Category: Religion

This Just In: Guess I Was Wrong About Harry Potter Readers

by Administrator, posted in Books, Christianity/Catholicism, Magic/Occult, Religion

Well, I was bound to get one wrong.  Those of you who read my blog regularly may remember that back in July of 2007 I wrote a blog called “This Just In: Harry Potter Readers Won’t Go to Hell”.  Perhaps I spoke too soon since on January 17, 2008 Telegraph.co.uk ran a piece explaining that Harry Potter has been condemned in the official Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano.
 
See what I said in 2007.
 
See how wrong I was here.
 

Sorry Harry fans, as far as the Vatican is concerned…you’re doomed.

Malaysia: The Saga Continues

by Administrator, posted in Islam, Politics, Religion

Yes, it’s back to Malaysia.  Those of you loyal readers know that in June of last year I visited the quagmire that is the Malaysian Constitution.  Well, you’ll be pleased to know that the kids there still aren’t playing nice with each other.
 
This time it’s all about Mazu, the Taoist goddess of the sea.  More precisely, it’s about the construction of the world’s tallest statue of the goddess that is causing trouble.  The selected site for the statue is the coastal town of Kudat in Sabah state on the northern tip of Borneo Island.  Seems appropriate, right?  Guess again!  According to AsiaNews.it, “After the state government halted construction Sabah’s mufti issued a fatwa saying the statue was ‘offensive to Islam’ because it was too close to a mosque.”  The Associated Press (via International Herald Tribune) points out that the statue is being constructed on private property.
 
Obviously this is annoying, but why is this issue getting so much attention?  As the Tribune points out “Malaysia has prided itself on decades of multiracial harmony”.  Those of you who read my last Malaysia blog know that this is simply not the case, and hasn’t ever been, thanks to the conflicting messages of their Constitution.
 
AsiaNews.it says, “Malaysian commentators and minority leaders have sounded the alarm over the growing ‘Islamisation’ of the country.”  Seems to me, they have reason for concern.

Violence is Never the Answer. Well, At Least Not to a Curse.

by Administrator, posted in Magic/Occult, Paranormal, Religion

I try to keep an open mind when being exposed to other cultures or belief systems, but there are some things I just can’t abide…and guess what?  It isn’t animal sacrifice, but that’s another blog.  It’s the practices employed by many different religions and cultures when dealing with someone who is believed to be possessed by a demon or somehow cursed.  The stories abound, and trust me, when you go to Google News and type in the key word “witchcraft” as often as I do, you see a lot about this.  I think it’s the fact that I didn’t go looking for this news story that made me notice it more.
 
There I am, visiting The Drudge Report website when I see the Drudge headline of “Girl nearly loses sight in eye-gouging exorcism…”  It lead me to the story of a 14 year-old Maori girl in New Zealand that nearly lost her eyesight when relatives scratched at her eyes in an attempt to drive out a curse.  The girl’s cousin drowns during the same curse lifting ceremony.  An estimated 40 members of the family attended the ceremony.  Five other members were worked on, but not injured.
 
Let’s not get into a debate as to whether a person can actually be possessed by a demon or evil spirit.  Let’s just say, for the sake of this blog, that a person can.  That, in my opinion, is no excuse to cause physical harm to anyone.  From what I understand, the general concept is, a demon inhabits a body, so make the body uncomfortable and the demon will leave.  (Much the way that sage smudging drives away negative energies from a home.  The sage makes your home stink so much that spirits leave.)  I get it, but um, so what?  Your child or whatever is possessed, so suddenly you don’t give two craps about their body.  Cursed or not, it’s your kid’s eyes you’re scratching out, not the demon’s.  Maybe I’m a sap, but I think a human’s soul is way stronger than their body, so let’s take it easy on the scratching and water, okay?  In this particular case the ceremony was held because one of the family members stole a stone lion from outside a hotel.  I don’t have children, so perhaps I’m wrong here, but if you find out your child stole something I’m pretty certain that you don’t start with scratching out their eyes.  Call it a hunch.
 
