This is the general progression of events that led me to where I am today.
1. I was raised Roman Catholic, but left the church around age 14. I was blessed with parents who saw the wisdom of my reasoning, “what’s the point of calling Sunday a holy day when all we do is get into a big argument over me going to church and everyone’s mad all day?”
2. Up until around 1981, I didn’t follow any particular path, though I did explore the ideas of occult thought. You know, the usual teenage stuff one does in high school.
3. In Fall 1981, when attending a local college, I began to feel the need for more. The campus chapel felt very appealing, so I began to spend time there alone (I never attended a service). During this time, I decided to reexamine my Christian roots and at that time became a born-again Christian.
4. Around 1982, I had a profound and intense inner experience (which I now recognize as an initiation from the Divine) which left me with no doubt from that moment forward that there was a Divine presence in the world. Through good and bad times, this knowledge has never left me.
5. The earthly church did not fulfill my spiritual, mental and emotional needs, especially after this revelation. So, I began to turn again to the beliefs of my youth, that which had always felt comfortable and made common sense to how I viewed and experienced the world. Part of that self-examination was to ask the Christ spirit where I needed to be. After that, paganism seemed to come out of the woodwork wherever I turned.
6. From around 1983 until 1988, I followed a general pagan view, but nothing specific. The first book I ever read about paganism specifically was "The New Pagans: An Inside Report On the Mystery Cults of Today" by Hans Holzer. And then, there was this huge Hallowe’en article in the newspaper about a local Wiccan priest…..
7. We met, had lunch, and I ended up joining his coven, Forge (Gardnerian-based). Unfortunately, by that point it was going through its ending days, so by around 1990 I was solitary again. At that point I started doing some social networking at a monthly pagan gathering held at the home of some friends, and on the BBS. I made the rounds of the local pagan, Wiccan and witch community to keep in touch with others. After a painful divorce, it became my solace, and my own faith grew stronger.
8. And then in 1993, there was a co-worker who had been attending a local Wiccan workshop and wanted me to check out the teacher, Boniface, to see if he was on the up-and-up…..
9. Boniface was legit, and I ended up marrying him in May 1994. He is also my teacher and initiator into all three Degrees.
10. My initiation lineage can be found here.
1. I was raised Roman Catholic, but left the church around age 14. I was blessed with parents who saw the wisdom of my reasoning, “what’s the point of calling Sunday a holy day when all we do is get into a big argument over me going to church and everyone’s mad all day?”
2. Up until around 1981, I didn’t follow any particular path, though I did explore the ideas of occult thought. You know, the usual teenage stuff one does in high school.
3. In Fall 1981, when attending a local college, I began to feel the need for more. The campus chapel felt very appealing, so I began to spend time there alone (I never attended a service). During this time, I decided to reexamine my Christian roots and at that time became a born-again Christian.
4. Around 1982, I had a profound and intense inner experience (which I now recognize as an initiation from the Divine) which left me with no doubt from that moment forward that there was a Divine presence in the world. Through good and bad times, this knowledge has never left me.
5. The earthly church did not fulfill my spiritual, mental and emotional needs, especially after this revelation. So, I began to turn again to the beliefs of my youth, that which had always felt comfortable and made common sense to how I viewed and experienced the world. Part of that self-examination was to ask the Christ spirit where I needed to be. After that, paganism seemed to come out of the woodwork wherever I turned.
6. From around 1983 until 1988, I followed a general pagan view, but nothing specific. The first book I ever read about paganism specifically was "The New Pagans: An Inside Report On the Mystery Cults of Today" by Hans Holzer. And then, there was this huge Hallowe’en article in the newspaper about a local Wiccan priest…..
7. We met, had lunch, and I ended up joining his coven, Forge (Gardnerian-based). Unfortunately, by that point it was going through its ending days, so by around 1990 I was solitary again. At that point I started doing some social networking at a monthly pagan gathering held at the home of some friends, and on the BBS. I made the rounds of the local pagan, Wiccan and witch community to keep in touch with others. After a painful divorce, it became my solace, and my own faith grew stronger.
8. And then in 1993, there was a co-worker who had been attending a local Wiccan workshop and wanted me to check out the teacher, Boniface, to see if he was on the up-and-up…..
9. Boniface was legit, and I ended up marrying him in May 1994. He is also my teacher and initiator into all three Degrees.
10. My initiation lineage can be found here.