During Palenville Pagan Pride Day in August, the agenda reflected the goddess-centered theology of the Divine Feminine, which members say has its roots 12,000 years ago in the Goddess Cybele in Central Anatolia, in Turkey.
So after the opening ritual at 9 a.m. and sandwiched around “Lunchtime with the Priestesses,” the schedule at the old Central House inn included “The Goddess in Antiquity,” “Pagans in the Mundane World” and sessions on sacred drumming patterns, dragon rituals and the Cybeline Revival.
Still, it was the least celestial item that perhaps mattered most. That would be “Discussion of Maetreum of Cybele v. Town of Catskill, N.Y.,” a legal case dating to 2007 after the town first approved and then denied tax-exempt status for the group, which has been certified by the federal government as a tax-exempt religious charity. The goddess may rule the universe, but the lawyers will help decide whether the pagans of Palenville have a future in this historic old town just down the snowy hills from Hunter Mountain.
Can anyone tell me how one can trace a history from 12,000 years ago? Funny: There are some who say the OT could not have been written by Moses 3500 years ago (likely those who believe these “pagans!”) and this is even earlier!!
No. 1,
I went to the official Matreum website listed in the article. Some of the listed “Original Historic Essays” are…uh…truly entertaining, what with titles called “Gnostic Transsexuality” and “Transsexual Priestesses, Sexuality and the Goddess.”
Particularly amusing is the Original Historic Essay entitled “Cybele in Rome (still in progress).” If its Historic, why is it in progress? But no matter, this essay contains such historical gems as “Frequently overlooked by scholars is the simple fact that while Greek lacked a soft “C” sound, Phrygian did not,” “Paul came to a bad end after annoying Nero enough to be arrested around 62 CE,” and “Two years later, 66 CE, the Jews revolted once again against Rome. This failed attempt ended with the cruifiction of Peter the following year.”
Wow…just…wow.
Just another man-invented (or in this case woman-vented) ‘rejection theology.’
Does anyone know if they are in touch with ECUSA’s revisionist leaders regarding their ‘inclusion’ in ECUSA? They seem to share a common level of theological competence.
“Theological competence?” Truly abysmal.
Regardless of the merits of their theology–are they legal? I’m troubled that the municipality is claiming that they aren’t tax exempt because the purpose of the building is primarily residential. What about Rectories?!?!
I suspect the residence is less like a “rectory” and more like a “house church.” My home has many religious items scattered throughout and we do use it fairly regularly to study the Bible, pray, break bread, etc; but it in no way counts as a religious meeting house (Nor is it a rectory.)
B the way, Palenville in the Town of Catskill is not in Upstate New York.
It is in the Lower Hudson Valley and is culturally much much closer to New York City than it is to Upstate.
I saw nothing in the posted article about the Episcopal Church, but, knowing the predilections and habits of many regular readers, I assumed it would be a matter of a very short time before someone tried to make the link. No. 3 brought in the inevitable in just over two hours, it appears.
Well NoVa Scout (and who are you scouting for?), don’t you remember the pagan ceremony that was on ECUSA’s website about 2-3 years ago, the two Episcopal Wiccan priests who were ‘out in the open’ in the Diocese of Pennsylvania several years ago, the weird events that have gone on at the Washington Cathedral, the weird events going on in an Episcopal church in the Pacific Northwest, etc?
And you might better ask ECUSA’s leadership to affirm that churches and cathedrals built by and for Christians are not being used for non-Chrisitan events which promote the ‘word’ of non-Chrisitan religions.
With respect, Anglican First, Palenville is in the Dicoese of Albany and while people shop in Saugerties, they do not associate with NYC more than, say Albany. I was Vicar for Gloria Dei Church for five years and I would be interested in hearing how Sacred Heart RC Church is faring. In my day, in the town of 1000 (and that is probably generous) there were more than 1000 baptized persons registered in Sacred Heart. The parish priests, Fr. Ignatius Rossi, OFM came from the Franciscan Seminary and Friary in Catskill. Fr Iggy was regularly able to present Confirmation classes of 100 or more to the Bishop of Albany (RC) when he came.
#8 Did you ever see the video of the Glasspool ordination in LA? It featured a lot of this stuff.
Reply nto Canon King (#10.).
No intent to offend but just my narrow-minded Mohawk Valley derived sense of the impact of NYC on the culture of the Lower Hudson Valley.
Wicca is not a religion, it is a cult and is best treated like Scientology: It should be laughed out of court. It will self destruct in due time because the women who now inhabit it will wither without successors. Larry