Can I suggest that if you think that you or someone you know is possessed by an evil spirit, to go see a medical doctor.  I know, it’s horribly unromantic, but the fact is, every single day scientists are learning something new about how the human mind works.  Also, if your priest or other religious community leader ever suggests that causing physical harm to yourself or someone else is the answer, kick them to the curb.

The Fifth 13th Birthday Interview

by Administrator, posted in Interviews, Magic/Occult, Religion, Wiccan/Pagan

A very special man is having a milestone birthday tomorrow.  On November 30, 2007 Oberon Zell-Ravenheart celebrates his sixty fifth birthday.  To commemorate the occasion a special birthday interview was emailed out to those of us who are friends, colleagues, or in my case, a lucky schmuck that has managed to ricochet into the orbit of his awareness.  I share this interview as a small token of my esteem and as a modest birthday gift.  For those of you who enjoy the interview, stay tuned…Oberon Zell-Ravenheart was kind enough to do a “10 Questions” interview for The Magical Buffet.  You can read The Magical Buffet interview in our January issue!


Interview with a Living Pagan Icon

Oberon Zell-Ravenheart Celebrates his Fifth *13th* Birthday
By Mabyn Wind
 
OBERON ZELL-RAVENHEART, (November 30th, 1942- ) is a Founder of the Church of All Worlds and a leading figure in the Neo-Pagan community. A modern Renaissance man, Oberon has fulfilled many roles, including: community creator, transpersonal psychologist, metaphysician, naturalist, theologian, shaman, healer, seer, author, artist, sculptor, lecturer, teacher, eco- activist, magician, and ordained Priest of the Earth-Mother, Gaia. He sums all this up in the designation of “Wizard.”
 
Oberon was the first to apply the terms “Pagan” and “Neo-Pagan” to the newly emerging Nature religions of the 1960s. He spread this message far and wide through his publication of the award-winning Pagan magazine, Green Egg—1968-1976; 1988-2000; now an online e-zine (http://www.greeneggzine.com/)—and he is currently Publisher Emeritus. Oberon has been instrumental in the coalescence of the Neo-Pagan movement, which for the last third of a century has been reclaiming the religious heritage of the pre-Christian Europe.
 
He has written the best-selling “Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard” (with
Grey Council; New Page, 2004, now published internationally in Rumanian),
plus “Companion for the Apprentice Wizard” (with Faculty of the Grey School; New Page, 2006) and “Creating Circles & Ceremonies” (with Morning Glory; New Page, 2006). His latest book is “A Wizard’s Bestiary” (with Ash Dekirk; New Page, 2007). Oberon’s writings and creative spirit can also be found on the web at: http://www.caw.org/, http://www.greyschool.com/, and http://www.mythicimages.com/.
 
Here is my birthday interview with a Living Pagan Icon, Oberon Zell-Ravenheart himself:
 
MW: What form will Church of All Worlds take in resurrecting itself—phoenix-like—in the future?
 
OZ: This time around (our 3rd resurrection!), the main central operations and focus will revolve around a vastly expanded website—www.CAW.org—which
will include everything that’s there currently, plus interactive forums, a wiki, research and ritual resources, clergy applications, nest applications, affiliate and subsidiary order applications, etc. The Membership Handbook will be substantially revised and updated, to be printable in PDF, and a new Operations Manual will replace much of what is currently in the Bylaws. The Bylaws will be considerably streamlined for long-term viability and presented as “Canons.”
 
The biggest change from our previous conceptual Vision is that in this new phase we are separating the inward progression through the 9 Circles from the process of Clergy application and ordination. Now 3rd-Ring members will no longer be automatically designated as “Clergy,” but as “Beacons.” So the 3 “Rings” will now be: 1. “Seekers” (Circles 1-3); 2. “Scions” (Circles 4-6); and 3. “Beacons (Circles 7-9).
 
