Heaven Tree Webring
A few years back, I belonged to a webring for “Christians”. I was not sure this category was the best fit, since what a Christian consists of varies enough that there are many hundreds if not thousands of denominations of Christians with the same but highly differing beliefs. The webring was called Heaven Tree. It’s still around.
Christians That Don’t Understand Christianity
Modern Christians do not understand early Christians, and certainly less Christian Jews or Messianics. One day, after having joined Heaven Tree webring, I had found that I had been kicked out because some of my subject matter concerned topics like Astrology and Tarot. After writing for clarification, what I was told was the reason for my removal was that these topics had been brought to the attention of the ringmaster, and that these were not appropriate for a Christian webring.
The only problem with this assertion is that there is an entire Hebrew form of Astrology and Tarot, which in fact I have developed, discovered, and pursued. A typical Christian, however, is unaware of the encoded meanings of Astrology inherent in the Book of Revelation, or how the Messiah having literally become the “Hanged Man” undertook the hero’s journey. In other words, modern Christianity splits its roots and it winds up being something like Christianity Lite without any kind of magical understanding. This forces believers who might normally have some comprehension of such matters to go full on Harry Potter and then they try to reconcile what is witchcraft with Christianity. C.S. Lewis and other early Christian writers had to toe this line especially carefully. How do Christians, for instance, deal with elves who do not appear in the Bible? Satyrs? Fairies?
To most Christians, the answer is those are all “evil”. The only thing that counts is Jesus–and Jews MAYBE on a good day–might. Never mind Jesus WAS Jewish and was fulfilling things relating to these systems which pagans have appropriated and used for other ends. Still, what belongs to God is God’s.
What Belongs In A Community…
The infuriating thing about issues like these is that people are willing to kick a person or author out of a given place because, and this is important, THEY BELIEVE THEY UNDERSTAND WHAT IT MEANS TO BE IN THAT COMMUNITY. There is a normalized type of thinking that begins to resemble a kind of mall police that weeds out the shoppers that might look like they are trouble. Ironically, however, it is THEY who are missing pieces of their own community–or at least essential definitions of it–and when someone comes along to try to fill them in on that, they rely on a heuristic of “this info is scary and possibly evil” instead of considering the facts and passages on their own merits. A lobotomized Christian is not the work of the Lord, but the work of believers who, thinking they are doing the right thing and trusting their own judgment, falter and do something else instead. (That was how Messiah was crucified in the first place, wasn’t it?)
Not Unique To Religion
This problem is not unique to religion. Often, one can see it at work in programming languages or potential solutions to engineering issues. It can be seen in treatments doctors are willing to pursue, and what it means to be “good at one’s job” via “work culture”. It is everyone and at all times present, and it seems that generally the gatekeepers who ought to have the greatest vision concerning the community are the most blinded guards. The consequence is that the community is denied membership and growth that certain people bring. It “arrests” the development and keeps the status quo for a little longer, although eventually some critical failure will begin to manifest and by then, the community has split, or failed entirely, and is no longer a community. The klaxon sounds well before this outcome. Unfortunately, it generally requires people to put down their favorite mask–that of the false ego–and there are few who are willing to do that. (nevermind the humility that greatness in either religion or worldy accomplishment often must display or advocate)
Guards At The Gate
While it is true that not everyone is a “good fit” for a given community, it is also true that sometimes the definition of a community is a stolen thing and has become an artificial flower among legitimate roses. A Christianity that refuses to understand the underpinnings of these ancient arts is somewhat dead. It is certainly bereft of essential understanding. What community, then, other than of ignorance, is being guarded?