Monday, June 18, 2007

Apostolic Succession

A lot of "modern minded" people looking into Gnosticism get creeped out by the idea of "Apostolic Succession" in many of the modern Gnostic churches. I, for one, have been one of them. I now see it as something symbolic as well as magical in the sense that Dumbo's feather was magical. He held the feather in his trunk and did what he thought he couldn't. I'm not sure completely what it means to those who are a part of that tradition and I suppose I may never.

I do remember when my uncle laid his hands on my head and with oil on his hands, he conferred the melchizedek priesthood to me in the LDS church. Although I was really struggling at the time with huge doubts about the validity of the whole thing, there was something very warm about being brought into a tradition that my family grew up in.

My uncle immediately asked that I give him a blessing to help him recieve guidance regarding an upcoming business trip. This caught me completely by surprise. Given that I doubted that God even existed and I shouldn't have even been there, I did the best I could. I don't remember my words, only that my hands were shaking and I studdered a bit. He didn't seem to notice and seemed quite satisfied with the blessing. So that was that.

Given this background, this post by Reverend Troy Pierce+ of the Ecclesia Gnostica struck a chord with me.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

It's in the practice

It should be noted that those who are passionate about practice and learning to actually practice correctly are much more likely to make progress than those who are not. Those who are able to channel all their rage, frustration, lust, greed, despair, confusion and anguish into trying to find a better way are the only ones who are likely to have what it takes to finally attain freedom. Those who are actually able to sit with the specific sensations that make up rage, lust, anger, confusion and all the rest with clarity, precision, acceptance of their humanity, and equanimity are even more likely to get enlightened. This paragraph deserves to be read more than once.

-Daniel Ingram
Mastering the Core Teaching of the Buddha