Omnium Gatherum: July 9, 2019

An irregular hodgepodge of links gathered together … Omnium Gatherum for July 9, 2019

If you’d like to participate, head over to Omnium Gatherum on the BBS, or suggest something.

  • Tweet by Alex Norris

  • “The Curious Mystical Text Behind Marianne Williamson’s Presidential Bid. The New Age author was drawn to an esoteric bible in the 1970s. It made her a self-help megastar. And now it has gone mainstream.” — Sam Kestenbaum, The New York Times

    “Ms. Williamson’s debut may have appeared offbeat, a not-so-serious collection of truisms about love. But more was happening here. She was, in fact, drawing directly from a homegrown American holy book called “A Course in Miracles,” a curious New York scripture that arose during the heady metaphysical counterculture of the 1960s.

    This is not some homey book of feel-good bromides. Rather, it is taken by its readers as a genuine gospel, produced by a Manhattan doctor who believed she was channeling new revelations from Jesus Christ himself. And stepping into this unusual book’s story, in fact, is the key to understanding Ms. Williamson’s latest venture.”

  • “Followers of occultist Aleister Crowley to be welcomed back to his former Highland home” — Alison Campsie, The Scotsman; from the it-shall-be-your-Wellness-Spa-for-ever dept.

    Campsie The Scotsman followers of occultist Crowley to be welcomed back Boleskine

    “The former Highland home of occultist Aleister Crowley is to be restored and converted into a wellness retreat where yoga and meditation will be taught – as well as the teachings of the notorious religious leader.

    Boleskine House on the south west banks of Loch Ness was destroyed by a fire in 2015 but has now been purchased by three as yet unnamed investors who paid a total of £500,000 for the property and gardens.

    The Boleskine Foundation has now been launched to drive the restoration of the property with parts of the historic estate, which was built in the 1760s, to be opened up to the public.”

  • “Why a new generation is turning to Satanism. Devil may care.” — Olivier Pelling, Huck

    “In a time of chaos and uncertainty, when traditional belief systems no longer seem to have all the answers, more and more young people are finding comfort in Satanism. But these aren’t devil worshippers who drink blood or sacrifice animals. They’re just regular people trying to squeeze the most out of life.”

  • “The Gnostic Apocalypse That Is Game of Thrones” — Miguel Conner, Aeon Byte

    “Let’s dare the metaphysics of Game of Thrones, now that the dust (and self-righteous internet outrage) has settled on its final season. Specifically, I want to talk about the show’s Gnostic features.

    That’s not as surprising as you might think. Epic fantasies tend to be spiritually eclectic in their massive world-building efforts. It happens, and logically, this can include some gradients of Gnosticism. As an example, it happened in Lord of the Rings. Don’t believe me? Check out Lance Owens arguing on my show that J.R.R. Tolkien’s cosmology is heavily indebted to Gnostic ideas.”

  • “Thousands petition Netflix to cancel Amazon Prime’s Good Omens. US Christian group condemns Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s story as ‘making satanism appear normal’ – but petition wrong company.” — Alison Flood, The Guardian

    “More than 20,000 Christians have signed a petition calling for the cancellation of Good Omens, the television series adapted from Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s 1990 fantasy novel – unfortunately addressing their petition to Netflix when the series is made by Amazon Prime.”

  • Tweet by Amazon Prime Video US

  • “‘Hail Satan’ opening prayer at Alaska government meeting prompts walkouts, protest” — Owen Daughterty, The Hill

    “The Associated Press reports the prayer, where a woman declared “Hail Satan,” was given by Satanic Temple member Iris Fontana, who won the right to open the meeting with an invocation of her choice.

    “That which will not bend, must break, and that which can be destroyed by truth should never be spared as demise. It is done, hail Satan,” Fontana said to open the meeting, according to local radio station KSRM

    The controversial prayer Tuesday night started the meeting of the Kenai Peninsula Borough and prompted several attendees to exit.”

  • “By the Book: Denise Mina” — The New York Times

    “What books are on your nightstand?

    ‘The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper,’ by Hallie Rubenhold; Peter Mansfield’s ‘A History of the Middle East’; ‘The Confessions of Aleister Crowley: An Autohagiography,’ by Aleister Crowley”

  • “Jim Bakker: Christian Leaders and Politicians Will Be Murdered if Trump is not Re-Elected” — Kyle Mantyla, Right Wing Watch

    “End Times prepper pastor Jim Bakker warned on his television program today that if President Trump is not re-elected in 2020, Christian leaders and politicians will be murdered in the streets.”

