Many of you know that we "believe in" *
1. a pantheon of deities, of which all are human constructs;
2. a syncretic monotheistic Prime-Mover-type deity that set this existence off and then retired.
The other day in reading Richard Dawkins' "God Delusion", we came upon this description of the Abrahamic god of what is often called the Old Testament. We repeat it here for your amusement and perhaps your enlightenment. Do read the book, for one thinking man's take on a conventional path.
Our hope is that you will find as much validity in Dawkins' description as we have found, as one recovering Anglican and one recovering Baptist. Here's what he says.
The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sado-masochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.
We urge you never, never to let a young person read a single page of the Bible without close adult supervision.
Blessed be! Gavin and Yvonne
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* Yvonne says, "Wait a minute! 'Believe in'? Sure, I acknowledge that lots of jujus-on-sticks exist; that lots of Jungian archetypes exist; that there are thought forms or (gasp) the idea of unseen specialists, if you will, in this or that aspect of human experience and longing. But believe in? Thanks, but I'm voting with my feet. Give me Guides and Elder Ones any day. Them I find credible, indeed essential, to my own spiritual path. Others need to find their own way.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Lonely at the Top
We've recently joined a small book-discussion group in Beckley WV. We thought of the members as very open-minded--that is, until we played for them a portion of the School's tape "Walk through the Bible", a talk by the late Reverend Ron Parshley. At that point we found some of them were not at all open-minded. In his inimitable fashion, Ron the trained Jesuit priest showed that the Bible consists mostly of plagiarized folk stories concerning a tribal war god, cobbled together into some kind of narrative. His piece on the exodus and on the ark are classics of their kind.
We had thought that most people were aware of these flaws in the purported holy book, even those people who in their inquisitorial role caused millions of individuals to be burned in the middle ages. We were wrong. If you would like to explore these topics and to understand why we think what we think, we suggest these four books.
J. Robertson Pagan Christs
C. Hitchens God Is Not Great
R. Dawkins The God Delusion
R. Friedman Who Wrote the Bible?
Why the "normals" (and even these thoughtful authors whom I list) persist in calling Jehovah "God" is really beyond us. He's the only game in town? Come on. Without even trying, we've got a list of gods as long as our arm. If someone tries to lean on you and tell you about their juju-on-a-stick, insist at least that they stipulate which god they're talking about; otherwise, you don't have time to waste.
Be true to yourself; keep your mind in gear. Blessed be. Gavin and Yvonne
We had thought that most people were aware of these flaws in the purported holy book, even those people who in their inquisitorial role caused millions of individuals to be burned in the middle ages. We were wrong. If you would like to explore these topics and to understand why we think what we think, we suggest these four books.
J. Robertson Pagan Christs
C. Hitchens God Is Not Great
R. Dawkins The God Delusion
R. Friedman Who Wrote the Bible?
Why the "normals" (and even these thoughtful authors whom I list) persist in calling Jehovah "God" is really beyond us. He's the only game in town? Come on. Without even trying, we've got a list of gods as long as our arm. If someone tries to lean on you and tell you about their juju-on-a-stick, insist at least that they stipulate which god they're talking about; otherwise, you don't have time to waste.
Be true to yourself; keep your mind in gear. Blessed be. Gavin and Yvonne
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Frost Schedule '09
Greetings, Pagans and assorted fellow Alternatives.
We have not really abandoned this blogspot; it's just that after our research trip to Europe things got a little out of hand. Our office secretary left, and the office is only now catching up.
Now we're in a paralyzing cold and (wouldn't you know?) we've both got flu or bronchitis or something that's making us flatline. Anyway, today's lunch included frozen snap peas from last summer's backyard garden and canned plums ditto. Some of the seeds we've ordered for summer '09 have begun to arrive. Everything will soon be back on track.
Please make sure to check the websites of these tentative dates below, and reserve the dates to cross-pollenize with like-minded people. If you have never done so, you will be wide-eyed at the spiritual boost it can give you. We're looking forward to seeing you at one or more of the festivals.
Here are our travel plans, current with what we know through 01 13 09 CE.
