till his brains were a fine red mist and there was a hole left large enough to plant a rose bush in? 

Why is one thing okay and not the other? Because no one makes noise save for maybe the occasional atheist opposing a public display of around Christmas time. But I have yet to here of people protesting the depiction of Wiccan’s on supernatural. 

In a society based on the freedom of religion I don’t think this level of disrespect should be admissible. And yes most pagan believe in one god or the other few venerate them all equally but standing up for them all can protect your right to have the same respect shown for yours that is shown for all the Christian variants.

The app I mentioned is Bloodrealm’s check it out your self and see if you find it as offensive as I do. Now to the few Christian reader I have let me say I am not advocating death to baby Jesus but imagine how you would feel is you saw that exact thing all over the place and no one seemed to care. The amount of belief my not be the same but the amount of respect should be 

Playing it Christian, or i hide my Book of Shadows with my Porn

  Last night watching the V.P debate I was struck by the not uncommon political question how much does your faith inform your policies? And it got me thinking in a larger context. Of all the religions out there Wicca has probably the most little rituals for everyday mundane life if you but look for them you could spend all day blessing your house plants. I you look you can find something magical to do every spare second you have.

   Yet as a minority religion we find are self conforming to the cultural norm of Christianity in subconscious ways. These  idiosyncrasies find us saying Oh my god not working on Sundays saying god bless you when some one sneezes not out of belief but out or rote. 

  This to me is the reason gathering with like minded individuals I so important for a religious identity. See hear and speaking magic with other people promotes it not only with our fellow witch but with ourselves. 

  To spite being raised by a Wiccan mother I myself find that half the time I say thank god and the other half saying thanks goddess. And feeling regretfully when I say thank god not that I couldn't equate the title to the male aspect of the lord and lady but that when I say it reflexively I know in my head I am not honoring anyone but am repeating Christian jargon that is simply hard to get out of my head in a Christ god dominate world.

It is a sad state of fact that we must work harder to self identify as Wiccan deprogramming ourselves as often as we possibly can. Its not easy to adjust to being outside the boxes to the point that its reflexive. 
I think the most glaring representation of this is the fact that I have yet to meet outside myself a single Wiccan that doesn't play fiddle to Christmas. 
I know to a lot of people the concept of losing this holiday is depressing. I understand everyone loves presents but to me I reached a point where is just felt fundamentally wrong to celebrate the all be it miss dated birth of Jesus. For most of us this is one action that being different can cut the deepest as even the nonbelievers participate and to actively not we most cut ourselves from a family event vacation plans and other wonderful bonding experience. 

On this I have no great insight it is simply up to the person to decide how important their beliefs are to them and what the  prerequisites are for crossing the spiritual line. So I ask my readers do you know yours? How much do you entertain the faiths of others at the cost of your own? Do you play Christian as some people play straight? 

Karmic Mercy

Predestine: is it a comfort or a curse? Many denominations of faith believe in predestination. Your entire life, trails and tribulations are written before your first breath and you follow a set path to your eternal reward or punishment with unairing accuracy. Only occasionally looking back to recognize the bizarre set of circumstances that lead you to an exact place and time.

I found myself on a clod rainy morning hours from home at a tiny town fair, hating the weather, musing on when I would see my lover coffee again (as we had been apart to long) and surrounded by bad company in an arm pit of a town.
 The whole time thinking what the hell am I doing here? when out of the corner of my eye, as I passed a booth I saw a necklace.  A raw uncut amethyst on black cord in a wire cage.  The nostalgia was powerful I had owned one exactly like it as a child and in a fit of superstition my grandmother had smashed the gift my mother had picked up for me.

You see my parents were divorcing and I was living with my fathers mother at the time mamma was a witch and had bought me my first focusing crystal as a present right before we were ripped apart and I was forbidden to see the “heathen” 

I wore my crystal proudly and loved talking about it with anyone who would listen about the shiny conversation peace. Grandma thought it a conduit for the devil and took a hammer to it. To this day it remained my favorite gift. 

So you can imagine my shock at seeing this unlikely little trinket in the most unlikely of places. And it brightened the rest of my dreary cold weekend.

My aunt claims as I believe that I was meant to find it but if that is the case then was I a victim of predestination or was the universe simply showing a little mercy to a heart heavy passenger?

I of course do believe that things come in to your life with a purpose, but I believe that they are always there as a test. How we react to theses karmic setups will determine our blessings or lessons. I can’t claim the life and the universe always hand me little gifts in fact I have had many, many hardships, but I can’t help but think that what ever force compel the small details of our path has a kind heart.

Samhain reflections

October is here and it is my favorite time of year the weather isn’t to cold but the air is crisp and the leaves are turning. Change is in the air and that lends itself to the coming Samhain ritual my favorite part of which is letting go. The Celtic new years festival centers around th concept of harvest harvesting the good things we have sow throughout the year and releasing the negative things that have held us back or saddened us.
In my year in review I always find a lot of negativity as I think most of us do that I will be very glad to toss in to the ritual fire. So I encourage my readers to self evaluate like all Wiccan’s constantly must and let your self be excited to release things that over the past 12 months have saddened you or hardened your heart.
Another aspect is letters to the departed I take this time to write to my mother gone now for four years and tell her all that has happened and wish her well as she continues to learn on the other side. 
It hard for a minority group to not feel a lot of negativity pointed their way by the general populous most of the time so its great to be able to toss that care away and relate to your dearly departed.
Each year I feel more and more like someone new a better lighter version of myself and it is such a blessing to see the same happen for my loved ones that attend. 
This year will also be special because are host has settled on a patron and I will be helping her with her first official dedication to Bridget. So I will also have to let go of my jealously that she has found a patron. 

Change is the nature of magic and the nature of the world. So to it must be the nature of the witch. If you find that you have become hard set in your views and way I would encourage you to go out side of your comfort zone and see if you can’t add a new dimension to your personality. To grow we must confront ourselves challenge are limits and exceed them or we to will fall in to winter.   

Love the Sinner but not the Sin? Seriously?

Other night I herd a phrase that I often have, repeated again and It irritates me beyond belief. Often when ask about there on the fence view of homosexuality church leaders (particularly of the catholic faith) are fond of saying love the sinner and not the sin. 
Using it as a way to say we don’t like everything about you but we still want the whole world to be a part of the church. 
It reminded me a lot of my fathers speech on be gay. “Its all right I still love you but you can’t have a boyfriend under my roof or go to gay places or have gay friends.” basically saying me being gay was perfectly fine as long as I didn't do anything vaguely related to being gay.
Now he like the church probably want me to be abstinent so that they didn't have to deal with anything “uncomfortable” I am sure it was an attempt to keep me from a full and happy life where I could enjoy love…..okay a lot of that was sarcasm, moving on…

But here is why that cop out doesn't fly on from either of them. 

