November 2016 – Page 3 – TrueFreeThinker

Col Michael Aquino is a US Army Intelligence officer, former priest of Anton LaVey’s church of satan who went on to establish the temple of set. Note what he wrote with regards to the legal battle between US Army Maj Grady McMurtry and Kenneth Grant regarding the legitimate chartered of the US Grand Lodge of the Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO):

While sitting in the courtroom watching Judge Legge preside sternly over the slug-out, I couldn’t help wondering if he had any idea he was ruling on which group had legal claim to anal sex as the supreme religious sacrament in the United States.
—Scroll of Set, Vol. XII no. 5, Oct. 1986 AD

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Bill Schnoebelen, who claims to be an ex-, well, just about everything from witch/wiccan to satanist, from Freemason to Mormon, wrote of “the pervasive influence of Aleister Crowley upon the beginnings of Wicca” and noted:

…most Witches, myself included, find it necessary to study his material and “plug themselves into” the magical current of Crowley’s demon spirit guide, a mysterious being named Aiwass. Aiwass is another name for Set, an Egyptian god… Sodomy is especially “sacred” to Set…It opens what are called the “Typhonion” tunnels, channels through which extremely powerful demons, like the horrible Choronzon, can travel from the “alternate reality” and emerge into this universe and enter the sex partner’s body.

—Wicca: Satan’s Little White Lie, 1990 AD ed., see pp. 192, 197-200

As a side note: some see in the name which has come to be spelled “Aiwass” a typically satanic purposeful reversal of YHVH’s order. In fact, YHVH’s very manner whereby to refer to Himself as “I AM” as Aiwass is pronounced as “I WAS.”

These preliminary, and disturbing, quotes are in order to being us to just what is the Typhonian tradition as elucidated by The Mystica which is the “encyclopedia of the occult, mysticism, magic, paranormal and more…”:

The Typhonian tradition is sometimes defined as a current that flows through the cosmology of the Ordr Templi Orentis (O. T. O.). Typhon was the god in Greek mythology who when appearing before the other gods was so ugly he changed into a fire-eating monster; he waged a terrible war and was eventually killed by one of Zeus’ thunderbolts. Thus, Typhonian is synonymous with fire and force, also means the Opposer. Typhon’s Egyptian counterpart is Set or Seth.

Interesting correlations to Leviathan and satan the oppose, the adversary. Leviathan was both a beast named in the Old Testament book of Job 3:8 ch. 41 gives a description which includes, “”Who can open the doors of his face? Around his teeth there is terror” (v. 14) also relevant to the above is (vss. 19-21):

Out of his mouth go burning torches; Sparks of fire leap forth. Out of his nostrils smoke goes forth As from a boiling pot and burning rushes. His breath kindles coals, And a flame goes forth from his mouth.

Leviathan then became symbolic or indicative:

In that day the LORD will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, With His fierce and great and mighty sword, Even Leviathan the twisted serpent; And He will kill the dragon who lives in the sea (Isaiah 27:1).

Finally, came to be referenced in satanic texts: for example, the Hebrew letters that make up the creature’s name are seen at each point of the upside-down Goat of Mendes pentagram which is the sigil of the church of satan.

Typhonian tradition as currently acknowledged means returning to a matriarchal system of goddess worship; not restoring the Egyptian pantheon, per se, but the system of worship. This corresponds to the god Set as well as Typhon, gods of opposition or adversary.
The Typhonian tradition clearly eradicates the status-quo and is staunchly resisted by those resisting change. Such resistance is clearly seen from Judeo-Christian history, patriarchy replacing matriarchy.

Here you have both Set and Typhon associated with opposition and adversary. Note that Set is essentially set-an, or satan.

As we will see from a further quote, one thing being touched upon is the myth of a matriarchal society. For a detailed refutation of this myth please see: Wicca, the goddess, Witchcraft, Paganism and History
In short, such a society is utterly unsubstantiated by history and archaeology and even feminists have spoken out against this myth pointing out that falsehood does not help the cause of feminism.

In fact, female false goddesses are not less violent and bloodthirsty than male false gods. In fact, human males under the auspices of their male gods men may war with each other but human women under the auspices of their male goddesses were rather taken with murdering their own babies. For examples of how this continues on to this very date, see: Sacred Abortion.

