Armchair Theonomy has a New Home

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All Paths are One in the End

Beltane Fire Festival

clipped from intotheduat.com On Beltane night, April 30, thousands of revellers trudge up Calton faerie Hill in the heart of Edinburgh. They wrap up warm and bring their friends. Some paint their faces or wear flowers or ivy bands in their hair. They leave behind the brightly lit city streets and cosy pubs to scale the hill’s steep slopes in all weathers. The end of April can be unforgiving in Scotland as wind, rain and sleet batter the unwary. As the sky darkens the hill fills with bodies - all waiting expectedly for the revealing of the May Queen that marks the beginning of the Beltane Fire Festival. A neidfire is lit. Fire torches burst into flame and a line of drummers and torchbearers form along the high stone steps of Calton Hill’s Acropolis. As the drums thunder to life the May Queen, Green Man, Blue Men and White Women appear in the midst of burning fire sculptures and horn blasts.

more:

‘No person neither man not woman [shall] resort or repair hereafter to the Dragon Hole, as they have done in times bye-gone, namely, in the month of May, nor shall pass thro’ the town with the piping and stirling of drums, as heretofore they have done, under the pain of twenty shillings to the poor... also that they shall make their public repentance upon ane Sabbath day in the presence of the people.’
- Kirk-session Register of Perth, May 2, 1580

Easter and the Egg

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As it is getting close to Easter/Eostra, I thought I'd share this little tidbit I found on the web about Red Eggs.

According to the ancient tradition of the East, Mary Magdalene was a wealthy woman from whom Christ expelled seven "demons." During the three years of Jesus' ministry she helped support him and his other disciples with her money. When almost everyone else fled, she stayed with him at the cross. On Easter morning she was the first to bear witness to his resurrection. She is called "Equal to the Apostles." The Eastern tradition tells us that after the Ascension she journeyed to Rome where she was admitted to the court of Tiberius Caesar because of her high social standing. After describing how poorly Pilate had administered justice at Jesus' trial, she told Caesar that Jesus had risen from the dead. To help explain his resurrection she picked up an egg from the dinner table. Caesar responded that a human being could no more rise from the dead than the egg in her hand turn red. The egg turned red immediately, which is why red eggs have been exchanged at Easter for centuries in the Byzantine East.

Mary traveled the Mediterranean preaching the resurrection. Like Peter and Paul, she died a martyr and she bears witness to the important role women once held in the Church.

This icon (on the front of the card) was commissioned for Grace Cathedral in San Francisco to commemorate the election of Barbara Harris, the first woman bishop in the Anglican communion. As women reclaim their ancient rights in the church, Mary Magdalene challenges all Christians to re-examine their cultural prejudices about gender and leadership.  -- From the back of my Society of Mary Magdalene membership welcome card

The Eastern Orthodox Church, which includes the Russians, is indeed fond of blood red eggs at Easter.  Gold letters are painted onto the red eggs.  They make red eggs every year, no pastels.  You have to start with a brown egg in order to get the rich dark red color.

--Found on the Esoteric Theological Seminary website.

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Fieldguide to Identifiying Neopagans in the Wild

22 descriptions in all. Numbers 14 & 15 I have personally experienced.

clipped from www.theblessedbee.com 1. Bright-Eyed Novice  You just read this cool book about a religion where there's a Goddess and a God, and they meet outside in nature, instead of some scary old building. They think sex is GOOD not evil, and you want to know where to sign up. DISTINGUISHING SIGNS: Mispronounces god/dess names, has to think a moment about which is deosil and which is widdershins.  Has a shiny new athame (rhymes with "A-frame".)  2. Grand Old Wo/Man  Actually remembers Woodstock (the first one.) Will tell you about the time they dropped acid with Kerry Wendell Thornley - or maybe it was Robert Anton Wilson. Anyway, it was somebody with three names. Or was it three people with one name?  DISTINGUISHING SIGNS: Luxuriant gray locks, listens very intently, knows dish about people you've only read about.

