The Monsters Under The Bed

The word politics originates from the Greek politikos, defined as "pertaining or relating to citizens". At it's basic core, it is the practice and theory of influencing other people. Like the magic, it is a neutral term until you begin to add into it.

As intended by the Founding Fathers of the United States, politics was a form of diplomacy, where a negotiation of ideas was a dialogue to work out the most beneficial outcome for all. Diplomacy requires tact and common sense to find a mutually agreeable solution to broader problems; less you think the parties involved are being seemingly altruistic, keep in mind that they are also negotiating for a strategic advantage for their side of the subject at hand.

Politics and diplomacy, as practiced by those who authored our Constitution and other documents that govern the United States, was a scholarly discipline.Those first congressional representatives were experienced and learned individuals. I am not foolish enough to believe that all the political discourse that took place was civil; to the contrary, much of it was lively debated and passionately argued by those participants, as historically noted. Yet somehow they got beyond their individual preferences and personal beliefs and produced what has come to be know as some of the greatest written documents of civil law known to the modern world, even if the content is still up for interpretation. They came up with something they believed was the best and most beneficial to the citizens they represented. They took great pains to do this and were as careful with the selection of language to express their intention as possible.The important point is that the legal and moral tenants of those documents are a solid foundation on which we continue to build even to this day. We continue to tweak Constitutional Law on a case by case basis.

One of the wisest decisions, I believe, was in the specific wording of the  "establishment clause" and the "free exercise clause" which together form the First Amendment and is the textual basis for Supreme Court decisions on the separation of Church and State:"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof". The wording here is pretty clear: There shall be no official state religion, however, you are free to practice your personal faith tradition. As an aside, all legitimately, legally accredited schools of theological education in the United States teach classes on Constitutional Law, which seminarians are required to take prior to ordination to their respective denominations and forms of religious tradition. So there is no legitimate excuse for any duly ordained member of the clergy to not have a grasp of what the Constitution has to say about the place of the Church within the structure of the US government-that is, that there is no place for it.

A few short years ago I wrote in this blog about an event held on the campus of a well-known university sponsored by a student group; it's the backstory for this particular post:
http://amethjera.blogspot.com/2011/08/dont-know-what-weve-got-until-its-gone.html.
I've been watching the Dominionist movement for a few years now. They're kind of like the proverbial  monster hiding under the bed. We forget about them until they crawl out. They've been a constant in the background of media coverage, mostly chiming in during the Winter holiday season to assure us that the faux 'War on Christmas' is still being waged by the Hoard of the Damned; that would be the rest of us, in case you haven't been paying attention or fell asleep during the sermon. Yes, according to their collective paranoia, we are most certainly out to get them, to take away their Bibles and guns and rape their wives and sisters and steal the vanilla ice cream off their apple pie before eating it. And the decline of America as the Greatest Country in the World is due not to corporate and political corruption romping rampantly through our midst, but because our society has steadily fought against their religious hubris and attempted to lay down ground rules for a kinder, gentler ( or at least more tolerable) society by discarding their penchant for vengeance and blood lust in the name of the God whom they have formed in their own twisted image. Just listen to some of the men currently hoping to become President of the United States. If this is the best our political system has to offer, it is truly a frightening. According to them, everything wrong with America boils down to not following their idea of God. And the biggest bone they have to pick is that they aren't allowed to stand on the street corners paid for by Caesar's taxes and preach, or indoctrinate children in public schools in their particular version of religion, and that there is now an entire generation that has rejected their mean spirited brow-beating outright by staying home on Sunday morning or out of their temples altogether. Because, you see, rather than using the free will given to us according to their Creation story, we have turned away from the teachings they have so carefully revised and crafted to support their position ( a sin, according to Matthew 5:19, the verse that admonishes devotees to not change the smallest letter or stroke of the Word of God). They are disturbed that some of us see them for the hypocrites and
Pharisees they are. Worse yet, we have the audacity to  call them out and hold them up to the standard demanded by the God and the book of their choosing. We have viewed the Emperor and he is not only sans clothing ( and substance) but naked. What is exposed is ugly, and beyond anything created by the Divine. This type of ugliness is only created by the lowest common denominator of humanity.

