#Queer Satanic Heretics

[soapkaars]

Summon Him part 2

A priest summons Lucifer to make him do something, how will it go?

Part 1 is here:

[queersatanic]

yay! so happy for you!

Thanks!

It's also been really nice to see other people talking about it.

[horde-princess]

so okay like. okay so. in evangelicalism everything is about spiritual warfare right. if you're not a soldier for god then you’re working for the devil, whether you know it or not. it's super interesting to see how nate stevenson plays with different sides of this.

adora was turned into a weapon for the “heroes,” while nimona was considered a weapon for the "villains.” along with the subversion of these institutionally-defined roles in both stories, there's this common thread where nimona and adora both reject this label of being a "weapon" - either for OR against the unjust system. 

which is weird right? why would nimona care if someone called her a weapon for good. it becomes clear though when you think about the religious metaphors... it’s always about choice.

(x)

i think the word weapon is intended to convey a sense of absent free will. you're not the one making decisions, someone else is controlling you in their own war. in nimona’s case it’s about rejecting the church's perception that being queer = being used by satan, and then nate goes a step further in she-ra to say actually, the real weapon was when i was being wielded by the church. in either case, i reject the idea that i’m just a pawn in some kind of spiritual war, and also reject your perception of me as such. i have the power to claim autonomy over my own life - "i am not a weapon.”

so with this context we can more fully appreciate adora’s line here, the whole metaphor of she-ra being a weapon and how it wraps up with a bold and genuinely heretical statement that challenges christian control of the narrative. you could think of "weapon" literally, like the inquisition which helped inspire nimona’s character, and she-ra addresses christian imperialism in general. but more subtly it’s also evangelicals believing that it’s ok to harm & traumatize people in the name of “love.” a huge theme in the show is about this uniquely cruel trauma of being taught to hate and attack lgbt+ people while you yourself are repressing your identity and sense of belonging in the community.

THIS IS SO MUCH TO THINK ABOUT HHHH NIMONA IS SO GOOD!!!!!!

[angelic-shadow]

Okay I need to rant. honestly it feels like social media is just... awful when it comes to religion, especially on twitter and instagram. i know some Christians can be nasty in real life, but it feels like on social media the 'religious wars' (as i like to call them) are even worse. i have seen: -Protestants and Catholics hating each other. -Straight up Islamophobia and Antisemitism. -A Queer Catholic posting about her praying so she doesn't get a panic attack- the comments were FULL of homophobes, and very few actual positive comments. -People mocking atheists. -Christians mocking drug users, queer folks, alt people, sex workers, sometimes other Christians for some reason??? -Someone mocking a Catholic for turning to god for her health issues (...underneath a lighthearted reel by the way) Not to mention discussion of religious trauma is mocked constantly, people calling religion a "mental illness", and some people can't even LOOK at pagans without throwing a temper tantrum.

Oh and if you're a new member of a religion (either convert, revert or simply a newbie), deconstructing, queer, drug user (Current or in the process of recovering) or anything that's looked down upon (especially by Christians), than you're either "not doing it right" or you're "not actually a part of that religion" according to some folks. And that's not even getting into the misogyny (Especially towards Muslim women). Like... seriously can we just... stop? Please? Seriously there is no need to fight with one another. We're all people, just with different beliefs. I know religion in general (Christianity especially) has issues, but that is no excuse to insult one another, gatekeep one another or even straight up harass one another. I can't force you guys to like each other but fighting and insulting each other over which beliefs are correct and which ones aren't, the right way to be religious, etc, does *nothing* and is straight up childish! There's no right or wrong way to be religious! Being bigoted does nothing. If you want people to join religion you need to stop calling random people "sinners" or "heretics" or accusing them of "following satan" or telling them to "repent" or basically anything that instills fear and shame.

And lastly, ..i think some of my fellow Christians could use these verses: 2 Timothy 2:23-24 (NIV) 23 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Galatians 5:14 (NIV): 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” John 7:24 (NIV) 24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.”

Proverbs 3:30 (NIV) 30 Do not accuse anyone for no reason—when they have done you no harm.

[little-witchys-garden]

Why I love using cats in my witchcraft

I love cats, they're one of my favorite creatures and one of the few creatures I love using in my witchcraft.

I love cat symbolism, cat figures, cat themed things, cat magick, connecting with cat spirits, and allowing my own pet cats in my witchcraft.

So let's talk about cats!

The spiritual symbolism of Cats:

cats are symbolic of rebirth and resurrection, per their nine lives. Because they are nocturnal, they are also associated with darkness independence, guardian energy, the esoteric, and mystery, elegance, curiosity, independence, protection, magic, and other notable qualities.

Divine cats connect with:

Bastet

Sekhmet

Eros

Nergal

Mafdet

Kasha

Wadjet

Mishipeshu

Nyx

Selene

Ceridwen

Palu

Dawon

the yule cat

The cat sithe

Brighid

Ovinnik

Hecate

Li Shou

Ai-Apaec

Bòge cat

Freya

Maneki-neko

Tezcatlipoca

Kapitángan

And that's not even all not them!