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The Root of Our Moral Path and Honoring the Divine

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An' It Harm None, Do What Thou Will.
-- The Wiccan Rede

Judge not, lest ye be judged.
-- Matthew 7:1

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
-- The Golden Rule

...and don't do what you hate...
-- The Gospel of Thomas

What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. This is the law: all the rest is commentary.
-- Talmud, Shabbat 31a

Whatever is disagreeable to yourself do not do unto others.
-- Shayast-na-Shayast 13:29

May I do to others as I would that they should do unto me.
-- Plato

What you would avoid suffering yourself, seek not to impose on ohters.
-- Epictetus

What all these quotes have in common is the basis of the moral code that we live by, no matter what our faith. By examing the teachings of most religions in the world, we see that The Divine has revealed this same truth to all peoples. Can we say that this is not so when the evidence is piled before us in the sacred texts and traditions of the world?

So, we keep this as the root of our moral values that we will respect all others in the same manner that we hope to be respected by others. By following this simmple guidleline in all we do, we will be at peace with the world and The Divine.

The Outline and Free Will

We are children of the Divine and as such, we are part of a Divine plan. This is only a basic outline that we can affect with our free will. For everythingwe do, we affect that outline and alter it's path through our own energy. With this, comes the belief of what we do will come back to us. Keeping this in mind, we should work at ensuring that our lives have a possitive afect on the overall tapestry of life.

Honor, respect, and commune with God, Goddess, and the One.

When we honor the Divine, through rituals, rites, ceremonies, prayers and spells, we should spill no blood, animal nor human. The Divine does not require this of us, for it would be a violation of the basis of our moral code. The time for blood sacrifice is long past and it is no onger needed to honor the Divine.

Following our beliefs, we will not harm oursleves or others, this is the heart of our moral existance and the best way of honoring the Divine who gave us life.

Looking for Contributers

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I seem to be running into a brick wall when it comes to coming up with ideas that are outside my area of knowledge when it comes to Christian Paganism. So, I am putting out a call to others who are interested in joining this blog as contributors.

My focus will be on Christian Wicca, as this is what I know the most about. I'll try to throw other Christian Neo-Pagan paths into the mix, but I don't want to misrepresent them.

Here is a list of what I am looking for in a contributor:
- Persons with a background in any branch of Christina Neo-Paganism.
- Persons willing to contribute at least one article a month to the blog.
- Persons that can view other types of Christian Neo-Paganism as equals and not put down practitioners of other forms.

If interested, please contact me via e-mail: baedon AT gmail DOT com. Those interested will receive an e-mail with a few follow up questions before being added to the staff of this blog.

I hope there will be a few of you out there that will be willing to rise to the challenge.

Thank you.

Some Basic Concepts

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Here are some basic principles to keep in mind when formulating your path. Remember, you don't need to encompass all these ideas, but this is a good outline of what most who walk the Christian Pagan path believe.

• The One is the creator of the Universe.


• Nature (which includes humans and therefore Jesus) is the manifestation of The One in physical form.


• The Holy Spirit is felt as feminine and the energy of this Spirit is possessed by all.


• The One is both male and female, yet genderless. Goddess and God are but reflections of The One.


• Good and evil exist, but these are our interpretations of given situations. The One exists in this Duality and keeps it in check.


• The One is above the world and in the world; can be found in nature, yet is above nature. We exist as part of The One and The One exists in us.


• Belief in unseen Spiritual beings that can aid and assist us. These beings appear as appropriate to those who call upon them.


• Each day is Holy. Certain days are set aside for higher regard and celebration such as: Sabbats, Holidays, Esabats, and other days set aside for worship.


• Ritual practices are as unique as the individual and can contain a mix and match from all walks of faith, so long as those who are participating are comfortable.


• Worshiping and praying are not the same thing. Worship is honoring The One through the Goddess and God. Prayer is requesting assistance in some matter.


• Daily private prayer, meditation, and devotions are encouraged. Sacred Rituals in private or small groups is also desirable. When possible, experiencing the Sabbats and Esabats with a small group or family is preferred.


• Prayer is magic without the props.


• Acknowledge that The One has loosely set the pattern for our lives and through our own free will, we can affect this pattern. Use the gift of free will wisely and learn to accept Karma's lessons.


• Belief that what ever you sow, you reap. If you send out positive energy, you will get it back. The same goes for negative energy.


• Sacrifices occur naturally as a result of making decisions that are essential for spiritual growth and learning. Giving up something that is physical or mental can help you become more aware of your own spirituality, but it won't bring you closer to The One. Only love can do that.


