Liberal/Conservative.

The two planets which rule the astrological sign of Aquarius are Uranus and Saturn.

At first this might seem strange because Uranus governs Liberalism, all things new, and the future while Saturn governs Conservatism, all things old, and the past.

But both of these planets are social in nature and although they at first seem irreconcilable there are similarities between them.

Although Liberals and Conservatives differ in the details they are both in fact trying to do the same thing - save the world.

So if we take the positives of each planet then we may find more compatibility than we expected.

Uranus (Liberalism) governs: freedom, diversity. tolerance, scientific facts, altruism, humanitarianism, charity, equality, democracy, social justice, human rights, and activism.....

Saturn (Conservatism) governs: responsibility, duty, authority, selflessness, scientific laws, obedience, volunteering, morality, action, good works, honesty, charity, and respect.....

Both are charitable.
Both are scientific.
Both are social - activism = action.
                            humanitarianism = volunteering.
                            social justice = good works.
                            human rights = respect.
                            altruism = selflessness.

So at the very highest level they meet.

They may meet physically in missionary/humanitarian work.

Or they may meet mentally in charity work.

So, instead of thinking adversarially and stressing our differences, perhaps we should meet and discuss our agreements.

Both seek to do God's will in our world.

And a concern for the poor marks both approaches.

Perhaps we could begin there.


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A Father's Love.

A child instinctively knows he should be loved.

And although we may receive love from our mothers our father is often distant and cold.

This is compounded for the gay child because his behavior will often not live up to a father's expectations of a masculine child.

A gay child will often lack the manly virtues of physical strength, emotional control, sporting achievement, and self-confidence.

A gay child may be artistic and sensitive, even effeminate.
He may want to dress up (even in his mother's clothes) and wear make-up.  He may be more interested in musicals than sports.

This, of course, is confusing for the father and he may even despise his own child.

Hence when the child reaches puberty he sets out on an unconscious search for his father's love.

While this is s strong motivating factor in gay men I do not think that it is the cause of homosexual orientation.

Same-sex attraction would appear to be genetic.
It is a physical phenomenon which manifests in puberty.

But the emotional and psychological characteristics of homosexuality exist in childhood and can be recognized.

Many gay men may have a strong feminine component without being overtly effeminate.  Others may feel strongly that they identify as female.

In the gay scene many will aspire so strongly to the desired ideal of masculinity that they adopt a predominantly macho culture.

Anonymous, casual sex is common in the gay scene.

This is a relic from the age when homosexuality was illegal and men had to hide their true nature.

Now, when a young gay man enters the gay scene, he is looking for a relationship that will last and satisfy his yearning for masculine love.  


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Positives.

It is easy for destructive influences in our society to pick up on negatives in religion.

Atheists and Satanists stress the negative aspects of religion: violence, hypocrisy, judgementalism, legalism, hate.....

But they never refer to the positive aspects of religion: justice, peace, charity, compassion, love....

It is easy to blame religion for jihads, terrorism, crusades, inquisitions, child sex abuse, cover ups etc..

But religions also do a lot of good in our world.

So when you are tempted to blame the Church or Islam be aware that good also derives from religion.  

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Homophobia.

Homophobia causes suffering.

Not only does it cause open hostility but unconscious homophobia can even lead to torture or damnation.

Homophobia creates poverty.

And homophobia can kill.

So don't insult me with your right to be homophobic.

Your attitude is destructive and harmful to others.

And it should be abandoned at once.


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The Good Things.

Satanists - mostly in rock music - will tell you all the cool things: ego, success, fame, riches, sex, status, money, fast cars, real estate, holidays - belong to Satan.

But I tell you all the good things: humility, gratitude, charity, courage, integrity, compassion, forgiveness, faith, hope, joy, peace, and love - belong to God.


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Magic.

Aleister Crowley wrote a book on Egyptian magic called The Book of Thoth.

Many modern rock bands and celebrities follow the teachings of Aleister Crowley.

He was a black magician and Satanist.

So don't be surprised if elements of popular Egyptology appear to have evil intentions.

They may.

It is just one aspect of black magic.


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Christmas.

The reason that Jesus' birth is celebrated on the 25th of December is because Jesus is the Light of the World and 22nd of December is the Winter Solstice when the sun in the northern hemisphere is at its furthest point south.

The reason that it is the December 25th and not December 22nd is because the sun is stationary for three days and on the third day the sun begins to move back towards the north.