The Dominionist movement is a fundamentalist, extremist cult that would love for the rest of us to follow their teachings blindly, without question. Say it again: they are a cult, a sect of renegades who have twisted anything positive that comes from the teachings of Jesus. They exude the evil they project on others. Let's just call them what they are, shall we? They are societal bullies bent on subversive manipulation of the masses though fear. They know exactly where to strike the under-employed and under-educated in parts of this country that are prone to what physiologists and sociologists call 'magical thinking'. ( Which has absolutely nothing to do with the art or practice of magick as defined by Pagan or Occult traditions. In this sense the phrase 'magical thinking' is defined and used to describe a form of wishful,self delusional fantasy.) The Cult of Dominionism, with it's seven-mountain theory of mind control, preys on those in our country most marginalized, disenfranchised and disenchanted with their lives. It soothes their wounded collective egos and boosts their self-esteem with hollow promises of prosperity and greatness, in the hope that they will leap off the cliff like so many lemmings at the polls when they vote. This is exactly why religion and government must be kept separate in order to benefit the majority in this country. We must not listen to the manipulation and hubris. To ignore what is currently happening in our country is to be ignorant of the historical lesson so painfully learned with the rise of the Third Reich and the resulting Holocaust. History repeats itself until the lesson is learned.

As the late Frank Zappa so poignantly and bluntly stated," There is a difference between kneeling down and bending over."

It all depends on which position you are willing assume. The Founding Fathers, as it turns out, preferred neither and to remain standing. Let's stand with them. It's ironic that freedom to practice the religion of choice for the individual depends on the maintenance of freedom from religion in our larger corporate life. And lest you believe all this political posturing is just so much smoke in the wind and will blow over eventually...it won't. This is not a fad; it's a flat out war declared on our Constitutional Rights, and it will not, unfortunately, end well for us if we don't pay attention to what is being said. Despite what social media would have us believe, this is not a reality show. It's our reality, and if we don't take control of it, then someone else will.

We will not be able to comfortably hide in the broom closet when the house is on fire, and that is what will happen if the Dominionists are allowed to win. They will come for us with their torches, and it will be the fabled Burning Times all over again. We will not be safe in our circles because there will be no place to safely cast a circle.Our physical safety will not be assured because any form of  acceptance we have gained for the Pagan Community in the last few decades will be forcibly taken and lost. Those of us who have struggled out of the broom closet will be endangered. And if you think it cannot happen, just ask a Jewish elder who lived through the Holocaust.

In this election, vote as if your life depended on it because it does. I don't want to just keep the monster under the bed, I want to kill it and throw it into the abyss. I am not giving up my rights, nor going willingly nor silently into the night. Are you?

The AntiChrist in the Mirror

So the Dominionists have now formerly declared spiritual warfare on the 'pagans'. As a matter of perspective, that's not just Pagan with a capital P, but Jews, Buddhists, Hindus-people of all faiths other than their own-including mainstream Christianity. (http://pncminnesota.wordpress.com/2011/09/14/dc40-to-pagans-we-release-the-power-of-blood-covered-light-over-you/) 

 Join the club- we're all being lumped together by the likes of Cindy Jacobs and her band of zombies.  Jacobs a self-proclaimed prophet and televangelist from Texas, has been quoted as saying abortion, adultery and homosexuality is caused by a curse of violence upon the land where it was previously inhabited by Native Americans  who “did blood sacrifice” and “were cannibals and they ate people.” Watching Jacobs speak reminds me a lot of the crazy guy we've all seen on the city bus; you know, the one everyone lets sit in the front alone because they're a little concerned at what he might do.The look of intense lunacy is unmistakable.

"We release the power of blood-covered light over you."

I guess what I find the most disturbing is that they did not indicate this was the blood Jesus shed for the forgiveness of sins according to Christian doctrine. I could take that in a much more sincere and logical manner. They did not connect it at all with the Blood of the Lamb of God. It is not the symbolic smearing of blood on the lintel to fool the Angel of Death and make him pass over the innocent. Neither was it said in the in the spirit of  Kyrie Eleison (Greek for " Lord have mercy"). It does not mention the power of Jesus as Light of the World. It does not mention Jesus at all. It does not mention the sacrifice of their god for the forgiveness of supposed sins. 

