Celestial Reflections

Around the Web, Around the World

How Do I Find My Authentic Self? Part two

Contemporary life is filled with so much promise of happiness and fulfillment. Yet many people find that, though they are doing all the right things, that passionate sense of meaning and purpose just isn't happening. Many others are so depressed or fatigued that they don't have the energy to care about what is authentic or what aligns with their heart. People, high and low functioning alike, feel a sense of alienation and betrayal that runs deep while the source remains a mystery. All of these experiences are symptoms of a dis-ease of the soul. "This is not an issue of good soul or bad soul," explains shaman Christina Pratt, "but of a distance from the soul and from connection to a community that cares that we are lost. As we reach out for help we are betrayed again and again by the failure in our culture to offer valid and effective paths back to our soul and its purpose for being here." Join members from the Last Mask Center Community as they interview Christina, asking what soul healing Last Mask Center offers for the individual, why these teachings work, and how our passionate expression of our soul's purpose is exactly the medicine the world needs at this time.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Just Energy Radio

Barbara Hand Clow & Philip Coppen

In the first hour Barbara Hand Clow joins Dr. Rita Louise on Just Energy Radio where they discuss the Planetary Mind.

Philip Coppens joins Dr. Rita in the second hour where he will discuss the Evidence Of Extra-terrestrials In Our Distant Past.

Barbara Hand Clow
Awakening The Planetary Mind
Barbara Hand Clow has been teaching the critical importance of time acceleration and the Mayan Calendar since May 2005. Drawing on the breakthrough work of Swedish biologist Carl Johan Calleman, author of The Mayan Calendar: Transformation of Consciousness, Barbara explains the significance of the Nine Underworlds, all of which concluded in October 2011.

Philip Coppen
Evidence Of Extra-terrestrials In Our Distant Past
Philip Coppens is an author and investigative journalist, ranging from the world of politics to ancient history and mystery. He co-hosts The Spirit Revolution radio show with his wife Kathleen McGowan and is a frequent contributor to NEXUS Magazine and Atlantis Rising Magazine. Since 1995, he has lectured extensively and has appeared in a number of television and DVD documentaries, including Ancient Aliens: The Series.

Fri, Jan 27, 2012 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Awake: Now What?

Chat with Julia Griffin, Author, Counselor, Alchemist, Astro

Welcome back Julia Griffin and her messages from the animals and the stars.

Julia Griffin is known nationally for her ability to enlighten others to find their True Self and become conscious co-creators through practical application of Universal Law.

Her teachings embody advanced concepts for those who want to deepen their understanding of co-creation and personal "reality”.

She is the originator of the “One True Self", a concept that encompasses the expression of our divinity in physical form and is the result of many years of devotion to spiritual practice.

She has a deep understanding of energetics based on extensive studies. She is an alchemist, astrologer, herbalist and Reiki Master. Julia has the ability to communicate with plants and animals. She lived with wolves for nine years, while developing her intuitive abilities. Julia is a contributing writer for Spirit of Maat.

Julia Griffin lives in the mountains of Northeast Georgia. She is graced by being the parent of two children, Vanessa and Griffin.

For more information go to http://www.onetrueself.com/

Sun, Jan 29, 2012 06:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awake

Huckabee, Mormons, and Blood Libel?

2012-01-23T12:18:00.000-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

I will give a dollar to the first person who can explain to me why Mike Huckabee made this bizarre allusion to blood libel in his discussion of Mitt Romney's Mormon problem... because I'm flabbergasted.

"I'd like to believe that's not the issue," Huckabee told Fox Business host Neil Cavuto. "Four years ago, I was accused of making it an issue. It wasn't for me then, it isn't for me now. I would no more not vote for someone because they were Mormon than I would vote for somebody like Al Gore because he's a Baptist, for heaven's sake. I think that's a ridiculous reason to vote or not vote for someone, unless they've done something that's so wacky — like mix the blood of little children together in a public ceremony."

If you, like Sarah Palin, are unfamiliar with the meaning of "blood libel," here's a quick tutorial. Once upon a time, Jews were rumored to kill little Christian children and use their blood to make their matzo. Such tales served as a justification for pogroms and other anti-Jewish violence. Okay, Jews were not the only religious minority ever accused of killing children to use their blood in rituals, but this is the first time I've ever heard this even tangentially tied to Mormonism.

So what on earth was Huckabee on about? He reached for a random example of weird religion and pulled out blood libel? Who does that?!

And why has there been near silence about this bizarre and extremely provocative statement? The only mention I've seen to date is this one in the Arkansas Times.

Graham Hancock on UFOs, Faeries, and Shamans

2012-01-23T01:46:00.002-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

One of the most fascinating theories explored in Graham Hancock's Supernatural is that there is a some correlation between UFO abductions, faerie lore, and shamanic experiences. In this lecture he discusses some of the overlapping elements and addresses the use of hallucinogens in shamanic practice which may date back to the paleolithic era. Brilliant!

Cafe

2012-01-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Leading by Council, Community by Heart with Phillip Scott

People around the world are calling out for new forms of leadership, economic exchange, and community. If we can tap the wisdom of our long ago ancestors we will find the wisdom of leadership by council, the energetic exchange based on a love for the future, and community built on engaging with the reality of the interconnectedness of all living things. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, and her guest, Phillip Scott, as they discus Phillip's experiences as a sitting chief leading through council and creating contemporary community based on indigenous wisdom. Philip Scott is the founder/director of Ancestral Voice, a center of healing and learning devoted to the preservation, application, and respectful dissemination of shamanic and Indigenous lifeways.He is a ceremonial Chief in the Lakota tradition, entrusted with sharing Indigenous wisdom and traditional healing practices with the contemporary world. These ancient teachings have much to offer us as we strive together as the human family to create systems of sacred economics and communities based on the exchange of the heart. Phillip joins us for the next show in the Society of Shamanic Practitioners sponsored interview series where we explore how contemporary shamans are meeting the challenge of their world today.

This week's guest:
Phillip Scott

Philip Scott is a ceremonial Chief in the Lakota tradition, entrusted with sharing Indigenous wisdom and traditional healing practices with the contemporary world - including the arenas of education, modern medicine, religion and business. In addition to directing and teaching the programs at Ancestral Voice - Center for Indigenous Lifeways in Northern California, which he founded in 1994, he maintains a private healing practice, conducts ceremonies, lectures, teaches intensives and leads pilgrimages worldwide.

Phillip/Tsunka Wakan Sapa is of Western Band Tsalagi (Cherokee) Ancestry. He has walked the Native Path for over thirty years, learning from traditional Medicine/Holy people, tribal Spiritual leaders, shamans and elders from various cultures. Philip has been sundancing for the past twenty consecutive years. His life and wisdom are featured in journals and books.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Divine Mystic (Gayle Powell) & The Year 2012 Astrologically

12pm PST --- Host MICHELE MEICHE and her guest co-host Paolo Doro share thier weekly Soul Insights, Meditations, Healing, Activation and Acceleration work for Soul Alignment. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? Call in for channeled guidance readings, and psychic mediumship readings. Michele is the author author of the DailyOM course to Learn how to align to your Soul's Purpose and create from your Soul Blueprint 2012: Navigate Through Your Greatest Soul Shift http://bit.ly/izvzS1 Call in and share your path of awakening and Soul Alignment. You may also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. The second portion of the show is Conversations with Awakened Guests. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. This week’s conversation is with Gayle Powell, Divine Mystic, is a professional intuitive astrologer and fine jewelry designer. Her approach to astrology is through the eyes of psychology, archetypes, spiritual growth and intuitive guidance. She has studied astrology for more than 30 years and uses it as an important vital tool for herself and clients. Her passions are helping others understand the challenges, tensions and magic alive in their natal charts through astrology readings along with making fine jewelry. Jewelry is her creative expression that allows her to design pieces from and for the soul that go beyond time and space. She embraces and dances to the healing journey of the soul and all it's expressions. This allows her to give back and help others understand their own unique magic in their charts. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. divinemystic.com

Wed, Jan 18, 2012 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

Robert Bauval & Anthony Sanchez

In the first hour, Robert Bauval joins Dr. Rita Louise on Just Energy Radio where he will be discussing his new book The Master Game.

Anthony Sanchez joins Dr. Rita in the second hour where they will delve into The True History Of Mankind: The Greys, The Annunaki & The Illuminati

Robert Bauval
The Master Game
Robert Bauval was born in Egypt in 1948. He studied construction engineering in England and subsequently worked in the Middle East and Africa till 1985. In 1994 he published The Orion Mystery, which was a No1 bestseller and now translated in more than 25 languages. He also wrote Keeper of Genesis (in 1996 with Graham Hancock), which was also a No.1 bestseller, and now in more than 20 languages. He lives in Spain with his wife Michele.

Anthony Sanchez
The True History Of Mankind: The Greys, The Annunaki & The Illuminati
He became interested in UFOs back in 1989, at the time Area 51 surfaced as a public phenomenon. Since 2000 he has researched the subject matter thoroughly employing various scientific methods and hands on approaches, thus compiling over 20 years worth of UFO related research data. Each year he is a regular visitor to the deserts of the American Southwest, visiting crash sites conducting interviews, and performing scientific field work. His work represents an unbiased and impartial reporting style ensuring he uncovers every aspect of every story.

Fri, Jan 20, 2012 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

More William Henry: 2012 and Sion

2012-01-16T14:28:00.001-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

In this very recent Red Ice Radio interview, William Henry discusses his increasing discomfort with some of the factually challenged hype around 2012. He is also becoming more outspoken in his challenge of conspiracy theories about "the illuminati" and the like.

The major takeaway from this interview is Henry's illustrative tale of how the "the gods" hid the great mysteries from humanity.

The body is absolutely the machine. And that's the diversion to me. Because if you're lookin' for a machine out here -- I mean everybody's lookin' for the Ark of the Covenant. Where's the Ark of the Covenant? Is it in Ethiopia? Or is it? Where is it? Well, according to this tradition, the Ark of the Covenant is your first three chakras. And the reason why archaeologists can never find the Ark of the Covenant is 'cause they're always sitting on it. I mean, that's the old joke isn't it? Oh, the gods got together. They have this secret. They wanna hide this secret from humanity. Should we bury it in the ocean? No. They'll create a submarine. They'll be able to find it. Well, let's put it high up on a mountain. Oh, no, no. They'll be able to climb that mountain. Well, we should bury it in the desert. No. Someone will find it. Oh, I know. Let's put it inside them. They'll never think to look there.

If there is a "dark side of the illuminati," the biggest psych op they're running is planting conspiracy theories that demonize the very information that could set us free. As Henry points out, we're told that there are secret technologies that only the elite have access to, when the human body itself is the technology. We've just forgotten how to use it. And the key symbols and archetypes that serve as a reminder of how to activate that technology -- such as the "all seeing eye" -- are inverted and recast as symbols of oppression.

Cafe

2012-01-10T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

How Do I Find My Authentic Self?

Contemporary life is filled with so much promise of happiness and fulfillment. Yet many people find that, though they are doing all the right things, that passionate sense of meaning and purpose just isn't happening. Many others are so depressed or fatigued that they don't have the energy to care about what is authentic or what aligns with their heart. People, high and low functioning alike, feel a sense of alienation and betrayal that runs deep while the source remains a mystery. All of these experiences are symptoms of a dis-ease of the soul. "This is not an issue of good soul or bad soul," explains shaman Christina Pratt, "but of a distance from the soul and from connection to a community that cares that we are lost. As we reach out for help we are betrayed again and again by the failure in our culture to offer valid and effective paths back to our soul and its purpose for being here." Join members from the Last Mask Center Community as they interview Christina, asking what soul healing Last Mask Center offers for the individual, why these teachings work, and how our passionate expression of our soul's purpose is exactly the medicine the world needs at this time.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Way of the Weirdo with Author Jason Gregory

12pm PST --- Host MICHELE MEICHE and her guest co-host Paolo Doro share thier weekly Soul Insights, Meditations, Healing, Activation and Acceleration work for Soul Alignment. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? Call in for channeled guidance readings, and psychic mediumship readings. Michele is the author author of the DailyOM course to Learn how to align to your Soul's Purpose and create from your Soul Blueprint 2012: Navigate Through Your Greatest Soul Shift http://bit.ly/izvzS1 Call in and share your path of awakening and Soul Alignment. You may also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. The second portion of the show is Conversations with Awakened Guests. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. This week’s conversation is with Jason Gregory for years has been a researcher in the fields of suppressed history, esoteric knowledge and the origins of humanity. Growing up his whole life within the comforts of the west, he chose to live a more humble existence in the land of Asia. Jason's life in the east naturally moved him into the exploration of consciousness and the world within. In this journey he was profoundly influenced by the philosophies of Vedanta, Buddhism, Hermeticism, depth psychology, the Occult and the way of the Tao which are all reflected into his writing. Bestowed with this knowledge Jason continues to focus his energy on one's self-realization in the spirit of evolving creation while dismantling the illusion of separation.
http://oneworldwithin.com/
http://www.youtube.com/OneWorldWithin
http://twitter.com/oneworldwithin
http://au.linkedin.com/in/oneworldwithin

Wed, Jan 11, 2012 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

Reclaiming Democracy & Solomon's Temple

Ken Godon joins Dr. Rita Louise in the first hour of Just Energy Radio where he will discuss how we can reclaim democracy in the United States and have the world we want.
In the second hour, we will be joined by James Wasserman where we will discuss Solomon'sTemple, Ancient Israel and Secret Societie.

Ken Gordon
Reclaiming Democracy and The World WE Want
Ken grew up in Detroit and studied Econmics and Political Science at the University of Michigan. He served as Colorado Public Defender, representing minorities and low-income clients. Ken then was in private law practice for 14 years and in 1992 was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives. “I ran for office because I wanted to help protect the environment,” Ken explained, and also made campaign finance reform a major part of his campaigning. He has never taken a PAC contribution. Ken has served as Minority Leader in the House, Senate Judiciary Chair and now, as Majority Leader.

James Wasserman
Solomon'sTemple: Ancient Israel, Secret Societies
James Wasserman has been a lifelong student of religion and spiritual development. In 1973, he began working at Samuel Weiser, the world's then-largest bookstore and publishing company specializing in esoteric literature. In 1977, he left to found Studio 31, which continues to offer full-service book production and graphic design services.

Fri, Jan 13, 2012 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

William Henry Talks Sun Worship, 2012, and More

2012-01-10T01:12:00.000-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

I have not been and will not be doing much blogging until I get some computer problems resolved. Don't ask. It's been a rough few months on many levels. But, in the meantime, I've managed to catch some good new YouTube vids and this Coast to Coast interview from November is an excellent reminder of how much more advanced the ancients were than our current tech dependent civilization. George Noory's interview with William Henry begins a little before the 40 minute mark.

Cafe

2012-01-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

Corinne Bogden Original

Around the Web, Around the World

How Do I Begin Shamanic Healing?

How do you begin shamanic healing? And perhaps more importantly why would you start down the path of shamanic healing? Contemporary people begin to explore the path of shamanic healing usually because nothing else is working or they simply know something is missing. There is a growing frustration with the unfulfilled promises of pharmaceutical and surgical medicine and a growing irritation with the vacuous "you get what you need" response to our reasonable desire for efficacy and accountability when turning to alternative care. Shamanic healing with an initiated shaman offers direct access to the source of the inner dissonance that we experience as illness or disease in our mental, physical or spiritual lives. Often shamanism offers a direct response to our pain and suffering, like a soul retrieval or extraction, in just one session. Just as often the source of the problem is a bit more than we asked for, like ancestral healing and a strong need for a real personal daily practice. Nonetheless, the path forward is clear, practical, and doable. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she shares her experience and expertise to answer your question, "How do I begin shamanic healing? What is reasonable to expect from a shaman and what will they expect from me?"

Tuesday, January 3, 2012 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Cafe

2011-12-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanism and the Renewal of Spirit

Winter is the season of The Return. It is the time to rest and slow down. For most just slowing down is the challenge. We think all we need is to catch up on some sleep or restart our daily meditation practice. For others chronic exhaustion and fatigue is the challenge and we get caught up in the actions of healing. They are each a side of the coin of imbalance that is so common in the lives of contemporary people. Both require the same journey into solitude to remedy the deeper causes of this natural imbalance in our lives. However, to just rest or slow down or try a cleansing diet again are not The Return, explains host and shaman, Christina Pratt. They only hold the space for it. The Return is a Taoist term for the natural turning inward, a natural call to leave the day-to-day patterns, expectations, habits and small addictions and to remember. We are called to remember the path back to our mountain and to connect again to why we are here in this life at this time. And we are called to participate in the kinds of actions that open our hearts, allowing true emotions to flow and fill the lake that lies at the base of the mountain. In this way we go into the source of our deepest dreaming, realign with our heart's path, and restore the resources we will call on throughout the year to come. Join us this week as we explore the renewal of Spirit.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Just Energy Radio

2012: The Year Ahead
Dr. Rita Louise is joined on Just Energy Radio by astrologers Michele Avanti & Debra Clement where we will have an astrology double header.

Michele Avanti
Michele Avanti is a published certified planetary systems analyst, consulting metaphysician and ordained minister. Since 1972, she has taught and consulted in many areas of metaphysics. Michele has lectured and given more than 15,000 live consultations on radio, television, and at seminars and workshops across America. Her columns have appeared in newspapers and magazines since 1985.

Debra Clement
Debra Clement is an internationally known astrologer with more than 20 years of professional experience counseling clients from all walks of life. Recognized for her insight into the birth chart and for the accuracy of her predictive work, she believes that her purpose as an astrologer is to help people make the most of their potential and their planetary cycles, especially the ones that will test and challenge them.

Fri, Dec 30, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

The Invincible Sun of Winter Solstice

2011-12-22T11:41:00.000-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Wishing all a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Yule, Raucous Saturnalia, and all other celebrations of the enduring of the light at Midwinter.

The Shortest Day
Susan Cooper

So the shortest day came, and the year died,
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive,
And when the new year's sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, reveling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us - Listen!!
All the long echoes sing the same delight,
This shortest day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, fest, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
Welcome Yule!!

Midwinter
Tomas Tranströmer translated by Robert Bly

A blue glow
Streams out from my clothes.
Midwinter.
A clinking tambour made of ice.
I close my eyes.
Somewhere there’s a silent world
And there is an opening
Where the dead
Are smuggled over the border.

An Old Man's Winter Night
Robert Frost

All out of doors looked darkly in at him
Through the thin frost, almost in separate stars,
That gathers on the pane in empty rooms.
What kept his eyes from giving back the gaze
Was the lamp tilted near them in his hand.
What kept him from remembering what it was
That brought him to that creaking room was age.
He stood with barrels round him -- at a loss.
And having scared the cellar under him
In clomping there, he scared it once again
In clomping off; -- and scared the outer night,
Which has its sounds, familiar, like the roar
Of trees and crack of branches, common things,
But nothing so like beating on a box.
A light he was to no one but himself
Where now he sat, concerned with he knew what,
A quiet light, and then not even that.
He consigned to the moon, such as she was,
So late-arising, to the broken moon
As better than the sun in any case
For such a charge, his snow upon the roof,
His icicles along the wall to keep;
And slept. The log that shifted with a jolt
Once in the stove, disturbed him and he shifted,
And eased his heavy breathing, but still slept.
One aged man -- one man -- can't keep a house,
A farm, a countryside, or if he can,
It's thus he does it of a winter night.

Midwinter
Sophie Jewett

All night I dreamed of roses,
    Wild tangle by the sea,
And shadowy garden closes.
    Dream-led I met with thee.

Around thee swayed the roses,
    Beyond thee sang the sea;
The shadowy garden closes
    Were Paradise to me.

O Love, ’mid the dream-roses
    Abide to heal, to save!
The world that day discloses
    Narrows to one white grave.

Cafe

2011-12-20T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Bringing Health and Well-being to Children

"Let yourself imagine and experience the certainty that ADD and ADHD, birth trauma, incomplete bonding, sensory overload, dyslexia, and autism, labeled strenuous and unalterable by the mainstream society, can be immediately and beautifully transformed forever." This is the reality accessed through the work of Jon Bredal, MA. Jon joins host and shaman, Christina Pratt to discuss his innovative, joyful, and effective healing process with children and families. His work integrates decades of art and teaching, deep exploration into kinesiology and BrainGym, and the influence of his experience with many North American indigenous peoples. Jon explains that, "These difficulties (for children) are primarily caused by incomplete infant developmental patterns. The methods and activities in this process work to eliminate the underlying causes through a combination of joyful, spontaneous play, integrative movement, repatternings, heart activities, as well as developmental/rocking movement." Jon is our next guest in the Society of Shamanic Practitioners sponsored interview series. In this show we explore how we could be more effective in our healing with children facing the challenges of ADD, dyslexia, anxiety, depression, sensory disorders, learning blocks, birth traumas, incomplete infant bonding, autism, and those other experiences children suffer for us that we can't diagnose or explain away.

This week's guest:
Jon Bredal, MA

Jon spent twenty years in the classroom teaching, coaching, and counseling middle and high school students in Minnesota, Colorado, Texas, and for the Navajo Nation in New Mexico. Midlife sparked a period of intense spiritual seeking for Jon, bringing him to discover kinesiology and Brain Gym, then the best known and most powerful integrative movement method of the time. He studied this craft and over the years has blended his experience, insight, and exposure to other modalities into his own unique method of healing which assists people of all ages in developing skills that lead to inner peace and personal power.

Jon Bredal's committed contributions to the field of child development, family systems healing, and natural play are unparalleled at this time. Through a combination of reflex activations, joyful play, and spontaneous movement, Jon makes healing for children and bonding for families deeply fun and deeply transformative-like no one else. Jon has helped children heal some of the most challenging difficulties facing them today: ADD, dyslexia, anxiety, depression, sensory disorders, and autism, among others. His love of North American indigenous culture continues to inform the work he does with the Six Nations, Toquat, and Okanagan Nations. He has led workshops, given courses and consulted in over forty schools, community centers and treatment facilities throughout Europe and the Americas, where he now regularly teaches. Father of three and grandfather to seven children, Jon lives in the mountains near Wolf Creek, Oregon.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Metaphysican, & Spiritual Astrologer Robert Wilkinson
12pm PT --- Host MICHELE MEICHE and her guest co-host Paolo Doro share thier weekly Soul Insights, Meditations, Healing, Activation and Acceleration work for Soul Alignment. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? Call in for channeled guidance readings, and psychic mediumship readings. Call in and share your path of awakening and Soul Alignment. You may also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. The second portion of the show is Conversations with Awakened Guests. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. This week’s conversation is with Robert Wilkinson. He has been an internationally known futurist, metaphysican, and spiritual astrologer, spiritual counselor, and strategic analyst for over 35 years.Using Astrology, Spirit, and Archetypes to move and groove through the intersections of fate and free will. He has one of the largest astrological/metaphysical blogs in the world with visitors from over 130 countries and 6.5 million page views in 6 years. www.aquariuspapers.com

Wed, Dec 21, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

The Gospels: Fact or Speculation & Jesus: The Missing Years
Dr. Rita Louise is joined by Gary Greenberg and Frank Huguenard to discuss the life and times of Jesus.

