Gods,
I love it when we're intellectual.
Lori B
Good job, grambadger. Very good point about the "low self esteem" - if the
body is a temple, it would be a 'sin' to find it lacking.
On Sat, Feb 26, 2011 at 2:40 AM,
grambadger@juno.com <
grambadger@juno.com>wrote:
>
>
> sin is certainly not christian exclusively. Some are quick to point out the
> "harm none" clause. Like so many Ideas that shaped the world, the idea of
> sin predates the advent of christ, it may be even older than the Code of
> Hammurabi.
>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_of_Hammurabi (scroll down)
> It maybe older than Jerico or Dwaraka, who can say? But any time a priest
> class appears, there sin shall be also.
>
> We in the Neo-pagan movement certainly believe in sin, except we have given
> it new names. We call it misogynism, homophobia, corporate greed, jealousy,
> judgementalism, low self esteem, and so forth.
> Venal sins include; littering and using words like "actress", or "fireman"
> in mixed company.
> The Mortal sins would include mining, drilling or farming with a profit
> motive. Actually just about any economic activity that isn't 501 might be a
> sin, case depending on how many jobs were created without leaving a carbon
> foot print.
>
> But the most of all, sin takes form of telling a pagan a truth that he
> wants to believe isn't so, for example: Let us tell ourselves that we do not
> believe in sin but let us also chastise rebuke and ostracize the number of
> who speak against our "beliefs" or behave in a way that isn't pagan enough
> for us, eh?
> I once read in a supplement to Green Egg which included excerpts from...
> (paste)
> American Council of Witches
>
> (Defunct)
>
> While several Pagan-wide ecumenical fellowships had formed in the early
> 1970s, there was a felt need by some NeoPagan witches for a similar group
> based in the Gardnerian witchcraft or Wiccan movement. Taking the lead in
> building such a structure was Carl Weschcke, owner of Llewellyn Publications
> and publisher of Gnostica magazine. In 1974 he called together a meeting of
> Wiccan leaders and members to be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota. At that
> meeting the council was formed and officers elected. Weschcke was chosen to
> head the council.
>
> Possibly the most important work of the council was the issuing of a
> lengthy statement, the "Principles of Wiccan Beliefs," which summarized the
> consensus of belief of those groups that had emerged out of the Gardnerian
> Witchcraft revival. It affirmed witchcraft as a nature-oriented religion
> based in rites attuned to the natural rhythms of life exemplified in the
> phases of the moon and the seasonal movement of the sun. Wiccans seek to
> live in harmony with nature. They believe the Creative Power of the universe
> is manifested in polarity, male and female, and they value sex as pleasure,
> the symbol and embodiment of life, to be utilized as a source of energy in
> worship and magical practice. The statement went on to emphasize the
> non-hierarchial nature of the Wiccan movement and their non-belief in
> "absolute evil" or the concept of "Satan" or the "devil."
>
> The council immediately ran into the fierce independency of Wiccans, many
> of whom saw any attempt to organize above the coven level as an attempt to
> control. While many gave tacit approval to the council, it was never able to
> function as it was designed. It survived into the early 1980s.
>
> (see also, and please notice their end notes)
> The American Council of Witches'
> "Principles of Wiccan Belief" (1974)
> Seventy three Witches founded the Council of American Witches in 1974. In
> April of that year, at the Spring Witchmeet in Minneapolis, MN, (1974-APR-11
> to 14), they adopted the following document. At the time, Wicca and other
> Neopagan religions were greatly misunderstood in North America. This
> document helped to set the record straight.
>
> The thirteen statements are necessarily vague. They do not precisely and
> completely match any one Witchcraft tradition. But they do provide an
> introduction to the full range of belief systems found within "Wicca."
>
> Its policy of including all persons, regardless of "sexual preference" --
> now referred to as sexual orientation -- was almost unheard of back in 1974.
>
> The Council disbanded later in 1974.