What it says is carefully worded and crystal clear: it is meant as a curse. 

If you cover a source containing light, it mutes the illumination and casts that light in darkness. And the darkness they project, for all intents and purposes, is not connected to the shadow self, but farther  beyond, from the lowest realm of existence where evil entity dwells. These are nothing less than malefic magickans intending harm through occult means.

 

How can I be certain of this? Because true Christians believe that they are capable of nothing unless they invoke the name of Jesus as the agent of Yahweh and the Dominionists have never named their God. Not once. I have never seen mention of a personal pronoun for their god. And I suspect the reason for that is because what they leave out of their very carefully worded missives is the truth they don't want the rest of us to figure out- that they are bunch of misfits who have been rejected by conventional Christianity. Mainstream Christianity has kicked them out of the fold and to the curb, and because of this they have become a cult of haters who have created their own god. Their version of God is an angry, malevolent tyrant who is vengeful upon the whole of mankind: it is a god created in their own likeness, yet they cling to the hem of the garment of the Holy One of the Bible to appear credible to the media and the mainstream. Remember the verse about being wary of evil coming in the guise of a  Messenger of Light? He's here-and his name is Dominion.

They are the antithesis of mainstream Christianity, and I personally believe they mirror the commonly held Biblical description of the Antichrist.  

"The devil . . . has their souls in his possession, and under his dominion" (Jonathan Edwards).
I find it interesting that nearly all the online dictionary sites use this quote among  the definitions for the word 'dominion'. This is the only religious reference; the other are political or geographic. There's just too much of coincidence here for me to ignore. They could have chosen to call themselves anything else other than Dominionists...and I suspect that's why we are now seeing new names for them, ones that sound ever-so-slightly more acceptable to the Judeo-Christian mainstream ear: ' New Apostolic Reformation', 'Christian Reconstructionism', 'Neo-Calvinism',' Christian Nationalism'. Could this be be from a growing self awareness that their acts are so shameful that they are now becoming ashamed of their own chosen identity?(http://noodleepoodlee.org/2011/08/22/onward-christian-soldiers-%E2%80%93-dominionists-revealed-as-wolves-in-lamb-of-gods-clothing/)


George Grant, (the former executive director of Coral Ridge Ministries, which has since changed its name to Truth in Action Ministries), seems to have made the most poignant and chilling statement about the movement: “But it is dominion we are after. Not just a voice ... It is dominion we are after. Not just equal time ... World conquest."(http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/08/14/dominionism-michele-bachmann-and-rick-perry-s-dangerous-religious-bond.html)


As to your curse of blood-covered light, I respond, not in kind, but with a message- in plain language you will understand: you have no power over me. Likewise, as you do not now, nor will you ever have power over this country, founded by those who rejected the dominion and tyranny of  those like you. As the founders and citizens of this land were once willing to fight then for their right to the freedom to worship the gods of their understanding- or choose to worship no gods at all- there are those who are willing still to defend that freedom today. We cherish the foundation of our Constitution, and the chosen symbols of our Union because they are sacred to us. That which is declared by men as  sacred in both heaven and earth for the well-being and dignity of all is sealed  forever in the holiness of the Universe by the spirit of humanity. I rebuke your maleficent words and deeds, bind them, and cast them aside like chaff in the wind. You will not prevail...Be gone!

Don't Know What We've Got Until It's Gone

 As a minister, I'm interested in trends affecting religion in general because it helps me stay in touch with current issues and better assist those I serve. The Pew Charitable Trust ( no pun or religious reference intended, that's the actual name) is a great resource because it gathers information scientifically and tracks it in a manner that's easily accessible, in very specific categories: Religion and politics( including voting and political campaigns), Religion and the law (such as the recent Ten Commandments controversy) ,domestic policy (gay marriage, faith-based initiatives) and world affairs.www.pewtrusts.org . Well worth it to take the time and read-and it will take time because there are so many things of interest once you tap into the site.