• Belief in life after death and that we may return to the mortal world through anther body. We do this to so that we can continue to learn lessons on earth. We can do this as many times as we choose. Then, when satisfied, we judge ourselves according to our understanding of The One, whom we are a part of. Heaven and Hell are of our own making.

These are but concepts and should not be taken as a creed. Most but not all I personally believe in. Remember, it is your walk with The One. No one can tell you what path to take.

(Most if not all these concepts were adapted from an article found on the MSN Christian Craft E-Group. As MSN is abandoning it's E-Group program, any infomation on who I can credit as a source of thise article will be greatly appreciated.)

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Answers to some Questions found on Yahoo!

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How does God choose which prayers to say yes to? And does god ever pray to someone?

I think the Divine, if it was within the limits of power, would say yes to everything. But, there are some things we really don't need even if we think it would help us. A pastor once told me, God has a few answers for prayer:

1. Yes
2. No
3. Maybe
4. Not now/When the time is right.

As far as the yes, I'll stick to, if it will help us, then the answer will be yes.

Does God ever pray to someone? Well, when you have two others to talk to, I don't think you need prayer. It's a group decision.

If God is omnipotent, all-compassionate and all loving, why does he allow wars and hatred?

Parents allow their children to have their spats over trivial things only intervening when things get too intense. Parents allow these incidents to occur to teach the children, among other things, that they will not always be around to pull them out of bad situations and the children have to learn to fend for themselves. And in this, parents are not being dispassionate, but nurturing. God allows the inhabitants of this world to have War and Hate so that they will learn from and outgrow these childish behaviors.

So far, we haven't done so, but we still have time.

Please tell me, is there such thing as a witch?

Witches do exist in to today's world, but not in the fantastical ways that are depicted in classical literature. Today's witch, more oft than not, is trying to seek a closer path to the Divine than can be found in organized religion by turning back to the primitive respect for nature found in neo-paganism.

What's the difference between worshiping and "being a fan of something"?

Worshiping something is when you let that object become the center of your universe and you can't function without daily thought of it. Whereas, being a friend reflects that you really enjoy something without letting it take over your world.

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What is Christian Paganism

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Simply put, Christian Paganism is a blending of two openly opposing faiths into one creed. Sounds rather straight forward, but therein lies the rub. No two walks of faith could be more different from each other.

In order to understand what these two spheres combined would be like, we need to understand what each half brings to the equation. Let us begin by looking at the basic tenants of Christianity.

1. Belief in on God, having three aspects, yet are one in thought and deed. This entity is sometimes called the Godhead and is comprised of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Bear in mind that not all Christians believe in this Trinity in the same way, but it is a basic in most walks of that faith.
2. Belief that God was made flesh in the personification of Jesus the Christ¹.
3. The belief that through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, the sentence of eternal death is overturned, and is replaced with eternal life.

These are the three major beliefs of Christianity, all the rest is built on top of these concepts. Now, let's see how Pagans differ on these same three points².

1. Belief in many deities, although some Paths sum the idea up as: Goddess, God, and the One (who is the sum of both the Female and the Male deities).
2. Belief that we all are parts of the One, incarnate upon this Earth, to tend and care for it.
3. Belief that, like the Moon, our lives follow a pattern of Birth, A Lifetime, and Death, then we repeat this cycle many times.

These are three of the basic principles that are a part of many Pagan beliefs system. As you can see, there is a tiny bit of similarity in the two. Now, taking the same three areas, let us look at how we can combine the two hemispheres into one cohesive sphere.

1. Belief in a Trinity composed of God manifesting through Jesus and the Heavenly Mother. By following the life of Jesus, as we can explore it in the Scriptures³, we can see how to live a life that is more like that of The One. And,when Jesus left this plane of existence, he asked our Heavenly Mother to comfort and guide us on our Path in this life.
2. Jesus is our example of what we can accomplish in this lifetime. We are all Divine creatures and through discipline in our words and actions, we can reflect that Divine light that is within all of us. And, again, by examining what Scripture has to say about his life, we can be more like our Heavenly Mother and Father.
3. Belief that we are not limited to just one life on the Earth. We have experienced many lifetimes and will continue to do so until we have learned all we need to know for what will become of us in the Next Life.