Different cats have different meanings:

Yep that's right! We all know the black cat = bad luck thing but did you know there's lots of superstitions around cats? I'll name a few!

Black cats are bad luck unless you're a sailor or a witch then they're good luck.

For sailors white cats were bad luck!

Calico cats in Japan are actually seen as good luck and even luckier if they have a bobbed tail!

It is bad luck to cross a stream carrying a cat.

If a cat purrs at nothing, a ghost is in the room.

Bathing a cat will cause it to rain.

A cat at a wedding is a good omen

If you can pluck a pure white hair from an all-black cat without being scratched, you will be lucky all your life long

Cats can see death

Fishermen’s wives believe that their husbands will be safe at sea if a black cat is kept in the house

A kitten being born the same day as your baby means your baby will have a lucky life.

Blue eyed cats are good luck

Cats spread gossip so they should not enter rooms where private discussions are taking place.

When you see a one-eyed cat, spit on your thumb, stamp your palm with your thumb and make a wish.

Killing a cat means 17-18 years of bad luck

If a cat jumps across a grave, that corpse will return as a vampire.

If a cat sneezes three times, someone else is going to catch a cold.

If a cat has kittens in your house, it is a sign that your house has no evil spirits

If you head off on a journey and see a cat on your left side, it is a sign of good luck.

Visiting a home with a cat? Kiss the cat for good luck.

And that’s just a few cat superstitions!

Cats in witchcraft/spirituality in history:

Cats were feared and thought to indicate the presence of evil, either being the Devil himself, or a witch in disguise, a demon, a faery in disguise, undead, immortal or a ghost.

As early as the 13th century, the Catholic Church linked cats to Satan, heretics, witches, pagans, demons, ghosts, the fae, vampires and zombies. Over time during slavery of both the Irishs and Africans the church connected them too hoodoo, voodoo and Irish paganism though it was mostly because slaves would keep these creatures as cherished companions during their years of slavery since cats were a plenty and often times were from/born on the plantations. Cats also had a connection to native Americans as well! Many cats essentially pregnant Cats get abandoned by their owners left on many reservations, these abandoned cats become the devoted pets and mouse hunters on reservations helping in keeping rodent populations down And with that came native based spiritual beliefs around cats! Cats have been beloved and faithful companions of the oppressed for centuries!

Also just adding in feng shui cats are seen as protectors and good luck!

Cats also are symbols of femininity, queerness, ABC being on trans spectrum.

There's so much more about cats in mythology, folklore, superstitions, witchcraft and other spiritual beliefs!

So if you wanna add animal symbolism into your craft then the protective, lucky and mysterious cat might be for you!

Artists name on photo!

[alephskoteinos]

So something, uh, interesting happened while I was asleep last night. At 3am GMT, the Facebook page of my blog, Aleph's Heretical Domain, was sent a message by a woman named Jennifer Mezzetta, otherwise known as Jennifer Crepuscolo, the apparent leader of the Union of Italian Satanists. It seems she saw my article about her organisation, and was none too happy about it. So she sent me this:

And just for posterity this is her:

This all started when Vice wrote an article covering the Union of Italian Satanists, see below:

And then I noticed Queer Satanic had a thread on that article in which they explored some content from the USI's website that the Vice article, for some reason, did not see fit to cover. Among those things is Jennifer's apparent support for National Socialism (Nazism) and the USI's belief in "the noble Gentile race" as the descendants of Satan.

This lead me to decide that I should do my own research and cover the subject in more depth in my own article, "Italian Nazis In Black: An analysis of the Union of Italian Satanists":

This is what Jennifer thinks is "dishonest" and could "lead to slander". The thing is, though, this is just on its face nonsensical. First of all, it looks like she's not even accusing me slander, rather she's accusing me of saying things that "could lead to slander". That is surely not a legal charge. And second, it's only "slander" if I made up what I wrote about and what I say is false.

You know, I would have assumed that someone like Jennifer Mezzetta Crepuscolo would be just fine with people exercising their freedom of speech, but I see that perhaps she and her circle aren't tough enough to handle criticism. Put it this way: they write about being persecuted by Christians. Now I would think that someone writing a blog post discussing things that they actually said on their website would be far less pressing than the ongoing persecution of Satanism.

And I may be unfamiliar with Italian law on the subject but I am very certain there is no case to be had here. It's only slander if I made it up and it's false. It is not. How would they prove otherwise? They'd have to prove in court that their website does not say what it says. And let me just show you some screenshots from their website from Queer Satanic's thread.

I doubt Jennifer is reading this post, but is the Union of Italian Satanists prepared to prove in court that these examples for instance are a mistranslation, or that the text itself was somehow manufactured by her critics? And that's not all. My article has discussed far more about their website than just these screenshots. Any serious case is going to have to hinge on Jennifer and her organisation proving that they did not write what we have seen them write. I also believe that this means that, if there is any case at all and it is performed to any degree of confidence, then it will probably devolve into an argument in court about Jennifer's political opinions, which means that she could be expected to justify her support for National Socialism, or forced to answer for any attempt to deny that support.