As we get all the current revisions to the website in place, we will begin an active outreach program to welcome new (and old) members, Clergy ordinations (primarily an application and review process), Nest charters, Order charters, and affiliations with other groups who may wish to be chartered under CAW’s Group Exemption. Each chartered entity will then have its own page/section and links on the CAW website.
 
And eventually—what so many have been asking about—we hope to be able to
scan and put up online printable PDFs of the entire run of back issues of Green Egg, all the way back to 1968.
 
MW: What role will the future CAW have in intentional communities and schools?
 
OZ: I cannot say, as I don’t expect to be as centrally involved in CAW this time around as I’d been for the past 45 years. My primary work currently is writing books and being Headmaster of the Grey School of Wizardry. I do certainly expect that CAW will continue to pursue the establishment and networking of intentional communities in the future as it has in the past. And, of course, I’m deeply involved now in the manifestation of a school such as I’d always dreamed of…
 
MW: The whole Pagan world is buzzing with news about The Grey School—what
can you tell us about it?
 
OZ: The whole Pagan world? Wonderful! I hope many come check us out! The Grey School of Wizardry—www.GreySchool.com—is absolutely the finest work I have ever been involved in, and I am very proud of it. I spent nearly a year designing everything it should be with a top-notch Pagan web designer. He managed to implement all of my ideas, and came up with many more I’d never have thought of. I recruited some of the best teachers in the magickal community (and by the way, we are still accepting applications…). We created a foundational curriculum of functioning classes, and we opened our virtual doors on Aug. 1, 2004 to an initial rush of students who’d heard of the Grey School from my 2004 book, “Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard”.
 
The Grey School teaches Wizardry—not Witchcraft, or even Paganism, per se. That is, we are teaching the “Wisdom of the Ages,” which transcends any particular faith. The Grey School is not a school of religion, but of magick and wisdom, and we accept students of every religion (or of none).
 
The Grey School is set up with seven “year-levels,” designed to be the equivalent of junior high through high school. Graduates will be certified “Journeyman Wizards” (and yes, we are planning a college-level Journeyman to Master program for later). About 1/4 of our 650 or so students are youths (ages 11-17), and 3/4 are adults (ages 18-70s). The School is highly interactive, with four Elemental “Houses” for youths, and “Lodges” for adults. Each has both a Faculty Head and a Student Prefect. We have competitive programs for earning both credits and merits, and a “House Hat&r
dquo; and “Lodge Cup” are awarded at equinoxes.
 
We have about 30 brilliant, dedicated, and highly-qualified teachers, and currently more than 275 classes in 16 color-coded “Departments,” each with a Dean, clubs, etc. These are: Wizardry (indigo), Nature Studies (silver), Magickal Practice (gold), Mind Magicks (aqua), Healing (blue), Wortcunning (green), Divination (yellow), Performance (orange), Alchemy (red), Lifeways (pink), Beast Mastery (brown), Mathemagicks (clear), Cosmology (violet), Ceremonial Magick (white), Lore (grey), and Dark Arts (black).
 
Each House and Lodge has its own forum, each class has a forum, and there
are other forums for clubs and such—even a campus tavern (for adults only!). There is also the “Great Hall” forum, where all students and teachers can communicate directly with each other. We have a system of student leadership for the Houses and Lodges, and a quarterly student-run School newsletter in printable PDF format. The Library and School store (“Magick Alley”) have many resources available to students at any time.
 
The motto of the Grey School of Wizardry is: Omnia vivunt; omnia inter se conexus. “Everything is alive; everything is interconnected.” (Cicero)
 
MW: How does it feel for you that CAW has given birth to more spiritual groups in North America than any other Neo-Pagan founding organization?
 
OZ: Really? Have we indeed? Cool! It is good to leave a lineage… One is glad to be of service.
 