As you can see, both belief can be intermingled. In some areas it is easier than others. Christian Paganism is a very young movement and not all the concepts I think of hold for all those who claim to be on this Path. The thoughts presented here are merely a springing board. Please feel free to leave comments about you feel this Path is about. This blog has been planned to always be a two way street, your comments will help us understand more about the concept we are trying to bring forth in becoming Christian Pagans.

Notes

1. Jesus the Christ. I use this phrasing because most people forget that Christ is only a title, meaning the Anointed One, and not part of Jesus' name. If you want to get right down to it, Jesus would have been called "Joshua Son of Joseph", but we're not splitting hairs here.
2. There are in Paganism, as in Christianity, as many different forms of the practice as there are people who observe it. Not all share the same main points that I used in this illustration. Here I used what I am most familiar with, and that is Wicca, and even there, not all Wiccans agree with these statements. Isn't it nice to know that we are all unique in this world?
3. When I refer to Scripture, I am referring to all that springs forth from the Divine and has been recorded in words through the ages. This includes, but is not limited to, the Bible, Koran, and Torah. To me, all writings from all faiths are worth of consideration and to be called Scripture.

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Last modified: 12 Jan 2009, 13:47

Welcome

Welcome to what I hope will be an exciting experience for everyone who comes here. To begin with, this blog will be updated weekly. As interest gains, as I hope it will, it may be published more often then that.

In the first few posts, it is my hope to explain the basics of what is thought of as Christian Paganism. One thing needs to be kept in mind: the concept cannot be defined precisely, because that would create the impression of someting set, regid, and established. But this is not the case, as with every other faith, each who practices Christo-Paganism will have their own ideas of what should or should not be done.

On the lefthand side of the blog I have included some links to websites that share other people's experiences in the walking between the two worlds of Christianity and Neo-Paganism. Please feel free to e-mail me more links if you know of them.

With that, let's establish the next few posts....

1) What the heck is Christian Paganism?


2) Some Needed Concepts.


3) Frequently Asked Questions Answered!

Again, welcome. It is my hope that this blog will enlighten and help you in your understanding of what Christian Paganism has come to be. I encourage you to comment often on these posts; all comments will be read and responded to.

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Taking Flight with Italy's Holiday Witch

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clipped from www.spiegel.de In Babbo Natale, Italy has its own Father Christmas. But it's La Befana, the ugly, broom-flying and present-wielding witch who keeps children on their toes in many parts of the country. Like St. Nick, Befana knows who's been naughty and nice. Like many Christian traditions, Befana has pagan roots, as a good witch who played the role of Mother Nature and was celebrated in December for providing life throughout the year. The most common telling of the Befana story has the three wise men stopping to ask an old woman for directions on their way to Bethlehem. They invite her to join the party, but she refuses because she has too much sweeping to do. After realizing her mistake, she tries and fails to catch up with the wise men with a bag of treats. On the eve of their arrival she throws herself beneath a tree in despair. One of the branches turns into a magic broom, which she is to ride for eternity in her never-ending search for the baby Jesus.

And Santa's helpers thought they had it wrapped up.

Pondering heaven through Brooke

When we are pondering our lives in the here after and comparing them to what our friend invision what it must be like, we should keep in mind the following and forget our petty differences.

Rupert Brooke

Heaven

Fish (fly-replete, in depth of June,
Dawdling away their wat'ry noon)
Ponder deep wisdom, dark or clear,
Each secret fishy hope or fear.
Fish say, they have their Stream and Pond;
But is there anything Beyond?
This life cannot be All, they swear,
For how unpleasant, if it were!
One may not doubt that, somehow, Good
Shall come of Water and of Mud;
And, sure, the reverent eye must see
A Purpose in Liquidity.
We darkly know, by Faith we cry,
The future is not Wholly Dry.
Mud unto mud!--Death eddies near--
Not here the appointed End, not here!
But somewhere, beyond Space and Time,
Is wetter water, slimier slime!
And there (they trust) there swimmeth One
Who swam ere rivers were begun,
Immense, of fishy form and mind,
Squamous, omnipotent, and kind;
And under that Almighty Fin,
The littlest fish may enter in.
Oh! never fly conceals a hook,
Fish say, in the Eternal Brook,
But more than mundane weeds are there,
And mud, celestially fair;
Fat caterpillars drift around,
And Paradisal grubs are found;
Unfading moths, immortal flies,
And the worm that never dies.
And in that Heaven of all their wish,
There shall be no more land, say fish.