So, what do you think is more worthwhile for Jennifer: leaving some rando blogger be with his time writing about things, or being made to answer for her positive opinions about Nazism in public? At the moment I'm expecting nothing, but I want it known and on record that this is nothing more than a weak and obscure organisation going out of their way to try and intimidate Satanists into silence for criticizing their statements. I would very much like to see their efforts come to nothing and be shown for the petty repression of dissent that they are.

[enbyonmandalore]

Heaven "Satan" St. John

An introduction to my CoD MW2 OC. TW for Violence typical to the CoD franchise.

Irish

Child of a cult leader

One older brother, Michael, and two younger sisters, Faith and Eva

Michael escaped the cult first, leaving all his siblings behind

Their father believes his son being a heretic "infected" Heaven with demonic ideals

Heaven escaped the cult at 16 after being nearly tortured to death

Queer

Religious trauma (obviously)

Can growl & hiss like an animal, defense mechanism from their childhood

Joined the military young by lying about their age

Violently beat a fascist to the brink of death because he reminded them too much of their father

Had the best time of their life as a cadet in the Royal Air Force

Had the chance to finally feel normal and make friends

Callsign "Angel"

Met a black girl named Gloria "Wrecker" McIntosh, fell in love with her

Became a RAF officer

Eventually achieved rank of squadron leader due to being an excellent helicopter pilot and drone operator

Loves flying bc all their big problems seem so small from up high

Arrogant enough to call the helicopter on their first big mission "The Baron"

Caught special forces recruiters' eye for being able to potentially resist enemy torture very well

Received "special interrogation" training

Shot down while on patrol in a war zone and pulled themselves out of the burning wreck, only survivor of the incident

Barely made it and had to undergo 2 years of physical and psychological therapy

Covers the massive burn scar on their face with a mask

The right side of their body in general is extremely scarred from the crash

Captain Price was present when they first woke up from surgery, but they didn't recognize him

Captain Price continues to make sure Heaven stays in the military

Once they're allowed to be active again, they get recruited to SAS and change their callsign to "Satan"

The co-pilot that died in the crash was Gloria

Kept a pair of Gloria's dog tags as well as a few (stolen) sweaters

Price's immediate reaction to seeing Heaven again is "Oh no, not another one with a mask..."

Is present during the events of MW, helps get Gaz and Price around and is assisted by Nikolai

Eventually gets put on Task Force 141 after the events of CoD MW

Immediately befriends Soap

Soap and Satan talk in extra thick Scottish and Irish accents when around each other

"Speak fuckin' English!"

Satan's cocky attitude slowly but surely is wearing Ghost's patience thin...

Audio books + stress cleaning = post-mission coping mechanism

Secretly loves eastern European music, but will never admit it

Learned to speak Polish for a mission

Fluent in Gaelic

Despite listening to a lot of heavy metal, their favorite song is "Somewhere Over The Rainbow"

Gets anxious letting anyone besides themselves pilot an aircraft

Insists that they hate chocolate (lie)

Actually hates any other candy

Doesn't celebrate any holidays and volunteers for shifts on said days, but Price, Gaz and Soap still gift them stuff for Christmas

The only way they're able to seem to be as unfazed as they do, is bc they're completely disconnected from reality on missions (helps keep the PTSD in check)

When TF 141 meets KorTac, Satan befriends Gromsko almost as quickly as they befriended Soap

Polish swearing can be heard throughout the base at all hours

König has a staring problem and thinks nobody notices

Ghost notices and chaos ensues (aka Test The Limits)

TW for more shit Heaven went through:

beaten as a child up until they were 16

nearly drowned during baptism in order to be "reborn"

forcefully exorcised at 14, burned with battery acid in the process

had a large cross carved into their back to "drive out the devil"

caged in with a hungry dog

starved

sleep deprivation, forced to stay up for days reciting prayer

held hostage at gunpoint during a mission

survived a nearly fatal helicopter crash, cracked multiple ribs, a triple fractured right leg, broken collar bone, two broken fingers on the right and three broken on the left hand, broken left wrist, severe concussion, 2nd degree burns on the right side and back of their body and face

[ifiwereafish]

read this. please.

[urbanchristiannews]