One disastrous result has been feminine derogation. This has led to woman being thought of as sexual, sensual, lewd, and whatever. The Hebrews segregated women at menstruation as being impure. Jewish women were required to repent by making sacrifices after childbirth.

Well, women are sexual and sensual and there is nothing wrong with that within the context of an appropriately ethical relationship: marriage (of course, they are not “lewd” in general).
As for the Hebrews, what is missing from the statement above is that quite often they combined concepts of ritual with concepts of physical, medically related cleansing. They treated blood outside of the body as just what it is: a potential bio hazard.

Note Leviticus 12:2, “When a woman gives birth…she shall be unclean…as in the days of her menstruation she shall be unclean.” Thus, this is clearly about blood and blood was unclean due to its bio hazard status once outside of the body. This was tied into the concept of life being in the blood. Moreover, v. 4 states, “she shall not touch any consecrated thing, nor enter the sanctuary until the days of her purification are completed.” This is simply a form of quarantine.

Finally, being ritually unclean due to having come into contact with blood lead to further ritual as in vss. 6-7:

When the days of her purification are completed…she shall bring to the priest at the doorway of the tent of meeting” a sacrifice, “for a sin offering…and she shall be cleansed from the flow of her blood.

The combination of medical and ritual cleansing are made all the clearer with regards to a discharge of blood:

Now if a woman has a discharge of her blood many days, not at the period of her menstrual impurity, or if she has a discharge beyond that period, all the days of her impure discharge she shall continue as though in her menstrual impurity; she is unclean. Any bed on which she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her like her bed at menstruation; and everything on which she sits shall be unclean, like her uncleanness at that time.

Likewise, whoever touches them shall be unclean and shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening. When she becomes clean from her discharge, she shall count off for herself seven days; and afterward she will be clean (Leviticus 15:25-28).

Thus, this is about carefully regulating and cleansing from bio hazards.

In Christianity this was followed by the witch and heretic manias. Many women died because men believed that they believed the wrong things. It seems certain such vial acts were committed because of masculine fear of women. Sources of such fear seen uncertain, but the principle one is probably ignorance. Some venture the reason for male sense of superiority is that Christ was a male himself. This sexist discrimination still continues; many still oppose the feminist movement and achievement.

That in Christianity patriarchy was followed by witch and heretic manias is a detail free statement. Christianity did not lead to any such thing rather, over a millennia and at a distance from whence Christianity was established a particular branch of Christianity which considered itself to be the one and only true for of it, Roman Catholicism, took it upon itself to conduct various inquisitions.

Also of interest may be that the Jewish Encyclopedia notes (1906 ed. Vol. XI, pp. 485, 203):

It remains a fact that the Jews, either directly or through their correligionists in Africa, encouraged the Mohammedans to conquer Spain…during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries fewer than three people a year were executed in the whole of the Spanish monarchy from Sicily to Peru, certainly a lower rate than in any provincial court of justice in Spain or anywhere else in Europe.

See Find it Fast – Fast Facts: on the Inquisition

The fact is that whilst some “churches” took it upon themselves to mistreat, misrepresent, etc. women; the Bible knows of no such thing—see Find it Fast – Fast Facts: is the Bible misogynistic? and Biblical Women.

An opposing step against such male dominance was the advent of the New Aeon presented by Aleister Crowley in The Book of the Law that seeks to reestablish feminine and masculine worship in balance similar to ancient Egyptian custom.

Sure, that may be why, at least, three women associate with Crowley (two having been wives) ended up in insane asylums.

The step was a two-fold Typhonian one. First, it represented Crowley’s attempt to defeat Christianity which demoralized him throughout his life: his mother called him the Beast as a child and then he was called the wickedest man in the world.

Secondly, the Law was Thelemic law, Greek Thy Will, which stated that man was to live in pleasure, not suffering, which would frighten men. Men’s fright would occur because it would shatter their conformity of living in pain suffering, they must adjust to this.

Sadly, Aleister Crowley grew up amongst very severe religionists including schools which practiced brutal corporal punishment (no, not solely a spanking). His rebellion again YHVH was fueled by the very same things that fuel very many Atheists rebellion: as emotional reactions against unknown, neglectful or absentee fathers (Crowley’s died when he was 11 yrs.) and/or rejecting Christianity based on experiences with people who actually violated Christian ethics.

