Have no Idea where this Belongs: Temple

[MistOfTheSea86]

My friend Sammy and I have for a while been contemplating the idea, that when we both get older, we are going to open two seperate temples... The temple of the stars... And the temple of light. Both these places would focus and studies and the goddess, and would be a place for those, who feel close to her, to come. And become a sister/brother of the temple. Sammy has actually had dreams of this, and we both believe it will come to past. Do you guys think this is a wise idea? Or a foolish one?

[clef0628]

Sometimes, I thing about what it would be like to do that. I would love to have a temple to goto, like people goto church. However, I worry. There are just some many people out there that don't understand us. That I worry that they would try to stop it from being bulit. Maybe in a day of better understanding, or in a place that is not in the bible belt it mieght work. I wish you luck. I just have on my mind this store by where I work. It has been open now almost a year. It is non-union. And to this day the union has its people outside its door trying to get you not to shop there. I'm not aginst unions. But, I think this has gone on long enough, the employees are happy there. See, I can just see people standing outside a pagan temple, try to tell us to go back to God, or don't put you temple in my town signs. Maybe, I just worry to much.

[MistOfTheSea86]

no no, your worries are warranted, I will not be surprised if that were to happen. I dont know where she was going to build her temple, but mine was going to be somewhere on an island, or near the ocean. As close to Home as possible. I read that there was a temple of light on Atlantis... And I will give it rebirth... So funny, I feel so right and certain about that... I have no doubts:)

[lucidfire]

I definately think it's a wise idea. If he had a dream about it, well that makes it even better

I say, go for it!

[mato]

I too have had that dream, that one day (soon, if I have to scrub tolets work my fingers to the bone and live solely for Her and the temple (another problem of divided loyalties, the temple must never stray from the Goddess) there will be a temple to Her in my lifetime) temples to the Goddess would stand once again. However there is a problem, when you build a temple you have to have a system that is ment to maintain the temple, currently wiccans are too fluid to sustain a temple, so they would have to be built by either the whole community or one person, all or one, and owned by every one or no one (ok legaly the property has to belong to some one so one person).
Also the fact that the world is Her temple, it would have to take on the increadably cultish style with gardens and groves (grooves?) virgin forests and clean streams. In other words it would have to be far out of the way. The groves themselves would be more of the temple than the actual building(s).

To have one solely to Her...

We should compare notes...

[Myst]

I worry that the people of such a temple would corrupt it to their financial needs etc. just as a certain other form of temple has been used to corrupt. Not necessarily anyone here, but people we don't know who would be part of building or running the temple.

[mato]

Originally posted by Myst
I worry that the people of such a temple would corrupt it to their financial needs etc. just as a certain other form of temple has been used to corrupt. Not necessarily anyone here, but people we don't know who would be part of building or running the temple.

Good point, which is why there will have to be safe guards and rules for the financial stuff... as for the actual building side of things, yes that is unfortunate, but sense it is a temple they should expect very close monitoring, and observance of all the rules will be enforced (oo nother problem...) before and durning construction as well.

[Demeter]

Out in New Mexico somewhere there's a shrine to Sekhmet, the Egyptian lioness deity. Don't know where exactly, but someday I want to go find it.

As I understand it, the person who built it was suffering from infertility (this was in pre-test-tube days). She was visiting an ancient Egyptian site, and the guide told her, "if you put your hands on this statue and make a wish and a promise that you will fulfill, the wish will come true." So she put her hands on the statue and wished to become pregnant, and promised that she would build a shrine to Sekhmet. Two weeks later she was pregnant.

It was many years before she fulfilled her promise, but she did. She bought a number of acres of desert land adjoining an Indian reservation, gave most of them to the Indians, and kept two for the shrine. She had it built, and a replica of the original statue was carved, and she set up an endowment fund to pay for the maintenance of the grounds and building (including a full-time priestess to tend the shrine). The last I heard about this was in the Wall Street Journal, of all places, a year or two ago -- the US Gummint had started a gravel mine just down the road, and it was covering the shrine with dust. They were petitioning to have the mine moved ... it's not like that was the only place in New Mexico that had gravel, after all. I don't know how that worked out ....

Just thought you might be interested.

[MistOfTheSea86]

Neato! Thanks for the info.

[Demeter]

There are probably a couple of ways to set up a permanent sanctuary. One is to do it on your own property, and make sure you leave it in your will to someone who knows what you want done with it. Of course, there's no guarantee that will actually happen.

The lady who did the shrine to Sekhmet did it with an endowment. I assume she set up a non-profit corporation, gave the land and the shrine and some money to the corporation, and the money was invested to provide income to pay the maintenance and stuff. If the non-profit was set up as a religious organization, there wouldn't be any taxes.

Circle Sanctuary is also set up as a non-profit corporation also. It will be able to continue beyond the lifespan of its founders. I believe they do fund-raising and classes and publish their magazine, which helps pay for the sanctuary costs.

For a big temple or sanctuary or shrine, there would be a lot of organizational work involved, especially if it is going to be open to the public (insurance and the like).

[white_draco]

Well...if you want my idea, here it is...

I am not into the whole one sided Goddess only worship deal. I feel like I need a balance of aspects. I love the God and I love the Goddess. I feel incomplete without one. But I guess there is the temple of light and the temple of stars which I see stars and light being symbols of the God.



- White Draco -