It boils down to a few things first abstinence Is insane. I don’t say that because I am a sex addict or a free love advocate but because its fundamentally true. The American psychiatric association agrees that a normal healthy sex life is an important part of being a healthy well adjusted member of society. 

And if you compare side by side a sexually active homosexual next to the supposedly celibate priesthood  you can easily see which of the two practices result in the most harmful behavior. I have never seen a pregnant nun or a molested alter boy in a gay bar …just saying. This is what happens when you repress healthy sexual behavior you get a person that is frustrated to the point of deviation. Its not because the alter boys begged for it or the nuns are just to appealing in there habits its because they are the weak people on the church totem pole and so the easiest pray for the priesthood.

The second part is that homosexuality is not going any where EVER. 

A lot of people don’t seem to get that obsessed with saying its unnatural (even though it occurs in thousands of species of animal) 
Or and I an found of this one they will all die out eventually…. Yes sure because only gay people have gay babies …oh wait only straight people have gay babies because gays don’t have babies (unless their adopting the ones you put in trash cans)
So again the second point is homosexuality is natural and has been around since the beginning of man and will be here till the end of man you can’t wait out the problem.

And finally the biggest reason the churches “love the sinner and not the sin” speech bothers me and is just a plain bad policy is this. If you must have homosexuals (and don’t fool your self you must) then what kind of homosexual do you want?
I know that seems a strange thing to say but it comes down to visions of a persons future. Straight people don’t seem to realize they are the reason for anonymous bath house sex. Married guys hooking up behind there wife’s back. Why?

Because they are trying to be normal when an activity is made to be shameful by the majority it will not stop the activity but make it hide and that is were the basement clubs come in. People from all walks of life flock together based purely on the premise of sex so of course these are not going to be wholesome locations for a well developed person because they are teamed with shame and rejection. 

No little kid dreams of their future and thinks I want to have desperation sex with a closeted father of three in a dark room when I grow up. They think I would like to marry a person of the same gender as myself and have what everyone else has. But then the church and society take that all American dream of having a husband or wife and replace it with  dark room shame sex. 

Now divorce is a sin but you don’t say your divorced no new marriage for you, because that would be taking away the dream the goal of the ideal union for that person. 
So having a sin or committing a sin does not prevent the church from allowing two people to marry. And of course even if you have not committed a sin before the wedding what religious leader can look at you straight faced and say they will not commit any sins related to sex now that they are married. 
When in fact most of those sexual sins are preformed that very wedding night. So they know sin will be committed before and after marriage but still consider it a blessed union. 

Yet that is some how better then knowing the sin will be homosexuality? Honestly if you give people the path to a happy well adjusted married life many, many will take it. Creating an environment of tolerance will decrease the amount of sin a person performs for one small aspect of who they are. 

So straight people determine what kind of homosexuals they have. What kind do you want? These are the reasons I respect the god but not the church.   

6 Degrees of Invocation

     At its core magic is about sympathetic resonance harmony. It might sound like a mouth full of nonsense to some of you, but its pretty simple, like attracts like. Just as people form the same background and social circle tend to be comfortable around other people that come from the same side of the tracks.                               

   The more magically linked things used, the more they build off one another, compounding the energy build up, feeding off itself and if properly utilized can increase a spells power and precision. Its like themeing a meditation room. You use calming colors the right aromatic candles, oils and music all in the hope that when you enter the space you will be effected by the environment you created. The same principals can be used for spell casting.

     My teacher call this jokingly 6 degrees of invocation and it really stuck, helping me to remember it. So the following is those degrees or aspects of crafting your own spell that a person should consider and implement to safe guard their intent and insure they are protected for wayward thoughts and energies not to mention they are all really great spell booster when used together. 

1:Mineral, find a stone, gem, or crystal that is associated with you casting. The manner in which they form can be helpful in this. For instance diamonds are associated with fire because of how they form earth because of what they are and marriage because of what the represent.

2:Plant this can be tree bark, roots, flowers and herbs. White oak is good for fertility, Dragons blood for power, honeysuckle for love and luck and nightshade for beauty.

3: Chant obviously your words need to reflect your intent and goal. But when creating your own spell it is important to craft your words around the other steps. For instance if you are using a diamond for a spell related to weddings you should mention it in your rhyme at the point in the spell you are using it. The more sympathetic resonance created the better the effect 

4: Color matching this to your work can be a bit of a pain as the properties of color association very depending on the source of the information. I find it best just to spend a little time labeling them out for yourself. For example red candles for me are more of a power boost then anything else.

5:Time there are magical associations for the time of day and day of the week and the moth of the year. Rule over by certain planets gods and aspects of life. Timing can be a pain but the benefits are worth this extra step.

6: Energy when charging yourself up for your magical endeavor you can pay special attention to the type of energy you will be using in the spell. By watching the association with a particular element or weather it fall in to a masculine of famine domain you can charge yourself and your ritual objects to be in harmony with your intent. This is also the step in which you want to pick out the god goddess or spirits you will be using as they are an energy influence. 

Desperately Seeking Deity

   Have you ever had a friend that was a wonderful person but maybe the felt a little fat? A little nerdy or to boring? And then they fall in love with this great person and go on a crash diet, or get a tattoo, all in the hope they can  live up to what they have. Honor the great gift that they don’t feel worthy of. With a little ego boost from you or possible a counselor they finally come around to realizing they were good enough all along and what they were doing to themselves was unhealthy and unnecessary.

I think almost everyone can relate as either the friend or the self-esteem victim. And in the end we feel silly for doubting ourselves needlessly all that pressure can make you crazy.

When trying to live up to these fictionalized requirements we starve ourselves, we go without sleep, exorcise study act out of character, we are completely irrational and desperate. That evasive approval is like the next hit of ambrosia and we stop at nothing to try and get it.

Now picture for a moment that we can’t get that feed back from the one we love maybe they are mute or far away or passed on to the next life and can’t give us what we need, that simple validation or reassurance that will help us make it through to the next bout of insecurities.

A common theme in becoming a more faithful person is acts of devotion. Fasting, repenting, sweat lodges, vision quests vows of silence, obedience and chastity…that’s right people can be in a unhealthy one sided relationship with their god, or gods.

After all how do you live up to the perfection of the divine? What would you give up to please them? What mountains would you cross or dragons would you slay to please that which you turn to in your darkest hour?  

More importantly does it even matter?

If you look back over religious figures those that seem truly in touch or set apart for a divine quest are normally regular faithful people plucked from obscurity and thrust in to the role of saint.

But does that mean you have to be a saint to be good enough?

For me the answer like a lot of divine answers is not in a book or meditation technique. I prefer more hard facts. That might seem counter point to the concept of faith but I don’t really think so. 