MW: What is your favorite passage from “Stranger in A Strange Land”?
 
OZ: “Love is that condition wherein another person’s happiness is essential to your own.” This was the radical redefinition of the very concept of love that changed the world for so many of in the 1960s.
 
MW: What are some of the ways “sharing water” can change the world?
 
OZ: Deepening our connections with each other—and every living being—beyond the traditional narrow boundaries of blood, family, and tribal kinships. Humanity must come to embrace connections of global kinship, and water-sharing is an important means of encouraging this expansion of our affinities and affiliations. “Perfect love and perfect trust.” And this will lead to the Awakening of Gaia…
 
MW: What is your most vivid mystical experience and how did it change your life?
 
OZ: Unquestionably the great “TheaGenesis” revelatory vision of Gaia as a
living planet, that I had on Sept. 6, 1970. (See www.caw.org/articles/theagenesis.html). That changed everything—not only in my own personal life, but the ripples spread throughout the Pagan community and far beyond…
 
DE: What do you believe lies in the future of Mother Gaia?
 
OZ: The Awakening. Then the great Diaspora, “flying Mother Nature’s silver seeds to a new home…”
 
MW: What are your plans for your next sixty-five years?
 
OZ: Personally—to keep writing books, creating sculptures, and designing
jewelry. I have so many ideas it would take me many lifetimes to implement them all! Fortunately, I have those. I also want to learn hang-gliding, fly a paraplane, ride in a hot-air balloon, and go sky sky-diving. And travel to the many countries I want to see that I have not yet visited: Thailand, Egypt, South Africa, New Zealand, Japan, China, India, Ireland…
 
At the next concentric circle outward, I’ll be continuing my work with the
Grey School, particularly towards the manifestation of a physical campus.
I’m envisioning something like an old monastery, retreat center, or country estate, on maybe 100 acres of land, with forest, lake, gardens, orchards… Facilities would include residential accommodations for students, teachers, and staff; classrooms and laboratories for studies; offices for faculty; a big kitchen and Great Hall; and a large enough library and museum to house all the books and collections that I and others would bring. Interesting creatures (such as Unicorns) would roam the surrounding woods…
 
Of course, this would require major endowments, and to that end the Grey
School has recently obtained our 501(c)(3) Federal tax exemption so we can
apply for educational grants.
 
Overseeing the 3rd resurrection of the Church of All Worlds—and restructuring it for the 21st century—is also a major focus of my current attention, and this will continue as we prepare it to fulfill its potential and offer all the services other churches have traditionally provided: places of worship, regular meetings, schools, summer camps, retreats, seminaries, community outreach, land-based communities and retirement villages.
 
At the next circle outward, I will eventually be returning my attention to the revivification of the Universal Federation of Pagans—an idea I set in motion in the early ‘90s as an ecumenical alliance of Pagan groups representing all Paths and Traditions, like the World Council of Churches. Unfortunately, once past its incorporation in 1993, I have not been able to give this Vision the attention it deserved and required. I hope to remedy that in the future, as I feel that this is really important.
 
I’m also holding out to see a human mission to Mars, the discovery of non-terrestrial life, and “first contact” with a star-faring alien civilization that would usher humanity into a galactic era.
 
MW: How old do you feel, really?
 
OZ: About 544 million years. I’m in the prime of my life!
 
MW: What do you want for your birthday?
 
OZ: Success in all my endeavors. And 65 more years in which to manifest them (and come up with new ones).

 

 

Freeze! It’s the Vice Squad!

by Administrator, posted in Islam, Politics, Religion

On November 13, 2007 news sources began releasing the list of moral vices that had been debuted in Iran.  I tried to dig up what would be a 100% full and accurate list of these vices, but unfortunately I can’t read Persian!  Here’s the jist of what we’re looking at:

Terrorising people by quarrelling and feuding in public

Women failing to cover up in a suitable way, such as wearing short trousers revealing the leg, hats intead of scarves, small and skinny scarves that do not cover up the head, and make-up that is unconventional and violates public morality

Wearing decadent Western clothes and displaying signs and insignia of deviant groups

Procuring decadent films

Procuring alcohol and drugs

(List from BBC News, who cites E’temad Newspaper as their source.  The BBC has people that speak Persian!)