Gary Greenberg
The Gospels: Fact, Fiction or Speculation
A New York City criminal defense attorney and President of the Biblical Archaeology Society of New York (BASNY), Greenberg has long been interested in the intersection between ancient myth and ancient history, especially as it applies to Egyptian influences on the writing of the bible. The problem, he says, is figuring out how to separate the myth from the history. Gary is the author of The Moses Mystery, The Bible Myth, 101 Myths of the Bible and Manetho: A Study in Egyptian Chronology.

Frank Huguenard
Jesus: The Missing Years
Frank wanted to create a documentary on the topic that filled what he felt was a void. He wanted to take a spiritual route and to focus on comparing the teaching of Jesus with Hinduism. Franks documentary Beyond Belief explores compelling new evidence that the eighteen 'missing' years of Jesus' life, unaccounted for in The Bible , were spent with Rishi's, Yogi's and Swami's of India, and also focuses on significant evidence that Jesus lived to be around 100 years old and is buried in Kashmir.

Fri, Dec 23, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Michigan Christian Notices Christmas is Pagan

2011-12-19T12:10:00.000-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Christmas lovers in a quiet Michigan neighborhood were shocked to find a note appended to their mailboxes denouncing their holiday light displays. It began:

Hi neighbor
You have a nice display of lights and this love note explains how that pagan tradition began. For thousands of years Sun worshippers have celebrated the Sungod's rebirth after solstice. Pagans honored the birth of the "invincible sun" with a "festival of lights." They used big bonfires, pigs fat tallow candle lights, and today, billions of colored christmass [sic] lights. Rome's seven-day December Saturnalia was religious revelry with decadent drunkenness outrageous adultery and giving Saturn's nativity birth gifts to the children. The Norseman's yuletide solstice carousal used sexual soliciting mistletoe, Yule-log bonfire, and decorated evergreen wreaths and tree worship. None of this honors the life of Yeshua the Christ.

But for the invective, that could have been written by a pagan. (I particularly like the way Sungod and Saturnalia are capitalized but "christmass" isn't.) In fact, last year I offered a bit of history regarding the pre-Christian roots of bringing evergreens into the home during solstice and the Bible's condemnation of it. But light-displaying Michiganders scoff at such litmus tests of their Christianity and do not take kindly to the grievous insult of being called "pagan."

Danette Hoekman, who received the letter, said: 'I laughed because I think it’s ridiculous that people would get upset over Christmas lights.'

. . .

Miss Hoekman added: 'It's a sin to judge other people and to tell people that if they have Christmas lights they are Pagans.

'We're not Pagans, we go to church regularly, my kids go to the Christian school.'

The mash note writer isn't the only one calling Hoekman's faith into question. George Conger at Get Religion points out that Christianity and single motherhood are oxymoronic and strangely conflates the whole thing with lesbianism.

A “Miss” whose kids go to the Christian school? That would be news.

But facts and George Conger don't seem to be well acquainted. Conger also takes both the Michigan do-gooder and the Huffington Post to task for claiming that it was Christians who coopted the pagan holiday when it was the Roman Emperor Aurelian.

This bit of conventional wisdom does not stand up to scrutiny. It will disappoint the crank of Hudsonville no doubt, but he (and the Huffington Post) have it backwards. As Prof. William Tighe wrote in Touchstone magazine a few years ago:
… the Emperor Aurelian instituted on that date [Dec 25] in the year 274 was not only an effort to use the winter solstice to make a political statement, but also almost certainly an attempt to give a pagan significance to a date already of importance to Roman Christians.
In other words, it was the pagan Emporer Aurelian who sought to paganize the Dec 25 holiday of the Christians, not the Christians who sought to Christianize the Roman pagan holiday.

Never mind that Christianity owes ancient Rome and its emperors for most of the Christian foundations we hold dear. It was the pagan Emperor Constantine who formally legalized Christianity and organized the Council of Nicaea which was responsible for hammering out Christian doctrine and assembling the Bible that fundamentalists today consider the irrefutable word of God. Constantine was only baptized into the Christian faith on his deathbed after a living a thoroughly debauched, wife-murdering, life.

More to the point, "the crank" doesn't appear to have said anything at all about who it was who so thoroughly enmeshed Christmas with paganism. But that enmeshment cannot be reasonably disputed.

The Wild Hunt has more on the link between Saturnalia and Christmas.

So get out your statue of Saturn, or if you don’t have one, I suppose a statue of Santa will have to do, place him on your best couch, and let the merriment begin!
“According to the Augustan historian Livy, following the sacrifice the Roman senate arranged a lectisternium, a ritual of Greek origin that typically involved placing the deity’s image on a sumptuous couch, as if he were present and actively participating in the festivities. A public banquet was held (convivium publicum), and afterward the shouting of io Saturnalia began, originally only on the single day.”

Harmonic Indigence

2011-12-14T16:46:00.000-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Well, we knew this was coming. James Ray's lawyers have washed their hands of the Harmonic Wealth author who hasn't been able to pay them for some time. It's funny. I was opening some of the newly posted court documents and before I even read this one, my eyes lit on Brad Brian's name at the top of the letter head and felt a rush of relief. I had this overwhelming sense that he felt done with James Ray. Then I read it. He is done with James Ray. As are his legal eagles Luis Li and Truc Do and all the other nameless, faceless attorneys and paralegals at Munger, Tolles, & Olson who have put in thousands of billable hours on this case. For all Li's grandstanding about how they're going to appeal this, that, and the other thing, his firm is handing Ray off to the public defender's office.

James Arthur Ray hopes to rely on a court-appointed attorney to further the appeal of his negligent homicide conviction, according to a request filed Monday.

. . .

If his request is granted, he will likely receive an in-house or contract attorney through the county public defender's office.

So the tax payers of Arizona will have the pay the legal bills of a man who until very recently claimed be a millionaire on his way to be being a billionaire. He'll either be represented by some overworked public defender or the state will contract it out. Could that be to Tom Kelly? Maybe. I can't help noticing that Kelly has been the one signing off on all the recent documents, such as his notice of appeal.

Meanwhile, Sheila Polk is preparing to appeal a number of the judge's rulings in the case, which could potentially negate many of the defense's arguments for appeal.

Also on Monday, Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk filed a notice of cross-appeal that outlines her intention to do more than merely defend allegations in the upcoming appeal of Ray's conviction, sentence, restitution and fines.

. . .

In the cross-appeal notice, Polk lists, without elaboration at this point, several areas of legal dispute the state intends to argue when the case goes to the Arizona Court of Appeals. All stem from rulings by Judge Warren Darrow that went against the prosecution.

Her notice of appeal is here. Among the decisions she's appealing is Judge Darrow's decision to run the sentences concurrently, which apparently means she's seeking the longer, six-year sentence.

Arizona prosecutors will seek a longer prison sentence for self-help promoter James Arthur Ray.

He was given two years for causing the deaths of James Shore of Milwaukee and two others in a 2009 sweat-lodge ceremony.

I didn't know you could do that. Huh.

Cafe

2011-12-13T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanism, Winter Blues and your Purpose

The "Winter Blues" viewed from a shamanic perspective are misdiagnosed. Through the eyes of the shaman the Winter Blues are not so much about less light, but about the fact that we don't respond to the shorter days by turning off the TV, closing the email, unplugging, and going deeply within. The Winter Blues aren't so much about depression as they are about the feeling of your soul's purpose refusing to stay pressed down. The Winter Blues are actually your soul's purpose saying, "renew your connection to me now or the path will grow too dim to find me." Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores the winter path to Darkness and the renewal, restoration and rejuvenation of an intimate relationship with your soul's purpose. The activities that restore those parts of our self that move on a soul level, like dreams, journeys, mediations, and sleep, all happen in the dark. The increase in darkness each day is an invitation to visit Darkness. It is a time to ask for the threads of connection to the soul that have grown thin through the over activity, imbalance, and stress of the year to be renewed. It is a time to clear the calendar and be simple, in solitude, and renew your commitment to live from the inside out, finding again the voice of your heart and allowing it to move you. When we surrender our Winter Blues to The Dark we stoke the fire that will rise again in springtime in the rejuvenation of passion for our soul's purpose.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Dr. Linda Christensen Show

Shamanism and Ancestral Ties w/ Christina Pratt

"We are the dreams of our Ancestors..." and they are also our nightmares. All that remains unresolved in your ancestral line, the violence, injustice, and suffering, has impact on your life today. It is the job of the ancestors to remember and the job of the living to change and heal. You and your extended family are the only means by which the ancestors can heal and they are using you to heal in this moment. By healing the ancestral line with intention you can free your health and well-being for your own life. This freedom allows you to reconnect with your soul's unique purpose.

Join Dr. Linda Christiansen as she interviews shamanic healer Christina Pratt about ancestral healing, the ties between the living and the dead, and how we can create health and well-being for the ancestors, the living, and the descendants who are coming.

Tuesday, December 13 at 6:00 PM PST
in Seattle - Listen live on 106.9 FM radio
over the web from any/everywhere at www.ContactTalkRadio.com

Astrologer Brian Evis and his predictions for 2012

12pm PST --- Host MICHELE MEICHE and her guest co-host Paolo Doro share thier weekly Soul Insights, Meditations, Healing, Activation and Acceleration work for Soul Alignment. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? Call in for channeled guidance readings, and psychic mediumship readings. Call in and share your path of awakening and Soul Alignment. You may also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. The second portion of the show is Conversations with Awakened Guests. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. This week’s conversation is with Brian Evis is a Certified Professional Astrologer by the International Society of Astrological research,(ISAR), one of the top two world-wide astrological organizations. Since the early 80's Brian has provided astrological counseling and consulting services for thousands of clients, including millionaires, major celebrities, academy award winning film makers, and successful, and soon to be successful average people. He has been lecturing at professional astrological seminars for the past dozen years and was on this show in October 2008 where he successfully predicted that Obama would become president.

Wed, Dec 14, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

Stephen Mehler: The People Of The Great Pyramid

Stephen Mehler joins Dr. Rita Louise to discuss his work on the Great Pyramids of Egypt.
About Stephen Mehler
Stephen Mehler's fascination with ancient Egypt , which began at the age of eight, has guided his education and spiritual work all his life. Since 1992, Mehler has worked with and been a student of, Egyptian-born Egyptologist and indigenous wisdom keeper, Abd'El Hakim Awyan, popularly known as Hakim. Stephen has written two books, The Land of Osiris and From Light Into Darkness: The Evolution Of Religion In Ancient Egypt.

Fri, Dec 16, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Awake: Now What?

Meet Vipin Mehta, Teacher, Author, Counsellor

Vipin Mehta, P.E., M.A.P.A. was born in India and raised in Mumbai during the Independence Movement inspired through Mahatma Gandhi’s principles of non-violence. Shortly after migrating to the United States in 1969 with only a few dollars to his name, Vipin became a licensed Professional Engineer and established MEHTA Engineering, which has since evolved into a 30-year engineering and construction management firm for roads, bridges, airports, and other infrastructure related projects. After arriving to the U.S., Vipin also received a Masters in Public Affairs from Northern Illinois University and has since played a very active role in local, state and national politics and has been addressed as the Metaphysical and Spiritual Counselor to many politicians – both Democrat and Republican.

Vipin has pursued Metaphysical and Spiritual learning by Spiritual Masters and Mystics from all over the world. His interest in Metaphysics began in 1947, where he first learned from Mahatma Gandhi’s teachings. Other Spiritual Masters include the Indian mystics J. Krishnamurti, Rabindranath Tagore (Nobel Prize winner in 1912) and Rajneesh/Osho along with western spiritualists Edgar Cayce, Ruth Montgomery, and other modern mystics. Vipin has studied many Metaphysical and Spiritual scriptures including Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Jainism, Sikhism, Zen, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Sufi and others through which he taught “Religion of Man” and other courses at local Colleges and gave lectures on Metaphysics across the U.S. and India.

Vipin now lives in Orlando, Florida with his wife Hansa and has two children Ravé and Radha.

For more information go to http://vipinmehta.com/

Sun, Dec 18, 2011 06:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awake

Cafe

2011-12-06T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanism, Abandonment and Fulfillment

Fear of abandonment, separation, or banishment is one of the great life hobblers, never quite stopping us from moving toward health, vitality, and our soul's purpose, but effectively keeping us lame and unable to satisfy this core life journey toward our self. The irony in the fear of abandonment we carry from the past is that it inspires us to abandon our selves again and again in present time. "The unique logic of shamanic work allows us to slice open the debilitating infinite loop of abandonment and dig out the core," explains host and shaman, Christina Pratt. "At the core of abandonment lies the seed to fulfillment and deep intimacy with self." However to harvest that seed we must be willing to "return to the scene of the crime" as it is carried in our bodies, release the memory, sense of debt and remorse, and grasp the True Value that we hid there. With the help of our spirit guides and our own True Value firmly in our grasp, we can return to present time and come to know what mattered to us so much as a child that we would risk abandonment to move toward it. When we renew our relationship with what really matters to our heart, our True Value, we inspire our natural movement toward alignment with self and the richly satisfying fulfillment of our soul's purpose.

Tuesday, December 5, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Shekina Rose Harmonic Vocalist in the Language of Light

12pm PST --- Host MICHELE MEICHE and her guest co-host Paolo Doro share thier weekly Soul Insights, Meditations, Healing, Activation and Acceleration work for Soul Alignment. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? Call in for channeled guidance readings, and psychic mediumship readings. Call in and share your path of awakening and Soul Alignment. You may also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. The second portion of the show is Conversations with Awakened Guests. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. This week’s conversation is Shekina Rose is a Priestess of Light, Divine Messenger and Harmonic Vocalist who sings, tones and chants in the 528Hz Miracle, Love and DNA repair frequencies of the Language of Light. that activates your "God Heart DNA Christ self .She is the Channel of the Blue Ray Transmissions, and a very powerful yet gentle divine healer, Blue Ray, intuitive, empath, clairaudient, claircognizant, clairsentient, clairvoyant, who facilitates Privates Sessions, Soul Readings, Divine Activations and Sound Performances. www.shekinaspeaks.com

Wed, Dec 7, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

James van Praagh & Nick Redfern

James van Praagh
What Would It Be Like If You Grew Up In Heaven
His very natural, easy-going style would lead you to believe that James Van Praagh is chatting with a friend on the telephone, not communicating messages from the grave. James is a survival evidence medium, meaning that he is able to bridge the gap between two planes of existence, that of the living and that of the dead, by providing evidential proof of life after death via detailed messages.

Nick Redfern
Who Are The Real Men In Black
Originally from England, Nick Redfernis the author of many books on UFOs, aliens, Bigfoot, werewolves, the Loch Ness Monster, paranormal phenomena, conspiracy-theories, psychic powers, and Hollywood scandal. His titles include the following: Contactees; Memoirs of a Monster Hunter; A Covert Agenda; Strange Secrets; Celebrity Secrets; Body Snatchers in the Desert; and Man-Monkey to name a few.

Fri, Dec 9, 2011 03:00PM CT

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Awake: Now What?

Meet Dr. Verna Bugg, Registered Nurse, Ordained Minister

I have known for many years that my purpose was to help others improve their lives.
As a child born in Barbados in poverty, with few opportunities for success at that time, I was willing to share my limited resources with others. Somehow I knew that I would be okay.

During the course of my life I have overcome extreme adversity, and today I am able to help you do the same and guide you on your path to success. So if you are ready to move beyond your current reality, I am here to help.

My Experience as a Registered Nurse, an Ordained Minister, and Spiritual Coach has equipped me with the background and expertise to help others change the course of their lives.

My products and services are created to help you transform every area of life: spirit, mind, emotions, relationships, and finances.

As your Life Reinvention Specialist, I will show you how to utilize various techniques that will bring about the change you want to experience.

I am here as a facilitator to help you discover what is already in you and offer support and encouragement along the way.

My definition of transformation is "a significant change in thoughts, emotions, beliefs and actions that result in positive, life enhancing outcomes in any area of life."

There is being at peace with yourself and others. There is power in letting go and trusting the divine spark within you to be fanned to a flame, as it burns more brightly so that you can live your best life yet.

I am privileged and honored to be part of your life transformation process, and look forward to celebrating with you along the way.

For more information go to www.powerintransformation.com

Sun, Dec 11, 2011 6:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awake

Sean Stephenson: Diploma Mill Yoda -- UPDATED

2011-12-02T15:30:00.001-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

It was probably apparent in my previous post that I really took a scunner to Sean Stephenson. Aside from finding him appallingly arrogant, he struck me as something of a phony. When I first looked at his website, I thought it was a little sketchy on the details of his education, but I didn't want to go down that particular rabbit hole. His testimony constituted a small part of a very long post. My husband, however, couldn't let it go. It probably has something to do with the fact that he holds a doctorate from a legitimate institution, but he's a little touchy when it comes to people arrogating to themselves the title of Doctor without the proper educational credentials. So he started digging and I did more digging and we found, not to any great surprise, that there are some rather serious issues when it comes to Stephenson's academic background. No wonder he was so evasive when Sheila Polk questioned him on the importance of having the proper credentials if you're going to tinker around with someone's mind.

In his bio, Stephenson lists his undergraduate degree as being from DePaul University but he doesn't say what it's in. According to a very uncritical Wikipedia entry, it's in political science. So far so good. And DePaul's a fine school. But a degree in political science doesn't qualify anyone to counsel people, something he felt called upon to do in his work as a motivational speaker. In his quest to help people with their emotional problems, he pursued higher education... in hypnosis and NLP. I have not been able to find reference to any education in psychology.

For his hypnosis and NLP training he went to Bennett/Stellar University, an alternative healing school, which claims to be accredited but does not say who it is accredited by. According to this, it's accredited by the International Coaching Society. It is not listed in the government database of accredited institutions.

But it's his doctoral degree that really looks dodgy. In his bio, he claims to have received his doctorate from Kona University, previously American Pacific University. His Wikipedia entry goes into a little more detail. He began his doctoral program in clinical hypnosis in 2004 when it was American Pacific University. It doesn't say when he completed it. As explained in a footnote, American Pacific University was unaccredited, but when it became Kona University in 2009, it gained accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. I confirmed this through the government database. It is accredited, although it does not have regional accreditation which is really the gold standard of accreditation.

DETC is a national accreditor and should not be confused with regional accreditation. The vast majority of all schools in the United States are regionally accredited from elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, and higher education institutions. Some regionally accredited schools accept and recognize the accreditations of nationally accredited schools, but others do not.^[4]^[5] Michael Lambert, Chief Executive Officer of the DETC, says that about 70% of DETC graduates are successful in transferring credits. He also asserts that the "vast majority" of employers do view DETC as being equal, since DETC institutions are accepted for the tuition reimbursement programs in most corporations today.^[6]

The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) offered an opinion in a November 2000 statement that, "Institutions and accreditors need to assure that transfer decisions are not made solely on the source of accreditation of a sending program or institution."^[7] The Higher Education Transfer Alliance (HETA) online directory^[8] was designed by DETC to help students and the public find educational institutions with transfer practices consistent with criteria articulated by CHEA in its Statement to the Community: Transfer and Public Interest.^[9] According to CHEA, institutions that are members of HETA have agreed that their "transfer decisions are not made solely on the basis of the accredited status of a sending institution and that the institution has agreed at least to consider transfer requests from other institutions."^[8] The HETA directory provides links to member institutions so that students and others can review a specific institution's transfer policies and practice.

While it's not entirely clear whether Stephenson received his doctorate from the accredited Kona or the unaccredited American Pacific University he started with, the distinction is meaningless for several reasons. The first is that Kona doesn't offer a doctoral degree. It only offers a masters degree in transpersonal psychology which is not the degree Stephenson holds. The second is that the hypnotherapy program originally offered by American Pacific was terminated in 2008. (More here retrieved by the Wayback Machine.) The third, and probably most important, is that there is no such thing as a doctorate in clinical hypnotherapy in the United States.

So Stephenson studied hypnosis and NLP at an unaccredited school that claims to be accredited. He got his doctorate in something you can't legally hold a doctorate in from a university that may or may not have been accredited at the time he graduated, but was never accredited to give that fictitious degree. Note that there is no mention of his holding a masters degree which is a prerequisite to a doctoral degree.

All of this somehow qualified him for "Board Certification in Clinical Psychotherapy," despite having no discernible education in psychology. But that certification comes from the Association of Integrative Psychology. This prestigious institution has been around since all of 2005. It certifies practitioners, not of psychology, but of hypnotherapy, NLP, or some trademarked entity they call Time Empowerment® or TE®. I know that's not the sort of training and education I think of when I hear the term "psychotherapist."

It's one thing to train in holistic disciplines for which there are no governmentally recognized accrediting bodies, as long as you're transparent about the nature of that training. Here's what you don't get to do: You don't get to call yourself "Dr." In fact, it's illegal in a number of states to claim degrees from unaccredited schools.

Jurisdictions that have restricted or made illegal the use of credentials from unaccredited schools include Oregon,^[80]^[81] Michigan,^[83] Maine,^[84] North Dakota,^[80] New Jersey,^[80] Washington,^[81]^[85] Nevada,^[81]^[86] Illinois,^[81] Indiana,^[81] and Texas.^[87]^[88] Many other states are also considering restrictions on the use of degrees from unaccredited institutions.^[89]

Hmmm... Illinois... Isn't that the home of one Sean Stephenson? Yeah. It is.

Update:

Credit where credit is due: Sean Stephenson did, indeed, amend the information on his site as promised. He has removed "Dr." from his name everywhere that I can see on his website and from his Twitter profile. He has added the following information to his bio and similar text to his private sessions page.

Sean Stephenson completed a seven year educational journey in Clinical Hypnotherapy from American Pacific University (now named Kona University). His Doctorate in Clinical Hypnotherapy, while unaccredited by the Department of Education, is one of the most elite and comprehensive educations in the field of Hypnotherapy and Neuro-Linguistics.

He also changed text describing his client services and eliminated the incorrect information from the Washington Post quotation he and I discussed in the comments.