DANIEL WHYTE III, PRESIDENT OF GOSPEL LIGHT SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL, HAS FILED A COMPLAINT AGAINST ANDY STANLEY WITH GEORGIA CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES OF THE DIVISION OF FAMILY AND CHILDREN SERVICES (DFCS), HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT, IN LIGHT OF THE TRAGIC STORIES BELOW AND MANY OTHER STORIES THAT ARE COMING OUT REGARDING HIS LIFE AND THE NORTH POINT CHURCH PUTTING PERVERTED, SEXUALLY-DEVIANT, HOMOSEXUAL, TRANSGENDER PASTORS AND STAFF OVER CHILDREN TO THE POINT OF HAVING A CONFERENCE FOR PARENTS OF HOMOSEXUAL-QUEER-TRANSGENDER-LEANING CHILDREN. WHYTE IS CALLING ON THESE GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS TO INVESTIGATE HIM AND HIS FAMILY TO MAKE SURE HIS CHILDREN ARE SAFE AND ARE NOT BEING MENTALLY AND SEXUALLY ABUSED. HE IS CALLING ON THESE SAME GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ALSO TO INVESTIGATE THE NORTH POINT COMMUNITY CHURCH AT 4350 North Point Parkway, Alpharetta, GA 30022, INCLUDING ALL PASTORS AND STAFF AND THEIR FAMILIES AND THEIR CHILDREN TO MAKE SURE THEIR CHILDREN ARE SAFE, AND TO MAKE SURE ALL OF THE CHILDREN OF THE CHURCH ARE SAFE AND ARE NOT BEING MENTALLY AND SEXUALLY ABUSED IN ANY WAY OR FORCED TO PARTICIPATE IN ANY ACTS OF HOMOSEXUALITY, HOMOSEXUAL CHILD PORNOGRAPHY, INCEST, AND ARE NOT BEING COERCED TO BECOME TRANSGENDER. WHYTE ALSO WANTS THESE INDEPENDENT GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS TO INVESTIGATE ALL SPEAKERS AND THEIR FAMILIES WITH THEIR CHILDREN QUESTIONED, WHO ARE INVITED TO SPEAK AT THE "UNCONDITIONAL" CONFERENCE FOR PARENTS OF HOMOSEXUAL-QUEER-TRANSGENDER-LEANING CHILDREN TO MAKE SURE THEIR CHILDREN ARE SAFE, ESPECIALLY THE SO-CALLED "MAN MARRIED TO A MAN" INVITED SPEAKER.  DANIEL WHYTE III ALSO CALLS UPON PASTOR ANTHONY GEORGE OF THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF ATLANTA AND SAYS IF GEORGE AND THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH HAVE ANY JURISDICTION OVER ANDY STANLEY AND THE NORTHPOINT COMMUNITY CHURCH ON THE BOOKS, YOU NEED TO TAKE AUTHORITY AND DEAL WITH THIS DEVILISH HERETIC BEFORE HE BRINGS ABOUT A CHILD SEXUAL MOLESTATION AND CHILD ABUSE SCANDAL UPON THE EVANGELICAL, PROTESTANT, SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHURCHES ALMOST AS BIG AS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH HOMOSEXUAL, CHILD MOLESTATION SCANDAL WHICH THEY HAVE SQUIRMED UNDER EVERYDAY FOR DECADES. FOR AS ALL OF YOU PASTORS KNOW, THE WOKE SATANIC HOMOSEXUAL MOVEMENT IS HELL-BENT ON HOMOSEXUALIZING AND RAPING THE HEARTS, MINDS, SPIRITS, AND SOULS OF ALL CHILDREN IN THE CULTURE, IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM, AND NOW IN THE CHURCH AS THEY ARE USING THE DEMON-FILLED HERETIC ANDY STANLEY THROUGH 30 PIECES OF SILVER. BELOW ARE JUST THREE RECENT TRAGIC STORIES COMING OUT OF ANDY STANLEY'S LIFE AND THE NORTH POINT COMMUNITY CHURCH:

DANIEL WHYTE III, PRESIDENT OF GOSPEL LIGHT SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL, HAS FILED A COMPLAINT AGAINST ANDY STANLEY WITH GEORGIA CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES OF THE DIVISION OF FAMILY AND CHILDREN SERVICES (DFCS), HUMAN SERVICES DEPARTMENT, IN LIGHT OF THE TRAGIC STORIES BELOW AND MANY OTHER STORIES THAT ARE COMING OUT REGARDING HIS LIFE AND THE NORTH POINT CHURCH PUTTING PERVERTED, SEXUALLY-DEVIANT,…

[constance-mcentee]

A Goat at the Manger: Advent 1

"I feel like Jesus came for me, saw I was a goat instead of a sheep, and brought me with Him anyway." -- me, 16 June 2019 I wasn't going to do an #Advent blog series this year. Not because I feel less affinity for Christ, but because I feel less connected to Christianity. But this evening, I went with the pride group from work to see the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus at Freight and Salvage in Berkeley. Today is Sunday, 1 December 2019. Not only the first Sunday in Advent, it's World AIDS Day. These things make this day doubly sacred to me. This evening's concert was a reminder of why Advent is holy, and why I still consider myself a Christian in addition to being a Satanist. I am not willing to debate how unreasonable a combination this is. It's my spiritual path and I don't care who is upset by it. And I can assure you, it offends Satanists just as much as it does Christians. All have to say on this topic can be found at this Heretic Homily.

Way back in my first year of high school, when I was a closeted queer trans girl at an all-boys Catholic school, we were taught in religion class about “sacramental moments.” These things, as far as my aging memory recalls, we described as mundane things that made us feel a connection to G0D. Well, hearing the SF Gay Men’s Chorus sing a holiday program when World AIDS Day and the first Sunday of Advent were one and the same was nothing short of a religious experience. It was a sacramental moment.

