The Goddess

[konradv]

This thread is for discussion of the Goddess, the Eternal Feminine, the She-aspect of the divine, the Great Mother.

Almost all religions recognize some version or other of the Goddess. Even ostensibly monotheistic religions with male deities often do this, as the Catholic Church has evolved reverence for Mary. There's a need in the human soul, I believe, to relate to the cosmos personally, and it is natural to do this in the arms of the Mother. An approach to the divine that fails to recognize its feminine side is incomplete and sterile. The Goddess embodies the divine love in a way that is more easily and readily embraced. She inspires to artistic brilliance, compassion, and simple joy more commonly than does the God.

One might in fact not overstate the case too much to say that all of the flaws in religions of the Abrahamic lineage (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) stem from a failure to recognize and adore the Goddess, or to see God as feminine as well as masculine (even where this is done in dusty theology, it is seldom done in imagery or in the heart). If these religions were open to the love of the Lady, they might be far less violent, less intolerant, and less ready to display to the world the frowning face of disapproval.

If you're interested in this philosophy, I recommend "The Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley. It's a retelling of the Arthurian legend from the point of view of Morgan La Fey, not a witch, but a priestess of the old religion.

 

[AmericanFirst]

Actually, the first 5 books of the OT IS God's word in the form of the Torah. And, since Yeshua (Jesus) is Jewish, wouldn't it help to understand Judaic theology so you can understand what He was really talking about?

Or..............do you prefer to stay in your own little cocoon and ignore a vast wealth of knowledge about who God really is?

BTW, in the original Hebrew, the first line of the Bible isn't "in THE beginning", it's "in A beginning".

And, the commandment about killing isn't "thou shalt not KILL", it's actually "thou shalt not MURDER".

You Christians have mixed and edited things quite a bit.

At least us Christians understand the Bible as the Word of God and the truth. You on the other hand try to prove something you can't. Keep trying though, it is quite entertaining.

Really?

Especially since it was translated from Hebrew to Greek, then to Latin and finally to English.

Ever play "telephone"?

So, translating it from one language to another doesn't mean it is not true. Do better, but than you would be lying anyway.

 

[Dragon]

Okay, but remember this, hell is real and not fiction.

It is indeed, and you are in it.

Let me ask you this. Is a God who threatens people with eternal torture for trivial offenses worthy of worship and support? Is not such a creature a monstrous tyrant worse than any mere human despot in all history? Did Hitler or Stalin ever even imagine a cruel despotism like that?

You are the devotee of a slave-master, and like many slaves you think you "love" your oppressor, but it's a love borne solely out of fear. And it is fear you would use as an argument with others, too.

Break the chains.

 

[Dragon]

So, translating it from one language to another doesn't mean it is not true.

The original language is no more capable of conveying divine truth than any language into which scripture is translated. The very concept of "God's word" is inherently impossible.

 

[Dragon]

If you're interested in this philosophy, I recommend "The Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley. It's a retelling of the Arthurian legend from the point of view of Morgan La Fey, not a witch, but a priestess of the old religion.

Thanks, I read that a long time ago. Highly recommended.

I can also recommend The Door Into Fire by Diane Duane.

 

[Samson]

Women's menstrual cycles follow the movement of the moon.

Put 10 gals together working in an office environment over an extended amount of time and they will eventually menstruate in unison.

Dames are the moon, the stars, and the sun.

Now that's cool bitches.

 

[Dragon]

Blessed are Her Feet, the green worlds bearing life.

Blessed are Her Knees, the twin pillars of light and darkness.

Blessed is Her Womb, for She is the Mother of all things.

Blessed are Her Breasts, for She nurtures us all.

Blessed are Her Lips, for She sings the Mysteries for those who can hear.

 

[koshergrl]

Certainly there can be little debate about the fact that the Abrahamic religions are anti-woman.

That is part of the canon of ththe three major religions that sprang from Judeaism.