So what does this list mean you ask?  According to Arabian Business the list is part of an ongoing "moral crackdown".  The article states that "police have raided underground parties, seized satelite dishes and conducted street checks on the improperly dressed."  And that "Between April and October police warned 122,000 people, mostly women, about flouting dress codes, of which almost 7,000 attended classes on respecting the rules."

Iran has Islam as its state religion.  This post isn’t anti Islam, it’s against the idea of state or national religions entirely.  Religion and government have no reason to be mingling.  Why not?  Well, in America I can spend all weekend on the couch watching "Mythbusters" and no one comes into my home to bust me for Sloth.

Magical Buffet Mythology: Amaterasu

by Administrator, posted in Mythology, Religion

Article by Rebecca
Image by Will Hobbs (www.sirwilliamwesley.com)

Good morning sunshine! This month we’re talking about Amaterasu, the Shinto goddess of the sun, agriculture, peace, and order. You are the sunshine of my life is more than just the lyrics to a song when spoken in reference to Amaterasu. When Amaterasu isn’t out, the sun isn’t out. No sun is bad. Right?


Described as beautiful, prudish, timid, industrious, temperamental, and compassionate, Amaterasu is a complex deific woman! As all of us woman tend to be. Here is one story that perhaps best sums up many dimensions of this time honored deity.

Amaterasu has a pain in the butt brother Susanowo, the god of storms. Unlike most brothers, who at their worst read your diary or listen in on your phone calls, Susanowo stepped up the annoying brother game by getting drunk, destroying Amaterasu’s rice fields and in a rampage killing two of her handmaidens. Brothers, what’s a girl to do?

Well, Amaterasu stomped off and sealed herself in a cave. One presumes she sat there and fumed, but I like to imagine a Sarah Connor training sequence, where Amaterasu buffs herself up for revenge. No matter what she was doing, it doesn’t change the fact that she had locked herself away, and as I mentioned before, no Amaterasu means no sun. As the other gods learned, no sun meant no food, and worse yet no food meant no worshippers!

This prompted all the gods to come and try to lure her out. This didn’t work. Fortunately, they hatched a plan. They set up a mirror across from the entrance to the cave. Then Ame-no-Uzume, whose name roughly means Heavenly Alarming Female, performed an exotic dance. Okay, it was a striptease. Anyway, of course all the other deities there got excited and started hootin’ and hollerin’

Finally, Amaterasu could not stand it any more and opened the cave to ask what was going on. They told her they found a woman even more beautiful than her to take her place and then cleared a path so Amaterasu could look into the mirror. She had never seen herself before, and was quite taken by the woman she was seeing. She stepped forward to take a closer look. Once she did, the gods ran up behind her and sealed the cave, so she could not go back in.

Thus, the sun came back. Tah dah! In some parts of Japan, they perform a ritual when there is a solar eclipse. Essentially, they make a lot of noise to recreate the racket the gods made to get Amaterasu to come out of her cave.

Shenendehowa Interfaith Program

by Administrator, posted in Events, Religion

What happens when you pile a bunch of female Christians, Jews, Hindus, Native Americans, and Muslims in one place? In the case of “Celebrating the Sabbath or Holy Day” at the Shenendehowa United Methodist Church, something wonderful.

On Monday October 29, 2007 I attended an interfaith program for adult and teen women hosted by the United Methodist Women of Shenendehowa United Methodist Church. Easily over 60 women attended to hear women of different faiths talk about celebrating their Holy Day. The cost of admission, a non-perishable food item for the food bank and a vegetarian dish to share.