1. Florida Pagan Gathering (FPG), April 30, May 1/2/3, in Ocala National Forest FL. flapagan.org
2. Sirius Rising, Sherman NY, July 13-19. camp@brushwood.com
3. Starwood, Sherman NY, July 22-27. rosencomet.com
4. Kaleidoscope Gathering, Whispering Pines, Rockland/Plantagenet, Ontario, July 31 - Aug 4. www.kaleidoscope-gathering.com
5. Mabon, Little Rock AR, Sept 12. kremtvidge@gmail.com
6. Mountain Mysteries Mabon, Stannardsville VA, Sept 18 - 20. http.www.mountain-mysteries.com
7. Nature Spirituality Alliance Day, Pipestem WV, Sept 26. ning.com
8. Fayetteville PPD, Fayetteville AR, 10 17. www.arkansaspagans.com
9. Samhain Ball, Springfield MO, 10 24. wushih980@yahoo.com
See you there. Blessed be all. Gavin and Yvonne
We have not really abandoned this blogspot; it's just that after our research trip to Europe things got a little out of hand. Our office secretary left, and the office is only now catching up.
Now we're in a paralyzing cold and (wouldn't you know?) we've both got flu or bronchitis or something that's making us flatline. Anyway, today's lunch included frozen snap peas from last summer's backyard garden and canned plums ditto. Some of the seeds we've ordered for summer '09 have begun to arrive. Everything will soon be back on track.
Please make sure to check the websites of these tentative dates below, and reserve the dates to cross-pollenize with like-minded people. If you have never done so, you will be wide-eyed at the spiritual boost it can give you. We're looking forward to seeing you at one or more of the festivals.
Here are our travel plans, current with what we know through 01 13 09 CE.
1. Florida Pagan Gathering (FPG), April 30, May 1/2/3, in Ocala National Forest FL. flapagan.org
2. Sirius Rising, Sherman NY, July 13-19. camp@brushwood.com
3. Starwood, Sherman NY, July 22-27. rosencomet.com
4. Kaleidoscope Gathering, Whispering Pines, Rockland/Plantagenet, Ontario, July 31 - Aug 4. www.kaleidoscope-gathering.com
5. Mabon, Little Rock AR, Sept 12. kremtvidge@gmail.com
6. Mountain Mysteries Mabon, Stannardsville VA, Sept 18 - 20. http.www.mountain-mysteries.com
7. Nature Spirituality Alliance Day, Pipestem WV, Sept 26. ning.com
8. Fayetteville PPD, Fayetteville AR, 10 17. www.arkansaspagans.com
9. Samhain Ball, Springfield MO, 10 24. wushih980@yahoo.com
See you there. Blessed be all. Gavin and Yvonne
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
HTSG Festival
We're back home again (emphasis : again), this time after a trip to the Highlands of Tennessee gathering. We've learned to call it HTSG - Highlands of Tennessee Samhain Gathering.
What a wonderful time we had. Lady Amythyst is one of the most welcoming of any festival organizers; and for you troops who are in a financial squeeze, the price for the gathering--including food!--has to be the lowest in the western world.
We felt no negativity there at all. Everyone shared the intent to have a pleasant time, and maybe grow spiritually and experience some healing, in one of the most natural settings we've seen. Everything was very positive and forward-looking.
The site, Avalon Isle, offers camping space and some cabins (cabins for those who book early). It's well away from other habitations. So we'll see you there, won't we. Access is really easy from almost anywhere in the southeast, in the Knoxville/Asheville/Gatlinburg triangle. The campsite is open year round so you can get away from the mad rush by renting a cabin there in any season.
Avalon Isle's website avalonisle.org
What a wonderful time we had. Lady Amythyst is one of the most welcoming of any festival organizers; and for you troops who are in a financial squeeze, the price for the gathering--including food!--has to be the lowest in the western world.
We felt no negativity there at all. Everyone shared the intent to have a pleasant time, and maybe grow spiritually and experience some healing, in one of the most natural settings we've seen. Everything was very positive and forward-looking.
The site, Avalon Isle, offers camping space and some cabins (cabins for those who book early). It's well away from other habitations. So we'll see you there, won't we. Access is really easy from almost anywhere in the southeast, in the Knoxville/Asheville/Gatlinburg triangle. The campsite is open year round so you can get away from the mad rush by renting a cabin there in any season.
Avalon Isle's website avalonisle.org
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Home again, home again.
Greetings, Readership.
At last we're back, and we promise to deal with individual e-mails as quickly as we can. Yes, we're still reeling, spiritually and physically, from the tight-packed month of experiences we've just enjoyed.