Logic and Faith

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Logic really has no place in faith. By faith, I am referring to belief in something without needing to have concrete evidence to back it up. Belief in God or a Supreme Divine being requires this type of faith.

When you start to look for logical proof for the existence of God, you wind up running headlong into a brick wall. Most of these walls are built by other people who don’t want their world rocked. Logic requires concrete evidence, but if someone doesn’t accept the body of evidence given, you are back to square one. Therefore, I see no reason to argue with someone of the existence of God in any logic based debate.

"When we try to reach the infinite and the Divine by means of mere abstract terms or images, are we not even better than children trying to place a ladder against the sky?"

--Aristotle

It is hard enough for us to grasp infinity, let alone define God, attempting to do so is even harder when we attempt to use logic. Logic has it’s place, but theology doesn’t lend itself well to the use.

Usually when someone wants you to provide logical evidence of God’s existence, you are dealing with someone who is out for an argument. No matter what you say, even if well thought out, the other party will have a rebutle in the wings waiting to crush what you say. Most those who are trying to get you into these discussions are out to show that your faith is groundless and for not. You will never change their mind, so why even bother. The best way for you to express your faith is to live it. Through your expression, you show the only logical proof that I am aware of for your beliefs.

Now to totally eclipse what I’ve said, I will give you one example of a logical argument for the existence of the Divine. The following enigma is what I have found that answers that question for me.

There is no God but what cannot be comprehended

There is noting that cannot be comprehended, but what is not conceivable

There is nothing not conceivable but what is immeasurable

There is nothing immeasurable but God

There is no God but what is not conceivable*

In this circular logic is the only answer that I have found that speaks volumes to me.

For more solid arguments, I will let others who have pondered longer and with more insight give their arguments to the world. Check out this link: http://www.apologeticsinfo.org/outlines/godandlogic.html. More links will be made available on my website when the final version of this article is publshed.

*The 21 Lessons of Merlyn by Douglas Monroe, pg 289.

Witchy Goddesses

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by Patricia Monaghan

What makes Witches different? Casting spells and wearing pentacles? No. It's deeper than that, more powerful, more revolutionary. It's the Goddess.

Witchcraft is one of the many religions that recognizes divinity in feminine as well as masculine form. Witches are not monotheistic; they do not believe there is only one god who lives somewhere upstairs. To Witches, divinity is multiple: God and Goddess. God in the sky, Goddess in the running water; God in the stag forest, Goddess in the birds of the air. Witches find divinity
everywhere. In creating rituals and art and spells and poems, Witches draw from the great reservoir of human wisdom called mythology. For untold generations, people have created stories that describe how they perceive the Goddess. There are innumerable goddesses, so many
they cannot be counted. Goddesses of the sky and sun, of the moon and stars; goddesses of the rivers and the ocean; goddesses of birth, death, love, war; goddesses of the doorstep and the harvest and the spinning wheel.

So naturally there are goddesses of magic, for magic is one of the most ancient spiritual tools of the human race. Here is a short primer of Witch-goddesses from various lands. You can use their names, their emblems, their stories in your own witchcraft. But don't stop here,
for there are many more goddesses who are shapeshifters, shamans, prophets, midwives, healers, herbalists-- -all specialists in arts that the Witch might practice.

Witchy Goddesses
Adsagsona: Continental Celtic goddess (from France or Germany), called "the weaver of spells." In Celtic lands, words were power; finding the right words was a magical act.

Arianrhod: Welsh goddess whose name means "silver wheel" and who lived on a magical island, either in the sky or in the ocean, where she was served by innumerable maidens.

Carman: Powerful Irish Witch who could destroy anything she chose by chanting secret spells.

Cerridwen: Welsh goddess who could brew magic in her cauldron and knew the secrets of all plants. She was also a shapshifter, able to cahnge her form at will.

Circe: One the most famous mythic Witches, the Greek Circe ("circle") lived on a magical floating island in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by wild animals---lions and wolves and bears---who did her bidding. With magical herbal mixtures, she was able to turn people into animals when they deserved it.