And FWIW, Judeism probably got that POV from the proto-religions that existed before Abraham.

In primative societies the roles of men and women tend to be clearly defined and strictly enforced and in such as way that we moderns pervceive it as being anti-woman.

Sure, that's why women are the ones who say the prayers, who protect the bloodlines, and were the first ones that Christ revealed himself to upon his resurrection.

 

[koshergrl]

If you're interested in this philosophy, I recommend "The Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley. It's a retelling of the Arthurian legend from the point of view of Morgan La Fey, not a witch, but a priestess of the old religion.

Thanks, I read that a long time ago. Highly recommended.

I can also recommend The Door Into Fire by Diane Duane.

Good grief, you guys are something else.

The Mists of Avalon is a fun book, but please remember, it's a work of fiction, a re-telling of the story of Arthur by the women. It's not a handbook or a historical account.

 

[Dragon]

Good grief, you guys are something else.

The Mists of Avalon is a fun book, but please remember, it's a work of fiction, a re-telling of the story of Arthur by the women. It's not a handbook or a historical account.

Nor are we discussing history. We're discussing mythology, theology, the divine. That is a subject best approached through fiction and even better through poetry. One does not make objective statements of fact about God/dess. There are no such statements to be made. The truth of the sacred is found in the heart, not in the intellect.

Sure, that's why women are the ones who say the prayers, who protect the bloodlines, and were the first ones that Christ revealed himself to upon his resurrection.

Jesus was a devotee of the Goddess in his heart. That's the underlying reason why he was crucified.

 

[Samson]

Blessed are Her Feet, the green worlds bearing life.

Blessed are Her Knees, the twin pillars of light and darkness.

Blessed is Her Womb, for She is the Mother of all things.

Blessed are Her Breasts, for She nurtures us all.

Blessed are Her Lips, for She sings the Mysteries for those who can hear.

 

[koshergrl]

Good grief, you guys are something else.

The Mists of Avalon is a fun book, but please remember, it's a work of fiction, a re-telling of the story of Arthur by the women. It's not a handbook or a historical account.

Nor are we discussing history. We're discussing mythology, theology, the divine. That is a subject best approached through fiction and even better through poetry. One does not make objective statements of fact about God/dess. There are no such statements to be made. The truth of the sacred is found in the heart, not in the intellect.

Sure, that's why women are the ones who say the prayers, who protect the bloodlines, and were the first ones that Christ revealed himself to upon his resurrection.

Jesus was a devotee of the Goddess in his heart. That's the underlying reason why he was crucified.

You truly are a lunatic. How on earth do you know what Christ, or anyone else, is in their heart?

And "The Mists of Avalon" is not mythology, history, or theology. It's a work of fiction. A novel. A remake of a classic with a twist, it's true, but still just a novel.

 

[koshergrl]

PS..it won the 1984 Locus Award for best FANTASY novel.

Dipshit.

 

[eots]

This thread is for discussion of the Goddess, the Eternal Feminine, the She-aspect of the divine, the Great Mother.

Almost all religions recognize some version or other of the Goddess. Even ostensibly monotheistic religions with male deities often do this, as the Catholic Church has evolved reverence for Mary. There's a need in the human soul, I believe, to relate to the cosmos personally, and it is natural to do this in the arms of the Mother. An approach to the divine that fails to recognize its feminine side is incomplete and sterile. The Goddess embodies the divine love in a way that is more easily and readily embraced. She inspires to artistic brilliance, compassion, and simple joy more commonly than does the God.

One might in fact not overstate the case too much to say that all of the flaws in religions of the Abrahamic lineage (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) stem from a failure to recognize and adore the Goddess, or to see God as feminine as well as masculine (even where this is done in dusty theology, it is seldom done in imagery or in the heart). If these religions were open to the love of the Lady, they might be far less violent, less intolerant, and less ready to display to the world the frowning face of disapproval.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hg9TNWpcdTk]see how she sells sex - YouTube[/ame]

 

[konradv]

If you're interested in this philosophy, I recommend "The Mists of Avalon" by Marion Zimmer Bradley. It's a retelling of the Arthurian legend from the point of view of Morgan La Fey, not a witch, but a priestess of the old religion.