We had a wonderful trip and hit Europe at the height of an indian summer. The Guides must have put in a special order in our behalf for beautiful weather. Sure, there was a day or two of overcast and rain in England; without them, Yvonne would have asked for her money back. Brittany (Bretagne) did us proud; visits to Mont St-Michel, the Bayeux Tapestry, the ancient tomb at Gavrinis, and Point du Raz were just some of the many highlights.
In the normal French way there are many suggestions, both thoughtful and tongue-in-cheek, about the significance of the alignments at Carnac. We'd like to add one more: they were installed by a syndicate of Kodak and the makers of digital cameras as a giant photo-op.
In England most of the party were very taken with Glastonbury with its amazing spiritual energy and with our B-and-B hostess Koko, a leading light of the Avalon group. Local lore grows
by the day. Imagine the traffic cop pulling you over and giving you (a) a ticket and (b) an aura reading. Anyhow, Koko's group have just bought the church hall and turned it into a shrine to the Lady.
In Cornwall, finally finding the circle where Gavin was initiated was a high point for him. The circle now labeled on all the maps as the Nine Maidens of Boskednan is in fact not the Nine Maidens of Boskednan. It was originally a circle of 21 stones, or maybe 23. On-site inspection led us to surmise that nine of the stones had been moved to form another adjacent nine-maidens circle with one large rock serving as the hunch-back fiddler outside the circle itself.
(You probably know the story, found at this site as well as at the Jungfraujoch in Germany. A circle of women is dancing on a holy night, probably Beltane. A hunch-back fiddler comes upon them by accident. "You play for our dancing, and we'll straighten your back." Everybody goes away happy at dawn.)
At one semi-secret circle Yvonne the apprentice dowser dowsed for whatever would manifest, and was able to pick up a known ley line bisecting the circle north-to-south. Huge gratitude to the family who owns the land, and who cherish and guard the site, admitting only respectful people who (somehow) find it by word of mouth or by other means. Y's thanks to Lauren, her mentor in the skill of dowsing.
We spent just a couple of days in London and were fortunate enough to hear the Master of the Temple, Robin Griffith-Jones, give his Monday talk in the Temple Church. His presentations happen only twice a week and we ... just happened ... to stumble across it on our way to another meeting. Imagine. What staggering erudition he enthusiastically, generously shared with us. He summarized the history of the Templars and pointed out that the little cobbled road down which we walked from Fleet Street to the church had lain undisturbed since the 1200s when the Templars actually constructed it. The Master had several rather cutting remarks about Dan Brown's "The da Vinci Code." Because of our earlier commitment to a 2 o'clock appointment, we had no chance to ask him about Picknett/Prince's "Templar Revelation."
We were overjoyed and grateful beyond words that we had earlier read both Baigent/Lee/ Lincoln "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" and the Picknett/Prince. Their information made the whole experience even more enriching and meaningful.
The low point of the trip undoubtedly was sticker shock. If it hadn't been for our good, generous friends who paid for the fares and covered many expenses, we could never have afforded to set foot on the eastbound aircraft, let alone to enjoy one experience after another. We have not obtained their permission to reveal their identities, but will long be indebted to them. Breakfast coffee at a mid-range restaurant costs $4 a cup (actually a mini-Cup, by Frost standards)--and there are no free refills here. You're still lucky, too, to get theatre tickets at $100 a seat. On the other hand, food in supermarkets is not unreasonably priced.
In St. Ives, life is a lot kinder and less pricey if you simply resign yourself to using a bike. A car? Forget it. Parking is literally impossible; and town councils seem consciously to make it more of a challenge than it actually might be.
We took hundreds of slides, and learned a lot more about stone circles and alignments. The pre-Christian community owes a tremendous debt to the many people who quietly make it their
responsibility to cherish the early sites and protect them from stupid people who would disrespect and even deface them.
If you want to see our slides and hear about the very unusual characteristics of the crystalline rocks that form the circles, come to our new presentation on megalithic monuments, scheduled for FPG in Florida and for Sirius Rising, as well as for several other gatherings with smaller audiences.
Off for another installment in the home-again laundry mountain. Blessed be all. G Y
At last we're back, and we promise to deal with individual e-mails as quickly as we can. Yes, we're still reeling, spiritually and physically, from the tight-packed month of experiences we've just enjoyed.
We had a wonderful trip and hit Europe at the height of an indian summer. The Guides must have put in a special order in our behalf for beautiful weather. Sure, there was a day or two of overcast and rain in England; without them, Yvonne would have asked for her money back. Brittany (Bretagne) did us proud; visits to Mont St-Michel, the Bayeux Tapestry, the ancient tomb at Gavrinis, and Point du Raz were just some of the many highlights.
