Archetypal Keys in Wiccan Mythological History

[persipone]

I've been bored lately, and when I'm bored, I read. Mostly, I've been reading RJ Stewart's The Underworld Initiation. I have a lot of problems with the book, but it's definitely thought-provoking. It inspired some thoughts, that I thought I'd share with everybody :-)

Comments

[old_swordsman]

I respect your thoughts, and I applaud thedepth of thought that is reflected in them. I cannot say I agree with it all, however.

Wallowing in victimhood is not a way to exist, but seeking power to alleviate it is not necessarily a road to becoming an oppressor. Whatever some pundits may believe, deterrence works, and those who choose to test the boundaries do so at their own risk.

[persipone]

I agree that there is a happy middle ground between wallowing in victimhood and becoming the oppressor. But I firmly believe that the key to finding this middle ground is *not* to seek the external political power to alleviate the oppression. The key is seeking the internal strength to better oneself, and whatever political tools are required for this. The key is *not* to become more powerful than your oppressors, but to become *better* than them. Better educated, kinder, more loyal, and more willing to make peace. Acting within the dynamic of oppression to accumulate more power only allows the power to oppress

[old_swordsman]

Last I checked, we won the cold war. ;)

[persipone]

I'm no expert but, in my understanding, the USSR *lost* the cold war. They pretty much did it to themselves while we pointed and laughed

[old_swordsman]

I'm forgetting my manners! Yes, I did comment on only one political aspect of what you wrote without first clarifying that I found what you said re: the burning times and the "old" religion spot-on. My bad. :)

But I still stand by my inflammatory statements. ;)

And I miss seein' ya at circle. :)

[persipone]

And, really, if all you saw to comment on in my post was my politics, then I'm not sure what we're talking about. It's entirely a side issue to my main point. Even if we disagree about the nature of the dynamic between oppressors and oppressed, I'd like to think we can both agree that Wiccans shouldn't take the fictional history of the Burning Times as a reason to think of themselves as the most oppressed group in history.

[persipone]

I actually like that attitude. One of the things I really appreciate about Wicca is that, as a whole, it's not about where we came from or where we're going when we die. It's about how we live our lives and meet our gods in the here and now. And I think that this has a lot to do with how well Wicca made the transition from a religion that depended on a false version of history, to one that largely disregarded its past and got on with its present.

But, what can I say? I can't help looking for meaning in all of this, and maybe I'm looking more deeply than the situation deserves.