Thanks, I read that a long time ago. Highly recommended.

I can also recommend The Door Into Fire by Diane Duane.

Good grief, you guys are something else.

The Mists of Avalon is a fun book, but please remember, it's a work of fiction, a re-telling of the story of Arthur by the women. It's not a handbook or a historical account.

I mentioned "philosophy". Reading anything else into that is just foolish. The "handbook" and "historical account" jabs are just something cooked up in your own mind. They have nothing to do with reality. You make the mistake of projecting your thoughts on others.

 

[Dragon]

You truly are a lunatic. How on earth do you know what Christ, or anyone else, is in their heart?

I'm psychic.

No, the real answer is that I can recognize much of what Jesus said (as reported in the Gospels) because it's similar to what I would have done in his shoes. He was clearly a believer in the ethos of compassion, tolerant of "sins" of the flesh, while condemning the gray-faced hard-liners of his time (the Pharisees, equivalent to today's fundamentalists) and the greedy and covetous. All of this shows him to have the Goddess in his heart, even if he was not consciously a devotee of any of Her aspects (the Goddess sometimes goes in drag).

And "The Mists of Avalon" is not mythology, history, or theology. It's a work of fiction. A novel. A remake of a classic with a twist, it's true, but still just a novel.

It was indeed fiction, but also mythology and theology. Not history, true, but as I said we're not discussing history.

The underlying theme of all serious fantasy is religious, just as the underlying theme of all serious science fiction is political. All myths are fiction, and the best fiction rises to the level of myth.

 

[konradv]

You truly are a lunatic. How on earth do you know what Christ, or anyone else, is in their heart?

I'm psychic.

No, the real answer is that I can recognize much of what Jesus said (as reported in the Gospels) because it's similar to what I would have done in his shoes. He was clearly a believer in the ethos of compassion, tolerant of "sins" of the flesh, while condemning the gray-faced hard-liners of his time (the Pharisees, equivalent to today's fundamentalists) and the greedy and covetous. All of this shows him to have the Goddess in his heart, even if he was not consciously a devotee of any of Her aspects (the Goddess sometimes goes in drag).QUOTE]

I consider the Holy Spirit to be one of her aspects. You got a Father and Son! How'd that come about without a Mother? Jesus didn't have two daddies, did he?

 

[koshergrl]

Good grief, what garbage.

You know it's garbage, right? You can't tell what people think and believe because YOU think and believe something. You are not the divining rod of all thought, believe it or not.

 

[ABikerSailor]

At least us Christians understand the Bible as the Word of God and the truth. You on the other hand try to prove something you can't. Keep trying though, it is quite entertaining.

Really?

Especially since it was translated from Hebrew to Greek, then to Latin and finally to English.

Ever play "telephone"?

So, translating it from one language to another doesn't mean it is not true. Do better, but than you would be lying anyway.

No, translating it from one language to another changes subtle points of meaning. For example, when you translate the first verse of Genesis in Hebrew it says "in A beginning", not "in THE beginning".

Same thing for many other places. Did you realize that God asked Abraham "please" when He asked him to take his son up for sacrifice?

No, translating things from one language to another has a tendency to change the meanings, especially when it's done over 4 times in a new language each time.

 

[koshergrl]

True enough. But Christians believe the Holy Spirit is in the actual words of the bible, so each translation is still of God.

When the words are misunderstood or mistranslated, there's a reason for it.

However, one of the fascinating things about the bible is that the more you look, the more you learn. The words, regardless of how they are translated, are of God from the very beginning. Then the more you get into them, the more knowledgeable you are about them...