Religion can quickly become a gruesome business. Forget whatever you think The Wicker Man and The Wicker Tree are about. They are not “Pagan films” or even proper horror films. They, with tongue grimly planted in cheek, remind us where our theologies can lead us unchecked and unfettered. They are not pro-Pagan, pro-Christian, pro-religion or pro-secularism. They are not meant to make you feel better about your faith. They are cautionary tales that say: There but for the grace of... Read more
This is the first difficult Maxim I have to address, and not nearly the hardest (because there’s one I intend to dismiss entirely so stay tuned). This is a Maxim geared towards a specific cultural norm that no longer exists. Yet some of the root virtue inherent in this Maxim still applies. Marriage meant children, and continuity. It meant maturity and stability. It meant status. It meant family. It meant love. So how does this translate into modern culture? For... Read more
Know Thyself. It’s the Maxim that everyone knows. What new thing can I say about this? I don’t think I can say anything that won’t sound cliché or trite. And so I give you Emerson: The Gods we worship write their names on our faces, be sure of that. And a person will worship something, have no doubt of that either. One may think that tribute is paid in secret, in the dark recesses of his or her heart, but... Read more
Writing can become a bad habit, and a simple question can set loose a torrent of words. So when Niki Whiting asked me what I thought of Peter Grey’s The Red Goddess last night, I gave a long and complex answer when a simple one would do. Now that all the words are just sitting there, I feel I should form them into a post of some sort. I should warn that there’s some frank talk about sexuality in this... Read more
I have this trick of being able to repeat a phone number in my mind until I have a chance to enter it into my phone. Once I’ve got it safely squared away, I promptly forget the number. It’s a really good example of not knowing what I’ve learned. This whole series on the Delphic Maxims is an active expression of this one Maxim. I could memorize the list, but would I know it? For instance, it’s not enough to... Read more
This may be one of my favorite Maxims. It is the counterpoint to Obey the Law. Sure, we have to stop at stop signs and pay our taxes, but we are also commanded to Be Overcome By Justice. I love that word: overcome. It reminds me of the old civil rights spiritual: We Shall Overcome. So when it comes to our rights being taken from us, do we obey the law or do we allow ourselves to be overcome by... Read more
I didn’t have a lot of downtime this weekend really, but I’m in a really good mood this morning. Such a good mood that I’m setting aside what I had planned for this morning (including an essay on my experience with gay marriage) but instead I want to share this feeling of love and hope I have this morning. As we are quickly speeding towards mid-year, I have to reflect that 2012 has not been very kind to me, but... Read more
First let me send out some link love to all the folks also blogging through the Maxims: Aine Llewellyn tackles three at once, Anne Hatzakis takes on Follow God and Obey the Law, John Beckett gives a polytheistic take on Worship the Gods, and Niki Whiting takes on the difference between worship and devotion. With Mother’s Day this weekend, and Father’s Day next month, this is a good time to consider the 4th Maxim. I know a lot of Pagans... Read more
I don’t believe in perfection. I don’t believe in flawless things. I don’t believe in purity. I don’t believe in “pure goodness” because it implies the opposite: “pure evil.” I don’t think such a thing exists. I don’t believe the Gods are pure and perfect, without a flaw. That’s the sort of language that is used to speak of Jesus, and promotes an unattainable ideal. I don’t think humans are less than the Gods for being imperfect. I think that’s... Read more
This series has garnered a bit more attention than I expected, with other bloggers joining me on this journey. Since some have asked, here is a full list of the Delphic Maxims. I thought people were familiar with these, but I find this is not the case. As a broad and comprehensive ancient ethical code, they deserve our consideration, even if not our acceptance. I’d especially like to thank Niki Whiting for pointing out that we all break the law... Read more
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