At 6 PM Janet Foster, the moderator for the evening, welcomed us and led us in giving thanks. Then we ate! There was A LOT of food there. Far too much for me to try everything. I sat with two women who attend the Hindu Temple of the Capital District, and two other women. So, what does a group like that talk about? The usual: traffic, the real estate market, cooking, and our families. After the meal, the program began.

A little bit of background. In 1994 the United Methodist Women held their first interfaith program for women. The topic that year was, “A Women’s Journey of Faith, From Cradle to Altar.” It’s been held nearly ever year since with topics such as “Death: The End or the Beginning” and “Prayer”. This year’s topic was “Celebrating the Sabbath or Holy Day”. The speakers were Dr. Mussarat Chaundhry of the Islamic Center of the Capital District, Jhansi Putta of the Hindu Temple of the Capital District, Rabbi Linda Motzkin of Temple Sinai, Dawn Standing Woman Marszak who practices Native American Spirituality, and Rev. Megan Stowe of Shenendehowa United Methodist Church. All of this with Janet Foster of Shenendehowa United Methodist Church moderating.

Personally I found the presentation by Dr. Chaundhry to be the most informative, probably because the Islamic faith is the one I know the least about. I just wish that they did these more frequently or had a longer time slot because I had questions but there was no time for questions from the crowd. Most likely because we would be there all night! That being said, all of the women were very entertaining and the evening flew by. The next thing I knew it was time to leave. I found it hard to say good-bye to all these friendly women I just met. It was such a wonderful evening. As Janet said, “When I look around this room, I can see that world peace is possible.”

The Resurrection of “My Sweet Jesus”

by Administrator, posted in Art, Christianity/Catholicism, First Amendment, Religion

It’s going to be tough to have this discussion without potentially offending someone, but oh well, the giant chocolate Jesus is back and I’m psyched!  For those of you who may have missed it, last spring artist Cosimo Cavallaro created an anatomically accurate statue of Jesus out of 200 pounds of chocolate.  The piece, titled “My Sweet Lord”, was going to be displayed on the ground floor of The Roger Smith Hotel in midtown New York City starting April 1 (Palm Sunday) and run through Easter Sunday.
 
That poor hotel.  They had protests, boycotts, petitions, and even death threats.  Why?  Was it because it was made out of a rich, dark, chocolate instead of white chocolate?  (I always chuckle when I think of this option.  Have you ever watched the animated series “The Boondocks”?  In the first episode Huey explains that he never saw “Passion of the Christ” because it had a white Jesus.  The black verses white Jesus debate is also brought up in the beginning of the awesome movie “Saved”.)  Did it have to do with Jesus’ exposed Hostess Ho Ho (if you get my meaning)?  Was it the invitation for spectators to eat a piece of the sculpture, which was a truly inspired way for the viewer to allow Jesus to become a part of them?  Was it the Palm Sunday opening, an appropriate time to encourage people to consider the life of Jesus?  The world will never truly know if it was one of those things or many, since in the world of religious over sensitives no real reason needs to be given to justify death threats on poor bell hops who don’t give two craps about a giant hunk of chocolate.  Don’t even get me started on the ramifications of threatening artists over their subject matter!  It makes my First Amendment emergency lights start flashing.
 
All of that is in the past because chocolate Jesus is back, and he’s brought some saints with him!  The Proposition Gallery will be featuring an exhibition of Cavallaro’s work called “Chocolate Saints…Sweet Jesus”.  All the biggest and brightest of the Catholic world will be there in their finest life-like chocolate rendering; Saint Francis, Saint Jude, the Virgin Mary, and more.  And of course, “My Sweet Lord”, a recasting of the giant chocolate Jesus that caused so much trouble, despite being beautifully crafted and totally delicious in appearance!
 