The gods don’t speak often directly to man the few times that they have are legends and complete denominations of faith spring up around the experience. So to most people they look around and see silent gods they must try harder to bend the ear of. As if a divine being would have so simplistic a means of communication as so appear before bob and tall him I want you to have children with this woman. 

So not getting a phone call bob prays and fasts and sweat lodges in the hopes that Buda will send him a txt message  telling him to go for it. 

The funny part is that bob is getting messages and he doesn’t even realize it. When he looks at sally his pupils dilate his heart races his body releases hormones and endorphins. When bob holds his baby with sally for the first time his body massively produces estrogen gentling his personality some times to five times the average estrogen level of a woman. In stilling in him a gentleness so profound that he would die or kill for the little miracle he and sally made by listening to their body’s. 

These chemical responses (like the knowledge of how to latch on to a nipple for a baby) are called biological imperatives. The guide us to things that will make us live and a lot of times to things that will make us happy. Its not a vision or a scroll but is no less profound when you stop to think that something made us like that. Crafted are individual biochemistry to like blondes to be aggressive or timid so that we appeal to are friends and lovers. The key to good relationships is communication. Some can’t speak guy some can’t speak girl why does every one think they can speak god? 
You are how you were made you were made how you should be and you are perfect in that creation because every breath you take is a act of divinity a sacred purposeful moment that the creators wanted to happen. Take the pressure off your self and relies you were good enough from the beginning and you have just been being silly. 

Killing In The Name of.

  Imagine a world were innocent children are beaten to death as a crowd looks on condemning them as evil. Or a world were women have their genitalia sheared off to keep them faithful. A world were saying you think different is punishable by death. Were children are tossed out to fend for themselves so they can’t be sexual compotation for the older men that rule.

  You don’t have to imagine this is the world you live in. Not some distant echo of the past. Not some historical barbarism that disappeared in the dark ages. Its happening now all around the world. The horror of it all is that these heinous evils are all in the name of god.

  There is a thin line between faith and fanaticism. At some point in their spiritual journey people reach a plateau of faith. Where they feel they know enough to be comfortable in their beliefs defend them as there own to others and gain satisfaction in them. We call these people enlightened, you can normally spot these people by the clam and serene aura they seem to give off they are relaxing to be around and seem wise beyond there years.

  Fanaticism happens when a person seeking outside of themselves for something that is missing; clinging desperately to the promise of a giving purpose, the certainty of knowing their place in the world and so they try to prove there faith by a grand display. O they can be so full or moral superiority that they feel the need to cure the world of its misconceptions by radical measures. They can also simply be a product of their environment in a strict society such as the Amish which is considered extreme to most anyway what is the next step?
 Well in Ohio the extreme of Amish seems to be breaking in to their own peoples homes, beating them, and shearing off there facial hair violently to shame them for not being what the others believe they should be.

Just as some of the things I have written about before speak of evolutions in religion. This to is an evolution and sometimes devolution of them. Generally there are two paths to this. Going old school in your beliefs to attempt to get back to purity or going left of center so that you can accomplish something you feel has to happen.

Don’t fool your self every religion has blood on its hands with denominations of Christianity  holding the highest body count simply because of the proliferation of the faith. 9 million woman in the inquisition. The crusades as both side were a denomination of Christ worship. And yes 911 all in the name of god weather you call him Allah or not.

And before the rise of Christ they people of that time did it in the name of their gods in  Egypt of old it was to permote the pharaoh patron above all others.

Tolerance is such a simple gift when I comes to religion all it requires is a little selfish thought. Tell yourself I know I am on the right path and let the others fend for themselves. If you believe your god hates a type of people they surly don’t need your help to do anything about it after all they are the most powerful and only true one out their right capable of wiping life from the planet? They don’t need your feeble butt kissing to make them happy. And if I were them I would be really,  tired of people name dropping me on every half baked brain fart idea they think would make me happier with them.

So the next time you feel the need to boost your faith or further its cause try thinking that maybe the best thing you can do is be somebody other people would like to be like instead of jamming your books down their throat. After all once you take that step what can your children do to go one step further when its their time to push their religious limits?
     

Spell casting 101

    A lot of times in online Wiccan groups I see people asking how do you cast a spell and looking over a lot of the material out their I see a lot for spells made for this or that effect but nothing about the bare bones of a standard spell form.
   Now for the most part I try on this blog to keep it to a bit of philosophy and musings about various religious subject and avoid actual instruction, but as it seems to be a recurring thing I will label it out as it was taught to me.

 Step one: cleanse self ground center and focus before you start anything so you don’t bring any negativity with you in to the casting.

Step two: cleanse object you will be using if they have been used in previous spell work. 

Step three: charge object with magical energy that is focus toward your intentions for the spell.

Step four: Create your sacred space for the spell by casting your circle making sure you have everything you need with in reach and enough room to move about as needed. 

Step five: charge your self for the spell by channeling universal energy 

Step six: cast spell (whatever it my be) 

Step seven: put out candles and clean up anything not supposed to be left out such as bits of ribbon and so on.

Step eight: cleanse self again ground and center releasing excess energy to the universe. 
Step nine: thank the god or goddess you used 

Step ten: cleanse objects that are not still in use.

Step eleven: cleanse sacred space and open the circle.

This is the simple skeleton of casting any spell or performing a ritual. The seemingly constant cleansing is to prevent unintended thoughts emotion and all that from attaching its self to you or your spell and to keep them from lingering after  you are done.   

WishCraft

   One of the hardest things to except when you beginning to practice the craft is to face your limitation. Even with magic and prays to powerful deities something’s are simply out of our hands.
   Many of times a sweet face sister of mine will ask. well can’t you just (insert impossible request here)? To which I have developed the habit of saying “I am a witch not a genie.”
  This however got me to thinking about one of my early lessons in the craft. Once a craft user begins to learn how to focus and move their own energy around and send it out to perform a task, a strange phenomenon some times occurs. Once this magic is set free it can become like a reflex. Energy can build up and on simple whim seek to do your will weather your perform a ritual or simply subconsciously desire it.
  When a passive ability becomes a reflex impulse issue it is no longer a spell. Instead my mother coin this Wishcraft. (she may have gotten the title else where and I simply haven’t come across it)

Now to many this seems like such a blessing no practicing, no difficult chanting, you want it and it happens. The problem is first human impulses are not subject to morality, so when a spell is born out of pure desire there is no filter to do no harm. It simply gets the job done as quickly as possible and damn the consequences. That is a fast track to massive karmic debt.

It can also leave you depleted of energy, its messy and unfocused energy that is unleashed contain good and selfish intentions that can poison a sacred space or other areas of your home. And to bring something you desire closer to you it wont hesitate to step on people you love to bring it in to your life. And the gods help any poor soul you get angry with.