I can’t remember what the themes are for the various weeks in Advent, and I get tired looking them up year after year. Even then, it seems different Christian traditions have them in different orders. All I remember at this point is that the first week is a purple candle and the four weeks are Hope, Joy, Love, and Peace. To hear the SF Gay Men’s Chorus sing O Holy Night on the first Sunday of Advent which is also World AIDS Day was to be filled with with the Gifts of Advent: Hope, Joy, Love, and Peace.

Amen, and Hail Satan.

[bloojayoolie]

Church, Community, and Donald Trump: CREATE YOUR OWN ANTI-CATHOLIC CONSPIRACY CHOOSE BIRTH MONTH NEW VERSION JAN-THE OPUS DEI MAY THE BACKWARD FEB SOME RĪGID THE EVIL CATHOLIC SEP THEOCRATS JUN-THE RIGID EASTERN OCT-THE SATANIST CATHOLICS POLISH TRADS BISHOPS MAR FR YOUNGTRAD JUL THE CRUSADERS NOV SOME RANDOM PAPIST IDOLATOR APR INQUISITION CATHOLICS ON THE INTERNET AUG THE SPANISH DEC THE ANTIT-SCIENCE THE SPANISH EMPIRE CATHOLIC SCIENTISTS CHOOSE YOUR BIRTH DAY 16-destroyed Ben Shapiro with facts and logic 17-triggered the whole LGBTQI community 18-destroyed the civilization 1-is/are hiding Hitler in Argentina 2-islare anti-women 3-deny free healthcare to abortionist women-deny trans people the right to exist 4 islare calling Satan on Skype 5-torturate queers in the backyard 22-is/are behind the Global Warming 6-restarted the Third Reich 7- impale liberals for entertainment 8- invented brand new heresy 9 burn dinosaurs 10 eliminated science 19 20 islare collaborating with Kim Jong Un 21 islare behind the Notre Dame fire 23 deny Eucharist to Saint Joe Biden 24-destroy the spirit of the V2 Council 25 bought Greenland to burn heretics there 26 hide the Secrets of Vatican from media 27 burn innocent aliens 11 promote fascism 12 deny free will 13 became dictatorial - 28 - killed poor ISIS militants with RPGS 29 -islare talking with EVIL president Assad 30 bring us back to the Dark Ages 31 deny Eucharist to Susan from the Par. Cou. 14 call for holy jihad 15 indoctrinated our kids LAST DIGIT OF BIRTH YEAR 1 and post racist memes COLOR OF SHIRT YOU'RE WEARING BLACK -while endorsing white supremacism WHITE while burning the jews GREY while making an atheist cry 2-and drop the Nuclear Bomb 3 and worship Dark Forces 4 and build a spatial huge burning stake RED -while playing Fortnite 5 and draw swastikas 6-and listen to protestant hip hop 7-and targeted Pastor Jim GREEN-while not tolerating drag queens ORANGE while working for the Ugandan Gvmt. YELLOW-while watching Michael Voris BLUE while excomunicating the Pope PURPLE while voting for Donald Trump PINK while eating doritos NONE/OTHER-while being sedevacantist(s) 8-and listen to Pope Michael 9-and dare to reject modernism 0 and made a Schism in the Church Create Your Own: Anti-Catholic Conspiracy

[soapkaars]

Summon Him part 1

A priest summons Lucifer to make him do something, how will it go?

Part 2 is here:

[queersatanic]

Had a real fun time educating people today about The Satanic Temple (“Scientology For Mall Goths”) today at PrideFest on CapHill in Seattle.

Thanks to the friends who came out to support the four Queer Satanic Heretics still being sued by The Satanic Temple in federal appellate court and now King County Superior Court.

TST is also still suing Newsweek and its reporter (but maybe not her anymore!) for writing about us. In addition, the Temple is now suing a TikToker in Texas for talking about our case. Check the pinned post for more.

[milkboydotnet]

Early Quakers were radicalized by the Spirit's confrontation.

They may have stumbled into a meeting for worship and experienced the tangible presence of God stirring up holy chaos, causing trembling, shouting, prophecy, and healing. In the thrill of communal silence, they would encounter the living God shining upon their heart - exposing their sin and imbuing intoxicating love.

Or perhaps they encountered Quakers in public, when proclaiming the good news for the poor and doom for the powerful with Spirit-induced confidence. As these hearers were struck by the living Word of God, they found themselves hungry for the kin-dom they glimpsed. With joy, they committed to the same struggle against power waged by the earliest Christians. They found themselves living in the same Spirit of the apostles. They found themselves in the stories of the people of Israel, and all those in desperate need for the eternal year of jubilee.

They found their story and language in the bible. And even more than that, they found themselves participating in Christ's apocalypse.