The exhibition will run from October 27 to November 24, 2007 (to coincide with All Saints Day).  Hey, it opens this Friday!  Where is all the drama?  Well, all of us chocolate Jesus fans can relax.  On October 16 The Catholic League, the fun loving bunch that brought you chocolate Jesus protests and editing Kathy Griffin, issued the most subtle and not so subtle statement saying that essentially, The Proposition gallery isn’t very visible, that the idea of crafting an image of Jesus is appropriate for Halloween, and that All Saint’s Day just isn’t as important to them as Palm Sunday.  Of course maybe that’s just my sarcastic and biased interpretation.  What do you think?
 
“’My Sweet Jesus,’ another life-sized chocolate sculpture of a naked crucified Jesus by artist Cosimo Cavallaro, will be displayed in a New York gallery on West 22nd Street from October 27 through November 24. Unlike last spring, when we launched a boycott against Manhattan’s posh Roger Smith Hotel (the boycott was dropped when the hotel cancelled the exhibition of an identical Cavallaro statue, “My Sweet Lord”), the Catholic League will not protest this showing.
 
When the Roger Smith Hotel originally planned to host ‘My Sweet Lord,’ the work was set to be unveiled on April 1, Palm Sunday, and run through Easter Sunday. In addition, the midtown hotel’s gallery is located on street level, easily visible through windows to the public. Any child strolling with his parents through the popular area could have been subjected to the piece. And comments by the artist certainly didn’t help matters—he previously invited the public to come inside and take a bite of Jesus.
 
Since ‘My Sweet Jesus’ isn’t going to be displayed on the ground floor of an established hotel in midtown, and since Halloween is more appropriate for Cavallaro’s crafts than Easter, our central objections are not applicable this time around. The Catholic League doesn’t approve of the piece, but this upcoming display won’t be as public, nor will it be an ostentatious assault on Christian sensibilities during Holy Week.”
 
Although, none of this matters.  Not the Catholic League, not my snarky comments about the Catholic League.  What matters is that although struck down by nonbelievers, “My Sweet Jesus” is back…and more chocolately than ever.

I Now Pronounce You Husband and Wife. Terms and Conditions May Vary.

by Administrator, posted in First Amendment, Politics, Religion

Technically this is old news, but it has recently been brought to my attention by my Pennsylvanian Pagan peeps (that’s right, I have peeps).  What it comes down to is that marriage laws, are in fact, horribly confusing…and just got made worse.
 
Here’s the set up.  On August 24, 2006 a couple from York County Pennsylvania married.  The ceremony was officiated by a friend, who obtained internet ordination from the Universal Life Church Monastery.  Seven months later they decided the marriage wasn’t working out, so they split.  Then they read in the paper that unions performed by internet ordained ministers may not be upheld if they went to court.  So they took it to court.
 
On Friday September 9, 2007 they found out that their marriage never existed.  Talk about the quickiest of divorces!
 
This is the first instance in Pennsylvania and according to a solicitor for the state association of Registers of Wills and Clerks of Orphans Court as quoted in The York Dispatch “All persons issuing marriage licenses should comply with the precedent-setting decision.”
 
What was the problem?  In York County it was many factors.  The friend who performed the ceremony was not a member of the Universal Life Church before receiving his ordination, he doesn’t have a congregation that meets regularly or a place of worship, neither the bride or groom were members of the of the ULCM, also, there were no witnesses.
 
Honestly, the state of marriage laws these days are enough to make you pull your hair out.  In a fantastic article by The New York Times, they point out that “Connecticut is one of a half-dozen places that do not recognize marriages performed by someone who became a minister for the sole purpose of marrying people.”  That same article focuses on a pair of attorneys that had a friend, who again received ordination from the Universal Life Church Monastery, marry them only to find out it wasn’t a valid marriage.  The groom is quoted as saying, “If two lawyers can be duped into getting married illegally, then anybody can.”  True dat!
 