Identifying it as going on is the hardest step, but fortunately its easy to mange once you do. Daily energy balancing and a few focus ritual and your wayward magic can be reined in before you set fires that require years for careful work to fix. And don’t fool your self weather intentional or not the effect are your responsibility to fix. But it might require you being advanced enough to know your own magical self to the point were you can identify your own magical handy work. So take a look around and see how much in your life is luck and how much is wishful thinking

Jehovah Witness Protection

I think almost every American has at least one time in their lives opened their door and been greeted by two moderately dressed people asking have you meet Jesus of do you know god? Most people feel the same reaction to Jehovah’s witnesses at the door  as they do to vacuum cleaner sales men. Feeling the sudden desire for the sprinklers to come on.

But a question remains in my mind when I think of this.

  You see here they are asking you a question, like they are with saint peters office up in heaven and their trying to fit you in at four thirty with the big man.
  Most people realizes that they are not in direct contact with the creator but here people are that say they can teach you who he is, what he wants from you and why you should care. So the question this raises for me is not do you know god, but can you know god?

   There are many factors in this. How much of a divine being can you truly know with the limits of one genetically watered down fruit of knowledge? And which interpretation of the creator are you trying to know?

   Since the beginning of time people have attempted to put a face on their gods assign them personalities, likes and dislikes, hair and eye color, romantic relationships great miracles and even terrible wrath.

  The interesting bit is the from a public relations aspect the god of the Israelites is the least understood when compared to his less camera shy peers.
You see before Christianity the pagan view developed their images of gods and goddesses in a kind of evolving process. An aspect of life would inspire the idea of a divine overseer. The rain wouldn’t come and man sought a deity to ask that it be changed.  They would attempt different things to please them and basis their opinion of them and their personality from what they could infer from the results. So and so is found of goat sacrifices so they must love or hate goats.
Here’s the clever bite on the part of the people that decided to market Jehovah, he is undefined, unknown many modern believe will debate this of course but if you look back on it you will see that it is the truth and quite on purpose.

You see in the beginning (of religion not the world) man held the common belief in the power of names.
  To name something was to know it, to define and limit it by title and definition. Many cultures believe that if you possessed the true name of something you held power over the object or entity that you had the name of.      

   You can even see this in evidence in the exorcism rituals used by the catholic church. In which they attempt to learn the name of the demon in order to gain power over it and cast it out. This like many of their practices is a hold over from pagan lore.
So lets examine the beginning of Jehovah worship.

Historically speaking it started with a small band of Jewish people that were conquered by Rome and brought to the city in various capacities but mostly as slaves and servants.
   The Judaic beliefs in those times held a very strong view on the power of true names (look up there golem story for more context on this). So this slave religion surrounded by the Roman gods was looked down on by the wealthy and popular people, and was constantly subjected to scrutiny.

   Its my belief that before the evolution from slave religion to the Christianity of the poor and common man and then to the catholic faith that even a emperor believed in, that the people of the ancient proto religion decide to hide the name of their god so that the oppressor religions could not have power over him or define him …or her like everyone else did with their gods.

In fact the name Jehovah simply means god and is a title not a name. Other attempts to obfuscate the Christ god can be seen if you look closely enough.

Making it sinful to have images and likenesses, Like in the ten commandments. The muslin concept that images of the prophet are blasphemy. The Amish belief that photo steal your soul, are all evolutions of this concept that to protect their god they must hide away his name and face.
And evidence in a culture of secrecy.
When it started this was a safety measure and a way to keep it personal and free of judgment and comparison, but in modern days this strange evolution has made it stand apart how can you judge what you can not know? You can’t but from protection measure it grew in to its own phenomenon to become the most common religion in the world.

After all once you know that Zeus was a womanizing man with a white bearded that had a soft spot for worthy mortal Heroes what else is there to know? How can that compete with the unknown? The mystery and allure of the hidden face of god.

So what can be drawn from this? Well to me Its just another thing that makes dogma and ritual less appealing. Something sparked the first Israelite to look up and pray something lifted his heart and gave him enough joy and peace. To the point that he felt the need to share it with others and to me that’s all the more P.R a god needs.

When anything is watered down from its source it is subject to context when that happens people define it judged it and misunderstand it. But we can not go back in rime and as the first follower or a god what they felt and be satisfied. Nor could they ever fully explain a first hand experience in a way that you would know it as if it happened to you. The only way to know is to feel it for your self. Luckily for man there are man endless reasons to turn your face to the sky and open your self to connect to something loving and compassionate in the universe.

So I encourage you to experience not interpret. The wind rain mountains and snow hold the beauty of heaven and the nature of the gods far better then anything crafted and packaged by the hand of man book or other wise.

Alpha wolf ????

A little while ago I did talked a bit about how there are so many Cleopatra reincarnates, and just they other day I was talking with someone else about animal totems. It got me to thinking woman and past lives are not the only ego tripping people I have run in to when it comes to the craft.

Depending on the lore there is a host of animal spirits that a person can have this is most prevalent in Native American cultures, but is not exclusive to them. They can be guides, tricksters, or down right demonic depending on the mythology associated, and the view point of the person having the interaction with them.  

The phenomenon that I have ran in to is the amount of male wolf and lion spirits that are supposedly someone’s totem. You see a personal spirit totem is supposed to be a guide animal that represents personality traits that the human possesses.

However not only is there an epidemic of self ego inflating, but the tends to be a general misunderstanding of the spirits nature and traits by these people.

The picture so horror story incarnation of the lone predator wandering the night and untouchable by all he sees. I call this habit Apex envy.

Apex predators are animals that are at the top of their particular food chain in a given ecosystem. These are the targets of much admiration so it naturally follows that being associated with one comes of like a complement. But if you four hundred pounds of couch potato that is afraid of conflict Please for the love of the goddess quit telling people you’re a tiger.

See the harm in this behavior is the reaction I just showed. As Wicca is by and large a self governing religion were we check ourselves we gain the responsibility to set an example to others seeking guidance. When you participate in this pointless self deluding you are cheapening the experience for other people that might be looking up to you or trying to gain insight by relating to your experience.

Part of growing your own spirit is being honest with yourself, and getting to really know yourself and your own nature. Also to degrade the other animal spirits as unworthy because they are not powerful in the physical world is a great disservice to them.
Learning the good points of the animal kingdom might require a little excursion into animal behavior and psychology but if you are serious about wanting to befriend and be worthy of an animal totem then it is well worth it.

Find the value in rabbit and stag fox and crow and find it in yourself. there is nothing wrong or second class about any of the spirits. Or with who you are and your personality traits for that matter only with what you think they say about you.          

Hey Baby whats your Element?