The reference to Thelemic law is to Aleister Crowley’s demon-spirit channeled “Book of the Law” wherein was stated, “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law, the law is love, love under will.” Supporters of Crowley, and/or those who do not know any better, appeal to the reference to “love” and claim that this one un-contextual sentence is positive. Well, the greater context is that one is to worship these demonic false gods via drunkenness, drugs, blood, human sacrifice and yes, “live in pleasure” aka hedonism: have unmarried sex with whom thou wilt—as one may term it.

This would frighten men because we have YHVH’s law in our hearts and our conscience would convict us of sin—until such time, that is, that our consciences become “seared as with a hot iron” and we basically repress and suppress it until it no longer speaks to us (see 1st Timothy 4:2).

This adjustment would make a change in man. It would free man from thinking it was appropriate for him to live in pain and suffering. He would no longer feel guilty when attempting to escape it. He would thus know it was the Law and his duty to escape it and exist in pleasure. The Law of Thelema was now focused on his Will.

The issue is that the Crowleyan manner whereby to “escape it” is unethical hedonism—note the reference to no longer feeling guilty. The reason that “The Law of Thelema was now focused on his Will” is that the will is the premise upon which magick is based: the exercise of will in order to bring about changes in the material realm (and other realms). This powerful exercise of human will is why paganism, satanism, luciferianism, magick, etc. eventually break down to self-deification.

See: Self-deification and the magick craft

The mind was thus free to conduct other pursuits. The Law of Thelema was the way of the Typhonians. It was the path of Set, the Opposer, who was in constant combat against Horus and the stationary Osirian trinity just as those of the New Aeon are in constant combat against the confining establishments of the past [A]eon.

By relieving pain and suffering by seeking a life of pleasure (as if pleasure guarantees lack of pain and suffering) the mind is free to pursue the way of the Typhonians which, remember, are “a current that flows” from “the god in Greek mythology” the Opposer, who “changed into a fire-eating monster…waged a terrible war and was eventually killed by” Zeus. This flase god, but true demon, is the counterpart is Set or Seth. It was Set/Seth (satan) who was so jealous of Osiris that he murdered him. He later dismembered his corpse. He then fought against Osiris’ son Horus and plucked out one of Horus’ eyes even while Horus castrated him.

As a Christian apologetics side note: the reference to “trinity” is typical of such polemics. There is only one Trinity and it is the Holy one which is the very nature and essence of YHVH. What is referred to as “trinity” with reference to various religions is really, when viewed and represented accurately, tri-theism, a triad, a tripartite being or some such thing.
For an elucidation of the actual doctrine of the Trinity see: Trinity : God’s Nature and Trinitarian Doctrine

Those of the “New Aeon” refer to those into the occult magick craft and the fact is that the “New Aeon” (the new age) is merely the old and original aeon/age repackaged as the original rebellion was lucifer’s assertion, “I will be like the most high” (Isaiah 14:14, this is one of lucifer’s five I wills) and the original lie was his presentation of this concept to humanity “you will be like God” (Genesis 3:5). This is the concept of lucifer, turned into satan, bringing enlightenment (actually, endarkenment) to humanity and promising self-deification.

That adherents of the New Aeon/New Age combat against the past aeon is, from the greater Crowlean context, a reference to the defeat of Christianity by the Law of Thelema or, as it has come to be known, Crowleyanity.

It is no wonder even those not officially recognizing this New Aeon such as Leonardo De Vinci and Sir Isaac Newton were occultists, and that J.G Frazer author of the Golden Bough, describes science as successful magick were among those who produced social change.

We will leave it to other, or as a side issue, to determine whether Leonardo De Vinci and Sir Isaac Newton were occultists. Apparently, this odd grammatical structure is meant to assert that J.G Frazer wrote that science is successful magick and that those who employ magick produced social change.
This is part of the reason why the exercise of will, within the magickal context, leads to self-deification as magick follows certain principles which cause outcomes. On the other hand, followers of YHVH know that He is ultimately in charge so that we cannot, in a manner of speaking, force His hand.