What the Pew Foundation fails to delve into in detail about cults and hate groups is usually covered by the Rick Ross Institute which investigates and amasses up-to-the-minute information www.rickross.com.
The site's introduction states that it's "...An Internet archive of information about cults, destructive cults, controversial groups and movements. The Rick A. Ross Institute of New Jersey (RI) is a nonprofit public resource with a vast archive that contains thousands of individual documents. RI on-line files include news stories, research papers, reports, court documents, book excerpts, personal testimonies and hundreds of links to additional relevant resources..."

Where the Pew Charitable Trust may be restrained, the Rick Ross Institute is not-which is a very good thing if you are keeping tabs on a particular cult or hate group. They sponsor the Cult News www.cultnews.net
( NOT affiliated with Cult Watch, which is a branch of the Church of Scientology, itself considered a cult by some in the mainstream). Clicking on the Cult News link will instantly take you to the latest information which is archived by date.

Today's offering included an excellent history of the Dominionist Movement and the New Apostolic Reformation at http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/08/14/dominionism-michele-bachmann-and-rick-perry-s-dangerous-religious-bond.html. I highly recommend you read it because it gives a concise history of the movement, it's connection with current politicians, and why it and they should be a genuine concern to every citizen of this country.

My personal interest in NAR began in 2005 through an article in Rolling Stone Magazine ( now archived at the Rick Ross site:  http://www.rickross.com/reference/fundamentalists/fund166.html. )
It sounded crazy to me at the time, and it still sounds crazy to me now, but there is a new tinge of danger to our Constitutional rights because the NAR has gained membership and momentum via Michelle Bachman, Rick Perry and the ever present Sarah Palin. In case you missed it, a Kenyan NAR affliated witch-hunter
( Yes, witch hunter) named Thomas Muthee visited Palin in her native Alaska and anointed her just prior to her Vice Presidential bid. Bishop Muthee is one of the movement's most prominent practitioners but has some how been overshadowed by the hoard of crazies who follow Cindy Jacobs.( If you haven't caught Jacobs in action, check You Tube).

In case you missed the ' Anointing of Sarah'- and most of the mainstream press did- here's a video of the action.  My initial opinion was that it had the usual bombastic, over-blow vibe of an ecclesiastical carnival, and I still find myself shaking my head in disbelief when  Muthee anoints Palin specifically against the 'power of witchcraft', because I have a difficult time taking such an injunction seriously. Who would be out to hex our favorite Stepford Politician? According to Muthee, practically everyone in the world who isn't a member of the crew on this Ship of Fools.

Recently some of the NAR's more bizarre claims were  highlighted by Rachel Maddow's  show on MSNBC. Among their 'factual' assertions is that the Japanese stock market collapsed because the Emperor had sex with a demonic sun goddess and that the Statue of Liberty is a demonic idol. Even Oprah failed to escape this proclamation of bat-shit crazy ( Thank you George Carlin for my favorite latest descriptive term) as she was called "...a forerunner to the Harlot movement", or as Maddow reframed it for clarity, " A harbinger of the Anti-Christ." Got that? Oprah is the point man for Satan.These aren't just a random sampling of the NAR's claims, this is their usual, everyday stuff. Public policy researcher Rachel Tabachnick has been studying the Dominionists for the last six years and contributed this opinion the day after the Maddow show aired,"These video clips  ( used by Maddow to illustrate her show) should receive much more national exposure, but they need to be viewed in context of the movement they represent."

At one point a very well know mainstream denomination, the Disciples of Christ, briefly took interest in NAR's form of theology, but upon deeper examination, dropped it like a hot potato...or a glowing coal from hell. To put distance between themselves and the NAR as a form of damage control, the DoC then released documents warning against the  ranting of Dominionism, calling it "... unscriptural triumphalism...", proclaiming against "...the problematic teaching that present-day offices of apostles and prophets should govern church ministry at all levels", and against "excessive fixation on Satan and demonic spirits". They also denounced the concept of generational curses, a term often hinted at by the Dominionists.

The previously mentioned Rachel Tabachnick submitted an article to the Talk 2 Action website last week defining the Dominionists' declaration of 'spiritual warfare' against the rest of us at http://www.talk2action.org/story/2010/8/6/135752/1937/which should be read and re-read until it is clearly understood that the NAR is much more than your usual a bunch of evangelistic nut jobs. They mean to be a serious threat, and they are gaining support  and credibility through their association with politicians who already hold office.