Observations on James Ray's Sentencing

2011-11-30T14:16:00.001-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Two months ago I whined like a petulant child that James Arthur Ray was not sentenced, as scheduled, on my birthday. Considering that when he was finally sentenced on November 18, he was given the far too lenient sentence of two years minus time served, leave say, my birthday was probably the better for not knowing. I actually had a great birthday. I think it's fair to say it was a far sight better than James Ray's 54th which he celebrated last Tuesday at the Phx-Alhambra intake center, where he remains in detention, incommunicado, for two weeks before being transitioned to a state penitentiary to serve out his sentence. I'm not prone to schadenfreude but I guess there's some measure of justice in that. Does it in any way make up for three lives lost or for the devastation of three families? Absolutely not. But at least they have some measure of closure after this incredibly protracted quest for justice. Said the very articulate Ginny Brown, mother of the late Kirby Brown:

"There are no winners today," said Virginia Brown, Kirby's mother. "No sentencing can bring our daughter back, or bring Liz or James back. But at least this will be a deterrent, to Mr. Ray and to others who might think about putting people at risk. The judge referred to common sense and there was surely a lack of common sense here."

No punishment the justice system can mete out can bring back a loved one or balance any great, cosmic scale. One hopes it will go some way to protecting society, so if Ray's doing some jail time serves as a deterrent, that's an accomplishment for which prosecutors Sheila Polk, Bill Hughes, case officer Det. Diskin, and every other person who worked that long, involved case deserves a whole lot of credit. Said Det. Diskin, “I’ve been investigating this case longer than James Ray will spend in prison.”

Laugh or go mad, as they say.

Ray's sentencing day was a rough and fairly demoralizing one for me, personally. A very thorough write-up I had done on the second week of the presentencing hearing was eaten by Blogger as I was preparing to post. I had a day of weird computer glitches and freeze-ups -- something which as a Mac person I'm unaccustomed to. I was also in the final throes of a very nasty bug that had me out of commission for weeks. The mitigated sentence was disappointing and the whole thing just left me with a tired, empty feeling, really.

The sentencing hearing was streamed by CNN and when my computer wasn't frozen and when the ever inadequate CNNLive remembered to run the stream I saw a lot that made me heartsick. There were the poignant and articulate impact statements from family members of the deceased. And there was the thoroughly sickening "apology" from James Ray. The video above gives an overview.

Ray's performance went on like that for some time with him appealing to both family members in the gallery and the judge. Although I could not see his face during most of it, the voice was enough. His meter never varied, he sniffled with metronomic precision, he never stumbled on a single word. He was in total control the entire time. Normal people aren't in control when they break down into tears. They fight the tears back. They struggle to regain the composure they've lost. Ray's tears were on display as props.

As Tragedy in Sedona author Connie Joy discovered, the theatrically trained Ray can cry on cue. It became apparent to her, because she went to the same seminars repeatedly as a Dream Team volunteer, that the tears became predictable. From Tragedy in Sedona:

We watched James go through his material over and over again. The benefit was we were really getting to know it! For example, there was one part in his story about what it was like growing up as a nerd where he always cried. After seeing it a few times, we all noticed he cried at exactly the same spot, on cue each time. What any reasonable participant would see in a single viewing as real emotion now looked like an act; the realization was unsettling. Even now people still talk about James' ability to cry on cue.

It sparked a memory within me. At our first Harmonic Wealth Weekend, James mentioned to us he had taken lessons but decided not to pursue acting.

Maybe he did pursue it after all.

But Ray's weepy performance put me in mind of something else -- his mother's interview on In Session. The only difference is that James Ray can produce actual tears.

I did catch a glimpse of his face as he turned to go back to his seat and I saw the dead eyes, steely determination, and barest hint of a smirk, that was so incongruous with the dramatic display he'd just given the court.

Whether or not Judge Darrow was swayed by Ray's performance, I can't say. He did say that his decision was based on the law, not on emotion. I tend to believe him. He seems to have reduced all the emotionally laden content down to a mathematical equation. Ray says his goal was to help people. Some people said they were helped by his work. Therefore: mitigated sentence.

I will concede, as Ginny Brown did during the hearing, that some people were helped by Ray's work. Connie Joy shares in her book that she learned a lot about herself and gained a lot of healing and growth in her years of study with Ray. As I've said repeatedly, Ray stole from good teachers and bad and some of what he taught had value. Message, not the messenger, as they say.

What many learned from James Ray were hard and painful lessons about putting their trust in the wrong people. These were valuable but expensive lessons. The steepest losses came in the form of emotional injury. With James Ray the cost always outweighs the benefit on every level. And that was something Judge Darrow seems not to have factored into his calculus.

As a side note, I offer this example of Ray in action. It was not something that came up in trial testimony but this "game" was discussed in Tragedy in Sedona and graphically described by Dorothy Schley.

There was the money game where unsuspecting, innocent people took out all the money they had (when asked what their education was worth to them) and passed it around a room of 400 people, not knowing they would never see it again. And the unaffected look on JR’s face when several stood up and said they had lost $600.00, $900.00 and $1100.00. He simply asked him if they had learned their lesson. What lesson? I have always believed that money flows and have never been one to be afraid of it. I just felt like this was more of a mind control than educational game. Once I realized we were “trading” money, I only pulled out $1.00. I ended up with $5.00 after the game was over. I was shocked at the people who did not get up and return the large amounts of money that was obviously not theirs. One woman stood up and said that she had given all the money she had for the weekend, $600.00 and was left with $5.00. She pleaded for money after the conference was over. I don’t know how much she was given.

That's Ray all over. Telling people to participate in an activity without any warning of what they're risking and perfectly content to leave people without money on a weekend away from home, never mind how unsafe that can be. To Ray other people's money is like water and their safety is their responsibility even when he's the one who's compromised it.

In a passionate closing argument last week, Sheila Polk called on Judge Darrow to consider Ray's character. She described him as "sadistic and intimidating."

"What kind of man," Polk asked, "leaves a scene of death and sickness to shower and eat?"

Judge Darrow either did not consider or did not grasp Ray's character. Instead he seemed to bend over over backwards to take a neutral view of some of the most blatantly disturbing indicators, including a support letter from Wendy Benkowski, which he specifically referenced in his remarks, saying that it could be read in two different ways.

In her closing, Polk pointed to the letter as evidence of Ray's bad effect on people. She asked why the defendant would submit such an "offensive, hurtful letter." Indeed. This is the closing of Benkowski's bizarre, stream of consciousness rant.

James has integrity and his message has integrity.
I am witnessing the power of his spoken word.
I am witnessing the shadow side of Harmonic Wealth.
The 2009 Spiritual Warrior Retreat is a great lesson.
The LESSON has touched the consciousness of the world.
I respect and honor the sacrifice of Liz, Kirby, and James.
I request compassion for my friend James Ray.

Polk did well in singling this out from the pile of dross that is Ray's support letters. The scariest of the letters came from Ray's most ardent supporters and this one is deeply nuts. The unmistakable implication that the deaths of three people were a necessary sacrifice for some undefined "lesson" is disturbing enough. But it gets even worse if you read the subtext. Her reference to the "shadow side of Harmonic Wealth" is chilling. It implies that there is loss penalty for gain -- something I know Ray was teaching. You can't manifest light without manifesting dark. I don't know to what extent he took that message in his teachings as they were progressing. Connie Joy related in Tragedy in Sedona this episode from their trip to Egypt:

Our second stop: the temple of Kom Ombo. Built for the god Sobek, the negative or dark in the world, and the god Horus, the positive or light in the world, the temple was, in reality, conjoined twin temples. We examined our anti-intentions, the less than desirable side effects that would happen as we worked towards our intentions. Were we ready to take them on as well? The law of polarity states that, to carry the light, we must also carry the dark. The negative aspects of our intentions will show up first. Say your intention is to double your income over the next year. The negative side effects of more business income over the next year. The negative effects of more business could be that you will be busier and therefore have less time to be with your family, to travel, read, and exercise. You might feel rushed with your family, to travel, read, and exercise. You might feel rushed more often or even most of the time. You will get busier before you see your income grow, and that is why most people stop the process at that point. They express their distaste for becoming busier by complaining, or by not working as hard. The universe acknowledges the stopping of the process by saying, "your wish is my command" and the goal slips away before it was to arrive. Seeing the negative consequences of your request appear in your life means you are getting close to your goal, but you have to persevere through the negative first! Be happy to see the negative side effects, because it means the results you want are almost here. So in examining anti-intentions, we have to decide and commit to accepting the negative consequences that come with attaining our goals.

In rereading the Benkowski letter, I have to wonder if this was how she views the sweat lodge disaster. Did she see the deaths of three people as some cosmic sacrifice for "wealth?" If so, is this is this a wild overstatement of what Ray was teaching or just following his teachings to their natural conclusion? Shudder.

Judge Darrow took an equally dispassionate view of the recorded discussion in which a number of women revealed their sex abuse histories -- the recording too sensitive to be played in court. Darrow discounted the prosecution's use of the term "vile" to characterize them and said his personal views of them were not relevant. He chose to look at exhibit 1160 "objectively" as demonstrating an "intimate, trusting environment," entered into by people who knew the "difference between therapists, psychiatrists, psychologists, and a motivational speaker." This grossly understates the role that many of Ray's students saw him as holding, which went well beyond that of a simple, motivational speaker. They saw him as a spiritual leader, an extensively trained shaman (dear God,), and someone who was only a few credits shy of a psychology degree because all of that was what he told them.

Defense attorney Tom Kelly had erroneously compared the event to an AA meeting or religious context. But Alcoholics ANONYMOUS has a privacy agreement in place. No one can take outside the meetings what they hear in them. The confessional is sealed. This seminar and the discussion in question were recorded and those recordings became the property of JRI. That's a pretty big difference. Unlike AA, which doesn't allow crosstalk, Ray's event included his commentary in which he trivialized the trauma of abuse by pointing out that it's common. Worse, in the context of the same discussion he made an off-color joke comparing a the mic to the male member, which all the women there surely knew how to "handle."

The most generous reading of that episode I could make would be to say that Ray is oblivious to what sex abuse survivors experience when those wounds are re-opened. The harshest read would be that he knows full well. Given his propensity for leveraging people's vulnerabilities to break them down and make them increasingly dependent, I'm inclined toward that interpretation.

There were hints, throughout the trial, at something truly sinister in James Ray. But none of that was proven in trial and it could not fairly have been expected of Judge Darrow to deduce that. There was, however, plenty that pointed to his being manipulative and mercenary and it was all available to the judge if not to the jury. The fact that he never gave refunds, for instance, Darrow knew. Whatever warnings about the events came in the form of waivers well after they'd paid, providing no opportunity for people to to pull out and get their money back.

Another indicator of Ray's ruthless financial policies came out during the sentencing hearing when the late Kirby Brown's cousin Bobby Magnanini spoke. Magnanini is also an attorney and he handled the civil litigation for the family. Explaining that they only took the settlement to ensure compensation for James Shore's family -- for which he was the sole breadwinner -- he gave some telling detail. The insurance policy Ray had to cover the business was for a million dollars. Magnanini was clever enough to find a way to go after a five million dollar media policy ("poorly designed" to protect against copyright infringement) because the events were recorded. But a million dollars was all that would normally have been available for a settlement in the event of, say, three people dying on his watch, which is what happened. He did, however, have a ten million dollar policy on himself and his home. Says a lot about his priorities, I think.

I, for one, don't buy that Ray's goal was to "help people" except as a means to an end -- that end being his ascent as the "first billionaire" spiritual teacher. That pecuniary focus seems blatantly obvious to me, but I can only speak for myself. I also think Ray stole power from people. From a shamanic perspective, he stole soul parts. That's not something that can be proven or prosecuted in a court of law but the disempowering verbal abuse and mind games were demonstrated repeatedly in witness testimony. It undercuts rather substantially whatever "help" Ray gave people.

Personally, I thought the mitigation testimony the defense put forward in the presentencing hearing was weak. It was lacking in both quality and quantity. The witness list went from twenty-three to twelve to ten as the week progressed. As per Bob Ortega, defense attorney Tom Kelly said he would call four more witnesses for Wednesday and five on Thursday, claiming that they were trimming their witness list to stay on schedule. But, as Tom McFeeley so astutely pointed out, if time was the issue, why were they out at 2:00 on Tuesday? They certainly had time to present more than three witnesses that day, even with Det. Diskin completing his testimony from the previous week. And the promised five witnesses for Thursday dwindled to three.

Conspicuous by his absence was Bob Proctor whose appalling letter of support I discussed here. So, the court was spared a lecture on his particular brand of victim blame. Also among the notable missing was Tony Alessandra, who spearheaded efforts to get letters of support for Ray's mitigation hearing. Alessandra, by the way, owned Life Results, the company Ray drained of funds. I can't imagine he wanted to answer questions about that.

So who was left to testify to all of James Ray's "help?"

There were a handful of former students. Jennifer Kwasny, a former Pima County juvenile probation officer who characterized Ray as "a stellar candidate for probation" but who admitted that she hadn't reviewed any of the police records, testimony, or documents from the case. One hopes she was a bit more thorough in her career as a probation officer. David McCall charged up $125,000 in Amex bills to join the World Wealth Society and put his whole family through Ray's curriculum. He says it was absolutely worth it because his daughter led her volleyball team to state finals. Dentist Matt Bynum credits Ray with saving his marriage and making him a better employer by teaching him to lay aside his ego -- one of many things Ray taught but seemingly did not learn. Dr. Art Mowery credits Ray with teaching him a "simple" philosophy easily worth the thousands of dollars Ray charges his students.

"He showed me that just having stuff wasn't going to make me happy," Mowery said. "It has to come from within. It sounds pretty simple and it really is, but it just took someone to make me sit down and write it down."

On cross-examination, Polk questioned why an educated person would need help with a simple philosophy.

"There's lots of things we all know already, like we shouldn't eat McDonald's all day long," Mowery said. "We just need somebody to stay on us about it."

I'm sure that was worth the thousands of dollars Ray charges.

Former employees also testified. Amy Grothe, Ray's former executive assistant, had the dubious distinction of stopping proceedings entirely when Judge Darrow noticed she was being coached by someone in the audience. Alex Smythe, the accountant for JRI, arguably did far more for the prosecution than the defense. He had no idea how much Ray made from JRI but knew that the company owed Ray $300,000 which had come from various nameless accounts. And, when pressed, he acknowledged that he didn't know if Ray had ever actually been a millionaire.

Ray also put forward a couple of people with disabilities whom he ostensibly helped, as a friend, for free. Mark Lane, a PTSD suffering veteran of dubious credibility, and Dr. Sean Stephenson, a wheelchair bound little person who is, himself, a motivational speaker. Born with a severe form of osteogenesis imperfecta, Stephenson seems a sympathetic character... until he opens his mouth. After that the condescending arrogance becomes painfully apparent even through the filter of someone else's tweets. He lectured the courtoom. He even lectured the judge. He interrupted the prosecutor repeatedly and dodged questions about the importance of credentials. He also appears to share Ray's well-known contempt for fat people, pointing out that he admired Ray's fit physique and indicating that he gets hate mail for his opinions on weight loss. It seems incongruous to think of a three-foot tall, deformed, wheelchair bound person being lookist and sizist, but there we are. But Stephenson was gracious enough to let people know that other people can achieve his level of Yoda-like wisdom. Then he went off to lecture people on Connie Joy's Facebook page in a series of posts so nasty he ended up deleting them all. To my knowledge he has never committed mass murder in a quest to find the hero to his anti-hero, so he has that going for him.

Do I feel like I'm kicking cripple by criticizing a severely disabled and deformed person like Dr. Stephenson? A little. But Stephenson has made it clear that he wants no special treatment or pity. Of course he welcomed free professional services and seminar tickets, deeply admiring that Ray never charged him for anything. So maybe he does want special treatment after all.

Of course Ray's family members -- mother Joyce and brother Jon -- testified to his wonderfulness and the need for him to free on probation. He's needed at home to take care of his cancer-stricken mother, because now he's also an uncredentialed expert on alternative cancer therapies. Besides, as a tearful brother Jon indicated, he's not safe in jail with all those mean Indians. They both made ludicrous claims about how well-behaved Ray was a child. His mother reiterated claims about his obedience and self discipline -- even as a baby. His brother claimed they never fought as kids. It all sounds a little implausible. If true, it points to something even more disturbing. How were they being raised that they were that buttoned down? What is Joyce Ray's obsession with obedience and self-discipline in small children?

So, with all ten of Ray's supporters, there was still plenty of time for Sheila Polk to redirect Det. Diskin and clear up some confusion left by Truc Do's typically shrill cross examination. In particular, Polk addressed head on Truc Do's attempts to marginalize the spiritual views of one of the letter writers for the prosecution, Marilyn Moss. As discussed, Do questioned her credibility because of her belief in Ray's ability to "shoot energy" at witnesses. But under Polk's redirect, it became even more clear that the entire belief system starts with Ray. Moss had described Ray as "a master of manipulating energy." She wrote, "It may sound far out there, but it is what he is doing right now." She further explained, "When we were Dream Team members, we were to stand around shooting energy with the 'triangle' gesture." She claimed that Ray was doing this in court, so Diskin began to watch Ray. The upshot? He saw Ray doing exactly that on more than one occasion. Judge Darrow even stood up to look at Diskin's demonstration of the gesture. So, as I said before, whatever "silliness" Do wants to mock in prosecution witnesses starts with her own client.

All in all, sentencing brought a less than satisfying ending to this long and painful saga. Two years in jail seems a small price to pay for cooking people to death. But, in the final analysis, Ray's greatest wounds were not inflicted by the criminal justice system but by himself. He could have addressed this head on, settled, plead out, and accepted responsibility early on. If he'd given his tearful apology two years ago, it wouldn't have looked so much like a transparent ploy to win over the judge deciding his fate. Instead he dragged this out for over two years, spent a fortune on legal counsel, and apparently wound up broke and living with his parents. Two years in jail may not seem like much but it means his plans to resume his career and rebuild his life through his fancy-schmancy new website are for naught. What works out to a bit less than two years in jail may not seem like much, but for someone like Ray, with his obvious need for control and inability to sit still without sedation, it's an eternity.

Ray also still has numerous lawsuits pending, including a new wrongful death suit from the family of Colleen Conaway whose inexplicable plunge in a San Diego mall still begs to be resolved. In the meanwhile, inmate 267823 can be tracked here.

The above is taken from press reports and from the excellent live tweeting of Bob Ortega and Camille Kimball who were our eyes and ears in the courtroom.

Cafe

2011-11-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Occupy Love: Shamanism and Restorative Action

"How could we ask for anything less than the future?" That is the question. And it was asked by spoken word poet, Drew Dellinger, in a November 16th post to the OccupyLove.org site. How do we-the Big We-take the restorative actions needed to manifest a future that works for everyone? "Many of our shamanic ancestors knew an answer to this question," explains host and shaman, Christina Pratt. "From the often quoted Great Binding Law of the Iroquois Confederacy that our decisions serve the next seven generations to the Quechua concept of ayni, which is reciprocity and gratitude co-mingled in mature love, our shamanic ancestors knew how to Occupy Love. They created their entire social structure based on taking the actions necessary not only to thrive in their environments but also to keep the flow of energy that animates all things moving, exchanging, and reciprocating. For many shamanic peoples, prior to contact with the religions and beliefs of the Western World, their lives were shaped by accepting a Law of Universal Responsibility which means that everyone engages in the interchange of mature love, knowledge, and right work. And that they do so in a way that willingly acknowledges the interconnection between humans, the natural world that sustains them, and the invisible world of spirit. Our ancestors learned to live in this way by asking their helping spirits how. So we are not looking back to see what to do, but to learn how to ask the questions of spirit that will guide us in taking the restorative actions needed to transform our world.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

FBI Raid on Amish Mullets

2011-11-23T14:28:00.001-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Egads! The Amish haircutting attacks discussed here and here are now being prosecuted at the federal level. The FBI raided the Berholz stronghold and arrested seven men including Bishop and purported cult leader Sam Mullet. They're charging this as a hate crime.

At a news conference Wednesday afternoon, U.S. Attorney Steven Dettelbach said religious differences should be a matter of theological debate, not disputes "resolved by late night visits to people's homes with weapons and violent attacks."

He said he does not know how often hate crimes involve intradenominational disputes.

A little more insight into why the Bergholz clan is considered a cult can also be found in the above linked article.

One of [Sam] Mullet's daughters-in-law and a former brother-in-law told investigators that Mullet controls everything that happens within the community outside Bergholz and that he allowed others to beat members of the group who disobeyed him, according to an affidavit filed in federal court Wednesday.

Mullet punished some by making them sleep in a chicken coop for days and was sexually intimate with married women in the community so that he could "cleanse them of the devil," the two said in the affidavit.

Now Mullet faces charges along with three of his sons and three other of his followers. If convicted could spend the rest of their lives in a federal chicken coop.

The criminal complaint, filed in Cleveland, charges Samuel Mullet Sr., Johnny S. Mullet, Daniel S. Mullet, Levi F. Miller, Eli M. Miller and Emanuel Schrock, all of Bergholz, Ohio; and Lester S. Mullet, of Hammondsville, Ohio, with assaulting others because of their actual or perceived religion. The maximum potential penalty for these violations is life in prison.

Cafe

2011-11-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Clearing the Way To Take Restorative Action: Occupy Movement Part Two

"Whenever one wakes up to the awareness that they have been oppressed or suppressed the natural desire is "take control" to make one's presence known and felt," explains Rev. David F Alexander of the New Thought Movement in Portland, OR. "Once this occurs, the door opens to the next step - to take restorative action. But before restorative action can take place there must be a grounding in a greater awareness of who we really are. Without this grounding restorative action turns to reactionary and retaliation action. This is the difference between effective social change movements and ineffective ones." Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she discusses the simple and yet profound daily practices necessary to rise to the moment and clear the energies from our bodies that keep us from the quality of a greater awareness required. In all the charisma and promise of the current consciousness movement there is a jaw-dropping dearth of deliverables. Actual clearing must happen if we are to co-create restorative action from this first phase of the Occupy Movement. And actual clearing happens only when we clear physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. Each of those realms is cleared through its own language and wisdom. Join us this week as we explore the direct application of shamanic skills to clear what must be released for restorative action to be clear, communal, and deliverable.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
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All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

The Zaracon Show

The Zaracon Show DC-40 Counter Prayer

This show is in support of Liberty ( Libertas) and the Goddess Columbia, Tonight, [State of the Day] Takes the Pointman Possition and we dedicate this show to the Freedom and Liberty of all the people who reside there.

