Goddesses and Gods.wps - Welcome to Our Temple

Snake Woman Shedding Her Skin
The Goddess we usually call Crone is shown with a young and a middle-aged face as
well. In Goddess spirituality, the idea that the Divine has many faces is well accepted.
We're comfortable with the notion that the Divine appears in different ways to
different people. One of the best characteristics of Goddess religion, in fact, is this
acceptance that others' visions are as valid as your own most precious beliefs. You
don't have to make a strong argument for ecumenism among truly devoted Goddess
worshipers.
For me, though, it was one thing to acknowledge the many-paths-up-the-mountain
argument in the abstract. It was something entirely different to realize it through
direct experience. When I was a Goddess worshiper, I paid lip service to ecumenism,
but I didn't really believe it. I disdained the patriarchal religions, especially the one
that dominates my own culture. I truly believed that any woman who practiced
Christianity, Judaism or Islam was little more than an obliging doormat. And, even
though I didn't express it openly, I felt that anyone who chose to follow these faiths
was misguided, incorrect, and maybe just a little cowardly not to break free of them. I
was even a little smug about it.
I don't think Goddess cares for self-righteousness, and She had a way of dealing with
my attitude. My love of nature, that had brought me to Goddess in the first place, led
me to the writings of Matthew Fox. Now, how a feminist Goddess follower ever
looked at his writings in the first place, those of a Christian, and, on top of that, a guy,
still amazes me. It happened, as miracles seem to, inexplicably. I read Fox's book
called Original Blessing, and was captivated from the first paragraph. Fox spoke of the
Word of God. The Word was not just blind acceptance of some ancient mythology,
but a living force of Creation. And Creation itself was not some static event in the
inconceivable past, but a dynamic, moving, ever-new process. The Word was alive. It
was awe, joy, mystery, and ecstasy. I could feel it. I saw the Word in everything, from
tree branches against the gray morning sky to my hands grasping a pencil. My life of
spirit became deeper and richer. Before I had the chance to catch my breath, I was
talking to an Episcopal priest about being baptized. Goddess, clearly, has a sense of
humor. Little Ms. Smarty Pants who had all the answers woke up one day and found
herself turned into a Christian.
Goddess used to be absolutely real for me. Now the Word fills my vision. I don't see
this as one supplanting the other. It's more of a transformation, where Goddess
worshiper became Creation-centered Christian like Snake Woman shedding Her skin.
In no way do I feel I've turned away from Goddess. Goddess is just no longer how I