>
> ************
**********************
>
> In seeking to be inclusive, we do not wish to open ourselves to the
> destruction of our group by those on self-serving power trips, or to
> philosophies and practices contradictory to those principles. In seeking to
> exclude those whose ways are contradictory to ours, we do not want to deny
> participation with us to any who are sincerely interested in our knowledge
> and beliefs, regardless of race, color, sex, age, national or cultural
> origins, or sexual preference. 1
>
> 1. We practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life
> forces marked by the phases of the Moon and the seasonal Quarters and Cross
> Quarters.
>
> 2. We recognize that our intelligence gives us a unique responsibility
> towards our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in
> ecological balance offering fulfillment to life and consciousness within an
> evolutionary concept.
>
> 3. We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than that is apparent to the
> average person. Because it is far greater than ordinary it is sometimes
> called "supernatural", but we see it as lying within that which is naturally
> potential to all.
>
> 4. We conceive of the Creative Power in the universe as manifesting through
> polarity-as masculine and feminine-and that this same Creative Power lies in
> all people, and functions through the interaction of the masculine and
> feminine. We value neither above the other, knowing each to be supportive of
> the other. We value sex as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of life,
> and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practice and
> religious worship. 2
>
> 5. We recognize both outer and inner, or psychological, worlds -- sometimes
> known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconscious, Inner Planes, etc.
> -- and we see in the interaction of these two dimensions the basis for
> paranormal phenomena and magickal exercises. We neglect neither dimension
> for the other, seeing both as necessary for our fulfillment.
>
> 6. We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honor those who
> teach, respect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom, and
> acknowledge those who have courageously given of themselves in leadership.
>
> 7. We see religion, magick and wisdom-in-living as being united in the way
> one views the world and lives within it -- a world view and philosophy of
> life which we identify as Witchcraft, the Wiccan Way.
>
> 8. Calling oneself "Witch" does not make a Witch -- but neither does
> heredity itself, nor the collecting of titles, degrees and initiations. A
> Witch seeks to control the forces within her/himself that make life possible
> in order to live wisely and well without harm to others and in harmony with
> Nature. 3
>
> 9. We believe in the affirmation and fulfillment of life in a continuation
> of evolution and development of consciousness, that gives meaning to the
> Universe we know, and our personal role within it.
>
> 10. Our only animosity towards Christianity, or toward any other religion
> or philosophy of life, is to the extent that its institutions have claimed
> to be "the only way," and have sought to deny freedom to others and to
> suppress other ways of religious practice and belief.
>
> 11. As American Witches, we are not threatened by debates on the history of
> the Craft, the origins of various terms, the origins of various aspects of
> different traditions. We are concerned with our present and our future.
>
> 12. We do not accept the concept of absolute evil, nor do we worship any
> entity known as "Satan" or "the Devil", as defined by Christian tradition. 4
> We do not seek power through the suffering of others, nor do we accept that
> personal benefit can be derived only by denial to another.
>
> 13. We believe that we should seek within Nature that which is contributory
> to our health and well-being.
>
> horizontal rule
> Notes & comments:
>
> 1. The word "preference" in the term "sexual preference" is misleading.
> Homosexuals are sexually attracted only to the members of the same gender.
> bullet Male gays are attracted only to men; they don't merely prefer men to
> women.
> bullet Lesbians are attracted only to women; they don't merely prefer women
> to men.
>
> 2. On the other hand, bisexuals are attracted to both men and women; they
> may have a preferred gender. Except among conservative Christians, the term
> "sexual preference" is rarely used today. The term "sexual orientation" is a
> more precise term. It appears that in some recent copies of this document,
> the sentence about ritual sex has been omitted, perhaps because of its
> potential to be misunderstood by the public. Although the practice of ritual
> sex has a very long history, the concept is very strange and scary to most
> people.
> 3. Left out of the description of this principle is the use of magical
> powers to actively attempt to help and heal others.
> 4. The concept of Satan is found not only within Christianity, but in Islam
> and some other religious traditions.
>
> horizontal rule
>
> Portions copyright � 2000 to 2008 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
> Tolerance
> Originally assembled: 2001-FEB-26
> Latest update: 2008-JUN-10
> Editor: B.A. Robinson
> (end paste)
>
> __________________________________________________________
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--
Lori B