Dahut: This passionate magician-princess lived in Brittany, the weternmost part of France. She built the world's most beautiful city, the crystal-walled Ys, with help of the fairies of the sea---the Korrigans.

Hecate: Famous Greek goddess of Witches, she was worshipped at the dark of the Moon at places where three roads met, for it was said she was the only being in the world who could look three ways at once because she had three heads: serpent, horse, and dog. in her honor, "Hecate suppers" were held, when her followers would feast together and share their witchy knowledge. After dinner, they left the remnants of their food outdoors as ooferings to the hounds
that accompanied their goddess on her midnight journeys.

Heith: This Scandinavian Witch or shaman specialized in casting spells that were so subtle that no onw knewshe had spoken at all---although the thoughts she desired her targets to think appeared magically in their minds.

Hekt: This Egyptian frog-goddess ruled not only human magic but that of the earth as well, especially the magical transfromation of seeds into plants.

Louhi: A fierce, canny Finnish goddess, she was so powerful she was able to steal the Sun away from the sky and hide it in her house at North Farm. She owned the sampo, a magical tool that created abundance, which was stolen from her by a Finnish hero.

Marinette: Among the followers of Haitian Voudoun, Marinette is the spirit of sorcery, causing her followers to wave their arms like owls and screech. She haunts the woodlands at night in the form of an owl.

Medea: Great enchantress of Greek myth, meea was able to create dangerous potions that could either bring love, sleep, or death. She was able to fly through the air in a dragon-powered chariot. She had several human husbands, none of whom were faithful to her, so she eventuelly transformed herself into the goddess of snakes.

Meroe: She was a Witch of Greek legend who could bring the sky down to ceiling height, turn people into beavers, and teleport wherever she wished to go.

Morgan Le Fay: In the legends of Britain and Wales, this is the name of a great Witch who had the blood of fairies in her veins. She was a student, perhaps the lover, of the great magician Merlin.

Nimue: This is the Welsh name for the mysterious sorceress called, in legends of King Arthur and Camelot, the Lady of the Lake. That lake protected her magical world, Avalon, from human sight. There she lived in perpetual summer in a land where there was only beauty.

Pamphile: A legendary Greek Witch, Pamphile could change her shape into anything she desired, merely by anointing herself with an ointment she made from special secret herbs. To return to human form, she bathed in water in which bay leaf and anise were steeped.

Thorgerd: A Scandinavian woman, she was so powerful at sorcery that she became a goddess when she died. One of her skills was divination-- -using magical tools to see the future.

Viviane: This Welsh Witch was one of the lovers of the great magician Merlin, and was the only one of his students who became more powerful than he. She entrapped Merlin in a tree where he still sleeps today.

Yaoji: A Chinese goddess of sorcery, she reveals her closely guarded secrets to us in dreams.

There are other goddesses that Witches honor. Some look for goddesses that represent their ethnic heritage; others for goddesses that rule a certain area of life, such as love or money. There is no one right way to honor these goddesses, but rather many different rituals and cahnts that call them into our lives. Some claim, in fact, that goddesses are really parts of each woman,
and the rituals of witchcraft allow that part to manifest itself.

Whether the Goddess is within us or without, she is real, and waiting to come to the side of any Witch who calls her.

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The pitfalls of teaching the young.

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Teaching Wicca or Pagan Religions to Minors by Lark via Witchvox!

I encourage you to read this article about teaching minors, it could save you a lot of grief. Here are the opening paragraph and the closing remarks.

----With the growing popularity of Wicca and other Pagan spiritual paths in the USA there has been a growing number of minors who have been entering the community and who have been seeking help from adult teachers to further their studies. Many of us who have been on this path for years would love to help out these new Seekers and to make certain that the information that they receive is both accurate and safe. But there is a real problem that many of those who agree to teach minors may not be aware of and which can land them in a world of legal trouble.

---There is also the cry that goes up from those minors who are turned away because teachers cannot take the risk of possible legal action that might take their home or put them in jail. The immediate thought is that this is 'unfair'. Actually these legal decisions are very fair in that they apply equally no matter the religion involved.

The same law seen as unfair by young Pagans also prevents actions by non-Pagans to hijack the teaching of Pagan children against the wishes of the Pagan parents.