  • Tweet by Damien

  • “Trump spiritual adviser says ‘demonic networks’ have aligned themselves against president” — Rachel Frazin, The Hill

    “President Trump’s spiritual adviser, Paula White, said in the opening prayer before his campaign kickoff rally in Orlando, Fla., on Tuesday that “demonic networks” have aligned themselves against the president. “

  • “Put down the self-help books. Resilience is not a DIY endeavour” — Michael Ungar, The Globe and Mail; adapted from his book Change Your World: The Science of Resilience and the True Path to Success

    Ungar Change Your World

    “I, too, wish life were as simple as it is described in the first chapter of Eckhart Tolle’s bestselling book The Power of Now. It opens with the story of a beggar sitting on a box. A stranger comes along and asks the beggar what’s inside. The beggar, who has sat on the box for years, has never thought to open it. When finally he does, it is full of gold. Thus we are all beggars seeking something from someone else when everything we need is already there inside us.

    But stories such as this are misleading, if not dishonest. Personal explanations for success actually set us up for failure. TED Talks and talk shows full of advice on what to eat, what to think and how to live seldom work. Self-help fixes are like empty calories: The effects are fleeting and often detrimental in the long term. Worse, they promote victim blaming. The notion that your resilience is your problem alone is ideology, not science.

    We have been giving people the wrong message. Resilience is not a DIY endeavour. Self-help fails because the stresses that put our lives in jeopardy in the first place remain in the world around us even after we’ve taken the “cures.” The fact is that people who can find the resources they require for success in their environments are far more likely to succeed than individuals with positive thoughts and the latest power poses.”

  • “Ancient Egypt link to The Beatles points to ‘Macca is dead’ conspiracy, theorist claims. A BONKERS conspiracy claiming legendary Beatle Paul McCartney is dead may have a compelling link to ancient Egypt, a theorist has claimed.” — Simon Green, Daily Star

    “Despite being one of the most recognised musicians of all time, a select few Beatle fans believe Sir Paul was killed in a car crash in 1966.

    They claim a body double was then used after his death, something the iconic band supposedly alluded to in their songs.

    Now, one so-called truth-seeker has offered a different view on the theory.

    …

    This Paul is Dead thing, I am looking at it as an initiation.”

    Andrew stops short of suggesting what Paul was “initiated” into, but linked it to the infamous occultist Aleister Crowley.”

  • “Konx-Om-Pax. Ways of Seeing.” — Kareem Ghezawi, The Quietus

    “In the original 1907 publication of Konx-Om-Pax, British occultist Aleister Crowley attempts to discern the nature of the transmundane through a series of esoteric allegories and enigmatic mystical rites. To some he was a spiritual snake oil merchant, while to others he was nothing less than a prophet. One thing for certain is that his personality, life, and works have been a major source of inspiration to artists and leftfield oddballs ever since.

    In that sense, Tom Scholefield shares common ground with the great beast whose work he has named himself after. Because like him, Konx, and his peers on Planet Mu and Hyperdub, are interpreters of the generation’s collective consciousness, it’s ugliness, as well as its beauty. In Ways of Seeing, Konx allows himself to be fully guided by his empathic intuition for the first time and the result is a record which reveals promisingly hopeful patterns in the void.”

  • “Rivers of Babylon: 4 Unusual Facts About Cradle of Civilization. As UNESCO names Babylon a World Heritage Site, the ‘Post’ presents five little-known facts about how the fame of the ancient kingdom is still with us today.” — Hagay Hacohen, The Jerusalem Post

    “2. Babalon Woman – In the complex occult magical system created by English writer Aleister Crowley, a special place is reserved for the concept of Babalon. The concept includes both the principle of fertility and female sexuality as well as an actual woman who takes on the role of “scarlet woman.”

    In his own lifetime, Crowley expected romantic partners to take on the role of Babalon for his occult needs. Among them were Jeanne Robert Foster and Leah Hirsig.

    Crowley, who attempted to shock the norms of his day and age, might have been influenced by Jewish and Christian concepts of ancient Babylon as a place of sexual excess. The ‘Whore of Babylon’ is referred to many times in the Book of Revelation. Crowley also saw himself as ‘the great beast.'”