The issues of doubt and faith have come up multiple times recently, which probably means it’s time for me to write about it. Eric Scott has this piece on Patheos where he discusses his disappointment (though not surprise) at being unmoved by an energy current that others could feel. Jeff Lilly dug up this two-year-old essay by UU minister and Zen Buddhist James Ishmael Ford titled “All Religions are False.” And Daniel Fincke at the atheist blog Camels With Hammers... Read more

And their flesh shall nourish yours, their blood shall flow within you, for as the beetle nourishes the lark so shall human nourish vampire – from “True Blood”’s Vampire Bible While most of my reading is in the realms of religion, science and history, I still do some reading for pleasure. And when I do, my genre of choice is Urban Fantasy, the blending of science fiction, fantasy and horror in a contemporary setting. There are a lot of good... Read more

The Temple of Hephaestus, viewed from the rear Hephaestus is a god of fire, volcanoes and smithcraft – especially blacksmithing. He’s the son of Zeus and Hera, though various sources say one of them threw him off Olympus either because they were upset over his imperfection (Hephaestus is “the lame god”) or because he sided with the other during one of their many quarrels. Lame or not, he’s a good god to know. He made armor and weapons for gods... Read more

Egyptian Summer Solstice – opening the temple If you hold open circles and advertise them publicly, sooner or later a researcher will show up at your door. Some e-mail ahead of time and ask permission while others just show up. They’re not hard to spot: most dress more conservatively than your average circle-goer, and while they try to be inconspicuous, they inevitably have a look of “I hope I didn’t make a mistake coming here” on their faces. Carrying a... Read more

One of the good things about internet news and social media is that it’s easy to find people and things you like. The downside is that you can miss things outside your interest zone that are generating a lot of attention in other circles. Since I mainly hang out in the Pagan, UU and liberal corners of cyberspace, I was a bit surprised when I surfed across reviews and commentary on some very popular books I had no idea existed... Read more

Hail, O Sun and Gods of the Sun! We call you and we honor you on this Solstice, the height of your power and the longest day. Without you there could be no life on Earth. The North Texas skies were overcast this morning – I couldn’t see the rising Sun. But like so many things in our lives that are unseen but very real, it was there. What other life-giving, life-sustaining forces are hidden by clouds? Are there people... Read more

Isis – or Auset, to call her by her Egyptian name instead of the more commonly known name the Greeks gave her – is one of the nine deities of the Ennead, the oldest gods and goddesses of Egypt. She is the daughter of Geb (the Earth) and Nut (the Sky), and the sister and husband of Osiris. She is the mother of Horus – much of the Madonna and Child artwork of Christianity is modeled after older images of... Read more

Not all my vacation was spent visiting temples – I also did more reading than I’ve done in months. Long flights and evenings of rest following hours of hiking over ancient ruins present an opportunity to read that I don’t get enough of during “normal” times. One of the books I put on my Kindle was AODA Archdruid John Michael Greer’s new Apocalypse Not, subtitled Everything You Know About 2012, Nostradamus and the Rapture Is Wrong. Although it covers the... Read more

crossposted with No Unsacred Place The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Today all that’s left is one column and a few low stones; the result of fires, earthquakes, plundering and the centuries of neglect that accompanied the shift from Classical Greek religion to Christianity and then to Islam. At first glance it is far less impressive than other temples I visited on my recent trip. But when you stop looking... Read more