Tonights counter spell will be lead by -Z

The call in lines will be open you may call in with comments and praises of the gods in your state.

Every Night Throughout DC40 Campaign 08:00PM ET
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James Ray Sentenced to Two Years

2011-11-18T15:54:00.000-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

I have considered all of the aggravating and mitigating circumstances in this case. And I've considered the purposes of the criminal law statutes: 13101. And there is an aspect of deterrence that is very prominent in this case. Mr. Ray, when a person has your incredible abilities to gain people's trust, there is a large, large responsibility that goes with that trust. And that responsibility was not honored. And I'm not considering lack of remorse in any way. I'm just simply saying, this was the nature, there were people in there, people who had spent their money, their time, and they placed their trust and that was violated… It is important that sentencing when appropriate conveys and insures that there is appropriate deterrence. So I see and I find that the aggravating circumstance of emotional harm is so strong and it's such that, uh, probation is simply not warranted in this case.

I find in, in mitigation, as I've mentioned, Mr. Ray did help people. It was his intent to help people. It was. And I recognize that. I recognize no prior criminal history of any kind. Nothing. No indication that you pose any kind of future threat. But it is the decision, a prison sentence is just mandated in this case. I do find, however, that looking at all the circumstances, considering my experience with precedent in cases -- and this certainly is a different kind of a case… It is certainly a case where the evidence of, uh, extreme negligence is strong. But I find looking at all the circumstances, at the mitigating circumstances, based on factors I've indicated are sufficiently substantial to call for mitigated terms and they will be concurrent.

It is the judgment and sentence of the court that Mr. Ray be imprisoned for the following mitigated terms: For negligent homicide of Kirby Brown, two years. For negligent homicide of Elizabeth Neuman, two years. For negligent homicide of James Shore, two years. All of these sentences date from today. They begin today. The defendant receives credit for 24 days time served. It is ordered imposing a consecutive term of community supervision as required by law. It's ordered that the defendant is committed the custody of the department of corrections to carry out these sentences.

~ Judge Warren Darrow on November 18, 2011

James Ray's Presentencing Hearing: Week 1

2011-11-13T11:11:00.012-05:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Where were you when you first realized that James Arthur Ray was a colossal fraud? It's not a game I can play because I never thought he was up to much. But God knows I've experienced similar disillusionment so I can relate to the sense of loss, pain, confusion, and catharsis, that I hear echoed in so many of Ray's former students. That dawning realization theme figured heavily into the sweat lodge trial as survivors of Spiritual Warrior 2009 shared their tragic experiences -- many of them still conflicted and confused over how it could have gone so horribly wrong. The presentencing hearing, which heard the prosecution's case for three days this week, brought still more stories of disillusionment and realization.

In the protracted pre-sentence hearing for James Arthur Ray, the state has presented eight witnesses over the past three days in its effort to prove additional aggravating factors that would convince Judge Warren Darrow to sentence the motivational speaker and author to the maximum allowable term of nine years in prison.

Led by Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk, the prosecution seeks to show that Ray exhibited a pattern of negligent conduct that led to harm, that the victims in the case placed trust in him to keep them safe, that he lacked qualifications to conduct his events, and that many people were harmed, both physically and emotionally, by his actions and omissions.

As I'd assumed from her appearance on the prosecution's witness list, Kristina Bivins has become disenchanted with Ray. Bivins, who notoriously supported him during media interviews after the sweat lodge deaths, finally reached the breaking point. So what was it that shattered her belief in her teacher? Well. It wasn't her post-sweat lodge hospitalization.

"I couldn't see anything except for shapes and light, and I didn't know where I was," Bivins said. "It felt like my body and mind weren't connected. I couldn't get out of that state and I didn't know what to do."

Nope. Not even such severe injury could break her ties with Ray. In the end, it came down to money.

And even after the deadly debacle in Sedona, Bivins said she still believed in Ray's hybrid teachings, to the point she helped him develop strategies she believed were intended to compensate victims at least to some degree, as well as to help Ray get back on his feet financially. She appeared in print stories and on television on Ray's behalf.

But it was a dispute between Ray and two contract salespeople for Life Results, the firm that arose to allow Ray a chance to make a living by doing personal mentoring sessions, that finally turned her against her former mentor.

Ray, according to Bivins, was not the owner of Life Results, but did control its finances. So when Ray told her he had taken the money from Life Results to pay the mortgage on his Beverly Hills home rather than paying the salespeople their full commission, she saw the light of his true character.

Ray used a company he didn't even own as his personal piggy-bank. Shocker. Well. It came as at least enough of a shock that it caused the scales to fall from Bivins's extremely intense eyes. Upon learning that Ray had drained the company's account, Bivin's shelled out 18K herself to pay one of the contractors and like so many on the very long list of people Ray owes money to, she has not been repaid. Bivins has discovered the ugly truth. James Ray is a fraud who lies about his credentials and puts people in danger. Said Bivins:

"At first, I thought he was going to make things right; then as the summer went on I realized it was just about making money," Bivins said, adding that she now regrets having supported him for so long.

There comes a moment, in dealing with a personality like Ray, when it suddenly dawns that you've been making a lot of assumptions. You've assumed that they're like you. You've projected your own values and emotions onto them. You've rescripted all the inappropriate things they've said and done, telling yourself, Oh he didn't mean it like that. It just came out wrong.

And then the penny drops. The person does something so egregious that your increasingly tested state of denial shatters. And over a period of months, or even years, you recollect all the things that were gnawing at your subconscious all along.

She tearfully told the court that she had long repressed memories of the sweat-lodge ceremony, until she came to rethink her faith in his teachings.

Julia Bunker, a former Dream Team member, also testified to her gradual realization that James Ray's events were not safe. Convinced against her better judgment to snap an arrow against her neck, she began to believe Ray that it was all "mind over matter" and signed on for another Ray event. She embraced more of Ray's cheap martial arts tricks and came to believe that "I get hurt when I do certain physical activities," was just another limiting belief to be defeated by smashing pine boards and the like.

Little did Bunker know that Kurt Reinkin, whose accounting Det. Diskin read into the record on Thursday, had his eyelid punctured when he broke one of those arrows. JRI didn't even have a first aid kit to deal with the blood gushing from his eye.

Bunker engaged in increasingly reckless exercises, including the homeless exercise. As discussed, Colleen Conaway died when she was similarly abandoned in downtown San Diego and left to fend for herself without money, ID, or cell phone. This event began to set off some alarm bells for Bunker, despite having convinced herself that Ray would never have people do things that might actually harm them, if for no other reason than the limits of insurance protection. (Assumptions.) But participants in the homeless exercise weren't even allowed to write anything down and had to rely on nothing but notional breadcrumbs to find their way back to the buses. Bunker was "horrified" to see another participant get into a stranger's car. When she raised these safety concerns, she was told "You're bringing that, projecting that."

Such is the magical thinking of The Secret. It's not the actual, material threats in life that matter. Dangerous things can only hurt you if you think they can. Stay in denial and all will be well.

Bunker's concerns that Ray was not taking responsibility for putting people in danger grew considerably at an event in Hawaii. Numerous people had broken bones against the bricks they were pseudo-Karate chopping. And Ray did nothing. Injured people had to carpool to the hospital because Ray took no responsibility for getting them there. JRI also made it clear that they were not responsible for medical costs.

Ultimately, Bunker realized that suspending all fear might not be the best plan. Fear appears to have served her fairly well at the Spiritual Warrior 2008 when she left the sweat lodge after the second round. She also saw how ill some people who got at that event. In retrospect, she says if she had it to do over, she'd call 911. Perhaps if someone had called an ambulance then, no one would have died in 2009, she speculated.

Former Dream Team member Margaret Clancy also had her revelation amidst a myriad of breaking bones in Hawaii. When she considered how remote the location would be in Sedona, and the fact that Ray was doing nothing about the obvious injuries she was witnessing in Hawaii, she decided to forfeit the thousands of dollars in unrefundable fees for Spiritual Warrior 2008, rather than risk her health and safety.

Clancy described herself as "in shock" over Ray's inaction when people were injured. Ray never responded to an email she sent expressing her concerns over the injuries she'd witnessed. So Clancy was disillusioned when she realized that Ray didn't care at all if he put people at risk of injury. That was her big turning point but there were other red flags. According to Clancy, Ray claimed that he was only a few credits shy of being a psychologist. Wow.

Ray's qualifications, or the lack of them, was a key subject of hearing testimony this week. Ginny Brown, mother of the late Kirby Brown, testified that she had become disturbed at how he "allowed people to delve too deeply into their personal issues in front of a large crowd." Brown is an educator and therapist.

The information Ray prompted people to reveal was of such a sensitive nature that Judge Darrow stopped its reporting in open court and ordered the exhibit sealed this week. Prosecutors attempted to play a recording of Ray's "recapitulation" exercise. In it he called on people to write about their first sexual experience in the present tense, thus causing a number of people to relive their childhood sexual abuse. The highly personal disclosures on the recording brought objections from Truc Do and her objections were upheld. So, by Do's reasoning, the information was too sensitive to hear in open court but perfectly fine for Ray to publicly air at a large event in front of people many of whom were strangers to one another and who had no privacy agreement in place.

Do also objected to Det. Diskin's characterization of Ray's comments as nonchalant and insensitive. That objection was also upheld. But much as Connie Joy reported in her book about her own similar experience at a Ray event, Ray's response to these highly charged revelations was to comment that sex abuse of females is ubiquitous. I can't help thinking that someone who was really "a few credits short" of a psychology degree might have handled the revelation of such profound trauma with a little more sensitivity.

It looks like Det. Diskin's testimony was extremely contentious. It fell to Diskin to read a number of letters from Ray's disillusioned students and to testify to the numerous assertions about Ray's lack of qualifications. I have to admit that I'm almost glad that none of this was broadcast and I never had to hear Truc Do's cross examination of the detective. I don't know if there's anything worse than the sound of Truc Do's voice when she's being relentless.

It looks like Det. Diskin held his own against her repeated assertions that he wasn't doing his job properly or reporting accurate information. For instance, Do accused Diskin of "assuming" that figures quoted from a sales document were "actual income." But Diskin pointed out that it said "actual income" on the document retrieved from Ray's Carlsbad offices. So Diskin deserves at a least a few points for knowing how to read.

Diskin and Do went round and round on the issue of what Ray was or was not qualified to facilitate. A discussion of the trademarked Samurai Game^®, which Ray is not certified to lead, brought a surprising disclosure from Do. In an attempt to explain the complexity of copyright law, Do explained that neither she nor Luis Li really understand it. So the limitations of their legal comprehension were offered as justification of Ray's use of proprietary material without permission. The owners of the game certainly think their copyright has been violated.

I would humbly suggest that the issue is not whether or not Allied Ronin's copyright claim would hold up in court, but the fact that Ray misrepresented his qualifications to people who were paying him a lot of money.

Ray also misrepresented his qualifications as a shaman and as a sweat lodge pourer. While Diskin concedes that there is no law regulating who can run a sweat lodge, numerous Native Americans have expressed their discontent. He explained that representatives of various tribes described a "spiritual calling" to be a water pourer. When Do asserted that there was no certification to lead a sweat lodge, Diskin corrected her by pointing out that each tribe has its own process for appointing pourers.

Once again, it comes down to how Ray represented himself to his students, most of whom believed him to be extensively trained by indigenous shamans. Lest we forget, one of Connie Joy's disillusioning moments was came she learned that Ray's Peruvian shaman was really a tour guide -- something Det. Diskin also pointed out on the stand.

Do underscored the fact that Ray had never claimed to be a licensed therapist. Diskin clarified that the issue was that he wasn't qualified to act as one. But as per Margaret Clancy's testimony, the knowledge and training of a psychologist, if not the certification, is yet another qualification Ray has arrogated to himself.

People paid this man thousands of dollars based, in large part, on his claims of lifelong study with spiritual teachers of various traditions. When those teachers turn out to be tour guides, or even nonexistent, it comes as a blow to the many people who thought he knew what he was doing and that they were safe in his care. A number of those who've been painfully disabused of their trust and faith in Ray were in court this week in person, in letters, or in spirit. And Judge Darrow heard them out.

Darrow heard a lot of the evidence that was precluded during the jury trial. He listened to details of Colleen Conaway's mysterious death and Det. Diskin and Truc Do tussled over whether or not Daniel Pfankuch had experienced heat stroke in 2005. Diskin argued that his body temperature had simply cooled too much by the time he finally got to the hospital to be properly diagnosed. Pfankuch, of course, has never been the same.

Ray's entire defense squadron was stuffed into Judge Darrow's tiny new courtroom in Prescott. They apparently cleared their schedules for the hearing and got their acts together after all the delays and confusion brought about Tom Kelly's unspecified "heart condition." They were full of piss, vinegar, and objections, as usual. They started the festivities with an attempt to strike all the aggravators. Their justification is here. Their motion was denied.

Predictably, they tried to garner pity for Ray and attack the veracity of his detractors. In a particularly disgusting turn of a events, Do attempted to attack the competence of one letter writer because of her spiritual beliefs. She had raised concerns about Ray's abilities to shoot energy at the witnesses, which Do characterized as silly. But Diskin pointed out that all of Ray's followers believe wacky things and that it's legitimate to them.

So once again, Ray's spiritual beliefs are protected but those of witnesses against him aren't. Never mind that it was Ray who was constantly conflating shamanism and sorcery, like his hero in the ways of fraud Carlos Castaneda. That some of his former students have gotten the idea that he is capable of harming people by manipulating energy shouldn't come as a shock. He certainly manipulated them all in enough ways -- sleep deprivation, NLP, stage hypnosis -- that many feel intimidated by his power over them. If Truc Do had any integrity, she'd a) honor the first amendment protected spiritual beliefs of witnesses, and b) consider that it's her own client who is the fountainhead of "silliness" in this context.

What else does the defense have, though, besides attempts to silence or discredit the many people who have been harmed by James Ray? They've got a broken down Harmonic Wealth author who can't afford his legal bills, has lost his many homes, and is living with his parents. All they can do is lean into the pathos. He had to pay millions in settlements, so of course he had no choice but to steal money from a company he didn't own. And his mother has cancer. He has to be there to take care of her. Never mind that he has nowhere else to live. Someone has to be there to tell her that it's all just mind over matter and that she has to play full on against those cancer cells... or something. I can't even begin to imagine what help from Ray in a health crisis looks like. Maybe he just sits around "in shock" like he did when people weren't breathing after that atrocity of a sweat lodge.

In the upcoming week, will come the defense's full case for Ray to receive the lightest possible sentence of probation only. An overview of their reasoning is here. Their witness list is here. And their objection to the presentencing report is here.

The above is taken from press reports and from the excellent live tweeting of Bob Ortega and Camille Kimball who were our eyes and ears in the courtroom this week.

Cafe

2011-11-08T06:00:00.002-05:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanic Healing for Death and Dying

Death is a point of transition. There is the approach to death, a process we call dying. And there is the departure from death, a process we barely know exists anymore, having given it over to whichever "god" we claim. It is important that we know where we go after we die and how to get there all on our own. In ancient times the movement of the soul in times of death and dying was very much at the heart of shamanic work, a branch of shamanic healing now called psychopomp. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores a shamanic perspective on how we can be with the process of dying as a soulful process, whether that of a loved one or our own. She shares the importance in seeing Death as an ally in life, of reconciling what we have left in disharmony, and making true inner peace with what we have done and not done on the path of living our dreams. The shaman's special gift for those who are dying is to share the understanding of what happens after death, who will be with you on that journey, and how to be sure you will truly get to where you are going. Having made the journey from the Land of the Living to the Land of the Dead and back many times the shaman is perfectly positioned to offer practical information to cleanse our fears and the skills needed to navigate this most important journey in peace.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

The Zaracon Show

The Zaracon Show DC-40 Counter Prayer

This show is in support of Liberty ( Libertas) and the Goddess Columbia, Tonight, [State of the Day] Takes the Pointman Possition and we dedicate this show to the Freedom and Liberty of all the people who reside there.

Tonights counter spell will be lead by -Z

The call in lines will be open you may call in with comments and praises of the gods in your state.

Every Night Throughout DC40 Campaign 08:00PM ET
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/zaracon

Ireland to Close Vatican Embassy

2011-11-03T22:29:00.002-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Ireland is closing its embassy to the Vatican. But it has nothing, whatsoever, to do with the dispute that, ahem, didn't cause the Vatican to pull their ambassador to Ireland.

Ireland announced Thursday it is closing its embassies to the Vatican and two other nations, but denied that its deteriorating relations with the Catholic Church played a role in its choice of cuts.

Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore said Ireland was under grave financial pressure as it tries to slash spending in line with its international bailout last year. He said a review determined that Ireland's diplomatic posts to the Vatican, Iran and Timor Leste offered the least returns in foreign investment.

"The government believes that Ireland's interests with the Holy See can be sufficiently represented by a non-resident ambassador," Gilmore said, suggesting that a diplomat based in another European country would be assigned the Vatican brief, too.

In Rome, the Vatican likewise dismissed concerns that the Irish were sending another rebuke to the Catholic Church over its cover-ups of decades of child abuse in Ireland.

Right. Gotcha.

Cafe

2011-11-01T06:00:00.005-04:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanism and Unconscious Sorcery

The distinction between acts of healing and acts of sorcery is self-control. In the realm of shamanism a conscious act of sorcery isn't about good or bad or dark or light, but about the motivation behind the action. In contemporary America the most common form of sorcery is unconscious, usually unintended, but damaging nonetheless. We are an immature culture that revels in its right to neglect the inner journey that results in self-control. Instead we offer ourselves up to addiction, familial dysfunction, and the tyranny of our own wounded child. Host and shaman, Christina Pratt, explores the everyday manipulations and unconscious abuses of power that are effectively unconscious sorcery. When we tell a child they are stupid or an MD tells a patient they have 6 weeks to live we are casting a curse and practicing sorcery. When we engage with others to manipulate a desired outcome, the very essence of co-dependent behavior, we practice sorcery. When we let our emotions fly, project our stories, and blame others we give up all self-control and practice sorcery. Unconscious though this sorcery may be, it is still harmful. And since these behaviors usually arise out of our unconscious patterns, the repetition of these actions makes the sorcery powerful. Join us this week as we discover where self control arise from authentically and how that place within us the birthplace of true freedom.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

Dr. Linda Christensen Show

Listen to the Dr. Linda Christensen Show as Christina Pratt will be the featured guest.
Christina will be exploring the powerful role of shamanic healing for us today.

Tuesday, November 1 at 6:00 PM PST
in Seattle - Listen live on 106.9 FM radio
over the web from any/everywhere at www.ContactTalkRadio.com

Want to hear more from Christina Pratt? Join us every Tuesday at 11:00 AM PST on the Co-Creator Network for Christina's show, Why Shamanism Now? A Practical Path to Authenticity. Past shows are also available at www.whyshamanismnow.com or at iTunes Podcast Library.

The Zaracon Show

The Zaracon Show DC-40 Counter Prayer

This show is in support of Liberty ( Libertas) and the Goddess Columbia, Tonight, [State of the Day] Takes the Pointman Possition and we dedicate this show to the Freedom and Liberty of all the people who reside there.

Tonights counter spell will be lead by -Z

The call in lines will be open you may call in with comments and praises of the gods in your state.

Every Night Throughout DC40 Campaign 08:00PM ET
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/zaracon

The Way Of The Weirdo & The Path Of True Love

Jason Gregory
The Way Of The Weirdo
Jason Gregory for years has been a researcher in the fields of suppressed history, esoteric knowledge and the origins of humanity. In this journey he was profoundly influenced by the philosophies of Vedanta, Buddhism, Hermeticism, depth psychology, the Occult and the way of the Tao which are all reflected into his writing. Bestowed with this knowledge Jason continues to focus his energy on one's self-realization in the spirit of evolving creation while dismantling the illusion of separation.

E. Grey Lorimer
Science & The Path Of True Love
E. Grey Lorimer is a former entrepreneur, company founder and CEO with a life long passion for people and the wonderful effect that true love has had on him and persons in his life. He has a bachelor's degree in the liberal arts from Penn State and an MBA with emphasis in marketing and finance. He has received diverse training and numerous certifications in leadership, psychology, public affairs, organizational psychology, management, and sales and marketing from various institutions and organizations. He was a very young widower and is currently in the world's greatest true love relationship.

Fri, Nov 4, 2011 3:00PM ET/2:00PM CT

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Awake: Now What?

Meet Gabriella Kortsch, Hypnotherapist, Integral Coach

Taking responsibility for your own happiness, your own well-being, your own feelings, your own actions, reactions, attitudes, and way of thinking, is the philosophy that lies at the core of my work as an integral (mind, body, and spirit) coach, clinical hypnotherapist, relationship coach, EFT Practitioner (tapping techniques), as well as in the work I do with dreams and their interpretation, journaling, regressions and relaxation techniques.

Many of the "tools" that I use in my work, such as psycho-energetic techniques, dream work, and clinical hypnotherapy, are simply helpful adjuncts to the underlying philosophy of integral coaching which continually takes the holistic human being into account. By not only looking at the mind, but also at the body; not only looking at the feelings, but also the spirit, as a integral, or spiritual coach - and along with your input and desire to improve the quality of your life - together we can take the steps to achieve this goal.

For more information go to http://www.advancedpersonaltherapy.com/

Sun, Nov 6, 2011 6:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awake

Herman Cain: Napoleon Hill Fan?

2011-10-30T11:14:00.001-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

I knew something sounded familiar about this staggering quote from Herman Cain regarding the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Don't blame Wall Street, don't blame the big banks, if you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself! ... It is not a person's fault if they succeeded, it is a person's fault if they failed.

I've placed it. Cain's statement sounds a lot like this little gem from Napleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich.

SUCCESS REQUIRES NO APOLOGIES, FAILURE PERMITS NO ALIBIS.

As discussed here, that's an exact quote -- all caps, bad grammar, and all. And I think it's a fairly heartless philosophy. Worse, as I've observed many times, much of "new thought" is basically apologia for the worst excesses of capitalism. It's little wonder that books like The Secret get the full sanction of the corporate media. (It's also, arguably, why James Arthur Ray got the kid gloves treatment throughout the sweat lodge trial.) Poor people have no one to blame but themselves. And having money and success equals legitimacy. Nothing to threaten the power structure there.