Here are the signs divided by element:

Fire.....Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius

Earth.....Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn

Air.....Gemini, Libra, Aquarius

Water....Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces

  

Lately I have noticed when trying to help people understand things I have been finding myself asking what element they are when trying to offer insight. So I thought I would take the time to label some things out for people. As it is not as commonly know what your element is and what they mean in relation to your personality and ability’s.

Now I want to preface this by saying this is a frame work for peoples personality’s, the direction they are naturally and most easily apt to follow. It is however not set in stone that you must be what you are inclined to be.  Just because a child grows up in an impoverished inner city does not mean the will join a gang; it is however very likely it is the same with signs and elements. Weather you break the mold is entirely up to you.

Another point that needs made, is while you are only one dominate Zodiac sign, all elements exists in all people. The only factor is that one tends to be dominate based in tandem with your zodiac.

I want to mention these are my personal experiences with elemental personalities. I tend not to write about things I don’t have firsthand knowledge of, but it is important to note that some people have different experiences, and can be very defensive of the way they see things. So if in reading this you feel these things don’t hold true for the way you see things …. Then shut up this is my blog lol.

There are also different stages of elemental personalities. Like different levels of fuel in a gas tank.

Balanced: in which the best attributes are displayed

Excess imbalanced: The traits are exaggerated because of an excess of this element.

Deficient Imbalanced: traits are practically non existent  

Earth:  Earth signs tend to be slow to react to new stimuli, unless they have a precedent for what they are encountering. They can be quiet, very heartfelt, the strong silent type. Once their mind is made up on the subject that’s the end of the story for them unless something earth shattering occurs. On the positive side if you leave a good impression with an earth sign it stays even if you go out of contact with them for a long time.

They are stable or at least likely to be, so they have a good head for monetary security. When it comes to money they are the slow steady build kind and the least likely element to take chances or risks.

Then tend to base their opinions off their upbringing more than other elements, which might use their eyes or their heart. Instead the earth people will ask you about your life to make up their minds.

When an earth sign is happy and positive fertility flows off then like waves enriching people’s lives around them. Their homes almost always have a test of time feeling to them and a lot of semimetal trappings.

Nothing seems to hurt worse than when you have a close relationship and you hurt a earth signs feelings. When the earth turns barren to you the silence is deafening and seems permanent. However they tend to set conditions in their mind of what it will take to be on good terms with them and if you pester them enough they just might tell you.   

Magically they tend to be naturally skilled in protection magic and material gain spells, their psychic gifts lean towards gut intuition. And a lot of it is reflexive and sometimes they won’t even know where it’s coming from. Naturally plant herb and stone magic comes easier to them.

Air: Air children are fun they show up unannounced sweep you off to do something random and unplanned and take off again. They tend to exist in their own heads most of the time. They have a vision of what their life and friendships are and these can sometimes be different than reality. Of the signs they can be the least in touch with their emotions. They are more likely than any other sign to live by a code and don’t work well with concepts that don’t match their vision. They can sometimes be hard to relate to because it’s hard to decipher their motivations even for themselves.

They tend to be the first element to try new things often just for the experience. They like to travel and can have a been there done that attitude.  The fastest way to lose an Air friend is to be boring. If nothing is new with you and they can’t pull you off to do something with them they will drop you to move on to something else this isn’t lack of love but a thirst for stimulation. They will be back as soon as they think up something new that includes you.

Magically they are adapting at travel and thought related magic’s. The psychic intuitions tend to come in the form of dreams and visions. Freedom spells creativity and truth casting is all the preview of a song Air sign. Astral travel is also easy for them to pick up on. Spells using smoke feathers, fans and breath tend to be their most powerful.

Fire: The fire people are wild and you either love or hate them. They tend to have lots of physical energy and an inability to set still when agitated. They don’t mind taking chances like an air sign but they require a motivation. They are passionate and fall in and out of love quickly. They tend to react badly to confrontation and when angry with someone the bad emotions can escalate and escalate until its all-out war. It’s best to approach them calmly when possible. When they fix their romantic eye on another the same is true the passion grows and grows and either their partner matches their intensity or they get burned. In contrast the slow burning Fire child is wonderful to be around they create an atmosphere of possibilities and can have a muse like effect on those around them.

Magically they are influenced by the sun Healing magic can be very powerful from a Fire, their physical related magic is a talent second to none, as is causing passion. When confronted magically they can burn through more spells through at them faster than any other sign and bring something to ruin Is easy for a properly motivate Fire child. Candles volcanic stones bon fires and sun are the best power boosts for a fire.

Water: Moon children are emotional this can be either deep or surface but they always have a feeling one way or the other. These emotions can be mixed but they are ever constant. They make choices from their hearts more than any other element. They are reflective at times mirroring what is around them making them the most adaptive. To spite this they do not react well to change. The river most flow to the sea if its path is diverted it causes a massive effect on all the things around it. Water signs are compassionate and will fight for their loved ones even when asked not to. If you have a mother that constantly says “but I only did it for you” she is likely water imbalanced. Losing relationships is harder to move on from for water because they will continue to feel long after it is healthy to do so. The phases of the moon can sometimes effect a waters emotions and if left by themselves with nothing to adapt to they can do some outlandish and out of character things.

To repair a friendship with a water sign try a heart to heart but you had best be genuine they can smell fake faster than the other elements. When a Water is angry at you they will not attack your money, your property, or your health like the others they go right for the heart. They will ruin your self-esteem your image and your closest relationships. And gods help you if you told them something embarrassing because everyone will find out about your underwear fetish. They are also the most likely to hit blow the belt when upset going for your weak spots like dead relatives and your battle with weight.

On the positive side no one nurtures better than a water sign, It is the element which brings life and their love can transform you in to a better you.

Magically illusion magic, scrying emotional healing and transformation are the skills of a strong water. Psychic’s among them tend to be empathic either pick up on or projecting emotions. Weather spells and love spells are easily in their wheel house. Water, oils, potions, and brews are the best spell boosters as is free running water and mirrors        

         

What did you just call me, Hag?

    Witch, Wizard, Warlock, Druid, Hagan, Benandanti, Mage, Wiccan, Pagan, Shaman, these are all names for people associated with the use of magic, some times in a religious context sometimes not. Yet you would be surprised how important these can be to the people that hold them. How fiercely they will argue over the definition.

A popular favorite is the title of Warlock, commonly used today to refer to male witches in an effort to separate them from the feminized title of Witch. The word definition is a bit different. Where some hope to redefine it as male witch historically it is used to refer to a person that broke an oath literally meaning Oath breaker. In the magical world this occurs when someone inducted into a coven turns on his or her fellow witches and commits an act of betrayal.

They are then ritually divorced from the coven the nature of how this is done changes from group to group but generally taking the form of any letting go of negativity or banishment spell.

So it is understandable that some people chafe at hearing someone introduce themselves as a betrayer.