Hence the Birth of the Sun (Mithras) - the Light.

So when celebrating Christmas we are in fact celebrating the day that the Light was born into the world.


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Invisible Walls.

We are separated by invisible walls.

Invisible barriers of race, religion, culture, class, sexual orientation, gender, generation, health, education, language etc. isolate us from each other.

Even in public we can feel alone because stereotypes and prejudices erect ramparts around us.

Unconsciously we separate people into us and them - who is in and who is out.

But God is One.

God is the God of All.

And His messengers challenge our unconscious fears.

So open your heart to all God's people.

And bring down your invisible walls.


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Elites.

When I first uncovered the practise of Satanism in rock music I presumed that it was materialistic, violent, and worldly.....

As time went on, however, I began to see that there was more to it than that.  I learnt that they could sell their souls for whatever they wanted.

This included the perfection of their art or status as a member of the arts elite.  In fact this included any kind of elite - sports elites, or even political elites.....

At least this is what they believe.

But there is no devil in reality.

Their apparent success is due to talent and hard work.

But they think that Satan is rewarding them.

So beware of elites in our society.
They may be followers of Satan.


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The Ways of Love.

When we give love we realize that the source of love within our hearts is infinite.

The more we give love away the more love there is to give.

And so we lose our fear.

Love will not force us.
Love will not judge us.
Love will not ignore us.

There is consideration.
There is common sense.
There is realism.

Secure in the Love of God we become fearless.

And learn the ways of Love.


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Quest for Love.

We are born into darkness.

But babies glow with an inner light.

This could be the light of the soul within them.

And yet babies cry.
And not just because they are hungry.

Babies need love.
And they cry until you give it to them.

Thus begins our lifelong quest for love.

It is when we learn to give love that we reach the end of our search.

Love God  and love your neighbor.

Then you will be safely home.


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Schismatism.

Thanks to Dante we experience schismatism in our world.

I say - thanks to Dante - because it is in his Divine Comedy that he depicts the schismatics in hell.

This has been taken up by Satanists in our modern world who work consciously to divide God's good forces one against the other.

This is particularly noticeable in the Culture Wars between Liberals and Conservatives.

Each side is hardened in adversity against the other.
And each side is trying to win.
But evil forces feed hatred on both sides.

This results in endless conflict.

The time has come for us to put aside our differences and look for agreement between us.

To do this we must look to the very highest manifestations of both Liberalism and Conservatism.

And we must both look at our negatives.

Liberals must look at drug abuse, promiscuity, and license.....

Conservatives must look at racism, homophobia, and rigidity.....

If each side agrees to curb the negative aspects of their position and stress the highest manifestations then there is hope for us all.  


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Homophobia and God.

Some people still insist that God is homophobic.

And they cite the Bible as evidence.

Despite the fact that references to homosexuality are scarce in the Bible, and the passages that do exist are disputed, some Christians still insist that this proves that God is homophobic.

But I say that homophobia is inconsistent with the spirit of the Bible.

The Bible tells us of a God who is gracious and merciful, forgiving and loving like a Father.

And His son Jesus Christ was humble and loving - an agent of God's mercy and forgiveness.

Homophobes adhere to the letter of the Bible and ignore its spirit.

So don't insult God with your claims of homophobia.

God is harmless and loving towards everyone.

Including homosexuals.


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Victims.

Our society has an endless capacity for blaming victims.

If anything goes wrong in a person's life it is said to be their own fault.

This is very convenient for most people because it means that you don't have to help.

Hippies and Baby-Boomers are victims of drugs and Satanism in rock music.

Gay men are victims of AIDS.

Refugees are victims of war and persecution.

Poor people are victims of economic oppression.

But we are led to believe that they somehow caused these things themselves.

Open your eyes and open your hearts!

It is the only way.


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Vineyard.

"For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are his pleasant planting; he expected justice, but saw bloodshed; righteousness, but heard a cry!"  Isaiah 5:7 (NRSV)

We may wonder how Israel, God's chosen people, could be so violent and heartless in their oppression of the people of Palestine.

But the Old Testament is full of prophecies that criticize Israel for turning away from God.

The prophets continually accuse Israel of wickedness and iniquity.

Jesus' criticism of the Pharisees is merely a continuation of this tradition.