I can remember leafing through Hill's perennial favorite -- a book that's been in print since 1937 -- when I was working in a new age bookstore. It never really clicked for me, even when I was enjoying the works of other new thought leaders like Louise Hay and wanted desperately to believe that I could control everything with my thoughts and make all the bad things go away. Paging through a little of it now reminds me as to why Hill never really resonated. He says far too much that makes no sense at all. One needn't look much further than the passage from which I take the above quote to see how badly the book fails the basic logic test.

In planning to acquire your share of the riches, let no one influence you to scorn the dreamer. To win the big stakes in this changed world, you must catch the spirit of the great pioneers of the past, whose dreams have given to civilization all that it has of value, the spirit which serves as the life-blood of our own country, your opportunity and mine, to develop and market our talents.

Let us not forget, Columbus dreamed of an Unknown world, staked his life on the existence of such a world, and discovered it!

Copernicus, the great astronomer, dreamed of a multiplicity of worlds, and revealed them! No one denounced him as "impractical" after he had triumphed. Instead, the world worshipped at his shrine, thus proving once more that "SUCCESS REQUIRES NO APOLOGIES, FAILURE PERMITS NO ALIBIS."

So Hill had kind of a myopic view of history. While it's true that Copernicus's work is legendary and foundational to our current understanding of astronomy, his escape from negative consequences may have owed something to fact that he died of natural causes rather promptly after publishing on his heliocentric model. During his life, he kept a lot of his ideas close to the vest to protect himself from consequences.

About 1532 Copernicus had basically completed his work on the manuscript of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium; but despite urging by his closest friends, he resisted openly publishing his views, not wishing—as he confessed—to risk the scorn "to which he would expose himself on account of the novelty and incomprehensibility of his theses."^[63]

His theories were denounced by some Church officials and debated for some time. His grave was not so much venerated back then as it was lost and his epitaph destroyed during wars in the late 17th or early 18th century. Some of his remains were very recently found and reburied.

Copernicus was reportedly buried in Frombork Cathedral, where archaeologists for over two centuries searched in vain for his remains. Efforts to locate the remains in 1802, 1909, 1939 and 2004 had come to nought. In August 2005, however, a team led by Jerzy Gąssowski, head of an archaeology and anthropology institute in Pułtusk, after scanning beneath the cathedral floor, discovered what they believed to be Copernicus' remains.^[73]

. . .

The grave was in poor condition, and not all the remains of the skeleton were found; missing, among other things, was the lower jaw.^[74] The DNA from the bones found in the grave matched hair samples taken from a book owned by Copernicus which was kept at the library of the University of Uppsala in Sweden.^[75]^[76]

On 22 May 2010 Copernicus was given a second funeral in a Mass led by Józef Kowalczyk, the former papal nuncio to Poland and newly named Primate of Poland. Copernicus' remains were reburied in the same spot in Frombork Cathedral where part of his skull and other bones had been found. A black granite tombstone now identifies him as the founder of the heliocentric theory and also a church canon. The tombstone bears a representation of Copernicus' model of the solar system—a golden sun encircled by six of the planets.^[77]

So, I don't know. Maybe Hill was talking about some other "shrine" somewhere.

Copernicus's ideas were far from uncontroversial and continued to be so long after his death. Galileo, who famously embraced the Copernican model, was found guilty of heresy, was forced to recant, and lived out his days under house arrest. Such was his reward for being as bold as Hill recommends.

More to the point, Columbus... Wow... So, as per Hill, Columbus seized the day and the world is all the better for it. In fact, we owe our way of life to Columbus. Some might call that revisionist. Some might call it a grievous insult to the millions of native peoples on two continents whose cultures were destroyed in one bloodbath after another over hundreds of years.

Now, don't get me wrong. I love my country. As you can see, I'm spending the duration of the DC40 celebrating the Goddess Columbia, whose name is ostensibly derived from that of Columbus. But our history is far from clean and is the product of a kind of violent imperialism that we like to think of as consigned to the annals of history. Yes, conquest was the way of the world back then and history is littered with the corpses of people who've been on the wrong side of its relentless march toward "progress." But that Hill blindly accepted the version of history that was written by the winners is about the kindest thing you could say about that sentiment. The idea that the European conquest of the Americas was an unalloyed good is the worst kind of white, imperialistic arrogance.

There are some successes that require far more than simple apologies. Our treatment of Native Americans in this country is our national shame for which we can never make adequate restitution.

It might just be time to reassess a hierarchical, patriarchal model that makes the successes of some dependent on the failures of others. Anyone who divides the world into winners and losers and posits that the winners never have anything to apologize for loses morality points as far as I'm concerned.

As discussed here, new thought tomes like The Secret and Think and Grow Rich effectively blame the victims of the excesses of others. It is the opposite of a balanced, inclusive world view in which we take responsibility, not only for our actions, but for our entire co-creation.

As Christina Pratt explained in an episode of Why Shamanism Now? devoted to The Secret, this completely misses the point. We're not all just creating our own, individual, discrete reality. We are part of a collective reality that we are constantly co-creating. She calls this "the big dream." Says Pratt:

Do not think that you can use this idea that we are dreaming our reality to bludgeon other people who are suffering. In other words, if there is a drought-ridden country somewhere, you can't just go, "Oh well those people dreamt up that drought." Not only is that, um, ignorant, and not remotely compassionate, but you're missing the point, entirely, which is that we are dreaming. We, the entire family of humanity is dreaming life as we know it. And so the drought over there is most likely the manifestation of a dream that is dreaming excess somewhere else. That the dream -- because, we are never not dreaming -- but we have not been trained the responsibility of being a dreamer. We've not been trained to dream well; to dream with maturity for easily, oh, two thousand years or more. And so, consequently, we are dreaming constantly pollution, toxicity, excess, deficiency, and what results then in disease in our human lives into the dream. Because we are not disciplined, we are not even aware, that we, every moment, we are contributing to the dream. And so The Secret says, you know, every moment you're manifesting your life. Well, yes, you are. Every moment you're also manifesting mine and I'm manifesting yours.

So, it comes down to whether we want to continue to extol the individual "dreamers" of Napoleon Hill's unapologetic, imperialist world view or embrace our role in co-creating a "big dream" in which all people can thrive.

Gloria Steinem: Feminist, Writer, Pagan

2011-10-25T21:23:00.002-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Hat-tip to The Wild Hunt on this intriguing little tid-bit. In an article about Gloria Steinem's collaboration with Egyptian-born feminist Mona Eltahawy, Steinem reveals that she considers herself a pagan.

Steinem’s father was Jewish, her mother was not, and she was raised without religion. She now calls herself a “pagan,” inspired by a trip down the Nile, where she witnessed how the ancient Egyptians incorporated nature into their worship.

Paganism is, compared to the "great religions," much more affirming of women and feminine power. Speaking for myself, it was the goddess imagery that drew me towards earth-based religions once upon a time. It was the only religious construct I'd encountered that didn't view women as lesser creatures. Not necessarily in modern applications of those religions, many of which are progressing on that score, but in the ancient scriptures, and peppered throughout in the language.

What I find most interesting, though, is that Steinem's conversion was inspired by ancient Egyptian religion. What is it about the power of those symbols? There is just something about Egypt that awakens us, in some cases painfully, to some greater awareness.

As discussed here, the great pyramids at Giza forced themselves into my consciousness many years ago triggering a sense of rekindled memory. Graham Hancock describes them as a kind of "alarm clock" possibly designed to wake us up to the mystery of our human origins and past life history. So I found this new add campaign from Toyota kind of interesting.

I'm currently reading Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval's The Master Game which posits a through-line from ancient Egypt, through the Gnostics, the Cathars, the Rosicrucians, the Masons, and more, that found expression in the French and American revolutions. As discussed here, Egyptian icons like Isis, Horus, and the pyramids were an important symbols to French revolutionaries.

Egypt represents the way out of our current morass. So it doesn't really surprise me that one of the greatest way-showers of the modern era would find faith and meaning there.

Cafe

2011-10-25T06:00:00.002-04:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanism and a Vital Energy Body

Shamanic practices involve the intentional movement between the visible physical realm and the invisible mental/emotional/spiritual/mythic/archetypal/Unknown realm. They also involve the inner journeys between the realm of the physical body and that of the energy body. The energy body involves both "structures" and aspects where the form follows your thoughts. This is a point of great confusion in our current understandings and misunderstandings of what practices actually cultivate a healthy and vital energy body. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores the difference between the structures and the free-form nature of the energy body and the practices we can engage in to develop and integrate both. When the communication between the physical and energy bodies is full and effortless there is no gap. Where communication is ineffective or absent a gap widens and illness-physical, mental, and emotional-settles in. With all of the world's people's sacred texts translated on the Internet sharing hundreds of different perspectives on the energy body it is hard to know where to begin. But shamanism, with its focus on function and efficacy, helps us to focus on the truly functional parts of the vital energy body that we must maintain and cultivate if we are to master the art of living well.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

The Zaracon Show

The Zaracon Show DC-40 Counter Prayer

This show is in support of Liberty ( Libertas) and the Goddess Columbia, Tonight, [State of the Day] Takes the Pointman Possition and we dedicate this show to the Freedom and Liberty of all the people who reside there.

Tonights counter spell will be lead by -Z

The call in lines will be open you may call in with comments and praises of the gods in your state.

Every Night Throughout DC40 Campaign 08:00PM ET
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/zaracon

An Interview with the Universe - Elizabeth Anne Hill

12pm PST - "One on One with Michele." Host MICHELE MEICHE & her guest Co-Host Paolo Doro, share their weekly Soul Insights, Ascension Information; as well as 2012 & beyond updates. They answer your questions, and do channeled readings. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? How do you acclimate to the New Energies of the New Emerging Consciousness? In addition to calling into the show, you can also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. In the 2nd portion of the show, Michele Meiche welcomes our Awakened Guest of the week. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. Paolo's Ancient Bling beading represents the connected thread of life, they are my prayers and I really enjoy using recycled and discarded pieces from the Ancient World - http://youtu.be/ObLVXoph72U. Welcome Elizabeth Hill author of 3 books: Twin Souls: A Message of Hope for the New Millennium co-written with her twin sister, Catherine, in spirit; and 2 children’s books. May '08, she had the opportunity to “Interview the Universe.” With the help of gifted trance medium, the late Glenna Dietrich, Elizabeth connected with a group of multi-dimensional beings known as “The Guides.” As part of the project she embarked on a life-changing journey in which she let go of all traditional safety nets including a car, a job, and even money, and discovered the supply was endless and overflowing; Elizabeth overcame many obstacles and faced some her biggest fears. She has now turned the corner in her journey and is discovering all the things that will work as we make the long-awaited leap into higher consciousness. www.interviewwiththeuniverse.com

Wed, Oct 26, 2011 3:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

Aron Houdini & Jim Harold's Ghost Stories

Aron Houdini
The Last Living Houdini
Aron Houdini has many claims to fame, including being the great grand nephew of the infamous magician/escape artist Harry Houdini. Aron has been performing magic for 18 years, 11 of them professionally. Aron's first magic trick was a Christmas present when he was nine years old. Aron Houdini is the only magician/escape artist to ever escape the United States Marshal's service. Aron has escaped jails, federal prisons, federal hospitals, city police, sheriff's departments and many more.

Jim Harold
Ghost Stories
In 2005, Jim's started podcasting on the paranormal. His lifelong interest in the supernatural, combined with his love of broadcasting and technology resulted in the most successful web-based programs of their type in the world. The Paranormal Podcast, Jim Harold's Campfire, and The Paranormal Report are regularly among the top podcasts in their categories on iTunes, often outranking programs from mainstream media publishers such as The New York Times, PBS and NPR.

Fri, Oct 28, 2011 3:00PM ET/2:00PM CT

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

James Ray on Dateline's Deadly Retread

2011-10-23T23:49:00.016-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Okay... so um... yeah... So they aired "Deadly Retreat" as promised on Friday night. I DVR'd it and watched it over coffee with my husband on Saturday morning. So... um... it was... yeah...

As Salty so humorously pointed out, much of the back story was just a retread of the special of the same name that they aired last summer. So that was about as illuminating as it was then, which is to say not very. And then there was the trial footage and discussion. I have to say that I enjoyed being back in the virtual courtroom, where I spent months of my life... except when Truc Do was talking. Like nails on a chalkboard, that voice.

I know Dateline has to show both sides but I think they did so a little haphazardly and it was confusing. If I hadn't known so much about the trial and the evidence I think I would have been a bit confused as to how they brought in a conviction. I always feel that way when I watch these news magazine treatments of criminal cases. I hate watching them because I'm always left wondering how the verdict was reached based on the evidence I've just seen. But in this case, having watched virtually every moment of the trial that was streamed by CNNLive, I'm in the even more uncomfortable position of knowing where Dateline really failed to make it clear.

The biggest question I would have, after those two hours, is what about the poisoning theory? Could it have been organophosphates? They really plead the defense's case and Beth Karas quite predictably made it sound like organophosphate poisoning was a very valid theory. They never really explained how thoroughly debunked it was, especially by Dr. Dickson, whom they correctly show as having really brought the prosecution's case together.

Judging by my stats over the past couple of days, I'd say a lot of viewers were left with that question. I looked hard at the organophosphate issue throughout the trial and, yes, it was thoroughly debunked, most especially by Dickson, but also as a matter of plain logic. Dateline also did not make clear that the recording of the emergency responder who cited organophosphates, which was the only specific reference to that poison, was background noise in a recording of a police interview which took place in a crowded dining hall. I summarized the case against organophosphates here:

Never mind that the entire organphosphate theory has been demonstrated to be ludicrous by evidence already presented by prosecutors and, in a rather ironic twist, the defense:

If there was organophosphate poisoning, the paramedics did everything wrong. They would have killed a bunch of people by causing them drown in their own saliva... which did not happen. (See Dickson)
Organophosphates were, in fact, ruled out at the hospital. This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that cholinergics were not part of the differential diagnosis by the toxicologist, who found the symptoms consistent with carbon monoxide poisoning. (CO was subsequently ruled out by blood work.) I say this despite Truc Do's complete incapacity to grasp this simple fact. (See Dickson)
None of the handful of pesticides so sparingly used at Angel Valley contain organophosphates. (As per Injun Samurai)
As per Truc Do's own evidence, death from organophosphate poisoning is an extremely rare event and requires massive exposure. (See Dickson)

Also not clear from Dateline's reporting is that the jury was ultimately unimpressed by the poisoning theory. In an AP interview, juror Phillip Lepacek explained. (Note: The article is no longer at the link provided provided in my post but it can be found here.)

"There were millions of things afterward that just didn't add up to these poisons being there," he said. "Even though the defense didn't have anything to prove or demonstrate, if they could just get those samples and test them and say 'Here it is.' So obviously I'm thinking there was none."

Dr. Matthew Dickson, who reviewed autopsy records and medical reports of the participants for the prosecution, gained major points with the jury because of his experience with heat-related illness and exposure to pesticides, Lepacek said.

Dickson testified he was 99-percent sure that heat caused the deaths, and that the signs and symptoms of the victims were inconsistent with exposure to organophosphates, a pesticide compound.

"It was a no-brainer there was heat," Lepacek said. "These people were baked."

Jury foreman Val Ripley echoed that in his interview with Mark Duncan, explaining that the jury found the poisoning theory "unacceptable."

"I know they didn't have to prove it," he said, "but I think if it could have been proven, the defense would have done a little bit more. I don't know of anybody on the jury who thought that was a valid defense."

I have to say that considering the fact that the two jurors were interviewed by Chris Hansen on the show, their views were surprisingly not well represented. Again, not clear from their statements in the show why they came to the decision they did. It was much clearer from the press reports. It's obvious it was the same two even though they weren't named in the broadcast.

I know that shows like this love dramatic tension but Hansen's claim that the jury was "sharply divided" was laughable. Sharply divided juries don't bring in verdicts in 10 hours.

It's also somewhat interesting that they show Lepacek complaining about the "overkill" of the prosecution's case. Hansen says the "jurors" told them they were frustrated. But only one of them did. Notably, they didn't get a statement on that subject from Ripley, who had this to say to Mark Duncan:

Ripley said he was impressed with the case that Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk presented.

"I thought she did an outstanding job from the first day when she laid out her case," he said, noting that he subscribed to Polk's theory that Ray became increasingly more reckless in the way he conducted the ceremonies. "She was very logical, very organized."

Yet, Dateline does make it clear that they were impressed with the defense attorneys. I'm just saying, it's kind of interesting.

I, personally, would like a little more clarity about what the breakdown was in the jury. The two print interviews are in contradiction. The AP article says four jurors wanted manslaughter. The Mark Duncan interview says eight wanted manslaughter. I'm inclined to view the Duncan article as more accurate because Ripley was the foreman and because he was directly quoted as follows:

"We were very close to the manslaughter conviction," Ripley said. "Eight of us wanted manslaughter, and the other four felt that he wasn't aware of all that those people were going through."

If that's the case, the jury's opinions really didn't come across on the show.

A couple of things did come across very clearly as a motivation to convict Ray. The first is Ray's insensitivity and inaction when people were obviously in trouble. Said Ripley:

He basically just walked out of the sweat lodge, they watered him down, hosed him down. He sat down, got a drink. He didn't do nothin.' He didn't, like, seem like he cared.

They also indicated that the audio tapes of Ray during Spiritual Warrior really affected the jury. Lepacek said that they showed that he could come across much more powerfully and convincingly than the timid appearance he gave in court, adding credence to the idea that he had a strong influence over the behavior of participants. The really damning statements offered up by Dateline were the everpopular, "I... Am... God!" (as discussed here) and the absolutely shocking,"At some point in time, you just have to let go and say, 'If I'm gonna die, it's OK, because I don't ever die.'"

They also emphasized, to some degree, the power of Dr. Dickson's testimony but they really didn't show enough of it. I could have done with a lot more from Dickson. He was awesome. And, of course, he handed Truc Do her ass which scored major points with me, personally... but I wasn't on the jury. So never mind.

I also have to say that Hansen's language shows some bias.

One part of the prosecution's case did get their attention.

Really. Only one part. And yet they got a conviction. Explain that, lab partner.

There are some other nuggets to be mined from Dateline's coverage. As noted in my write-up on the original broadcast, Ray reveals a lot about himself with his language.

But such is the muddled, mixed message that typifies Ray's work. Dateline includes this segment from his appearance on Oprah. Says Ray:

Not what can I get but what can I give and how can I serve. And when you're in that moment the universe lines up behind you and it's at your command.

So are you supposed to be serving the universe or ordering it around? The moment you go from that surrendered place that allows you to consciously merge with the universe to one in which you are so in your ego that you start "commanding" things, that sense of limitless unity is gone. We can either become conscious of our oneness with all that is or delude ourselves into thinking we're the king of the world. We can't do both. One is the experience of mystical awareness. The other is just grandiosity.

Another major tell emerges in the interview with Ginny Brown, mother of the late Kirby Brown. She recounts for Hansen what Ray said to her when he finally got around to calling her five days later.

He didn't apologize. He said, I'm so upset and I have to find out what happened. He said, "This is the most awful thing that has ever happened to me in my life."

I really can't imagine what goes on in the mind of someone who would tell a mother who's just lost her daughter that it was the worst thing that had ever happened to him. It's beyond narcissistic and just stunningly insensitive.

Another statement that jumped out at me this time 'round was interview footage of Ray describing how the law of attraction brings wealth and success into your life.

You gotta to be in the right place at the right time, do the right things, get the right opportunities, make the right decisions meet the right people, and get the right results.

He says it with that same angry intensity that I've noted before. And he punches the word "right" every time he says it in this rapid-fire litany of wickets that you just have to hit. The whole thing just gives me agita. It's another example of building urgency language, like his "time is short" lecture at the beginning of Spiritual Warrior. Implied: Whatever you do, for the love of God, don't make any mistakes. A single wrong choice -- or wrong thought -- and it'll all just go to hell. Also implied: You need me to help you be perfect enough to magnetize the right things.

I know a two hour show can't do justice to a four month trial but this was mostly style without substance. It was very shiny and had lots of lovely shots of Sedona, but it could not help but leave viewers with a lot of questions. Worse, it could leave a distorted perception about the strength of the prosecution's case. They also didn't really put across what a reprobate Ray is. For instance, they didn't discuss at all that Kirby Brown, James Shore, and Liz Neuman, weren't his first casualties -- that less than three months before that Colleen Conaway fell to her death during another Ray event. James Ray has far more to answer for than is evident Dateline's treatment of this horrific tragedy.

DC40 Counter Event Gets Beliefnet Treatment

2011-10-22T21:31:00.002-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Well, I still have my Beliefnet News feed, despite my disgust, and today I noticed an interesting item on a DC40 counter event coming up. Rob Kerby's post pretty much sticks to the press release and doesn't editorialize much. But if you're thinking the story was treated fairly, 'fraid not.

Here's the relevant info from Capital Witch:

Priestesses and priests from the Washington, DC Pagan community will hold a Celebration of the Divine Feminine and Religious Freedom in Lafayette Square Park across from the White House on Sunday, October 30th, 2011, as a protest to the New Apostolic Reformation’s 51-day prayer campaign targeting Pagans, Wiccans, Witches, Druids, Heathens, and other Goddess-worshipers nationwide.

The New Apostolic Reformation is a Dominionist group of Christians preaching that all feminine forms of deity are demonic. The NAR is engaged in a 51-day campaign of imprecatory prayer to create a fundamentalist Christian theocracy in the USA. Republican presidential hopefuls Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry are influenced by the NAR agenda.

. . .

The event in Lafayette Square Park begins at noon and ends at 5pm on Sunday, October 30th, Samhain eve to many Pagans, leading into one of the most holy days of the Pagan year. “Samhain, or Halloween, is the Feast of the Ancestors in some of our Pagan religions. We will invoke the Founding Fathers and Mothers of our nation during our ceremony, along with a multitude of Goddesses from pantheons both ancient and modern. Among our Goddesses will be Lady Liberty and Columbia, the Goddess who stands guard atop the Capitol Building,” said Ms. Kenner. “The New Apostolic Reformation people would topple Columbia from Her pinnacle, and rename DC the District of Christ.”

So, that much is completely awesome and I'm glad to know about it. Whether you're going or not, I'd say that'd be a good time to join in in spirit and Om the Dome.

While much of the Kerby's post is "just the facts" there is a bit of subtle snark, like the lede which could be read as pagans being irritated that Christians are praying for the country.

A group that says it represents the District of Columbia’s pagan community is upset that a group of Christians is praying for America.

He also put Samhain eve in quotes which makes it look like it's something novel that the organizers made up, as opposed to an established holiday. That's particularly alarming when you consider that Beliefnet has a pagan community section... for now.