Their three pronged plan of spiritual warfare is uncomfortably close to malefic magickal practice because it not only includes the casting out of demons, but attacking practitioners of spirituality at every level, including Witches and Pagans, Freemasons, Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims...and other Christians and Jews, all of whom they consider an impediment to their gaining world domination through the confrontation and eventual overpowering  of current world religions,territorial principalities and governments and entire nations. They would systematically purge society of ethnic groups and entire communities...does this sound even vaguely familiar to you? It's not exactly an original idea. Check the history books under 'Former Paper-hanger Seeks to Dominate the World'.


Bishop Michael Reid, a Pentecostal evangelist in Britain associated with Oral Roberts University fell into disgrace through sex related scandal and quickly resigned his post and association with the International Communion of Charismatic Churches only to found his own Global Gospel Fellowship. Although seemingly possessing a morally unsavory character, he is undeniably an expert on the subject of  the type of theology espoused by the NAR and groups like them. His book Strategic Level Spiritual Warfare: A Modern Mythology? rips apart the theological claims of the NAR with Bible-based  laser-like focus:
"There is no foundation in the Old Testament for this practice ( strategic level spiritual warfare), nor any indication that the Devil has any intrinsic power or authority. Satan's only weapon is deception and his only sphere of influence that which God permits for His own eternal purposes." Later in the book he continues,
"In the New Testament, the picture is similar; there is no evidence to suggest that Christians are called to engage in an on-going conflict with spiritual forces in the cosmic realm. The Scripture is quite clear in its teaching that Christ defeated Satan completely at Calvary and that Christians have been freed from his power."

It's been awhile since I've used the rhetoric, but I seem to remember that the idea was that Christ had defeated Satan and cast him into the abyss. Having made that point, I now wonder why the Dominionists are challenging  the Biblical  holy writ they seem so keen at quoting as their platform. While I don't profess to be a  fabulous theologian, it does seem to me this thinking essentially usurps the power and kingship of the God they so ardently support, placing Him in the backseat while they take control of  driving the car.

In other words, the Dominionists are doing  precisely what they accuse the rest of the world of doing: putting their egos above, beyond and before the kingdom of their God. In theological terms, this is much more than a lack of humility, it is stealing the rightful kingship from God. In other words, instead of the total submission and surrender required by Christianity, they have rejected His dominion and made God in their own image.


I wrote in response to  an article by Covenant of the Goddess First Officer Peter Dybing recently:

"As a member of a local interfaith ministerial coalition, I've watched this cult gain strength and numbers since 2005. It's grown slowly, but it has been noticeable because it plays the 'Jesus' card to the poor and poorly educated through fear and lies.They're scaring people into joining them with the ridiculous message that 'true' Christianity is under attack, that "pagans and non-believers" are trying to take Christ out of Christmas, etc, and that a secular society is out to get them.

Of course, nothing could be father from the truth but that's a difficult message to get through to people who are already frightened and paranoid about the economy and convinced that the US government is out to enslave them.

The New Apostolic Reformation, and related groups with a variety of similar names, have been working the public like a carnival barker works a crowd through its hollow promises of prosperity and respectability for those who feel disenfranchised and marginalized. It's marriage to certain GOP 'stars' such as Perry, Bachmann and Palin has made it's malefic intention politically respectable in many quarters. The Dominionist projection upon a confused and fearful public that their version of religion is as American as apple pie will gain them success at the polls unless the clergy of this country unite- Pagans, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and mainstream Christianity must go into our pulpits and lecterns and counter this attack on civil liberties and human rights before it is too late."

That pretty much sums it up for me...and I'm not alone.

If you can't see the forest for the trees, it's time to cut some dead wood- pass this along to your local politicians. This is not just a Pagan issue. The NAR  is a dangerous threat to human rights and civil liberties for everyone. They are not mainstream Christians- and never were. They are a cult that wrap themselves in the American flag and the garment of Christ for respectability. Beware the deception, because if they're permitted to get control of the White House and Congress, they'll topple the government. Think that's an extremist view? Read between the lines: Their goal and their God is money and power.