Priesthood? (differences in definition)

why not? There are many folk on here working full time, raising families who manage to put in the hours into their ascent (myself included)

It’s called specialisation, part of what helps us have the standard of living we do now - unless you also grow all your own food, make your own clothes, and build your own vehicles, it’s just part of that same continuum.

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Also, last I checked books, endless free material, courses… what more do you need? Plus funding this forum for people to learn and grow with support. :smiley:

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so is the priesthood a specialization that is necessary? Or should we be evolving to a point where priests and other magico-religious specialists are no longer required and we all strive towards fulfilling our potential to “Become a Living God” in much the same way that we have evolved beyond the need of having monarchs?

@Warlock

There are billions of people on this planet you can’t expect them all to obtain mastery, some people just need a push and some guidance this is the role of a priest (specifically Druids) in my view

who would build architecture or run schools and fight fires if everyone was preoccupied with their spiritual mastery.

Two different things, monarchs went from kinda-service as leaders, securing land and leading invasions to take resources, to more or less ceremonial figureheads who were served, rather than serving themselves.

Priests work, there may be many corrupt and fucked up priests but there are also ones of every denomination who work long hours helping their communities.

2nd question not all people will want that, any more than all people want to be athletes, or shoe horses… i see no should attaching to this, any more than we should all grow our own food and bake everything from scratch .

Some people will want to, others not, ultimately I want to see MORE ascent hence my manifesto but it’s totally unrealistic to think all people will march in lockstep towards this, in some kind of Mao-suit unity of intent, ability, and long-term goal.

People are different and want different things, have different abilities, incarnated to lead different lives, in different cultures - this is not a problem that needs to be fixed.

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And I think this is the crux of the matter isn’t it? Priesthoods in particular and magico-religious specialists in general are precisely that; a business designed to extract money rather to empower others.

How can they empower others if they’re homeless and starving because they’re too holy to touch money?

Isn’t money power ?

Don’t they have a right to that power, as an exchange, rather than martyring themselves and leaving the recipient in their debt?

Is it better to sell disposable crap from China on your market stall than assist people in studying magick that can change their lives, and change the planet?

And how can they do the depth and range of pathworking and stuff E.A. in particular does if also holding down a 9 to 5?

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Well that’s just the exchange of energy some people charge money some charge devotion
A mage got’a eat and buy dat incense! lol

This website sustains itself through the same mechanisms in some ways.

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All these arguments can be made for food:

  • grows for nothing from the ground

  • everyone’s got to eat

  • easy to learn how to dig and reap, and slaughter

  • therefore should always be provided free.

Good luck making that one work, and good luck doing it yourself - go buy a farm and give away all the produce, refusing to take anything in return, see how the world adapts around you. :thinking:

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At this point it might be wise to separate the pedagogical / training work of BALG (which is laudable in that it assists others in their ascent) from its intermediary “I’ll cast a spell for you for $500” work; which does not contribute to the ascent of others but rather only serves to disempower the customer by taking away the responsibility he / she has for his / her own ascent.

Well, with respect I totally disagree, because specialisation, which I already covered above.

is a plumber taking away the responsibility you have to be aware of how things work by fixing the drains for you?

Are food stores taking away your responsibility to grow healthy local food and avoid pollution?

Like I said you can make that argument for everything.

We’re different, and into different things, I can fix and build a lot of things but there’s things I won’t go near because learning to do them to the level it would require to sustain that item or whatever in my life, is not of interest to me.

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I actually live and work in a community of special needs young folk that does just that; and we’re getting along just fine.

It’s providing a service for the customer that demands it, you know Supply and Demand. And people get results and are happy so it completely helps them.

E.A is an expert his time is valuable.

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And you don’t get a penny of funding?

Is it residential?

In the short term perhaps, but maybe not in the long term

Yes there are rituals that can have very long lasting if not life changing results such as pacts, familiars, divination and much more, it’s not excluded to just spells.

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So, no-one should ever do magick for anyone else?

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better to teach them to do it themselves; just like its better to teach a child how to tie their own shoe laces so they aren’t dependent on their parents all their lives

Lol that’s what a priesthood would be like , similar to the egyptian priesthood.