All of that I could let go but where the bias really becomes apparent is in the disappearing comments. When I first read this story earlier today there was a very smart comment from, if memory serves, someone named Erica. It's gone now. I wish I'd taken a screen capture. It didn't occur to me that it would be deleted. When will I learn?! The comment said something about how Erica (???) was reading the founding father's writings every day of the DC40 as a reminder of how committed they were to the separation of church and state. I'm not doing it justice.

It's funny. One of the other things I've been noticing about Beliefnet over the past several months is the paucity of comments. There used to be a lot more. I assumed their readership was down or that the news stories just weren't interesting enough to invite comment. I'm rethinking that. It would seem that only comments that echo Kerby's views are welcome. The rest go down the memory hole. And it would seem that separation of church and state is not big with Mr. Kerby. Good to know.

Beliefnet Goes Bigot

2011-10-21T11:34:00.000-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Remember when Beliefnet.com was all about tolerance and religious diversity? Well, I do. I'm not saying there wasn't the occasional dustup. And, in fairness, I've never been a really active member or reader. But it was always a good place to find interesting content on many different religions and events around the globe pertaining to religion.

Years ago I put a Beliefnet news feed on my iGoogle page and often saw interesting items scroll through. More recently, however, I've noticed a dramatic shift in tone. It's taken a sharp Christian Right turn. I often see articles that seem to pit the Christian West against other cultures -- Muslims in particular. I toyed with the idea of removing the feed but I haven't as yet. It's taken on a kind of compelling, train-wreck quality. Periodically I just have to see what bold, new wingnuttery is gracing its pages.

Now, bear in mind, this is the feed for Beliefnet News. It's the not the Christian section, let alone the Christian Right section, which doesn't exist as near as I can tell. Well, it wouldn't need to because now the news section is fitting that particular bill.

The news feed used to bring reprints or excerpts from world religion related news stories without commentary. Now it appears to be the blog of one Rob Kerby who I'm afraid holds the title of Senior Editor. So is he a Christianist (to borrow a Sullyism) and bigot? Here's a recent post.

Members of the football team stomped out of a Hartford, Connecticut, high school assembly when a pro-homosexual advocacy play featured two boys kissing on stage.

. . .

It apparently did not occur to [Principal David Chambers] that some of the kids had moral issues with the scene — believing that glorifying same-gender romance is wrong. Chambers’ intent was to wear down the students sense of disgust and discomfort with viewing homosexuality on stage.

He goes on to quote a bevy of outraged Christians and closes with this:

“I applaud the young men that got up and left the show,” wrote Jacqueline. ”It shows courage to stand up for what is right. Instead of sitting by silently and being forced to accept views they do not agree with, they stood up for their on beliefs and convictions. Real men stand with courage for what is right.”

I posted a comment questioning the pro-bigotry tone of the piece. I asked why these supposedly Bible believing Christians aren't demanding the execution of gay people, along the lines of points I addressed here. And I asked when these Christians were going to stop slacking and go after all the pork and shellfish eaters. As you can plainly see, that comment is no longer there. So I attempted to post another comment questioning the censorious nature of the site. It wouldn't post so they've clearly blocked my IP or something.

So, the "news" section of Beliefnet is now little more than a megaphone for far right, Christianist bigotry and they're not tolerating any questions about that policy. Pity. It used to be a very worthwhile site.

Dateline to Air New James Ray Special

2011-10-20T10:02:00.000-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Dateline will revisit the James Arthur Ray sweat lodge fiasco this Friday night. So set your DVRs. I have.

In October 2009, James Arthur Ray, a renowned self-help author and speaker, held a "Spiritual Warrior" retreat in Sedona, AZ. Three people died during the retreat, and Ray was charged with manslaughter but convicted of a lesser charge. Chris Hansen reports Deadly Retreat this Friday, October 21st, at 9pm/8c.

Is Mormonism a Cult?

2011-10-19T09:00:00.002-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

I got an email the other day asking me that question? Why I got it and how on earth I came to be on that particular mailing I have no idea. But I was intrigued so I followed the link to find out just why this particular Christian group would characterize the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as a cult. I have a little trouble with their definition.

But what is a cult? Dr. Charles Braden, coauthor with John C. Schaffer of the book These Also Believe, said this:
By the term cult, I mean nothing derogatory to any group so classified. A cult, as I define it, is any religious group which differs significantly in one or more respects as to belief or practice from those religious groups which are regarded as the normative expressions of religion in our total culture.

The question arises, obviously, because of Mormon Mitt Romney's candidacy. And because Rick Perry supporter Robert Jeffress put the issue front and center.

Texas pastor Robert Jeffress generated headlines last week when he told reporters that Mormonism is a cult—a belief system at odds with historic Christianity.

Since then he has been accused of bigotry, called a “poster boy for hatred,” and a “moron.”

Despite those harsh charges, Jeffress, who backs Texas governor Rick Perry for the GOP presidential nomination, has made it clear that his view of Mormonism is theologically grounded and not an expression of bigotry. He made it clear that he would be willing to vote for Romney in the general election if he wins the Republican nomination and said he thinks that Romney is a “fine family person."

Romney's a good person and worth voting for. It's just so unfortunate that he has no first name. Seriously. Nowhere in the article is his entire name used. Telling, I think.

But, to my point, I have a little difficulty with their use of the term cult to define a religion just because its beliefs and doctrines differ from their own.

I'm somewhat sensitized to the issue after months of following the James Ray trial. The term cult was discussed more than a little and Ray has been observed by many cult watchers -- fairly I think. But I was alarmed at how much I read that characterized Ray's followers as a cult because their beliefs are nontraditional and "new agey." The beliefs of any group, in my opinion, are not what defines that group as a cult. It's not about what people believe but how they believe it. Any group can be a cult or have cult-like elements, including non-religious groups. Political groups, for instance, can be cults.

Admittedly, I'm defining cult somewhat narrowly in the sense of "mind control" or "negative" cults. The term cult has the same word root as cultivate and culture. It implies the shared beliefs of a community. But over time it came to be used in reference to marginalized groups.

When someone like Jeffress uses the term it's just thinly veiled sectarianism; something which has absolutely no place in the political process of a country where freedom of religion is a constitutionally protected right.

It merits mentioning that Jeffress has also characterized Catholicism as a cult -- specifically, "a Babylonian mystery religion that spread like a cult," which demonstrates "the genius of Satan." This revelation seems to have a gotten a more proactive response from Rick Perry than did the anti-Mormon statement.

Where it all gets really murky is in the conflation of these two meanings of the word cult. Again, something I saw a lot of in discussions of James Ray. The assumption seems to be: Your beliefs are weird so you must have been brainwashed to believe them.

I'm going to go on record and say that I don't define Mormonism as a cult because their beliefs are weird -- certainly not because they're not in alignment with other Christian sects. That's not to say that LDS is not a mind-control cult, however. There's actually a very strong case to be made that the Mormon Church employs enough manipulative tactics to be defined that way. That case is most often made by ex-Mormons.

Psychologist, cult expert, and cult survivor Steven Hassan has, at the behest of ex-Mormons, started to look at the cultish elements of LDS. Hassan uses what he calls the BITE model to define a cult.

Behavioral control
Information control
Thought control
Emotional control

In this article he's applied the BITE model the Mormon Church relying reporting from a former member. It's a detailed breakdown and indicates a fairly strong system of control.

In 2009 Hassan was invited to speak by a group of ex-Mormons in Salt Lake City. The lecture is well worth a listen. He doesn't talk a lot about LDS. He leaves that to the ex-Mormons themselves. But he shares from his own experience as a Moonie and underscores the commonality with his audience. Most interesting are the responses from audience members and how strongly they identify with Hassan's experience as a follower of Sun Myung Moon.

What struck me, though, was how much this lecture put me in mind of my fairly short-lived immersion into born-again Christianity. The thought-stopping, the use of singing and repetitive phrasing to silence challenging thoughts, the characterization of any questions with temptation by the devil, the enforced group-think, and, of course, the belief in an absolute truth. It causes me to ponder, and not for the first time, how my born-again experience was a study cult techniques, albeit not to the extreme end occupied the Moonies. No one ever tried to come between me and my family, for instance. There was just a lot of hope that I'd convert my family so that we wouldn't be separated by death. You know, because they were all going to hell.

There's a certain sense of irony when a fundamentalist Christian group defines another group as a cult because it has the "wrong" beliefs. Believing yours is the only valid path is one of the more common features of a mind-control cult.

Rick Perry seems to have attached himself to more than a handful of Christian leaders who define themselves by this sort of elitism. Both he and Michele Bachmann have ties to dominionist groups.

Put simply, Dominionism means that Christians have a God-given right to rule all earthly institutions. Originating among some of America’s most radical theocrats, it’s long had an influence on religious-right education and political organizing. But because it seems so outré, getting ordinary people to take it seriously can be difficult. Most writers, myself included, who explore it have been called paranoid. In a contemptuous 2006 First Things review of several books, including Kevin Phillips’ American Theocracy, and my own Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism, conservative columnist Ross Douthat wrote, “the fear of theocracy has become a defining panic of the Bush era.”

Rick Perry created waves recently when was involved in a prayer rally organized by leaders of the dominionist New Apostolic Reformation. It's the NAR that is responsible for the current DC40 campaign to turn the District of Columbia into the District of Christ.

One of the things Hassan mentions in the lecture embedded above is that the various cults he's dealt with -- most especially the Unification Church of which he was a part -- are in competition with each other for control of the world. Just something to think about.

Cafe

2011-10-18T06:00:00.002-04:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanism and the True Nature of Health

"Health is divinely given," explains Yewshaman Michael Dunning, "As is the consciousness with which to perceive it therapeutically. Thus Health in an embryological context exists before development of the human nervous system and prior to the expression of the genes." Join host, Christina Pratt, this week as guest and shaman, Michael Dunning, shares his experiential understanding of the ancient shamanic practices to perceive of and learn of Health from the natural world. From this view health is not something that comes and goes as we "catch" colds or "get" cancer, but health is innate, divinely given, and part of our nature. The practices of Yewshamanism, given to Michael by the yew tree, can be embodied by anyone who is prepared to shift their perception back into Nature and Health. Michael founded the Sacred Yew Institute as an educational body with which to explore and teach these connections. He is our next guest in the Society of Shamanic Practitioners sponsored interview series. In this series we explore how contemporary shamans are meeting the challenge of their world where the relations of things are profoundly out of balance. It is the ancient role of the shaman in all cultures to tend the balance of things. How are these shamans meeting this extraordinary need today?

This week's guest:
Michael Dunning

Michael Dunning was born in Glasgow, Scotland. After graduating from the Edinburgh School of Art he taught himself to play the double-bass and by the early 1990's was performing in Europe and Japan with the award winning experimental musical - theater group, The New Theater (TNT). He has also worked for a non-profit arts organization in Edinburgh, where for 14 years, he developed arts programs for adults with a history of mental health problems. In 2003 Michael emigrated to US. Michael teaches yewshamanism throughout New England. He also practices and teaches as a biodynamic craniosacral therapist.

Yewshamanism and Craniosacral Therapy
Michael believes that the yew tree was once regarded by the indigenous shaman-healers as a great source of occult knowledge holding an ancient and embryonic language of healing and rejuvenation. An account of Michael's experiences under the yew tree can be read in the book, Soul Companions: Conversations with Contemporary Wisdom Keeper, A Collection of Encounters with Spirit, by Karen Sawyer. Many years later Michael discovered that craniosacral therapy, and particularly the biodynamic model, provided him with a contemporary healing modality that related to some key embryonic aspects of his shamanic work.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

Log on to Listen
Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
Questions? Comments? Call: 1-512-772-1938

All episodes are now available in the iTunes Podcast Library.

The Zaracon Show

The Zaracon Show DC-40 Counter Prayer

This show is in support of Liberty ( Libertas) and the Goddess Columbia, Tonight, [State of the Day] Takes the Pointman Possition and we dedicate this show to the Freedom and Liberty of all the people who reside there.

Tonights counter spell will be lead by -Z

The call in lines will be open you may call in with comments and praises of the gods in your state.

Every Night Throughout DC40 Campaign 08:00PM ET
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/zaracon

What in the world are they spraying? with Michael J. Murphy

12pm PST - "One on One with Michele." Host MICHELE MEICHE & her guest Co-Host Paolo Doro, share their weekly Soul Insights, Ascension Information; as well as 2012 & beyond updates. They answer your questions, and do channeled readings. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? How do you acclimate to the New Energies of the New Emerging Consciousness? In addition to calling into the show, you can also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. In the 2nd portion of the show, Michele Meiche welcomes our Awakened Guest of the week. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. Paolo's Ancient Bling beading represents the connected thread of life, they are my prayers and I really enjoy using recycled and discarded pieces from the Ancient World - http://youtu.be/ObLVXoph72U. This weeks guest Michael J. Murphy is a journalist, filmmaker and political activist from the L.A. area whose work focuses on issues that go beyond the interest of the Corporate mainstream media. Michael's work includes Co-Producing documentary “What in the World are They Spraying?”and several other short films that address controversial political issues. Interviews include; G. Edward Griffin, Chelene Nightingale (CA Gov. candidate), Jim King (CA lieutenant Gov. candidate), Mark Reed (CA congressional candidate), Bill Hunt (Orange County Sheriff candidate), Jenny Worman (CA congressional candidate), Stewart Rhodes (Oath Keepers, Founder), Actress Mariel Hemingway and Ed Asner (Actor "Mary Tyler Moore", "Lou Grant" and "UP"). www.truthmediaproductions.us www.whatintheworldaretheyspraying.info

Wed, Oct 19, 2011 03:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

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Supernatural World Of The Iroquois & Cattle Mutilation

Michael Bastine
The Supernatural World Of The Iroquois Indians
Assembling the lore and beliefs of this guarded spiritual legacy, Michael Bastine shares the stories of both historic and contemporary encounters with beings and places of Iroquois legend. Grounding their tales with a history of the Haundenosaunee, the People of the Long House, the authors show how the supernatural beings, places, and customs of the Iroquois live on in contemporary paranormal experience. Michael Bastine is an Algonquin healer, elder, and former student of famous Tuscarora medicine man Wallace “Mad Bear” Anderson and Tuscarora healer Ted Williams.

Edmund Gomez
The Cattle Mutilation Enigma
For Edmund Gomez, the Dulce mystery began in June 1976 when he discovered mutilated cattle on his ranch near Dulce, NM. Although stating his belief that government disinformation is behind claims of extraterrestrial involvement in the cattle mutilations and finding physical evidence of classified military activities on his land, Gomez nevertheless is intrigued by an air vent he located in the Archuletta Mesa during a 1988 expedition in the area.

Fri, Oct 21, 2011 3:00PM ET/2:00PM CT

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Awake: Now What?

Chat with James Tyberon about 11-11-11 and more

James Tyberonn worked as a professional engineer & geologist for 33 years. He is a native of Arkansas, but has lived & worked abroad for 30 years, circumnavigating the globe many times & traveling to over 75 countries in his geology work. Tyb has always had a very deep love for the earth, and a driven interest in spirituality and metaphysics all of his life. During his 33 years of working abroad, he devoted himself to intense metaphysical studies of varied disciplines. He focused on understanding the energy of the living Earth from both a scientific and metaphysical perspective.

A military veteran, Tyb served his country as an officer in the US Army Signal Corps. In his geological work, he lived as an expatriate in Bolivia, Brazil, India, Venezuela, Gabon, Congo, Russia, United Arab Emirates and Scotland. He studied gemology while in Brazil, and speaks Spanish, Portugese and French. He has had a great interest in metaphysics, sacred sites, grids, leylines, portals, vortexes, healing gems, crystals, auric maintenance, EMF, Light Body, spiritual growth and music

He produced and recorded a music cd of blues and jazz. All of the proceeds from the CD are donated to charity, the Foundation for the Cure of Cystic Fibrosis.

Tyberonn began channeling Archangel Metatron in 2007, and is featured each month in the "Sedona Journal of Emergence" Magazine. He has recently retired from his geological work, and now writes and conducts seminars and sacred site travel throughout the Americas on a full time basis.

For more information go to http://www.earth-keeper.com/

Sun, Oct 23, 2011 6:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awake

Setting the Record Straight on Bishop Finn

2011-10-15T20:18:00.004-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Bishop Robert Finn was indicted this week for failure to report a pedophile priest.

Bishop Robert Finn on Friday became the highest-ranking Catholic official in the nation to face criminal prosecution in the decades-old child sexual abuse scandal — an action that stunned many inside and outside the church.

A Jackson County grand jury on Oct. 6 secretly indicted both Finn and the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph on misdemeanor charges of failure to report child abuse in a case involving a priest facing child pornography charges.

As Finn and the diocese denied wrongdoing Friday after appearing in court, news of the charges roiled the nation and the Catholic world.

I have been reading about this case as its developed for months but everything I've read has left me a little ambivalent. There's a problem with this story and it's been covered unevenly from the outset. On the surface it comports well with a familiar narrative about Catholic bishops protecting the Church's reputation and abusive priests at the expense of children. But it's not that straightforward.

I'm not saying that Bishop Finn handled this situation well or that he was anywhere near as proactive as he needed to be. But at the end of the day, I have to say the same about the police and that element has been ignored in most of the reporting.

I first became aware of the problems in the Kansas City Diocese in May of this year when the story of of priest in possession of child pornography broke wide. Early reports claimed that the diocese had sat on the evidence for months and failed to act on concerns about Father Shawn Ratigan. After reading more in depth stories, I learned that this was not quite accurate. Bishop Finn, who quickly donned a hair shirt and prostrated himself before God and the media, actually did have someone from the diocese talk to police early on. Could he have been more proactive? Definitely. But that doesn't excuse the lazy reporting that has blatantly misstated the facts.

The current media narrative says that the Bishop knew of troubling images on Father Ratigan's computer for months before reporting them to police. But some of the more thorough reporting from this past May says the opposite. A nude image that particularly concerned them was described to police immediately and shown to church counsel. Both said that the image did not constitute child pornography

This story in the paper of record is a case on point:

Bishop Robert Finn of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph has acknowledged that he knew of the existence of photographs last December but did not turn them over to the police until May.

. . .

Stoking much of the anger is the fact that only three years ago, Bishop Finn settled lawsuits with 47 plaintiffs in sexual abuse cases for $10 million and agreed to a long list of preventive measures, among them to immediately report anyone suspected of being a pedophile to law enforcement authorities.

Michael Hunter, an abuse victim who was part of that settlement and is now the president of the Kansas City chapter of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said: “There were 19 nonmonetary agreements that the diocese signed on to, and they were things like reporting immediately to the police. And they didn’t do it. That’s really what sickens us as much as the abuse.”

Their reporting is incomplete but it does provide a link to a pdf Bishop Finn's May statement:

When the Diocese of Kansas City ~ St. Joseph reported its concerns about Father Shawn Ratigan to the Kansas City Police Department on May 12, we set into motion a series of events that have provoked feelings of concern, anger and shame.

During the last two weeks, I have learned facts that I had not previously known. As Bishop, I owe it to people to say, “Things must change.”

I must also acknowledge my own failings.

Yesterday evening, I read, for the first time, the memorandum prepared in May 2010 by our principal at St. Patrick School. There, she reported her concerns about Shawn Ratigan’s inappropriate behavior with children at her school.

In the following days, Diocesan Vicar General Msgr. Murphy gave me a brief verbal summary of the report and his meeting with Shawn Ratigan, which had occurred immediately after the report was received. Msgr. Murphy told me that he had thoroughly discussed these concerns with Shawn Ratigan, and how he was to change his behaviors.

Shawn Ratigan expressed both the willingness and the desire to make these changes.
To the best of my knowledge, no one on my staff, other than Msgr. Murphy, read the report. Hindsight makes it clear that I should have requested from Msgr. Murphy an actual copy of the report. And, so, I also have to change. Please understand that at the time of the May 2010 report, we had no knowledge of any inappropriate photographs or images in Shawn Ratigan’s possession. Those were not discovered until December 2010.

How will we change?

I already have met with the people of the St. Patrick Parish community, priests of the diocese, diocesan staff, and the chair of the Independent Review Board. As a result of these meetings, I have asked the Independent Review Board to expand its role in receiving and evaluating reports of misconduct with children. I will be meeting with others, to determine how best to change our internal structure, reporting and procedures. The changes could be unsettling but, more than ever, I realize that they are necessary.

Please pray for me in these resolutions. And, let us pray for each other in these difficult days.

Where the New York Times fails is in leaving out the very important point that the diocese did contact the police immediately after learning of questionable images from a computer technician.

More accurate accounting of the sequence of events can be found in reporting from the time. In point of fact, the diocese contacted the police the day after they learned from a computer tech that there were troubling images on Father Ratigan's computer. Neither the police nor church counsel thought the images were actionable.

Captain Steve Young explained, “A member of the Diocese contacted a member of this department and told that member of the department that they'd found a computer and on that computer was a single image of a naked young girl."

The Diocese asked if the photos were pornographic.

He continued, “The answer to that is no, it is not child porn. It is not a prosecutable offense."

Bishop Robert Finn said in a statement Friday, the Diocese did seek advice from its legal council. Finn said, “The photographs did not constitute pornography as they did not depict sexual conduct or contact."

Now, Finn regrets not pushing for a full investigation.

The situation was further complicated when Father Ratigan unsuccessfully attempted suicide upon discovery of his digital of images. After that he was sent for psychiatric evaluation. The diocese also ordered him to stay away from children -- another item that seems to get dropped from much of the reporting. The above cited New York Times article claims Father Ratigan was able to attend multiple events with children present. What it ignores is that it was Ratigan's violation of his order to stay away from such events that precipitated further investigation from the diocese.

A number of the articles that I'd saved on this case were lost when my link service went tats up without warning, but this story from the National Catholic Register provides a chronology that pretty well comports with my recollection.

In December 2010, a computer technician working on Father Ratigan’s laptop found what he described as “disturbing images” of children, including pictures focusing on the children’s crotch areas, and a young girl with her genitals exposed.

According to a diocese-commissioned investigation, led by former U.S. Attorney Todd Graves, Msgr. Murphy described one image — but did not produce it — to a police captain who is a member of the diocese’s independent review board. Msgr. Murphy described a single photo of a nude child that was not sexual in nature.

According to Graves’ report, issued Sept. 1, Police Capt. Rick Smith said Msgr. Murphy informed him that Father Ratigan’s computer contained a single picture of a nude girl; that it was a family member or a niece; and that it was not a sexual pose.

However, Msgr. Murphy said he did not remember telling the police captain that the picture depicted a young relative or that it was not a sexual pose.