Benandanti is modernly known as a Italian Wiccan path and is less popular then the more common Striga or Stregheria is a system of Witchcraft with Italian roots, and the term itself is of archaic Italian origin. It’s most frequent contemporary usage indicates a form of ethnic Italian Italian Witchcraft originating in the United States, popularized by Raven Grimassi since the 1980s. Stregheria is sometimes referred to as La Vecchia Religione ("the Old Religion")The word stregheria is an obsolete Italian word for "witchcraft", the ordinary Italian word being stregoneria. 

While Benandanti is not so much a path as a birth right In Italy when a man or woman was born with a birth veil or cowl, then were assumed to be dream walkers that could never drown and when fostered out to be taught magic by other Benandanti. The cowl its self was often sold as a protection amulet to sailors. Now as this birth phenomenon only occurs in one out of every hundred thousand births it is a bit understandable why this branch of the craft died out. Fresh recruits were hard to come by in a localized area and with the proliferation of the church you could no longer proudly proclaim the difference of your child’s birth. Instead having to hide it, or in the case of some Christian converts kill the devil child.

Now modern witches are a self-educated lot   as there are very few Wiccan Temples to go to for guidance. By and large they find books that speak to them normally through referral by others sometimes through the hard won effort of finding it themselves. So we do tend to not consider the fact that someone could be educated differently then others have their own definition of a title, or simple have inherited a family definition if they were taught by an elders verbal instruction.

So it is important to remember we are all one. The spark of magic unites us across the Babble line, and it doesn’t matter what it’s called.    

Would the real Cleopatra please stand up!

     Picture it Egypt 44B.C you are a young and beautiful queen named Cleopatra you’re your poised to rule the world and will be the last pharaoh in all of history.

Ah the good old day’s back when Anthony loved me and all was right in the world…Wait you mean you don’t believe that I could have been her in my past life?...oh damn you must have a brain.

      Now I will likely get some angry feedback for this, but I can take the heat.

Reincarnation is a popular after life view in the Wiccan world. Basically a person’s soul leaves there body upon death, passing in to the Summer Lands for a short while and when the time is right you are born again in to a different life and a different form. This new life and new form is thought to be a reflection of the lives you lived before. The better a person you were the better the life you are born into respectively.

Remembering these former selves is called having a past life experience. These are said to happen when a lesson from your past life is being repeated in your current one. When this happens your soul reminds you with a flash back to you form self.

Some meditations, normally guided are said to be able to invoke visions of your former self and many people make a nice living specializing in just that.

Here is the little fly in the ointment. I have met no less than 13 Cleopatra’s personally. Now you have to ask yourself after Cleo number three is this possible in short no its not.  

     Here are some reasons why. First there is only one soul to go around she can’t exists in the likely thousands of people that claim her worldwide simultaneously. Secondly if you believe in reincarnation then you are likely a believer in magic if you believe in magic then it follows you believe in the abilities of the Egyptian priests that preformed the funeral rites on Cleopatra at the time of her death preserving her body so that she could be reincarnated back in to her own mortal coil at a later point.

Thirdly Cleopatra herself claimed to be an incarnation of Isis.

So please lady’s …and some gentlemen stop saying you’re her, it’s nonsense and it damages people’s views on the whole reincarnation concept. While it would be cool to be a historical figure in a past life set your ego to the side and validate a genuine experience over something flashy, and claiming to be her doesn't so much impress people as it makes them realize what low self-esteem you have
 

Your witch foo stands no chance against my witch foo

In the Wiccan faith pride is not a sin, and in point of fact to spite the Reeds warning of harm none there is no retribution (Out side of Karma) when this tenet is violated.

It even seems to be a common phenomenon in beginning casters to come to an elder and say “I keep cursing people by reflex, I just get so mad that they energy is sent before I can even think about it.”

No tribunals are called no prison sentences issued. In most cases the curse flinger is simply told they lack energy control and must work to master them selves, and learn control.

In Judaic religions they practice a act called a Mitzvah. Doing a kindness and taking no credit. This made me wonder about the balance between pride and humility.

Have you ever meet as a Wiccan that just goes on and on about the powerful spells they cast. Bragging endlessly about how they are so skilled? Blah, blah, blah. In a religion with very few rules and regulations it think this is an outlet for the people that don’t have any support in their faith. Afraid to admit that they could use some help they overcompensate by bragging.

Do we need outside validation to feel good about our craft?

To me while praise is all ways nice, Its not necessary as wicca focuses a lot on learning your self and facing your self I think that this phase of learning is the threshold of a rookie and an adept. Faith in any form should always be practiced for your self. This gets a bit more complicated when the gifts of Wicca encourage you to act on behalf of others as well.

It can be difficult to balance between over compensating rookie and a fairy god mother complex. So it is important to regulate your self. Even in a coven paths are separate and personal and what might be right for you could be wrong for everyone else. If you seek validation try finding a teacher with a similar mind set and save the show and tell for when someone asks.

Stag looks like a Maiden

Sun and Moon, Male and Female, God and Goddess.

Since time unmemorable the creators have been given shape by the mind of humans in an attempt to better relate to the unknowable.

In most cases a new Pagan practitioner is first introduced to the goddess. This is a produce of the time and circumstance. To the modern Neo-Pagan she tends to be more relatable as she is given to be associated with matters of love and support and recovery. These things are more in line with a city dwelling Wiccan.

Her counter part The god is in the theological context equally important, but seems to have less practical applications in spells and rituals directly related to modern living. Few suburban witches feel the need to invoke a hunter Avatar or praise their kills in a proper fashion.

Still in larger and more traditional covens their double roles are filled by both a High Priest and High Priestess. If not in the day to day at the very least during High Holidays and rituals. And there representatives are accordingly Male for god and female for goddess.

But the question If the energies of the Lord and lady are separate distinct and different as say water and fire energies. Does the gender of the earthly avatar matter to anyone besides the assembled spell casters?

Certainly we know that any person male or female might have a natural bent toward one of the four basic magical elements Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Sometimes these are a byproduct of astrological signs or merely the personality traits that grate special insight in to the nature of the elemental essence.

If energy is neutral and god and goddess energy is present in both genders, Then does it naturally follow that some people would be more talented in god or goddess energy regardless of the own earthly sex?

If a man can be the best conduit of goddess energy why them is he restricted from filling the role of the goddess in rituals. It would seem a simple task for a group of people that on a regular bases picture things in their minds that are transformative and to the lay person crazy. That they could differentiate enough to let the best person fit the role.

As many a god/goddess (especially in the Hindu religion) change gender it would seem the our creators should be capable of the same.

Our we stereotyping our gods and limiting our experiences because of biases?

Pagan Pride and prejudice, Do we hold our selves back?