These Friends, many of which were poor and regarded as lower class, shamelessly proclaimed the coming end of the world. This was good news for them, and they were happy about it. They prophesied to strengthen and encourage the saints, but also in the public square, calling out the wickedness and cruelty of the rich and powerful. They went into town squares, butt-naked, or in sack-cloth, prophesying the coming destruction of the rich and powerful. They even went into churches, prophesying God's judgment on the Spirit-less steeplehouses. They prophesied over the priests' homilies, and plead with the congregants to meet the living God, who tears down the mighty and lifts up the oppressed.

Their prophecies were deeply biblical, fluidly stringing together hundreds of passages. But to them, the bible wasn't the Word of God. To these Friends, declaring the bible to be the word of God would be idolatrous. To them, the Word of God was bigger than a book—it was the living Christ.

The established Church found these wild prophets as resoundingly annoying. They would not stop interrupting mass, or confronting clergy. They couldn't be shut up. They knew the bible just as well as the learned priests, and broke the logic of orthodoxy to reveal a truer way to follow Christ, and a more faithful hermeneutic for the bible. Their declarations that God was not confined to tradition, to rituals, to inherited liturgies, or even the bible, but rather made their temple within all people, angered the Church of power. These Friends knew a God of justice - whose transformative judgment would lead all creation into harmony - who was close to those on the margins, companions in their liberation. This God stood against the Church, and sought its end. The Church knew it, and sought to destroy the rapidly growing Quaker movement.

Friends were heretics, but such accusations and even its legal consequences didn't bother them. Their allegiance wasn't to the status quo, to orthodoxy, to the authorities of this world. Their allegiance was to the lowly, the subjugated, in whom Christ lived. Their allegiance was to the living God, the Holy Spirit, who was their companion, even as thousands of them were jailed and tortured. In their suffering, they rejoiced, seeing persecution and tribulations as the baptism of the Spirit—God revealing their power. Under such persecution, their communities continued to grow and disrupt.

I want the kind of faith that these Friends demonstrated - fearless, not giving a shit about what the powerful think. I want the kind of faith that knows abundant life even in the midst of persecution. I want the kind of faith that would allow me to be the heretic needed to wage this war against empire, and usher in the kin-dom.

My political radicalization was a new Spirit-baptism for me. When I saw the connections between imperialism, capitalism, white supremacy, anti-blackness, patriarchy, anti-queerness, I saw systemic sin. I saw demons, the body of Satan. I saw that following the Way of Christ demanded me to enter the struggle against these things, even if it got messy, even if it meant sacrificing my piety. I heard the Spirit of God call me towards revolution, and my fellowship could not accept it. They saw me as naive and deceived - a false teacher of damnable violence. A heretic.

The Church will never be what the world, let alone the revolution, needs. The ecclesial structure, theology, liturgy and practices of the Church have been formed by 2000 years of a tense, complex, but often synergistic relationship with empire and society's dominant classes. These institutions were formed by those seeking domination, and are rotten to the core. Like those early Friends, I was called not just out of the church, but to combat the church. And I'm seeing others, too, being called to betray orthodoxy, tradition, and follow the Spirit of God into dethroning the powers of this world and fighting for our liberation. I pray that we would have even greater than those early Friends, and even the apostles. That we would not lose sight of the Day of Judgment - and that we would draw it closer. May we be the Spirit's confrontation - the tangible presence of God.

[toomanyfeelings5]

okay bc I'm still trying to get into them - Top 5 Mountain Goats songs/albums/whatever is easiest for you. also it doesn't have to be 5. basically just i would appreciate your mountain goats recommendations, thank you bby

OH BOY ok i’m gonna do top 5 albums of this moment for me right now AND top 5 songs of this moment for me as of right now, nothing’s in particular order and i love the mountain goats and i hope you like them too! 

top 5 albums:

1. the sunset tree: yes, i know, it’s one of the main popular ones, but this is a deeply personal and well-crafted album that’s a gut-punch and it tells these great little micro-stories that this band is so good at amidst a larger narrative, and it’s just. really good. this was the first album by them that i really listened to and it blew my fucking mind. 

2. transcendental youth: some of the best songs about/featuring mental illness i’ve ever listened to, and it’s an album all about the weird and lonely people other people forget, except this album doesn’t forget any of them, and we ache for them, but we also laugh with them and sit in the dark with them and we want to reach out a hand. also some fucking awesome brass and sax arrangements on this one. catchy as hell while the lyrics are singing about getting into accidents and going through the trash. 

3. the life of the world to come: i hadn’t listened to this album in its entirety for a while, and then i did like, a few weeks ago, and i’m still thinking about it?? this is an album heavily using the bible and christian themes/imagery, but it’s not a Christian Album ™, and like, this album has tender piano and snarling guitar and intense drums and very quiet, soft lyrics about looking into your child’s eyes for the first time, or when you’re dying in a hospital but it’s ok because this body is temporary anyway, or when you’re speeding down the highway feeling a fierce sense of acceptance from a higher power. what can i say, i’m catholic and this album #resonated with me. 