Once the mind is free of guilt, consciousness can rapidly grow. An increasing consciousness is like a continuum that continues to grow; a thing in which anything seems possible. Its reality has no limits, and is the tool and path of the magickal.
This is why it is such a valuable tool for the magician, enormously expanding his consciousness and yielding limitless possibilities. The only test is of their future utility, will they produce the desired magickal results, not their morality. Within this Typhonian tradition, or current, lays the vast stream of magickal possibilities stretching from ancient Egypt to the present at the magician’s disposal.

By somehow disregarding the guilt of your sins—by excusing, justifying, or being made to believe that there is no such thing as sin—you are given over to the oppose/adversary who causes an “increasing consciousness” whereby “anything seems possible” as it “has no limits…limitless possibilities.”

And we finally get to the bottom line which is that the ends justify the means: “The only test” is the “magickal results” and “not their morality.” As long as you get what thou wilt it does not matter how you get it—do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law! (see my series on that motto here).

One last thing to not beyond all that we have learned is that The Mystica is no mere academic, scholarly, “encyclopedia” but an apologetics for the occult magickal arts.

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Free e-book: “The God Delusion” by Richard Dawkins

Let us face the fact that The God Delusion is a great book.

It is a great book if you want to witness the utter bankruptcy of Atheist apologetics.

It is great for a window into how very, very popular one can get even whilst basing arguments on poor history, poor logic, poor science and poor biblical hermeneutics.

Great for seeing how a scientist can actually appeal to “luck” in order to explain life and the universe itself.

It is actually a great heuristic device as you can learn a lot by correcting its very, very, very, very many fallacies as you go (see here, here and here for examples).

This was supposed to be Richard Dawkins’ magnum opus which he said would cause people to become atheists by the time they read it, then he downgraded it to being useful in appealing to fence sitters (see here) and finally, he said that it was a funny and amusing book (see here and here).

The entire text is available online and the great thing is that you can use the Ctrl+f function on your keyboard to search it. So, for instance, if you want to see how ignorant he is about Adolf Hitler and Nazism and see how he correlated anyone with whom he disagrees (see here) with Hitler and Nazism you can search for those terms (and search “Neville Chamberlain” as he thinks that not being as extremist about evolution as he is, is tantamount to acquiescing to Hitler).

You can find the free e-book online at this link.

Was Samson buff?

Was the Bible’s character Samson buff? Was he a hulking bodybuilder-like individual?

The question may see irrelevant but it seems to me to cut to the core of distinguishing between what the Bible says about him (and others?), on the one hand, and what we make of him (and others?).

Certainly, we seem to tend to picture him as a big, tall, muscular, macho guy with an all around impressive physique. Most illustrations of him—from film to paintings and cartoons—do depict him as such. Yet, how did we end up with this idea of Samson?

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The Bible states nothing about his physical appearance other than he wore long hair; until Delilah cut it. His hair bring us to another very, very important point about Samson: it seems to be ubiquitously claimed that Samson’s impressive strength was due to his hair. Was it?

What his physique was like and what his hair had to do with it brings us to the disparity between what the Bible is telling us about him, and his life-story, and what we make of it which turns out to be a mere characterization.

Now, I do not propose to review or write a commentary of the entire book in which Samson appears—Judges ch. 13-16—but only seek to elucidate the questions at hand.

If I saw a hulk-like individual performing feats of strength I may be amazed at their having developed such a physique and strength but the feats would not be surprising as the physique and strength would lend themselves to the feats.

So, what about his hair? Let us consider Samson’s birth:

Now there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. Now therefore, please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean. For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”

Thus, he wore his hair long because he was to be a Nazirite to God. What is a Nazirite?

When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD, he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins. All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin. All the days of the vow of his separation no razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the LORD, he shall be holy. Then he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow (see Numbers Ch. 6).

The regulations go on from there.

Thus, from his birth, Samson was appointed as having a special purpose. His long hair signified this purpose, this mission, this vow. His strength came about due to his having the purpose/mission/vow which was to be a “judge” of Israel. We learn that Samson’s mother “…bore a son and called his name Samson; and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him. And the Spirit of the LORD began to move upon him…”

We learn that Samson fell in love with a woman of the Philistines—much to the chagrin of his parents as he had not chosen a nice Jewish girl (my grandmother asked me if my girlfriend/fiance/spouse was Jewish as did my childhood friends’ Jewish grandma)—and we learn that according to God’s plan Samson was to have done so because he was supposed to get involved with the Philistines and this “was of the LORD—that He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines. For at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.” Philistine oppression of Israel was due come to an end.