 

In darkness you paint us, but we will not hide. We're the light of the country in which you abide, we're fearless and strong, the protectors of life hidden in the shadows,we conquer all strife.

We come from the Old Ones, our lineage secure. We rise from the ashes, we always endure. It's time you remember that we were here first. We healed your sick, yet suffered your worst.

From time immemorial we've woven our lore cunning folk, healers, benandanti-there's more. We're black and we're white, we're brown and yellow. We're women and children, and mighty fine fellows.
  We're Her hidden children, the angels of light, our task is to teach and to help set things right. We conjure and cast, and whisper and pray so you can enjoy your freedom each day.

 We've long been your army, protecting your back when you are in trouble, in the secret we act. The Mother is watching- She hasn't missed much. She's gathered Her magick and given the touch to Witches and Pagans and Druids and such.

The times are a'changing and one thing is clear the Lord and the Lady have now reappeared. Two pillars, three points, four quarters extend five is the number of magickal blend. By moon and by sun, by earth and by stars realize this day that the power is ours!

Found this poem in a book by  Silver Raven Wolf The ultimate Book of Shadows for the new generation Solitary Witch.

One of the common things about the Wiccan way is the belief in secrecy. It is part of the five principals in some variations “To be silent”. Other paths require vowels of silence and degrees of initiation, before you are privy to the deep mysteries.

In the old days being too loud and proud came with its very own lynch mob. It was a matter of survival. Things have changed slowly since Gerald Gardner throw off the veil and helped fuel the modern Wiccan movement back in the 1950s.

 On 2001-MAR-15, the United States awarded tax exempt status to different forms of Wicca, and recently in the news in Memphis’s channel 3 reported on the opening of a Wiccan church.

Still negative misconceptions prevail, Questions like “Do you worship Satan?” or statements like “You’re going to hell.” Are generally enough to force most believers to hold there tongues on the subject. Besides isn’t half the fun the secret?

Well if you ask me no.

While having a secret may seem like fun, the fact of the matter is when things are kept private rumors abound and falsehoods are born.

 The stone wall riots fueled the gay rights movement and now the united state sits bordered by two countries that recognize same sex marriage, and could be on the verge its self with the first president ever publicly endorsing it.  

All thought many lobbyist and rights groups rallied for the cause the grass root effort that made it possibly is what is important here. To get the majority to support a minority view you have to demystify it. Allow them to see it as normal and just another facet of life. To this end Harvey Milk asked homosexuals to come out.

It is never fun to be the one standing in the face of opposition; to look hate in the eye and proclaim your wrong and I don’t care that you out number me.

But a popular quote about Wicca comes to mind “She changes everything she touches. And everything she touches changes” As wiccans we are called to do many things. Heal, guide, and teach. To change things for the better because we have the gift, that gift comes with a price.

So I will leave this article off with another quote this one by the aforementioned Harvey Milk.

“Brothers and sisters,... You must come out. Come out... to your parents... I know that it is hard and will hurt them but think about how they will hurt you in the voting booth! Come out to your relatives... come out to your friends... if indeed they are your friends. Come out to your neighbors... to your fellow workers... to the people who work where you eat and shop... come out only to the people you know, and who know you. Not to anyone else. But once and for all, break down the myths, destroy the lies and distortions. For your sake. For their sake. For the sake of the youngsters who are becoming scared.”

Are you a Witch or are you just Mental?

  Focusing crystals, crystal balls, scrying mirrors bowls and pendants. Divination is a large part of the modern Wiccan craft, and for the most part it seems that the naturally sensitive, the mediums the automatic writers, psychometric and precognitive are highly attracted to the occult.

  This poses the question is spell casting “the act of affecting the world with focus energy rituals” and Psychic phenomenon “receiving information by the power of ones mind” tied together or separate but similar. Are you a Witch or are you just mental? Can you have one without the other? Can you have both? Can one lend its self to the other improving your future seeing abilities through spiritual exorcise?

  In gypsy culture it is believe that every woman has the gift of sight and is a born healer. In the Native American view those bless with insight were cast in to the roles of medicine men. The common belief in “Two Spirits” a person possessing two soul both male and female was used to explain gender transcendence and homosexuality in the Native tribes. Believing these people were blessed with the ability to see the world from two perspectives they were considered holy and the most venerated of medicine persons. This belief was so pervasive that sexual relations with a two spirit were culturally considered a blessing that would protect you in a coming battle.

One tribe even sent there Two Spirit as a representative to the White House.

Now this was a combination of nature and nurture where a path was set out for someone reflecting a perceived gift. But in modern Wicca this line has blurred to the point of vanishing. Unlike other religions the craft has very few set Dogma and few rules.

Would structure benefit those seeking enlighten or is the cost of independent spiritual responsibility to important to install that level of change?

This is one of the few subjects that I have no clear opinion on. All I can say is that many witches are Psychic and many Psychics’s become witches. The cross over is unclear as are the benefits.

This is also one of the few articles I would ask for and appreciate some feed back comments on.            

Mirco country Mass effect!!!

The text book definition of politics is the art of applying the application of power. And it is an unfortunate by product that religions produce power. It does this many different ways the most obvious is that it holds in tandem the path to your personal salvation.

    Many requirements many also be asked in return for enlightenment and spiritual comfort. Donations of money, act to show fidelity to the religion, and of course promotion of its tenets above all others in hopes of attracting converts. So it is intrinsic to their very natures that even the most benevolent religious organizations possess power.

  This Power can vary in scale for simple social power over followers to monetary and community influences.

This creates a control factor in which your behavior can be modified, rewarded or punished for good and bad actions in the eyes of your church.

Often times a parishioner fears more the displeasure of his Pastor, Father, High Priestess more so then he would the wrath of his deity.     

And the sad fact is it creates a classicist situation one where your spiritual guide becomes your boss instead of your help.

This is an authority we give our spiritual leaders.

A lot has been said about the separation of church and state. The Desire to keep faith and politics separate however is it possible to keep an innately powerful politic force separate?

  Once any organization has a substantial enough following they begin to effect change. This is true with any organization from the P.T.A to bicker gangs.

The Roman Catholic Church is in my opinion the most glaring example of these principals in action.

 When the pope decrees the Churches view on a subject he is not just a man in a white dress but the earthly voice of the will of the god of that faith and masses upon masses of followers fall in line with what he say for many reasons of their own. Be it trust, fear, or upbringing.

But let us examine for a second some of the actions of the popes.

More recently in our history John Paul II was celebrated as an inclusive pope making attempts to reach out to the worlds Gay and lesbian population. As a result the church had a trickle down effect in which we saw the rise of openly gay Fathers and bishops and some churches with a non judgmental view of its homosexual believers. This increase followed directly after some of the statements made on the subject by John Paul.