4. beat the champ: A CONCEPT ALBUM ALL ABOUT WRESTLING, gahhhhh it’s so good, you’ve got a song about an abused kid finding solace in watching wrestling programs late at night on tv, you’ve got a song about a wrestler turning from a face to a heel, you’ve got a little spoken word song about a wrestler’s dying moments, you’ve got songs that are about getting stuck in the eye with a foreign object and it is CATCHY AS HELL, and it’s fun and wild and sad and a great time. 

5. get lonely: listen this is an album about a person who is all alone in the house for too long and it is a sad album and i love it. the writing is so solid, the storytelling is vivid, and the softness of the songs get me every time. 

top 5 songs:

1. “this year,” OBVIOUSLY, it’s a jam every day of the year, but specifically it’s a song to start and end the year with.

2. “the best ever death metal band out of denton,” because by the end of it you will be screaming “HAIIILLLL SATAN!!! TONIGHT!!!” along with the static-y voice and you will laugh and feel like nothing in the world can stop you from doing the things you want to do, also it’s a fucking bop that’s funny and great

3. “golden boy” because it’s now become a song my family and i sing on long car trips, it’s a classic and it’s a great song about materialism and consumerism and it’s this critique of capitalism but also all about golden boy peanuts, what’s not to love

4. “heretic pride” is like, have you ever thought you might be joyful and triumphant as you’re about to be burned at the stake? this song is for you, also there’s a lot to relate to here if you are queer and religious, at least for me

5. “love love love” makes me tear up every time, not because it’s sad but because it’s true, and i love it. it is soft and tender and good. 

[beinglibertarian]

Onward, Collectivist Soldiers

As I contemplate where I fit in my current relation to the State and its politically-correct and uptight sycophants, I realize not much has changed since Catholic school. If I benefited at all from the tutelage of nuns, it’s in being able to identify when I’m being indoctrinated or hoodwinked.

The first few years of my scholastic career were spent at a Catholic school in New Jersey. It was there that I, along with other kids with last names like O’Dowd, Vigliotti, Rispoli, and Gomez, were first introduced to the doctrine of original sin.

Sister Nazarene told us a sin was whenever a person did something wrong. God would not like it if we sinned, and if we sinned, he would damn well know all about it. You couldn’t hide from God. Apparently, a really long time ago this guy Adam and this broad Eve did something so bad that we, the first grade class of St. Francis Albert of Hoboken School, were guilty of it too.

As unreasonable as this seemed at the time, we were taught to understand that God was really pissed off. And touchy. 

You see, before the beginning of time, God spent a whole summer making this place called the Garden of Eden for Adam and Eve. Eden was this groovy resort where people could just relax forever and ever, just as long as they behaved. By and by, good ol’ human imperfection had its way, and Adam and Eve goofed up. God was so hurt and insulted that he decided from that moment on that every Vigliotti, O’Dowd and Ferrara, as well as the Changs, Goldbergs and Patels, would be culpable for what those two Biblical miscreants did. Forever and fucking anon. He was God, after all. 

Do you know what the transgression was? What Adam and Eve did that was so damned bad? They ate an apple. Not just any apple, but a super apple that had magic powers. Some wiseguy who looked like a snake called Satan told them to do it. He beguiled them. Sister Nazarene said that to beguile someone was like tricking them. As I recall, many us felt at that moment that we were being beguiled too. But God help ya if you asked any questions, or wanted clarification. You’d get a smack on the knuckles with a ruler faster than you can say Galileo Galilei. 

Anyway, after they ate it — the apple, that is — Adam and Eve became smart. Turns out, God didn’t like smart people. Folks like that might want to find a meaning for things. They might find joy and fulfillment in intellectual pursuits, or in the labor of their discoveries. They might want to build stuff, make tools and what not, and shape the world according to their needs, according to their vision.  

“Bullshit,” said God. “That’s my department. Who in the Hell do you bipedal monkeys think you are, muscling in on my action? From now on, your lives will be hard and mean and your kids will have it hard too. Now get out of here and don’t come back!”

This was called the expulsion from paradise. God did not like competition. When we would grow up, we would find out that most people don’t like competition either.

As we matriculated — that is to say once we got to the second, and then third grade — some of us Catholic kids started to think that all this original sin jazz was nothing but a bunch of malarkey. We looked for a Garden of Eden on the globe in our classroom and found none. We read up on snakes. They can’t talk, let alone beguile. Apples, while having some nutritional value, can’t make you any smarter than a rap on the head with a ball peen hammer. 

Then, somewhere along the way, we were taught that this other guy, Jesus, died for all of our sins, lock, stock and fucking barrel. 

“What gives?” we wondered. “How can there be original sin and Jesus too?” 

We had a lot of trouble wrangling with this paradox. Mrs. Alverone, our third grade teacher, said a paradox was when something didn’t really make sense. And how!

Eventually, due to either boredom or mental exhaustion, all of us kids gave up our pursuit for the truth in favor of more lofty pastimes like dodge ball, smear the queer, and pouring salt on slugs. Halcyon days! 

Still, it bothered me: being guilty of, and then having to atone for, things I didn’t do, couldn’t do, wouldn’t do, and had nothing to do with. A few months later I broached the subject again with my pals.  