On one occasion, “a young lion came roaring against him. And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand.” In such occasion we see that his physique, his physical strength was not the reason for, not the cause of, his strength.

Likewise, on another occasion we learn that, “Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon him mightily, and he went down to Ashkelon and killed thirty of their men.”

Another time when Samson was tied up “with two new ropes” awaiting arrest by the Philistines, “the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him; and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds broke loose from his hands. He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and killed a thousand men with it.”

We find that the Gazites surrounded the place where Samson was “and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city.” This time Samson, “took hold of the doors of the gate of the city and the two gateposts, pulled them up, bar and all, put them on his shoulders, and carried them to the top of the hill that faces Hebron.” It is not specified that he got the strength to do this from the Spirit. Based on context perhaps he did. Perhaps he did not. And perhaps he was buff but again; it would not be particularly impressive if he was.

In any case, his life is as much a story of Israel getting out from under their oppressors as it as a story about a born hero who ends up taking a downward spiral as he compromised again and again and again. This is one of the beauties of the Bible, the Bible’s realism, that it paints even its heroes with warts and all and for millennia lays out their flaws for all to see right along of their triumphs.

We find that Samson “loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, ‘Entice him, and find out where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him.’” This is how it comes about that she asks Samson and he gives her false answers three times so that when they come to seize him, he overcomes them. When this first occurs it is stated, “So the secret of his strength was not known.” Finally, it is stated—in what one does not know if to say is flowery or all too realistic language—:

…she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, so that his soul was vexed to death, that he told her all his heart, and said to her, “No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaven, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man”…[they proceeded to] shave off the seven locks of his head…and his strength left him…he awoke from his sleep, and said, “I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!” But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him. Then the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters, and he became a grinder in the prison. However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaven.

Note the combination of factors relating to his hair and his strength: if his head was shaved his strength would leave me; and so his strength did reside, as it were, in his hair. Yet, when his head was shaved, “the LORD had departed from him” and we know that God’s Spirit had given him his strength. But later his hair began to grow again which brings us to the next event.

Let us pause here to note that there was nothing magical about his hair. His hair was tied up with his strength in that it signified, was symbolic of, stood for, was a public sign that, he had a special purpose commensurate with his vow as a Nazirite. When he had compromised again and again and again until his head is shaved it demonstrated that he had finally broken his vows, neglected his divine calling, in a manner of speaking, and thus, having turned away from God, God now turns away from him. His strength left him when the LORD left him and the LORD left him when he reached a point of leaving the LORD, the LORD’s purpose for him.

Samson’s story ends in a tragic victory:

Now the lords of the Philistines gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice. And they said:

“Our god has delivered into our hands Samson our enemy!”

When the people saw him, they praised their god; for they said:

“Our god has delivered into our hands our enemy, The destroyer of our land, And the one who multiplied our dead.”

So it happened, when their hearts were merry, that they said, “Call for Samson, that he may perform for us.” So they called for Samson from the prison, and he performed for them. And they stationed him between the pillars. Then Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars which support the temple, so that I can lean on them.” Now the temple was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistines were there—about three thousand men and women on the roof watching while Samson performed.
Then Samson called to the LORD, saying, “O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray! Strengthen me, I pray, just this once, O God, that I may with one blow take vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes!” And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars which supported the temple, and he braced himself against them, one on his right and the other on his left.

Then Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!”

And he pushed with all his might, and the temple fell on the lords and all the people who were in it. So the dead that he killed at his death were more than he had killed in his life. And his brothers and all his father’s household came down and took him, and brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. He had judged Israel twenty years.

Note that his hair had grown again which signified his renewed vows, as it where, and he calls upon the LORD for strength once more.

Thus, we see that his physique had nothing to do with it, his personal strength that is, and his hair is tied up into the concept of his strength as symbolic of his walking with God, fulfilling God’s purpose, keeping his vow.

I would love to see a play or movie about Samson wherein he is played by an actor who is a scrawny, skinny, little, pencil-neck geek in order to emphasize these points. It was not about physical strength and hair but about walking with the LORD.