However after his death newly elected Pope Benedict countered John Paul’s movements in this direction by publicly condemning Homosexuality.

It would appear as though the earthly voice of god was contradicting its self. (and we all know there are no contradictions in the Catholic faith *Chough chough*)

And this is just one of the far reaching actions in the history of the institution. Lets not forget Pope innocents children’s crusade in which where shipped off weapons in hand to fight for the holy lands against the Muslims.

None of these poor souls ever made it to the front lines, they made one port where caroled by pirates and smugglers and were then sold into slavery.

Other examples are the inquisition where over the history of it more then 9 million women were put to death on witchcraft charges, and the silence and compliance with the genocidal acts of Hitler during the holocaust.

Now I know this might seem like an attack on the Catholic Church but the truth of the matter is no other religious institution has reached the high of power and prevalence as that of the Vatican micro country. With over 80% of the world population being some variety of Catholic the fact that its leader are so human so foul able and so contradictory is not just troubling its down right terrifying.

Imagine for a moment that the holy roman church was in alignment with the beliefs of the radical Muslim Jihadist. No I know it’s a fearful thought but after all they follow the same god as one another separated by slim margins on who delivered the message.

Know knowing that the last pope’s inclusive statements were dismissed and countermanded by his predecessor. You can se how just about any view point can but held by their leader and then given over to the masses. And if the church did hold the beliefs that infidels must die (Like it did in the inquisition and crusades) then it to could Declare the United States an enemy and we would be facing a global power.

For these reasons it is important to depower your Spiritual leaders see them for who they are. Human flawed and no better then anyone else, they have only the power their followers afford them. And regardless any person that hands off their salvation and places it squarely in the hands of another mortal man no matter the color of his clothing or the collar on his shirt is reckless and irresponsible.

While it is very easy to put your salvation on someone else’s door step in the end it is always you that has to face the out come of you actions. We owe it to ourselves to be responsible for our spirits, to do the hard work and to ask the hard questions not of another man, woman or book, but to ourselves.

You can be supported in your faith without being lead. You can be guided without being controlled, if you simply have the courage to face your god by yourself and be responsible for you own spirit.

After all its you soul.

               

Are we Leagion?

  A sweet innocent looking girl vomits split pea soup in a fire hose like manner, attempting to quiet the angry Latin words of a Catholic priest holding tight to his crucifix and tighter to his faith. As both are under attack for this vile abomination dragged up from the pits of hell and given life in the flash of the foolish mortal that strayed far enough from god’s path to fall prey to the temptations of the adversary.

Like many people this scene from the popular movie is one that stays with you. Regardless of your views on faith and the church, in 1973 when The Exorcist premiered in theaters it had a profound effect on the general masses inspiring a generation to “satanic panic” as it was later coined.

With its new found popularity in the media the fallen host’s of heaven were given a fame they likely wouldn’t have any other way.

The questions about them barely scratch the surface of people’s fascinations with them. But the church has a few nice neat answers in response to the out poring of public interest and fear.

Q: What is a demon?

CA: A demons are fallen angels that join with Lucifer in defiance of god, and for this crime were cast in to hell where they serve the lord of lies in tempting mortal men away from the path of Jesus.

Q: Can a demon inhabit your body and take you over? 

CA: Possessions While rare according to the church, can and does still happen. What qualifies you as genuinely possessed changes from one denomination to another. Great acts of evil and exploration of the Occult, or pagan religions are reputed to be the gate way most commonly used by demons to enter a good person.

Malevolent spirits are not a Christian only concept. The Middle East has had tales of the Iferet, there is also the yin and yang spirits of Shinto, the Babylonian Daemon or strange spirit, Celtic Unseelie fey and many many others.

In most religions there is a flip side to the glorious and all loving benefactor. This is true in almost every religion that has a divine structure, or ordered and ranked to their heaven.

In general when more the one religion agrees or has the same intrinsic view of a subject I tend to believe that there is a thread of truth that though the details vary on in the middle of lay some truth. But on this one I am not so sure and here is why.

The concept that evil has a face is a self comforting notion. The quintessential “devil made me do it” response in which a person places responsibility for their darker impulses on some unseen force outside of their control, is a covenant way to absolve yourself of a bad behavior that you might other wise have no way of processing.

Because it so easy to point the finger at what ever vile boogie man you like, we over look another concept shared by many faiths. The duality of man. good and evil existing in one person in equal parts. We of course would like to believe that we are all good or at least marginally better then are darker self. But to give over to the concept that nothing bad done is truly are fault because some silent menace is really to blame: To is both spiritually stunting and a copout.

Own your darkness and shame the devil.    

It was the best of times. It was the end of times

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  As we pass the eight month in the year 2012, I feel the need to talk about the many way humanity is worried about being obliterated from the face of our planet. From evangelical radio host to the Mayan and Egyptian calendars to the revelations of John in the New Testament, 2012 and twelve is a worry some year for any one fearing divine retribution.

When ever the is a congruence of events on more then one religious fronts it causes people to worry, even more so when those are doomsday prophecy’s for millennia ago.

  So as the year draws to a close what are the chances the humanity is at its end and some wrathful creator is going to call a game over on those made in his own image or some uncaring universe is going to unleash a natural disaster as of yet unseen by man?   

The answer is at least from my view point is: actually very slim.

To spite the general masses spouting apocalypse now ever few years there really isn’t an historical evidence to say that this year is any more prolific or destine for cosmic event then any other.

The Egyptian calendar has no death of humanity warning it simply ends and a lot of scholars say the reason for this is simply that they ran out of space while labeling out astrological event on sand stone tombs.

The Mayan’s? surely their calendar was more of a warning. Actually again no. there are a few things to consider with the Mayans. The first is that like the Egyptians they were attempting to predict the extended future through astrologic prediction. They appear to claim that the nature of the world will change in the year 2012 in the twelfth month but not that it will end. And again I would seriously hesitate to accept the predictions of a culture that didn’t even foresee their own end as the entire culture vanished from the face of the planet and though they left a nifty calendar to scare future generation the didn’t bother to leave a note saying where they went.

  And the last is Bible now I could go over the entire book section by section and at some future point I just might, but right now I will only point out a few things.

 Now I will refrain a little from my normal roast of the bible and all its content, but I will say this the revelations of john are a dream he had and though he was and apostle of Christ there is nothing else to lend credence to his dream of the end. It was not passed to him by the voice of god or told to him by angels out side of his dreaming head. Also you have to know that over the centuries the bible has been used to warn of the end of times an uncountable number of times and the radio host I mentioned at the beginning of this article has actually predicted then end four times and then claimed he was mistaken and had to go back to the drawing board.

So I will simply leave it with this excerpt from the bible

Matthew: 24:36 "However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.”

If not even the baby Jesus knows I would even try to compete.