“Maybe original sin is just a way to remind us all that people are imperfect beings,” Crazy Dominick said while burning some ants with a magnifying glass.  

“Well, shit,” I said. “You don’t need Biblical scripture to teach you that. Just look at how Fat Arnie swings a whiffle ball bat: just like a girl. And what about Jackie Smith dropping that pass in the end zone during the Super Bowl? And just look at how corny M*A*S*H has gotten since Alan Alda took over.”

Indeed it was a world fraught with imperfection. All we kids could do was observe, contemplate, and avoid the wrath of the nuns by never getting caught doing anything fun.

More and more it began to dawn on me that teaching us that we were all born guilty was just another way for the church to keep folks in line. 

Think about it: if you’re constantly apologizing, you’ll never have time to do much of anything else, especially disobey, think critically, or pursue your life’s ambitions. I guess I was a late bloomer, but by the time I was ten years old I came to the grim realization that people like holding dominion over one another, especially with vague concepts, opaque language, and moral absurdities. And if those methods won’t work, brute force and violence will do the trick just fine. “Miracle, Mystery and Authority,” as Dostoyevsky once put it. 

It goes without saying that aside from those obligatory funerals and weddings that pop up from time to time, I haven’t willingly stepped into a church since Jimmy Carter cured cancer. The way I saw it, you should stay away from people who want you to feel bad. Little did I know, assholes abound.

Now listen: if you think that living in a world that has begun to cast aside archaic concepts from the early Mesozoic era will free you and me from the efforts of dimwits to encroach on your sovereignty through didactic chicanery, think again, tough guy. Plunderers of the spirit will always seek new and improved ways to turn their contempt for joy into a moral crusade. Why? Because people like fucking with other people, and the best way to fuck with someone is to defame them from up on high in the lofty strata reserved for those with a knack for judgment and a lack of self-awareness.

Nowadays, when I observe the world and the myriad discussions, arguments, diatribes, and commentaries that our fancy-pants, interconnected culture is heir to, I see new versions of the old skullduggery popping up all the time. And so do you.

Aren’t terms like “privilege”, “cis-gendered”, “patriarchy”, “carbon footprint”, “intolerance”, “unfairly disadvantaged”, “triggering” and the like, bandied about by people claiming a moral authority steeped in victimhood, just as sanctimonious and illegitimate as that of the church and its so-called divine morality? I’m not saying that all of those terms are inherently bad in and of themselves; a just and fair world is a thing to aspire to, just like a world free of sin and talking snakes is. If annoying, PC bromides help the cause, so be it. They won’t, but hey, don’t progressives need something to do too? 

Where the trouble starts is when an elite class of people, the heads of civic organizations, the clergy, media dolts, or politicians throw condemnatory terms about in an arbitrary and self-serving manner to stifle anyone who disagrees with or challenges them, all in the name of righteousness.  They think that by forcing dissenters into a posture of constant apology and atonement for intangible transgressions they can either alienate or eliminate them without the trouble of firing squads, cattle cars, inquisitions and re-education camps. Meet the new douchebags, same as the old douchebags. They’re just less blood-thirsty and well, kinda, wimpy.

In the world of the collectivist headcase, the collective is the Garden of Eden, and being met with the collective’s disapproval for things he may or may not have done, or advantages that he may or may not have, is akin to the expulsion from Paradise. But who told them we wanted to be part of their world anyway? 

It wasn’t okay when the church thrust upon us their ecclesiastic version of a full nelson and it’s equally offensive when modern-day demagogues do the same with their new-fangled concepts of original sin. But I don’t blame stupid people for using shortcuts to thinking; that’s what dummies do. And I don’t blame connivers for selling snake oil. What pisses me off is when people who know better allow themselves to be pushed around by these turds and their lexicon of defeatism. 

The bottom line: don’t let anybody make you feel guilty for your own life. Especially if the shame being thrust upon you is the last ditch tactic of an inferior mind that wishes to hold sway over you because their own existence is so damn uncompelling to them. That there is some bullshit.   

As writing this article has now become a tedious affair, and in order to avoid being redundant, I have provided below a post-modern to Biblical translator. Those of you with even a modicum of parochial education will find it helpful… but if your parents were jerk-offs and you went to a Montessori school, then not so much. As it is incomplete, feel free to add your own variables and expressions. I hope this helps out. Extrapolate and deduce as you will, big shots.

Privilege = Original Sin

Reduce your carbon footprint = The Ten Commandments

Cis-gendered = Lust

Patriarchy = Sloth

Intolerance = Pride

Non-Vegan = Gluttony

Trigger = Wrath

Global Warming = The Flood

Climate Change = The Rapture

Bruce Jenner = Jesus

Oprah = God

Michael Moore = John the Baptist

Jordon Peterson = Satan

Individualist/Libertarian = Heretic 

Bill Maher = Doubting Thomas

Ron Paul = Nebuchadnezzar

California = The Promised Land

Corey Booker = Moses

Taxes = Acts of Contrition 

This article represents the views of the author, and not those of Being Libertarian LLC.

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