Either way, the report says Capt. Smith, after seeking advice from a police colleague, told Msgr. Murphy that a single photo in a non‐sexual pose might meet the definition of child pornography, but it would not likely be investigated or prosecuted.
[emphasis added]

The day after the images were found, Father Ratigan was ordered to meet with diocesan officials, but the next morning, he was found unconscious in his garage, with his motorcycle running, according to The Catholic Key, the diocesan newspaper.

Father Ratigan was placed on administrative leave and underwent a psychiatric evaluation. He was not permitted to return to this parish and prohibited from having any contact with children or using a camera and computer.

On May 12, after Father Ratigan allegedly violated those restrictions, Msgr. Murphy again contacted the police officer, who in turn submitted a report to the Cyber Crimes Against Children Unit. Six days later, police arrested the priest after finding a flash drive with several pictures of child pornography.

What I find interesting in that article is that it describes a differing recollection between police and the monsignor who conferred with them, so it's a case of he said, he said. I also find it interesting that in the direct statement from Captain Young quoted above, he doesn't acknowledge that the image could have been pornographic. The Graves Commission report shows Captain Smith saying that it could have been pornography but would not likely have been investigated or prosecuted. That's a pretty big difference.

None of this is to excuse Bishop Finn's ostrich behavior on this case and their definitely was some. But my sense is that the police also dropped the ball. Why they didn't push for an investigation if there was any chance that the image described could have been pornographic is beyond me.

I find this particularly troubling in the wake of so much effort to get the Catholic Church on board with reporting requirements. Those efforts assume that the police are the people to turn to.

When Amish Attack

2011-10-13T22:48:00.000-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Five Amish men were arraigned today for the hair-cutting attacks discussed here. Three are sons of Bishop Sam Mullet and all five are part of the Bergholz community he leads.

The latest Amish men to turn themselves in are Daniel Mullet, 37, along with Eli Miller, 32. Also accused are Levi Miller, 53; Johnny Mullet, 38; and Lester Mullet, 26, who were arrested on Friday, Oct. 7, 2011, on charges of kidnapping and aggravated burglary. Those three originally told the Jefferson Count judge Tuesday, that they wanted Bishop Sam Mullet to decide if they should waive extradition, but later agreed on their own. The three accused were being held at the Jefferson County Justice Facility, in a segregated area, on $250,000 cash bond each, according to reports. The trio told the judge that Bishop Mullet was expected to arrive with the $750,000 cash bond needed to be freed. Bishop Mullet did show up, but did not have the money; therefore, Holmes County came and transported back to their jail, sources said.

These incidents have dragged the normally very private Amish into the media and some of them are speaking openly. Bishop Mullet, the man at the center of this dustup, has proved to be quite loquacious. His former son-in-law -- whose custody claim resulted in the SWAT at the schoolhouse incident -- has also given a lengthy statement to the press. He compared the splinter group to Jim Jones's Peoples Temple which ended in a notorious mass suicide in 1978.

"I'm not surprised if I have to call the sheriff some day and say there are a lot of dead people lying around here. That would not be a surprise to me nor would it be a surprise to the sheriff of that county," Ayden said.

. . .

"I have enough inside information that I have no question if something is not done, there will be people that get hurt," Ayden said.

The former member says there were forced beatings, pitting one member against another.

Ayden says there is a heavy price to pay for disagreeing with Sam Mullet.

"He would take the wife from the man. The wife would have to go and live with Sam. The husband of that wife would have to go to the chicken coop or out in the barn in the middle of the winter, sometimes day and night," Ayden said.

Disturbing accusations, if true. But having read Sam Mullet's statements to the press, I'm inclined to believe it.

Mullet, 66, said the goal of the hair-cutting was to send a message to Amish in Holmes County that they should be ashamed of themselves for the way they were treating Mullet and his community.

"They changed the rulings of our church here, and they're trying to force their way down our throat, make us do like they want us to do, and we're not going to do that," Mullet told The Associated Press outside his house on the outskirts of Bergholz, a village of about 700 residents.

"We know what we did and why we did it," he continued. "We excommunicated some members here because they didn't want to obey the rules of the church."

. . .

"You have your laws on the road and the town -- if somebody doesn't obey them, you punish them. But I'm not allowed to punish the church people?" Mullet said. "I just let them run over me? If every family would just do as they pleased, what kind of church would we have?"

His statements are very revealing. By his own admission, he sees degrading people as an appropriate corrective and goes so far as to compare that degradation to our judicial system. Actually, we English have laws against that. Also, like any classic abusers, he paints himself repeatedly as the victim.

He also seems to see kidnapping and assault as an exercise of religion rather than felonies.

Mullet said whoever is responsible for the attacks, in which a truckful of Amish men are said to approach a house and eventually attack its occupant, has religious, not criminal motivation.

"It's all religion," he maintained, "that's why we can't understand why the sheriff has his nose in our business. It started with us excommunicating members that weren't listening or obeying our laws. That's where it all started. I didn't know the courts could stick their nose in religion, but that seems what they did here."

For all his openness, Mullet has neither confirmed nor denied his own involvement in the hair-cutting attacks. But typical Amish fashion, the assailants were apparently quite honest and straightforward about their intentions.

After a few minutes of small talk about the weather, the men suddenly announced, "We're here for Sam Mullet to get revenge," [Sheriff Timothy] Zimmerly said.

Escaping Warren Jeffs

2011-10-13T16:57:00.001-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

A twenty-five year old woman purported to be one of Warren Jeffs's many, many wives, is currently in a women's shelter after fleeing the FLDS compound in Colorado City, Arizona. For reasons that remain unclear, she was apparently shoeless.

She sought help from disenfranchised FLDS member Willie Jessop after fleeing her parents' home. Police responded to a "keep the peace call."

The sheriff’s deputies helped diffuse what had become a standoff with FLDS men outside Jessop’s office, Wyler said, adding that the woman was taken to a shelter.

Jessop declined to provide details about the situation.

"It’s all about the welfare of a girl who sought help," Jessop said. "We’re keeping this focused on what’s in the best interest of the young lady."

According to some reports, this was not her first attempt to flee Jeffs's compound.

This is allegedly not the first time the woman tried to escape and the Washington County Attorney’s Office is investigating.

They are looking into allegations he was held against her own will and even drugged.

Kidnapping and drugs! Jeffs and his clan really know how to charm the ladies.

Jeffs is, of course, in a Texas prison. having been convicted for child molestation because some of many, many wives are a tad young. But even from prison, he seems to have quite a grip on his church and wives, with compounds in Utah, Arizona, Texas, Colorado, South Dakota, and Canada. Few have fled.

Colorado City and its sister community of Hildale are the home base of Jeffs' Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The sect, which has about 10,000 members, practices polygamy in arranged marriages that have sometimes involved underage girls.

Leaving the devout, insular community has historically been difficult for FLDS members in part because it essentially severs all ties with family and friends.

No one seems to know how many wives Jeffs has. One story says 70, another says 85, but most just say "at least 78."

Serial Murder of Peruvian Shamans

2011-10-12T00:21:00.000-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Well, this is horrible. As per The Wild Hunt, Peruvian shamans are the targets of a serial murder spree. To date fourteen shamans are believed to have been murdered over twenty months. Seven have been found dead and another seven have been reported missing. In a recent press conference, deputy minister of foreign affairs Vincente Otta and an Amazon rainforest expert Roger Rumrrill described the brutal slayings and said suspicion has fallen on a local mayor.

Mr. Rumrrill, said: "The healers were murdered in a brutal way, hacked by machetes and axes, stoned, and even shot with rifles, and their bodies then hurled into rivers where they were devoured by piranhas."

Mr Otta said that prosecutors are investigating Balsapuerto Mayor Alfredo Torres and his brother Augusto in connection with the murders.

According to Mr Rumrrill, Mayor Torres "is a religious fanatic and Protestant fundamentalist who considers the shamans his enemies'' and "people possessed by demons''.

Bautista Inuma, who was mistaken for a shaman, survived a machete attack, but lost an arm. He directly accused Augusto Torres, brother of the mayor. And one of the alleged gunmen, Solomon Napo, confessed to one of the killings and claimed to have been hired by the mayor's brother.

Mayer Torres denies involvement and has pointed the finger at villagers displeased with the shaman's failed cures.

District Mayor Alfredo Torres Balsapuerto, has consistently upheld the charges. Until recently went underground, but recently appeared in the media and said "political reasons" trying to discredit him. Vehemently rejected the accusation of the alleged assassin Solomon Napo and downplayed the alleged involvement of his brother Augustus in the crimes. He said the killings were due to possible "revenge" for shamanism wrongdoing, but he denies having been involved in them. It reiterates, firmly, that he believes in "witchcraft".

Otta, I think fairly, characterized Torres's statements as an attempt to "'legitimise the killings' by blaming the victims for the high level of infant mortality in the area."

[Rumrrill] alleged that the mayor, who is an evangelical Christian, ordered the killings on hearing that the shamans planned to form an association. He said the mayor's brother was known in the area as a matabrujos or witch killer.

"For Protestant sects, the shamans are possessed by the devil; a totally sectarian, primitive and racist concept," he said.

Shamans in the Peruvian Amazon use psychoactive plants such as the jungle vine ayahuascafor spiritual ceremonies. As early as the 16th century, Spanish and Portuguese missionaries described its use by native people in the Amazon as the work of the devil.

"Until now the death of 14 curanderos [healers] who are the depositaries of Amazon knowledge wasn't worth the attention of the press," Rumrrill said. "That's an expression of how fragmented and racist this country is. A centralised country which continues to look at its interior with total indifference."

The incursion of fundamentalist Christianity into third world cultures causing problems for "witches" is certainly not unheard of. When Sarah Palin made headlines for pallin' around with Kenyan witch-hunter Thomas Muthee, she unwittingly brought attention to the problem. As I wrote here, it's a phenomenon riddled with irony.

The Peruvian government is taking the problem seriously, however, and has launched an official investigation; ostensibly at the behest of the accused mayor. And the Foundation for Shamanic Studies is currently seeking help and support for the endangered Peruvian shamans.

Cafe

2011-10-11T06:00:00.010-04:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Picking Up Your Medicine Today

You can open the door to a life of meaning and purpose by "picking up your medicine." Your medicine does not come to you in a dream, from a psychic reading, or a weekend workshop. Your medicine emerges from the transmutation of the "great poisons" of your life. Like Buddha transforming anger into mirror-like wisdom or desire into discernment, your medicine is a gift that lies dormant, but potent in this life. Your spirit help is waiting for you to see the gift in that-which-brings-you-your-greatest-suffering. "Our medicine is first a poison, like emotional oversensitivity or a hot, righteous temper that ends relationships and loses jobs," explains host and shaman, Christina Pratt. "As we mature spiritually and psychologically in response to our suffering we are actually being transmuted by the poison. In that inner transmutation we become able then-and only then-to transmute the poison in the outer world and bring it as medicine to others. The anger that once lost you friends, lovers, and jobs can become the medicine that makes you a potent, astute and trusted negotiator on an international stage. What upsets us the most in every day life and drives us to ask for help is the dormant energy of our unique genius and the key to our soul's purpose.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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The Zaracon Show

The Zaracon Show DC-40 Counter Prayer

This show is in support of Liberty ( Libertas) and the Goddess Columbia, Tonight [State of the Day] Takes the Pointman Possition and we dedicate this show to the Freedom and Liberty of all the people who reside there.

Tonights counter spell will be lead by -Z

The call in lines will be open you may call in with comments and praises of the gods in your state.

Every Night of the DC-40 Campaign 08:00PM ET
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/zaracon

The Reconnection with Dr. Eric Pearl

12pm PST -- "One on One with Michele." Host MICHELE MEICHE & her Co-Host Paolo Doro, shares their weekly Soul Insights, Ascension Information; as well as 2012 & beyond updates. They answer your questions, and do channeled readings. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? How do you acclimate to the New Energies of the New Emerging Consciousness? In addition to calling into the show, you can also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. In the second portion of the show, Michele Meiche welcomes our Awakened Guest of the week. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. Paolo's Ancient Bling my beading represents the connected thread of life, they are my prayers and I really enjoy using recycled and discarded pieces from the Ancient World - http://youtu.be/ObLVXoph72U. This weeks guest Internationally recognized healer Eric Pearl has appeared on countless television programs in the US and worldwide, spoken by invitation at the United Nations, presented at Madison Square Garden, been interviewed in various publications including The New York Times, and featured in the film, The Living Matrix. As a doctor, Eric ran a highly successful chiropractic practice for 12 years until one day his patients began reporting that they felt his hands on them – even though he hadn’t physically touched them. Patients soon reported receiving miraculous healings from cancers, AIDS-related diseases, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, birth disfigurements, cerebral palsy and other serious afflictions. All this occurred when Eric simply held his hands near them – and to this day, it continues.

Wed, Oct 12, 2011 3:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings

Adam, Eve & "The Others" & The Trinity

Scott Alan Roberts
Adam, Eve & "The Others"
Scott Alan Roberts is the founder and executive editorial director of Intrepid Magazine, a journal dedicated to politics, science, and unexplained phenomena. He is a radio show host, popular public speaker, and stand-up philosopher. He attended Bible college and theological seminary, working toward his master's in Divinity, but left for a 33-year career in advertising and publishing h. He is the author and illustrator of The Rollicking Adventures of Tam O'Hare, a historical novel set in Tudor England, Ireland, and Scotland. He lives in rural Wisconsin with his wife and children.

Marie Jones
The Trinity
Marie also spent fifteen years as a field investigator for the Mutual UFO Network in Los Angeles and San Diego. She currently serves as Director of Special Projects to ARPAST, the Arkansas Paranormal and Anomalous Studies Team. She recently appeared on the History Channel's “Nostradamus Effect” series and “30 Odd Minutes” television with Jeff Belanger, and has been interviewed on hundreds of radio shows all over the world. Marie is a highly regarded and popular speaker on science, metaphysics, consciousness and the paranormal and has appeared at major conferences and events.

Fri, Oct 14, 2011 3:00PM ET/2:00PM CT

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/just-energy-radio

Awake: Now What?

Meet Richard Harvey, Psycho-spiritual Psychotherapist, Autho

I am a psycho-spiritual psychotherapist, author and spiritual teacher. In my early twenties I became part of the Human Potential Movement and studied with some of the leading figures of Western psychology and meditation masters.

After years of study and inward searching, I had a personal breakthrough which I experienced as a transformation into authenticity. I worked hard to integrate these new insights and stabilize in the deeper understanding that I received from my years of personal work. Out of this rich experience my practice developed and I began working with individuals, couples and groups. Since 2002 I have lived in Andalucia, southern Spain, with my wife and four children.

I am the author of The Flight of Consciousness: A Contemporary Map for the Spiritual Journey (Ashgrove, 2002), which has inspired many people on their inner journey.
Biography

My work spans over 30 years. I have worked with individuals, couples, groups and communities, both psychologically and spiritually. I have helped hundreds of people to find greater peace and fulfillment in their lives. My approach is to encourage, empower and enable people to clarify, heal, and liberate themselves from the restrictive conditioning that compromises their relationships, family and working lives.

I have led groups, workshops, seminars and training courses throughout Europe, as well as maintaining a private practice. I act as a consultant to training courses, work with staff groups and communities, run supervision groups and act as a supervisor to psychotherapists.

At the heart of my work is the awakening of individual consciousness, within the wider context of collective spiritual awakening, through a threefold process of work on the personality, the transformation into authenticity, and the realization of our true nature.

For more information go to http://www.therapyandspirituality.com/

Sun, Oct 16, 2011 6:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awake

The Dark Side of Amish Forgiveness

2011-10-10T16:46:00.001-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

When I first noticed a headline about Amish being attacked by a roving band of haircutters I thought it must be some horrible hate crime. So I was a little surprised to learn that, in fact, it was a case of Amish on Amish violence. The story behind the headline seems like something hatched from the mind of a comedy writer. A splinter faction called the Bergholz Clan, under the leadership of a Bishop Mullet, has allegedly taken up scissors against other Amish, escaping on a truck with a horse trailer in tow. Two Mullets and a third man have been arrested for the crime. But they weren't giving their former brethren achy breaky haircuts. They've been lopping the beards off of male victims and the hair off of female victims as young as thirteen. And to the Amish that's anything but funny.

Donald Kraybill, an expert on Amish culture, explains:

Cutting the victims' beards is degrading and insulting in the Amish culture.

"Wearing a beard is a common and required practice for all married Amish men," Kraybill said. "Likewise, women do not cut their hair based on biblical teaching. These appear to be malicious assaults on symbols of Amish identity by a renegade little group of Amish origin who, for whatever reason, have been estranged from other Amish groups."

Says Kraybill of the unusual and surprising attacks:

"This story is very odd and clearly outlier behavior, an aberration in Amish society," he said. "Amish-on-Amish violence is extremely rare. In some cases, it happens when someone has a psychological disorder and/or during Rumspringa, when some youth engage in mischief or pranks that can go awry."

But this statement ignores one very salient point. There is a form of violence that is by some accounts rampant in Amish communities and its practice appears to have been an underlying factor in this spate of haircutting attacks. That crime is sexual abuse.

The conflict surrounding the Bernholz Clan traces back to an incident four years ago. The same Sheriff Abdalla investigating this case made headlines then for calling a SWAT team to a tiny Amish schoolhouse to remove two small children from Bishop Mullet's daughter Wilma Troyer. He defended these unusual actions by explaining that the Mullets had made death threats over a heated custody dispute.

"I don't care if it's a school or church. I'm going to take whatever action is necessary," he said. "Based on threats to my life and on my deputies' lives, based on the threats (Mullet) has made on his own family, surely Mr. Bryan Felmet doesn't think I should approach that situation with sticks in my hand."

. . .

Abdalla also said there are "some very serious allegations" of molestation and attempted rape in that Amish community. The sheriff's department is also investigating the death of a 2-year-old Amish boy who lived in the community. An autopsy on that toddler was never performed though required by law, Abdalla said.

He showed a stack of letters from people he claims left the Bergholz community and are begging him to step in. Further, he said the Amish in that community are being threatened psychologically.

A recent court document explains the court's later decision to prohibit contact with four Mullets in the custody arrangement between the divorced Troyers. In addition to a number of violent and psychotic episodes involving the Mullet family, one Christopher Mullet is now a convicted sex offender.

The trial court did not abuse its discretion in prohibiting Christopher Mullet from having contact with the minor children. There was uncontroverted testimony from witnesses for both sides that Christopher Mullet sexually molested several young children in the Bergholz community. Plaintiff's Exhibit A includes written statements made by I.T., A.T., D.T., and R.T., in which they state Christopher sexually molested them when they were children.

Further, there was testimony that Christopher Mullet confessed his abuse to the Bergholz Amish church and was forgiven and permitted to continue to reside in the community. As of the time of the hearings, Christopher had not been prosecuted. The Guardian ad Litem expressed serious concerns about Christopher Mullet having contact with the minor children. Thus, there is certainly competent credible evidence supporting the trial court's decision that it was not in the best interests of the minor children to have contact with Christopher Mullet.

Wilma also challenges the trial court's refusal to hear additional evidence regarding Christopher Mullet. In her December 5, 2008 Request for Oral Hearing and Request for Consideration of Additional Evidence, Wilma sought to introduce evidence that Christopher Mullet had subsequently been prosecuted for his crimes, convicted, found guilty, sentenced, and classified as a Tier II sex offender. Wilma wanted the trial court to consider this evidence when ruling on her objections to the magistrate's decision. [typographical errors corrected for clarity]

Rejected by the court was a confession by Aden Troyer that he had had an incestuous relationship with his mother. This statement, he said, was coerced by Bishop Mullet who made reconciliation with his wife and family contingent on this confession.

Allegations and counter-allegations of incest and abuse amongst the "Gentle People" seems incongruous but it's alarmingly common. When news-making violence erupts among the Amish, sex abuse is a common theme.

In 2006 an Amish schoolhouse in Pennsylvania was the site of an horrific mass murder. Charles Carl Roberts IV, who was not Amish, entered the unprotected schoolhouse and took ten young girls hostage. A showdown with local police ensued but it ended badly. He shot the girls execution style, killing five, and then killed himself. His primary motivation appears to have been a preoccupation with fantasies of sexually abusing young girls.

Roberts reportedly contacted his wife while still in the schoolhouse and stated that he had molested two young female relatives (between the ages of three and five) 20 years ago (when he would have been 12), and had been daydreaming about molesting again.^[7] Both of the relatives in question have denied these claims. Among the items he brought to the school was a tube of KY Jelly, which investigators surmised he might have intended to use as a sexual lubricant.^[7] His suicide notes stated that he was still angry at God for the death of a premature infant daughter nine years prior.^[8]

The incident brought an incredible amount of media attention to the typically private Amish community but what captured the public imagination more than anything was their readiness to forgive the assailant who had taken five young lives and left other girls with permanent injury. A Booklist review of Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy is emblematic of the reaction.

The crime—shooting innocent schoolchildren in a one-room schoolhouse—was shockingly vicious. More shocking, virtually incredible, was where it happened, in the heart of Pennsylvania's Amish country, commonly associated with bucolic tranquility, not gun violence. This remarkable book explains, exceedingly well, Amish reaction to the horrific Nickel Mines shootings. The outside world was gravely taken aback by the Amish response of forgiveness. Some in the media criticized the Amish as naive and hypocritical (didn't they shun members of their own community?), but most simply couldn't understand the Amish concept of forgiveness as unmerited gift. How could they forgive humanly embodied evil? The authors, all authorities on Amish culture, emphasize that the Amish response reflected the sect's heritage and deeply embedded faith. They distinguish forgiveness from pardon and reconciliation. Forgiveness relinquishes the right to vengeance, while pardon forfeits punishment altogether, and reconciliation restores the relationship of victim and offender or creates a new one. They discuss the shooting mercifully straightforwardly before exploring the broader perspectives of forgiveness and concluding with reflections on the meaning of forgiveness. At times difficult to read, this anguished and devastating account of a national tragedy and a hopeful, life-affirming lesson in how to live is itself a marvel of grace.

People everywhere marveled at the Christian kindness of the Amish in their ability to live the Biblical admonition to turn the other cheek. Their compassion is certainly admirable. But there is another side to Amish forgiveness and it has caused inestimable harm in their communities. There is nothing new about Amish forgiving, pardoning, and reconciling sex abusers, most of whom don't shoot their victims or get mountains of press attention. Sadly, in the urgency to forgive any publicly repentant sinner, the victims of abuse do not get the help they need and are not sufficiently protected from repeat offenders within their communities.