In the normal French way there are many suggestions, both thoughtful and tongue-in-cheek, about the significance of the alignments at Carnac. We'd like to add one more: they were installed by a syndicate of Kodak and the makers of digital cameras as a giant photo-op.
In England most of the party were very taken with Glastonbury with its amazing spiritual energy and with our B-and-B hostess Koko, a leading light of the Avalon group. Local lore grows
by the day. Imagine the traffic cop pulling you over and giving you (a) a ticket and (b) an aura reading. Anyhow, Koko's group have just bought the church hall and turned it into a shrine to the Lady.
In Cornwall, finally finding the circle where Gavin was initiated was a high point for him. The circle now labeled on all the maps as the Nine Maidens of Boskednan is in fact not the Nine Maidens of Boskednan. It was originally a circle of 21 stones, or maybe 23. On-site inspection led us to surmise that nine of the stones had been moved to form another adjacent nine-maidens circle with one large rock serving as the hunch-back fiddler outside the circle itself.
(You probably know the story, found at this site as well as at the Jungfraujoch in Germany. A circle of women is dancing on a holy night, probably Beltane. A hunch-back fiddler comes upon them by accident. "You play for our dancing, and we'll straighten your back." Everybody goes away happy at dawn.)
At one semi-secret circle Yvonne the apprentice dowser dowsed for whatever would manifest, and was able to pick up a known ley line bisecting the circle north-to-south. Huge gratitude to the family who owns the land, and who cherish and guard the site, admitting only respectful people who (somehow) find it by word of mouth or by other means. Y's thanks to Lauren, her mentor in the skill of dowsing.
We spent just a couple of days in London and were fortunate enough to hear the Master of the Temple, Robin Griffith-Jones, give his Monday talk in the Temple Church. His presentations happen only twice a week and we ... just happened ... to stumble across it on our way to another meeting. Imagine. What staggering erudition he enthusiastically, generously shared with us. He summarized the history of the Templars and pointed out that the little cobbled road down which we walked from Fleet Street to the church had lain undisturbed since the 1200s when the Templars actually constructed it. The Master had several rather cutting remarks about Dan Brown's "The da Vinci Code." Because of our earlier commitment to a 2 o'clock appointment, we had no chance to ask him about Picknett/Prince's "Templar Revelation."
We were overjoyed and grateful beyond words that we had earlier read both Baigent/Lee/ Lincoln "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" and the Picknett/Prince. Their information made the whole experience even more enriching and meaningful.
The low point of the trip undoubtedly was sticker shock. If it hadn't been for our good, generous friends who paid for the fares and covered many expenses, we could never have afforded to set foot on the eastbound aircraft, let alone to enjoy one experience after another. We have not obtained their permission to reveal their identities, but will long be indebted to them. Breakfast coffee at a mid-range restaurant costs $4 a cup (actually a mini-Cup, by Frost standards)--and there are no free refills here. You're still lucky, too, to get theatre tickets at $100 a seat. On the other hand, food in supermarkets is not unreasonably priced.
In St. Ives, life is a lot kinder and less pricey if you simply resign yourself to using a bike. A car? Forget it. Parking is literally impossible; and town councils seem consciously to make it more of a challenge than it actually might be.
We took hundreds of slides, and learned a lot more about stone circles and alignments. The pre-Christian community owes a tremendous debt to the many people who quietly make it their
responsibility to cherish the early sites and protect them from stupid people who would disrespect and even deface them.
If you want to see our slides and hear about the very unusual characteristics of the crystalline rocks that form the circles, come to our new presentation on megalithic monuments, scheduled for FPG in Florida and for Sirius Rising, as well as for several other gatherings with smaller audiences.
Off for another installment in the home-again laundry mountain. Blessed be all. G Y
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Pagan Unity
Greetings, patient readers.
Just a quick thought before we depart our matrix : How about if we label pagan meet-and-greet events Pagan Alliance Day -- PAD -- or Pagan Friendship Day -- PFD?
See you soon. Keep a light in the window. Blessed be all. Gavin and Yvonne
Just a quick thought before we depart our matrix : How about if we label pagan meet-and-greet events Pagan Alliance Day -- PAD -- or Pagan Friendship Day -- PFD?
See you soon. Keep a light in the window. Blessed be all. Gavin and Yvonne
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)