So don't support Israel's actions merely because they are God's chosen people, many a king of Israel was called "evil in the sight of God."  2 Kings 21:2a (NRSV)


[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]

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The Collective Unconscious.

How can I be assailed by evil when I don't believe in the devil or dark powers?

How can I be condemned when my image of God is entirely benevolent?

The answer is that these ideas project across the collective unconscious from people in the society around us.

These ideas are hidden in the unconscious and act on the unconscious mind.

Rock musicians plant evil in the unconscious through their music and videos.

Right-wing Christians believe that God damns gays and their fear surrounds us.

So don't just blame everything on the victims of these crimes.

It's not just their own subconscious.

It's everyone's.


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Living in the Light.

Jesus said, "'Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.'"  John 8:12c (NRSV)

This is to follow the way of Love.

To love God and love our neighbor.

This is what it means to live in the Light of Life.

God is real.

He requites our love.

And He grants us the gift of Light.

That we may discriminate.

And see clearly.

Never to return.


[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]

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Cult Bands.

When I was young and listened to rock music certain bands were called cult bands.

This was because they had an obsessive underground following.

There were radio shows dedicated exclusively to cult music.

I now realize that the cults referred to were Satanic cults and the hypnotic lure of this dark music was evil.

It cursed and poisoned us.

We were oblivious to its effects and assumed that our dark moods and suicidal thoughts were normal.

When I returned to the Church later in life I came to understand that this was death music. It encouraged sin and contained a death wish.

But God is Life.

He raised me up from this underworld of death to a new life in the Light.

And He showed me the path of Love.

I no longer listen to rock music.

I listen to classical, choral, and sacred music.

And although my Church is not perfect I enjoy a positive and stimulating life of study and prayer within it.

My life is a miracle of recovered health.

And my relationship with God is filled with gratitude and love.


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Anger.

Right-wing churchgoers may tell you that God displays righteous anger towards us.

But anger is one of the seven deadly sins.

Why would God tell us not to be angry if He was angry Himself?

God is transcendent - beyond sin and evil.

There is no anger in Him.


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Motivation.

If our motivation is to save the Church then our mission is doomed to failure.

We should, instead, be motivated by Love.

Love for those around us in society.

Our love will cause us to care about the suffering of others, even those far removed from us physically.

I mean the 12.9% of the population of our world who will go to bed hungry tonight.

I mean the millions fleeing war and persecution.

So, rather than closing our borders, we should open our hearts and our homes to those in need.


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Whole.

God makes us whole.

To be whole is to harmonize body, mind, and spirit.

It is to embrace our sexuality, our mentality, and our heart.

And it is to hold a holistic view of God.

God is One.

God is panentheistic and immanent.

So to develop spiritually no longer requires us to reject the body or sex.

Spirituality is no longer hierarchical with sex and the body at the bottom and the mind and spirit at the top.

Spirituality comes through the heart which in fact is in the middle.

We are to follow moderation which is the middle path.

Passion and pleasure are not excluded.

Our body is not cut off.

Some say that God is Spirit.

But I say that God has a spirit but He is more than that.

We have a body and a spirit.
How can God be less than us?
God must be all this and more.

So when people say that God will make you whole it cannot mean that you become bodyless, quite the contrary, it makes the body, the mind, and the heart well.


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Sabbath Day.

Jewish people observe the Sabbath Day on Saturday.

This is the last day of the week.
It represents the last day of creation on which God rested.

Therefore one was not to work on the Sabbath Day.

It was consecrated to God and His concerns.

Christians Holy Day is Sunday.

This is the third day after Jesus was crucified - the day on which he was resurrected.

So the observance of Sabbath practice was transferred to Sunday.

What does this mean?

We are not to work on Sunday.
It is reserved for rest and the contemplation of God which includes worship.

We are to observe the Sabbath Day.


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Inclusiveness.

Jesus spoke to women who were an underclass in Jewish society.

He spoke to Samaritans who were despised enemies of the Israelites.

Jesus dined with tax-collectors (Roman collaborators) and prostitutes.

Even St. Paul included Jew and Greek, male and female, slave and free.....

So why do modern Christians struggle to accept gays and lesbians?

The inclusive behavior of the historical Jesus leads me to believe that he would have included gays and lesbians in his New Covenant.

Even so the time has come to discard out-dated notions of superiority and exclusion.

God does not discriminate.

He loves everyone.

Including gays and lesbians.


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If You Can't Beat Them.