The case of Mary Byler who had been repeatedly molested by her father, who died when she was a small child, and later by her brothers and cousins, also achieved some public notoriety. Frustrated by her community's unwillingness to protect her, she did the unthinkable. She went to the police. Her brothers confessed and were convicted of sexual abuse of a minor. Yet the sympathy from her community was not for Mary but for her brothers.

The community viewed Mary, not Johnny, as the villain, because they had already punished Johnny within the church, according to Garrett. "He went through that process. He was sorry for what he had done, so to the Amish he was forgiven and it should be forgotten," she said.

That had long been the response not only from her community but from her own mother.

In an Amish culture unaccustomed to women speaking up, Mary felt she got more scolding than sympathy when she told her mother what was going on.

She said her mother told her, "You don't fight hard enough and you don't pray hard enough." Mary said her mother made her feel as if the assaults were her fault. "Every time I would talk about this she would say that they have already confessed in church and you're just being unforgiving," she said.

Mary had been molested by just one of these brothers over a hundred times by her count. (He puts the total closer to 75.) The total count of assaults by Mary's male relatives, who were repeatedly forgiven by the church and community, is inestimable.

There is a growing tension between civil authorities and Amish communities as what may be epidemic levels of sex abuse are coming to greater awareness. The largely autonomous Amish insist on handling the problem internally and reintegrating repentant abusers, but numerous repeat victims and recidivist offenders are forcing the problem into the open.

In some church districts, which encompass only two or three dozen families scattered along back roads, there appear to be many crimes like Johnny and Eli's to forgive. No statistics are available, but according to one Amish counselor who works with troubled church members across the Midwest, sexual abuse of children is "almost a plague in some communities." Some police forces and district attorneys do their best to step in, though they are rarely welcomed. Others are slow to investigate or quick to let off Amish offenders with light punishments. When that happens, girls like Mary are failed three times: by their families, their church, and their state.

Investigating police encounter a simultaneous community protectiveness and a peculiar openness from the offenders themselves. In the case of yet another abusive Byler -- a prolific pedophile into old age named Norman -- an "English," meaning non-Amish, neighbor sought help from authorities. The reaction from the Amish community included death threats against the accuser, yet the old man was perfectly open with police when he was confronted.

Deborah Love, an English neighbor who lived next to the Yoders, saw Norman take his 3-year-old granddaughter into his woodshed on a fall day in 1999. She knew that one of Norman's daughters had recently moved her family to Iowa after saying that Norman had asked to sleep with one of her girls. "He was with me enough. He wasn't going to be with my daughter," Love said the woman told her.

A day after Norman took the 3-year-old into his shed, Love noticed some dried blood on the girl's leg. She called Guernsey County Children's Services. The Amish accused Love of lying, and she said she has felt their anger. When some of the men passed her house, they raised their hats and turned them sideways to avoid looking at her. Love's husband said that one young Amish man warned him during hunting season that, "Accidents do happen, so you'd better be careful." In the spring of 2000, the Loves moved out of the neighborhood.

. . .

When the police identify a perpetrator, however, their work in one sense becomes easy. The Amish ethic of confession extends to answering questions asked by outsiders. With little prompting from the detectives who questioned him, Norman Byler admitted to manually penetrating his 8-year-old granddaughter. He said that he hurt the child to get back at her father, who had refused to take Norman to the hospital to treat a torn muscle.

Get it? He was getting back at his son by molesting his granddaughter. And therein lies one clue as to the prevalence of the problem. Women and children are the property of men in Amish life. Why wouldn't they be when that is what the only book they take seriously, the Bible, says? Another clue is in the haircutting assaults that have put the insular community on a collision course with the law in Ohio. As stated, the attachment to the hair of women and girls is based on their reading of scripture.

"The Bible says women are not to cut their hair, that hair is a blessing and is part of a woman's beauty and it belongs to their husband. To have hair forcefully cut is to be shamed," [Beverly] Cushman said.

"For the men with a beard, you can only begin to grow a beard when you get married. It is a symbol of full status, a symbol of your adult manhood. Again, for it to be cut is to be shamed," she said.

That the Bible says women must not cut their hair is a subject of some debate even among fundamentalists. That women -- and their hair -- belong to their husbands, not so much. The tenet in question came up not long ago when presidential candidate Michele Bachmann's purported submissiveness to her husband did a turn through the news cycle. The primary passage that addresses hair cutting is in 1 Corinthians 11.

3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. 5 But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. 6 For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. 7 For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. 8 For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. 9 Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.

It's just a little unclear whether the covering for the woman's head is her hair or a veil and whether it could ever be cut or if it's being long is sufficient. Amongst the Amish however, the doctrine is clear as is their belief in the power of beard. So the actions attributed to the Mullet gang are a violation of the highest order.

The formerly Amish Seloma Furlong addressed the problem on her blog.

Even though I was born and raised in an Amish community and endured sexual abuse myself, it is hard for me to say just how prevalent sexual abuse is among the Amish in general. But what I do know is that Amish men are dominate in the culture and that girls are taught they should be submissive to the men (and boys) from the time they can understand the concept. Most Amish do not educate their children about sex, so girls can easily fall prey to sexual abuse. They often have no reference to know what is happening to them, even as the abuse takes place. And to make matters worse, the usual avenues for getting help are not available to Amish children. Very often abuses are first noticed and reported by schoolteachers in mainstream society, but even that avenue is blocked for most Amish children who attend their own parochial schools.

When sexual abuse is uncovered among the Amish, they focus mainly on the perpetrator’s repentance, rather than on the welfare of the children, which allows pedophiles to walk freely among innocents. They are simply not equipped to deal with these issues, and their isolation from mainstream society means that public services are largely out of reach, especially for children. Even if people in the community know of abuse, they will usually not intervene on behalf of the children, because they do not want to be seen as meddling in other families’ everyday lives. This leaves those Amish children who are being abused with few or no advocates, just when they need them the most.

It seems a toxic brew of masculine hierarchy, insularity, and a sincere belief in Christian forgiveness as a cure-all.

Much like the Amish, the hierarchy of the Catholic Church long treated sex abuse by its priests as a problem of sin, the answer for which was redemption through confession and prayer. And like the Amish they shunned the intrusion of civil authorities. They are being forced to come 'round to the demands of the greater society and the awareness that spiritual remediation is not sufficient to tackle the problem of sex offenders in their midst. And they have been repeatedly called on the carpet for putting the spiritual well-being of abusers above the needs of the children they abuse.

Lesson for today: There are some problems the Bible can't fix. In fact, Biblical teachings can cause or exacerbate some problems. That's not only because of some of its more regressive elements, like its rules for women, but because of the highest of Christian aspirations like forgiveness and redemption.

Like the Catholic Church, the Amish are being forced by internal events to embrace the knowledge of the secular world where its own system has failed. The case cited by Seloma Furlong in her blog post above is a prime example of the Amish having no choice but to turn a problem over to civil authorities.

Community members say that in an effort to cure Mr. Mast of his affliction, they excommunicated him on three occasions: in 2004 when he returned from Wisconsin amid accusations that he had raped his cousin; and again in 2009, when new revelations surfaced of his alleged sexual misconduct. The third excommunication came this year, when after a tortuous internal debate, the community appealed to law enforcement.

“We seen this coming for years,” said Noah Schwartz, another of Mr. Mast’s uncles. “The church worked desperately to get behind him, but it was a lost cause. I don’t think we realized the seriousness of the crimes.”

Mr. Schwartz added that unlike most Amish children — who are often raised with many siblings — Chester Mast was adopted at 5 days old and raised as an only child, mollycoddled by his parents. Mr. Mast’s father, Albert Mast, declined an interview request on behalf of the family.

“This was a boy who had no discipline,” Mr. Schwartz said. “He didn’t respect authority. That’s why he’s behind bars.”

They came into further conflict with the justice system when their policy of confession collided with Mast's defense attorney's sworn duty to protect her client, in this case by pleading not guilty. The two world views seem largely impossible to reconcile.

The rogue band of Amish haircutters is another situation that seems to beg for outside intervention. But many of the Amish are reluctant to press charges or support an investigation, preferring to pray for their assailants.

The reluctance of the Amish community to cooperate with law enforcement agencies has made the investigation more difficult, Abdalla said.

"They sent messages to me to go out and tell the children they're praying for them," he told WJW. "And my response was, 'Pray for them after we put them in jail.' You know, maybe that will be a better time to do that."

But their own internal system apparently failed to deal with the anomie of the Mullets.

The sheriff said the elder Mullet was upbraided four years ago during a meeting of about 300 Amish bishops from Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York for his leadership of his group and for ordering the "shunning" of two families.

"They brought him on the carpet, and he told them to go to hell. He thumbed his nose at them," Abdalla said.

I grew up in Trumbull County where some of these bizarre haircutting attacks have occurred. The wagons and traditional dress were familiar fixtures in my young life. I found it both baffling and intriguing that people would choose to live without modern conveniences, so foreign in their own country. There is much about Amish life to recommend it: the simplicity, the frugality, the traditional farming, the craftsmanship, the sense of community. But community cohesion is always a double-edged sword. It protects and nurtures but it also stifles and suppresses. In a close-knit community the abnormal can become the norm. It seems that in much of the Amish world sexual abuse is part of a repeated social pattern. And it looks like it may cause the Amish to be dragged, at least to some degree, into modernity.

In Memoriam

2011-10-08T15:59:00.000-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Two years ago today, James Shore, Kirby Brown, and Liz Neuman, entered an abnormally hot sweat lodge officiated by James Arthur Ray. Along with a number of other participants, they were severely injured by the high temperatures. They did not survive their injuries.

On July 22, 2011, James Ray was convicted of three counts of criminally negligent homicide. He is still awaiting sentencing and remains free on bond. Said former Ray student, and survivor of an earlier sweat lodge, Connie Joy:

"When this trial started, never in my mind did I think we would be here at the two-year anniversary. I just feel like it's such a limbo. I want this to be resolved."

To the families and friends of James Shore, Kirby Brown, Liz Neuman, and Colleen Conaway, who died on July 25th of the same year at another James Ray event, my thoughts and prayers are with you.

James Ray Sentencing: New Dates

2011-10-07T23:33:00.000-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Judge Darrow has set a new date of November 18th for James Ray's sentencing with the presentencing hearing to precede. The new hearing schedule reads as follows:

(1)     Tuesday, November 8, 2011 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m)
(2)     Wednesday, November 9, 2011 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
(3)     Thursday, November 10, 2011 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
(4)     Tuesday, November 15, 2011 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
(5)     Wednesday, November 16, 2011 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
(6)     Thursday, November 17, 2011 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

So... um... yeah...

The good news is that Sheila Polk has received still more letters to use in the hearing. They're itemized in the most recent disclosure. Of particular interest is one from Kristina Bivins. Bivins can be seen on the Primetime: Mind Games special from last year. The money quote:

It's horrible what happened in the sweat lodge, that three people died. But my life is better and I am so grateful for that. And I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Second thoughts perhaps? Has Ms. Bivins had her come to Jesus moment? I look forward to learning what she has to say about James Ray these days but it looks like I'll have to wait until November... unless the defense team pulls another stunt pushing this whole thing back even further... sigh...

In the meanwhile, I'm just going to keep working on my vision board.

Amanda Knox: Another Witch Trial?

2011-10-05T23:46:00.009-04:00

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

I will be the first to admit that I know next to nothing about the Amanda Knox murder trial. I didn't follow it when it was going on and most of the hysterical coverage here in the states was little more than background noise to me. I will also freely admit that I should have been paying more attention. In the wake of her exoneration on appeal, the coverage has been most interesting. I don't know if she and her boyfriend Raffaelle Sollecito were guilty or innocent. I haven't read enough about the case to have a fully formed opinion. But it seems evident at this point that whatever else it may have been, this was another case of a woman being put on trial for her sexuality. There are also disturbing elements of a Satanic Panic similar to that that robbed the West Memphis Three of eighteen years of their lives. The Wild Hunt gives a little overview.

Now that Amanda Knox has been acquitted of the murder of Meredith Kercher on appeal, more than a few have been noting the ties to “Satanic panic” that marred the original conviction. However, a bizarre editorial from Brendan O’Neill in The Telegraph says that the Satanic panics were started by feminists, not Christians, using one whole data point (and Oprah) to feed his narrative. In truth, this moral panic incubated, at least in the United States, in Christian churches, not feminist gatherings. The textual evidence for this is so pervasive that I can only think that O’Neill has an ax to grind.

The Brendan O'Neill piece is nothing short of bizarre and his animus towards feminism is glaringly apparent.

This idea that the modern-day obsession with Satanism and crazy sexual degradation springs from somewhere within the Vatican is completely mad. It wasn’t Catholic officials or men of the cloth who in recent years rehabilitated the Middle Ages view that there are evil people out there who worship the devil and have sex while they’re doing it – no, it was radical feminists and social workers, in fact some of the same kind of people currently shedding tears over the witch-hunting of Knox. Across Western Europe and America in the 1980s and 90s, it was implacably atheistic, supposedly “Left-wing” activists who spread the idea that Satanism was making a comeback and that children were being raped and killed as a result. It was writers like Beatrix Campbell, a feminist and contributor to the Guardian, who argued in 1990 in Marxism Today, the then bible of the chattering Left, that Satanists were “organising rituals to penetrate any available orifice in troops of little children; to cut open rabbits or cats or people and drink their blood; to shit on silver trays and make the children eat it”. It was feministic social workers who, with the help of police, kidnapped working-class children from their families on the bizarre basis that they were being ritualistically abused. It was people like Oprah Winfrey, echoing academic feminists, who hosted TV shows claiming that some families in America were involved in "human sacrifice rituals and cannibalism" – watch the clip here.

He's not entirely wrong as to how, in part, the Satanic Panic was disseminated, but has ripped these elements from their proper context and transparently used them to bash feminism. In his version of events the sex abuse of children is a fictional element of a feminist obsession with Satanism. This is about exactly backwards. There were definitely erroneous reports of Satanic ritual abuse; some that ruined people's lives unfairly. This was part of a larger belief in the recovery of repressed memory that dominated discussions of sex abuse more generally. Much of the repressed memory theory has been discredited. That far more sex abuse of children occurs than society had previously wanted to admit has not. And the repressed memory theory was one part of bringing the horrors of this crime out into the open, in part because it allowed for legal avenues where the statute of limitations would otherwise have made prosecution impossible.

Repressed memory theory remains controversial. The American Psychiatric Association considers its occurrence as possible but unproven.

First, it's important to state that there is a consensus among memory researchers and clinicians that most people who were sexually abused as children remember all or part of what happened to them although they may not fully understand or disclose it. Concerning the issue of a recovered versus a pseudomemory, like many questions in science, the final answer is yet to be known. But most leaders in the field agree that although it is a rare occurrence, a memory of early childhood abuse that has been forgotten can be remembered later. However, these leaders also agree that it is possible to construct convincing pseudomemories for events that never occurred.

The mechanism(s) by which both of these phenomena happen are not well understood and, at this point it is impossible, without other corroborative evidence, to distinguish a true memory from a false one.

In The Myth of Repressed Memory, Dr. Elizabeth Loftus effectively challenged the theoretical framework of repressed memory therapy. (In the interest of full disclosure, I should say that I wrote the press release for the book when it was originally released.) It was a fascinating book and while I would not say that Loftus entirely disproved the phenomenon of repressed and recovered memory, she demonstrated quite conclusively that memory is a creative and mutable function. We rescript memories all the time, which is why two people can remember the same events very differently. And under guidance we can completely fabricate false memories. I think there is little question that there are cases of people fabricating memories under hypnosis and other forms of therapy that are partly or, in some instances, entirely false.

I think in many cases it was accidental and with the best of intentions that therapists guided people through a process of memory recovery that created false memories. And in some of those cases, the memories that arose involved Satanic ritual abuse and some people saw things that looked like horror movies complete with supernatural phenomena. These memories were treated as real by therapists and talk show hosts and formed one tributary that fed the Satanic Panic of the '80s and '90s. I would never be so arrogant as to say that no instance of Satanic ritual abuse ever occurred. I will say that there has never been documented evidence of it and point out that the FBI was never able to corroborate the instances of Satanic ritual murders and the like.

To chalk this up to some kind feminist conspiracy, however, is ludicrous. Women, some self-described feminists and some not, have been at the forefront of a movement to bring the horrors of childhood sexual abuse into the open and to provide avenues for effective therapy. Some of it has been disastrous. Some of it has been life-saving for survivors of sex abuse.

A social worker friend of mine explained to me, some years ago, his theory of why Satanic ritual abuse has come up repeatedly in the therapy of sex abuse survivors and I consider his reasoning quite sound. It was his supposition that people who'd been sexually abused as children found themselves in an experience of unfathomable evil and a total sense of powerlessness. That they would augment those memories with imaginings of the archetype of ultimate evil, Satan, made perfect sense.

All that said, I think O'Neill's supposition that the prosecutor in Italy was led astray by feminists in his Satanic theory of Amanda Knox's criminal proclivities is the height of absurdity. His case against Knox was the antithesis of feminism but, more to the point, he seems to have something of an obsession with Satanism.

The story begins almost a decade ago, long before Meredith Kercher's murder, when the pubblico ministero (public prosecutor) of Perugia, Giuliano Mignini, opened an investigation into the mysterious death of a doctor whose body was found floating in Lake Trasimeno in 1985.

Mignini believed the doctor was connected to a satanic sect, which had murdered him because he was about to go to the police and reveal its many crimes. Mignini believed this shadowy cult was connected to infamous murders committed by a serial killer known as the Monster of Florence.

. . .

Mignini theorised that this satanic cult consisted of powerful people – noblemen, pharmacists, journalists and freemasons – who ordered the Monster killings because they needed female body parts to use as the blasphemous wafer in their black masses. Putting himself in charge of the investigation, Mignini became so obsessed that he crossed the line of legality, wiretapping journalists and conducting illegal investigations of newspapers.

He was indicted for these and other crimes, including abuso d'ufficio, abuse of office, in 2006. One prosecutor said he was a man "prey to a kind of delirium".

Far from a feminist inspired sex abuse theory, Mignini's case took as its departure point the mere fact that Amanda Knox was a young woman very much in possession of her sex drive. This, to his way of thinking, made her "'a diabolical, satanic, demonic she-devil' who 'likes alcohol, drugs and hot, wild sex'. "

As Hugo Schwyzer explained in a recent column, the prosecution put her perfectly normal, nonviolent sexuality on trial.

That mixture of prurience and contempt was on full display in Perugia, where Knox was tried. The prosecutor devoted extensive time to discussing the defendant’s sex life and her clothing, including her taste in (or lack of) underwear. He was positively obsessed with her vibrator, as if female masturbation was indicative of a propensity for homicide. Her diary, replete with the personal details one would expect in a private journal, was read repeatedly in court.

Sadly, there is nothing new about the demonization of female sexuality. It's quite ancient, really.

There is also nothing new about accusations of Satanism, heresy, and evil Masonic plots. And despite Brendon O'Neill's protestations, far more of that falls to the history of the Catholic church than to modern feminism. And Giulliano Mignini looks like an old-school inquisitor, pursuing specters of witchery and other enemies of the Church.

Mignini got encouragement and theoretical assistance in the esoteric aspects of previous investigations from an unusual source: Gabriella Carlizzi, a wealthy Roman woman and courthouse gadfly whose day job consisted of running a Catholic charity that worked with prisoners. Carlizzi, who died of cancer in 2010, was, like Mignini, a serious practicing Catholic herself who had dedicated her life to exposing and fighting satanic sects.

. . .

One of Carlizzi’s primary obsessions were the Masons.

There are 24 Masonic lodges in Perugia, making it Italy’s per-capita center of Masonic activity. Perugians believe that members of those lodges secretly control most aspects of banking, business and administration in their community.

Cafe

2011-10-04T06:00:00.002-04:00

Around the Web, Around the World

Shamanic Shrines and Creating Community

We live in sacred space all the time, everyday, but most of us do not know how to acknowledge it or to use it. By working skillfully with altars and shrines we can acknowledge the energies of the sacred around us and engage these energies in creating mutual benefit. Given this, the most basic purpose of a shamanic shrine is to open up a direct dialogue with an important energy in your everyday space. Traditional examples found around the world in the practices of shamanic peoples are the ancestral shrines, elemental shrines, and shrines dedicated to mountains or lakes or other specific spirit energies of the region. Usually misinterpreted as places of worship these shrines are places of relationship and direct communication between the people and powerful energies present in their daily lives. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores the contemporary creation and use of shamanic shrines. For example you may travel to Peru and learn powerful practices for working with the Andean mountains, but that isn't going to help you much if you live in Florida where there isn't a true mountain in sight and the most powerful spirit of the place is either the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf, or the Everglades. You can create a water shrine, open a dialogue with the energies that are actually part of your sacred space, and develop powerful practices for your life and the sacred space you live in.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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New Paradigm with Todd Stockwell

12pm PST --- "One on One with Michele." Host MICHELE MEICHE & her Co-Host Paolo Doro, shares their weekly Soul Insights, Ascension Information; as well as 2012 & beyond updates. They answer your questions, and do channeled readings. What is your Soul's Purpose & how can you actualize this? What is your role, your path, and what are the signs in your life and in the world telling you? How do you acclimate to the New Energies of the New Emerging Consciousness? In addition to calling into the show, you can also email your questions to be covered on air at awakenings@selfinlight.com. In the second portion of the show, Michele Meiche welcomes our Awakened Guest of the week. Michele dialogues with spiritual teachers, healers, conscious experts, visionaries, awakened leaders, authors, conscious beings and people of all walks of life that are focused on living consciously. Paolo's Ancient Bling my beading represents the connected thread of life, they are my prayers and I really enjoy using recycled and discarded pieces from the Ancient World - http://youtu.be/ObLVXoph72U. This weeks guest Todd Stockwell is known by many as the foremost expert on the evolution of the human consciousness, which is happening right now on the planet. He teaches us how to be truly connected so we may all succeed in this changing world. He has over 20 years of management and consulting experience, and five years of experience working with persons with developmental disabilities. He has helped individuals reach goals that were unreachable and even unimaginable before. With Todd, athletes, actors, musicians, professionals, healers and virtually every other profession have reached their own personal bests. Individuals have found their divine path and now live a joyful and empowered life.Todd is an artist, an award winning author, a songwriter, an inventor, a leader, and a loving father. www.beyond1111.com & www.genesispowersystems.com

Wed, Oct 5, 2011 3:00PM ET

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/awakenings