In fact, did you know that Connecticut, Alabama, Virginia, and Tennessee prohibit weddings performed by ministers who do not have active ministries?  As pointed out in the Times’ piece, “Even in Las Vegas, that city’s no-holds-barred image notwithstanding, it is illegal for individuals to perform a marriage if they do not have a congregation.”  They go on to quote a clerk at the Marriage License Bureau in Philadelphia as saying, “People call us and ask if it’s legal or not, and we don’t know if it’s legal.”  You’re beginning to get the idea, right?  It’s a mess out there and no one knows how it works.  (My girl Shira at www.handfastings.org can tell you ALL about it.  We still haven’t figured out what makes an officiant in NY, well, official.)
 
Back to the York County precedent.  G. Martin Freeman, Universal Life Church Monastery president, is quoted in The York Daily Record calling the ruling “capricious” and “arbitrary”.  He goes on to say, “It violates the First Amendment to the Constitution.”
 
Emily MacDonald, who is a member of the South Central PA Pagans, agrees with Freeman.  “Many people have chosen to be ordained in this manner because they ideologically eschew more popular denominations of ‘organized religion’ and physically established mainstream churches in their geographic area.  Often, as a result, they do not have a physical meeting place and sometimes do not have a congregation who meet regularly as such (although what one may mean by ‘congregation’ and ‘regular meetings’ is certainly an open question).  Does this make a person’s belief system, experience and ability to officiate a ceremony less valid than someone from a mainstream church with a regularly meeting congregation?  I do not believe so.  I believe this is discrimination and a flagrant violation of our religious freedom protected by both the US and Pennsylvania Constitutions.”
 
What’s got my PA Pagans all riled up?  Well, as Rev. Brandy Boswell, of Nature Church in York, PA, points out, “Religions like Paganism, Wicca, and Witchcraft are usually very private. It is extremely difficult to gather a group together when each person’s experiences in connecting with Divinity are so personal. On occasion groups do pop up, like the Nature Church. The unfortunate thing is these places are few, and far between. As you can see, finding an already established “church” for Wiccans, Witches, Pagans is difficult.

To add salt to the wound, Wiccans and Witches do not always meet in churches. They have Covens, Groves, and sometimes Circles. PA does not recognize these forms of religious organization. The fact is, PA is again not being told to see beyond what is most predominate.”


As you can see, some followers of certain faiths may only be able to study and achieve ordination online.  They may never be able to set up a congregation, or may have no desire to do so.  That’s not what you really want to talk about though, is it?  What you really want to discuss is not true religious seekers only able to find faith through connections online, but average Joes getting quickie ordinations online to marry friends.
 
What about it?  Seriously.  You have a problem with this, then hey, don’t ask your buddy to marry you.  The now invalidated bride in the York County case is quoted in The York Daily Record saying, “It makes a mockery out of the whole marriage system.”  Hey lady, you know what’s really a mockery of the system?  Couples, who aren’t religious, shelling out wads of cash and devoting their time to classes at a church they don’t attend, just to have a marriage ceremony.  What about a Justice of the Peace or a Court House wedding?  Well you know what?  Excuse me for wanting something more romantic than filing paperwork in triplicate for my wedding.  The duped attorney in Connecticut told the Times, “The most important thing to us was that someone who we knew and liked wo
uld marry us.”  Why not?  Why not have a close friend, who more often than not is who you turn to in times of joy and sorrow, be the one that oversees one of the most important days of your life?  As long as they know how to fill out the paperwork and you pay the state, who’s it hurting?
 
Consider yourself warned Pennsylvania, my friends are ticked off and I don’t think they’re going to settle for the new status quo.  Rev. Boswell says. “PA is clouded in their views of who is worthy of officiating marriages and it is up to us to tell our leaders what way they need to lean. Write letters, send e-mails, stand on the street corner and hand out flyers! Do something, anything, to get the word out! Let the people and our leaders know that our religious rights are being violated.”