It is not possible for those who follow Satan to win.

Apart from the fact that God will always win out the fact that there is no Satan in reality means that he cannot help them.

So if you can't beat them join them.

If, by demonstration, God can convince them that their image of Him is false and that He is not opposed to sex in general or homosexuality in particular then they might change their approach.

If we can demonstrate that the image of God as a harsh judge and punisher of men and women is false then there may be hope.

If we can show them that the teachings of the conservative Churches are no more true today than they were in Jesus' time then they may change their minds and join with us.

The New Paradigm will not exclude them.

They too can experience the Love and forgiveness of God.


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Beatitudes.

Blessed are those who cannot cope.
Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed are the poor.
Theirs is the Kingdom of God.

Blessed are the needy.
Their needs will be met.

Blessed are the whistle-blowers.
Theirs is the reward of the prophets.

Blessed are the activists.
They are the children of God.

Blessed are the peacemakers.
They will find peace.

Blessed are those who show mercy.
Mercy will be shown to them.

Blessed are the broken-hearted
God will mend their hearts.

Blessed are the persecuted.
Their reward is great in Heaven.


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The Next 2000 Years.

Just as the Christian Era left behind the primitive practice of blood sacrifice to the gods.

So the next 2000 years will leave behind the primitive concept of God as a punitive arbiter and judge.


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Lord of the Rings.

Although Lord of the Rings gives us valuable counters to evil in our world there are several errors which cause concern.

The first of these is the dehumanization of the enemy.

Evil is represented as non-human and therefore we can kill them without remorse.

The other error is the sword.
Using violence to resolve conflict, however dire, is never the answer.

So where does this leave us?

White, light, goodness - these things remain.

But mature religion teaches the humanity of our enemies and urges us to forgive, redeem, even love them.

The sword is never the answer.

The answer is Love.


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Was St. Paul a Closet Case?

Was St. Paul a closet homosexual?

We know that he never married.

We know that he had strong, loving relationships with men:
Barbabas, Timothy, Silas and others.

He speaks of having a thorn in the flesh which God would not remove.

Paul was originally a member of a strict sect of Pharisees who did not marry.

We know that they were homophobic:
"Was not your sister Sodom a byword in your mouth in the day of your pride, before your wickedness was uncovered."  Ezekiel 16:56 (NRSV)

So it is quite possible that Paul had internalized the strong homophobic attitudes of the Pharisees.

It is also significant that God would not remove this thorn.

Many modern homosexual men have prayed to God to be made straight but have not been.

Could it be that God understands homosexuality better than us?

Could God know that homosexuality is genetic and cannot be changed?

Could it be that God created homosexuals as part of the diversity of His good creation?

In any case Paul's rants about sexual matters and his misogynistic attitude towards women betray his underlying anxiety about sex.

So it is quite possible that St. Paul was a closet homosexual.


[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.]  

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Enough.

And how do we address the fears of the regime of power and privilege in our world?

By faith.

Faith in God reassures us there will always be enough.

The Love of God ensures that our needs will always be met.

So love God and love your neighbor.

Love even those who oppress you.

And pray for them.

Pray for them to realize that there will always be enough.


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The Message.

So what is the message?

The message is:

God's Love and forgiveness are available to everyone.

God does not punish us.

There is no hell.

There is no devil.

There is no judgement.

God is trustworthy.

God's Love is steadfast and reliable.

You have nothing to fear from God.

Sex is part of God's good creation.

Homosexuality is equivalent to heterosexuality.

God loves gay and lesbian people.


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Wars.

When we think of all the wars and revolutions that have been fought in our world.   Because there is not enough love.

We realize that each new regime is always subject to the same temptations of human nature as the old regime.

And the corruptions of power and privilege merely repeat themselves.

And when we think of all the ideologies and isms of our world.

We realize that they all have failed for the same reasons.

Until we find Love.

Love leads us to the other.

Love inspires us to sacrifice for the other.

Love cares about the other.

Only Love will overcome our fears.

Only Love will save us.

And when the Prince of Peace came prophesying Love they crucified him.

Those in power and privilege - the current regime - stripped and killed Jesus out of fear.

Fear of losing their privileges.

Fear of losing their power.

Fear of hell.

So if we address the fears of our current regime and treat them as human beings perhaps we can avoid conflict.

The only thing which casts out fear is Love.

So instead of attacking our enemies we should love them.

And cast out their fears.


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