I think it is important to young Seekers to understand why reputable groups and individuals will not take them on as students. And I think it is essential that anyone contemplating teaching those under the age of majority become educated as to what the risks are that they are taking so they can make an informed decision on their course of action.

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I'm a Pagan, Dude!

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I've been reading a lot of articles around "Cyberspace" and in "Real-space" news that seem to focus on people that have claimed to have been some sort of Pagan. Most of the time, these articles depict the person as turning to this collective of alternative religions as an escape from the rigors of whatever faith they were born into. All too often, they sight the idea that it is rule-free path where they don't have to answer to anyone. The image building in the mind of the general public of these religions are therefore being skewed.

Pagan religions are far from being without rules. The most commonly known path, known as Wicca, has some very important rules that most practitioners adhere too.

These rules are simple, yet can mold everything around them. "These eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill,

An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will," these simple words speak volumes. "Harm None" means everyone, even yourself. The majority of the Wiccan Rede sums up the rest of the common beliefs.


The biggest issue surrounding this is most people who leave a faith have a tendency to make that faith into something that it is not. They attack it because they need to have closure or they need a scapegoat for all the bad things they have done in their lives. They have a habit of turning anything that doesn't agree with it into a creation of evil, condemning even those who share similar beliefs as themselves.

Understanding of the World's Religions is the only way to fight misrepresentation. Blaming what you believed in last year is not an excuse to blast a religion.

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• Religion, spirituality, and personal growth (paceandkyeli.com)

The Pagan Christ NT based on Egyption Mythology

clipped from www.cbc.ca THE PAGAN CHRIST There are 2.1 billion Christians on the planet – roughly one third of the entire human population. At the heart of their religion is the New Testament and the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. To Christianity, the written word is the glue that binds the faith of its followers. Based on Tom Harpur’s national bestseller, The Pagan Christ examines these very questions. During his research, Harpur discovered that the New Testament is wholly based on Egyptian mythology, that Jesus Christ never lived, and that – indeed – the text was always meant to be read allegorically. It was the founders of the Church who duped the world into taking a literal approach to the scriptures. And, according to Harpur, this was their fatal error – and the very reason Christianity is struggling today. So, what if it could be proven that Jesus never existed? What if there was evidence that every word of the New Testament is based on myth and metaphor?

Hrmmmmm....

A gem to suit your every mood?

The following is a brief listing of gemstones and some applications of such to apply to your mood. Agate: Apparently relieves tension and anxiety. Use a couple of small ones as worry beads; jiggling them around in the palm of your hand. Amethyst: Placing one under your pillow helps you to sleep. The remains believe the amethyst prevented drunkenness and used to drink out of goblets studded with these purple gems. Blood Stone: Said to be a very calming stone when held in the hand, it can also help to regularize the menstrual cycle if you suffer from erratic periods. Jade: The stone of friendship which, as is claimed, can help you overcome shyness. Drinking water which has jade in it has been said to strengthen your body. Quartz: If criticism gets you down and you tend to brood, keeping one of these crystals near you is believed to bring you renewed confidence and a fresh prospective. To ease a headache, lie down and place three of these crystals on your forehead on pointing up to the crown and two pointing towards it from the left and the right sides. Rose Quartz: Said to help depression. Hold a piece in your right hand and think about what is making you depressed, then hold the crystal against your forehead. Breathe into the crystal and imagine that you are expelling all those miserable thoughts. Tourmaline: One of the most versatile gems. It's a combination of green with pink inside, symbolizes the state of your consciousness and it can apparently reveal new levels of spiritual awareness. If you've been hurt by a love one, this stone's innate joyfulness is told to help heal the pain and suffering.

--Taken from an Article found on Essortment.

For more info on gemstones and their mystical properties, please check out Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Crystal, Gem & Metal Magic, an excellent book on the subject.

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Groaner Time

clipped from www.beliefnet.com A Well-Known Monk A wandering monk walked barefoot everywhere he went, to the point that the soles of his feet eventually became quite thick and leathery. And because he ate very little, he gradually became very frail. Several days often passed between opportunities to brush his teeth, so he usually had bad breath. Therefore, throughout the region, he came to be known as the super-calloused fragile mystic plagued with halitosis.

Need I say more?