" -J.R.R. Tolkien "
Gnostics and Esotericists like me often have difficulty seeing eye-to-eye with Traditionalists in portions of the social and political sphere. Much of this perceived conflict is thanks to a literalist interpretation of natural law, such as in the case of the Roman Catholic tradition. But still, what if our politics reflected the pneumatic mandate given in the Gospel of John? "A new commandment I give unto you: That you love one another as I have loved you." (13:34-35) Moreover, what would happen if we were able to renew the broken blade of Tradition?
According to John, Jesus didn't say: Love "Except the gays, the wealthy, the poor, and racists." Thus, to live by the commandment - even in its broadest spiritual sense - is to offer our best to one another, so far as we can, to live and interact with love. It means that we, at the primordial level, should celebrate our lives together, build community and healthy relationships through trust and respect. It means resisting the politics of name-calling and condemnation, replacing fruitless epithets with acts of kindness and community-building.
This view might signify that the organic law, or natural law, should reflect our openness to live without deceit, and not determine how to judge the sexuality or status of others. On this basis, the natural law becomes quite a bit different from the paternalistic and homophobic caricature that underpins much of Western Traditionalism.
One critical error that I have made in past political activities has been to focus on "economic justice" without enough emphasis on personal responsibility. Whether we speak of left or right, socialist or capitalist, these are both implausible if they promote the elevation of material things above the dignity of the human person. Left and right are equally guilty of leading to materialist reductionism, and finally the commoditization of the human being as a consumer, a worker, or even an owner or capitalist. Following the politics of hate, it becomes acceptable to label, brand, package and swiftly write-off whole swaths of the populace as being 'morally bankrupt' or indeed, 'sinners.' Instead of a face, a family, and a unique facet of the Divine mind, we are conveyed as clich'ed abstractions, devoted solely to some dogmatic end. The rusty gears of hulking determinism still ring loudly in these barren political shouting matches.
Ironically, the march towards the kingdom of quantity - and not quality - is shared by both extremes, and there are few who look through the headlines to see individual intentions. The actions and thoughts of people are lost to the language of material competition. In this way, even pacifism becomes materialist by its absolute rejection of the use of force - forever enshrining the "quantity" of physical prosperity over difficult, but often necessary, moral decisions. If we subtract the human individual from these decisions and movements, we cannot understand the whole of our problems, much less prescribe remedies.
Part of the ancient lore of the Holy Grail encompasses the quest for a lost king. The solar return of a golden hero is very much part of the Arthurian Legends, for example. The story of Camelot shows us that when the individuals and family suffer, and there is deceit within the bedchambers of Arthur's court, havoc is unleashed on the city and the kingdom. But if we look closely to the true error, it is not sex itself, but deceit, and as such this ancient legend lives up to the organic command to love given in the gospel.
The family is still important, regardless of the way we define it. Any system that I would hold to be an exemplar today would necessarily focus on rebuilding core human supports within the wider, inclusive context of alternative sexualities and lifestyles. Supportive families make good neighborhoods, social organizations, fraternal groups, and finally whole cities, states, and nations -providing the basis of prosperity and ample opportunities for cultural and spiritual advancement.
In place of repeating the perennial excesses of left and right, it might be a good time to ensure that our own actions reject the exaltation of materialism, and increasingly focus on the transcendent quality which ennobles humanity, and which is known by both the noun and the verb: Love.
Credit: spellscasting.blogspot.com
