It's Samhain!  For many of us (including me) it is the biggest, most important, most major Sabbat (and holiday, for those who choose to differentiate) of the year, especially from a spiritual standpoint.

This is the time of year when the veil between the worlds is at its thinnest.  Because of that, this is the time of the year when it is easiest for us to reach across the veil - and for those on the other side of the veil to reach out to us.
It is also the time for celebrating endings and beginnings (as well as beginnings and endings).  And with that, there are many wonderful opportunities!

It has been a while since there has been a ritual celebration on this podcast, and this time it is extra special because it is a "simulcast" with our companion video podcast "Uriel's Gifts/ Mass For The Shut-Out."  But of course, there are things which can be done with audio that are not as easy to do with video, and so here we get to "see" the crowd that comes for this celebration and have a major celebration in a major temple.

And that's one of the wonders of Samhain.  This is the time when we can use all I've mentioned here to harness our inner vision and see what we can build from it!

Blessed Be!

Samhain will soon be here.  In fact, it is close enough that we can begin making use of its power now!

Samhain presents us with some special opportunities.  It is a celebration of ends and beginnings and beginnings and ends.  After all, you won't have an end without a beginning, or a beginning without an end.  An end to something is the beginning of something else.  The  beginning of something is the end of something else.  It is also the time when the veil between the worlds is thinnest.  It is a time when we can reach out to the people on the other side of the veil, and they can reach out to us.  Two aspect of one basic fact.

Add to this, the inner vision you have for the future.

And here is the opportunity to conciliate past, present and future.  It can also  be an opportunity to clear up any unfinished business with someone on the other side.

It's not that these are impossible at any other time, but now is when it is easiest to do so, and that means that the energy you might have expended in the work itself can be used to harness the result.

All this and more awaits you at Samhain!

Blessed Be!

"Little Hitlers" is a term coined in Germany during the Third Reich to describe those lesser functionaries whose egos exceeded their authority, and who did not let their lesser status keep them from exercising more power than they were actually entitled to.  And, in the Soviet Union, there was the assortment of "apparachniks".  And don't think that we can't find them where we are living today.

They take many forms.  They can be civil servants; assistants to actual or purported bosses; glorified clerks with "manager" or "engineer" in their title; people in the office, neighborhood or church who cannot mind their own business, and sometimes even clergy.  And as to the latter, no denomination has exclusive right to that distinction - or exemption from it.

It's important to recognize what they are up to.  It is also important to know how to deal with such people.  Some of them are in a position in which it might not be a good idea to confront them.  But to do nothing would be to surrender - and you probably can't afford what you'd lose by doing nothing. 

But what do you do?

I've been speaking about challenges in the tinme leading up to Samhain for a reason, and Samhain is nearly here. 

Let's see what can be!

Blessed Be!
 

This is an episode that someone does not want you to hear!  No kidding!

Personal responsibility is something which some people just don't like.  For them, personal responsibility means that they can't blame as much of what goes wrong on other people, other things, or even The Divine!  Most of us
know someone who points to a traumatic event in their past and blames the sad state of their life on that.  A few of us have even heard someone claim that a shortcoming was because of something in their ancestry, their culture, or the way life was like at sometime before their own birth.  And, most of us can think of the time we heard someone talking about something which happened being "God's will."

Have you ever noticed that such responsibility-shifting is so often accompanied by logic that does not survive close examination?

And here I will freely admit that you will never have control over everything that happens in your life.  But, it might be surprising (to some) how much you can control of what follows in such an event.

And here we harness a basic principle:  with responsibility comes authority.  And so, taking personal responsibility means that you take on personal authority. 

And with that authority will come even more!

Blessed Be!
 

"Character" and "character building" have to be among the least-understood and often-misused terms in the English language.  And perhaps intentionally so, because they contain some powerful secrets for the benefit of those who wish to learn.

Those of us who have experienced time in military service and/or a few other experiences have experienced the mis-use of the term "character-building".  That's what we were told when we were assigned tasks which were demeaning, thankless and sometimes even outright pointless.  But then there are also those experiences which do indeed build character and they sometimes on the surface can seem similar to the ones which seem to be mostly degrading.  Can we see the difference?

And how does character get built?  What would make the difference between Mother Teresa and Charles Manson? 

How can a door be opened, especially for someone who hasn't seen many open doors in a while?

And in guiding our own character, what can we look for?

With this, we can find some wonderful surprises - and at the same time we can blow away some folks' pre-conceived notions!  Yes, it is true that it might not be easy, but it can have its fun times and lights of happiness.  You'll see,

Blessed Be!