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Letting go of Bishop in the Grove
Bishop in the Grove is just shy of three years old. The coming Solstice is its anniversary. I’ve written here about my doubts, my interests, my questions and my fears. I’ve engaged with Pagans, polytheists, Druids, Christians, atheists, Buddhists, Humanists, and many a wayward Witch. I’ve written my way into and out-of Paganism, and I’ve […]
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Distance
I feel a distance from that awareness of God I had during my first days of reawakening to Christ. I don’t blame this on anyone, most especially the people who’ve welcomed me into their community. It’s been wonderful to meet Christians with whom I could share my experiences of God, and who could witness to […]
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Evolution of The Word: A *new* New Testament
Last night I was standing at my kitchen counter, reading the first chapter of Evolution of the Word: The New Testament in the Order the Books Were Written, by Marcus J. Borg. I read the following words and made an audible, “Oh.” “By viewing the documents of the New Testament in their historical context, we […]
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Not unlike an Evanglical
In mid-November I payed a visit to an Evangelical Bible College with my friend, Jason Pitzl-Waters. Jason had been invited to speak to the World Religions class about Paganism, and he thought that bringing me there to talk about my journey through Paganism and back to Christianity would be useful to them. His logic was pretty […]
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A voice for the Newly Saved
I don’t want to be a voice for the Newly Saved. I don’t want to be looked at as an example of what happens when Christ enters a person’s life. I don’t want to stand as a representative for all the Pagan converts out there, as though Pagans are so unified a group that there […]
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Bible-crazy
I didn’t grow up in a bible-crazy church. That may sound like an unnecessary disclaimer, but it’s the kind I feel myself wanting to make these days. There was plenty of scripture in the Episcopal services — more, I’ve been told, than you’ll find in your typical Sunday service at an Evangelical church — but […]
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Go ahead and belove
“Excuse me,” the voice said from off to my side. “Can you help me?” She was an old woman, perhaps in her 80’s. Her bones looked small and fragile. She wore a dirty coat. For some reason the coat really bothered me. This woman shouldn’t have been out there in the cold. She should have been […]
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This one man
I went to the Catholic cathedral in downtown Los Angeles because I wanted to buy a cross. Specifically, I wanted to buy a replica of the cross that the Pope wears. It’s kind of an unusual thing for me to do. I’m not Catholic. My grandmother is, and being raised Episcopalian, a denomination my mother […]
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A Christian, nonetheless.
I’ve been to dozens of baptisms in my life, but this one was different. I sat in the back of All Saints in Beverly Hills, a lovely little church in an obscenely wealthy part of the world, and I watched babies have water poured over the heads. I watched parents smile as the priest anointed […]
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Text Message God-Talk with my Husband
This is the kind of conversation my husband and I have over text messages: Teo: When was the King James Bible published? Sean: 1600s Teo: And before that time, how did Christians come to know the Gospel? Or even have a complete sense of what “The Bible” was? Sean: Oh, there were other, earlier versions […]
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Awestruck
I’m in Los Angeles, sitting in Swingers Diner. The air smells like onions and bacon, and before long I probably will, too. An Irish pub band is playing from the jukebox. I’m the only customer here. I opened the joint. After breakfast I’ll head to an Episcopal church on Hollywood Boulevard called St. Thomas. It’s […]
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The Unexpected Immediacy of God
Dear Sara, Thank you for your response. It’s delightful to read about your personal experiences with all of this. You offer a soothing, yet invigorating perspective. You asked, “What is contradictory for you personally between Christianity and Paganism…theologically, emotionally? Does opening the door to Christianity automatically mean shutting the door to Paganism, and if so, why? […]
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The Truth of What Was and Is and Is to Come
The Truth of What Was I was never completely committed to ADF. I didn’t finish the Dedicant Path because I was unwilling to speak out loud the final Oath. I wasn’t willing to make that kind of commitment to Paganism, or — more specifically — that significant a renouncement of my Christianity. There were plenty […]
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both/and
Dear Sara, I didn’t plan on going to church last weekend. It sort of just happened. I hadn’t been in a very long time, and during my most recent visit I was only barely present. Participation in the service felt a bit like an act of treason. I’d read Pagan writers who said as much. […]
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Closing the Comments at Bishop in the Grove
I’ve decided to close the comments at Bishop in the Grove. It’s something I’ve considered for some time, but in recent days it’s become clear that this would be a good decision to make for my own well being. Let me explain a bit of why this seems like the right choice. I blog about […]
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The Kind of Pagan I Am
I’m the kind of Pagan who hasn’t gotten rid of his Bibles. I don’t think there is a single Truth any more than I think there’s only one god, but I do think there’s something which unites everything in the universe. And I’d like to imagine that this connecting force is sentient, but I don’t know […]
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The Kind of Christian I Was
I used to sing with my eyes closed. There were a few hymns at Christmas time that really did if for me. I sang harmonies a little louder than good taste would call for. Sometimes the priest would sing the Eucharist, and I knew every melody. I’d sing along quietly to myself, just under my […]
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Overwhelmed with Thoughts of Jesus
I’m overwhelmed with thoughts of Jesus. Jesus and God and Christianity and the Lord’s Prayer and compassion and forgiveness and hope and judgement and freedom from judgement and all of the things which made (and make) me feel connected to the Sacred. I don’t know what to do with all of this. It started when […]
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To meat or not to meat
To meat or not to meat. That, apparently, is a hot button issue. I brought it up yesterday on Facebook and Twitter (rather apolitically, I might add). I think I accidentally became a vegetarian yesterday. — Teo Bishop (@TeoBishop) October 1, 2013 That was it. What followed, particularly in the thread of comments on Facebook, […]
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Evernote: A Tool of the TechnoDruid
It’s official. I’m (re)starting the Bardic studies through OBOD. The materials have been in my possession since 2009. I’ve had them stored on a number of different shelves, loaded onto a variety of audio devices (some of which are now outdated), and they’ve survived two local and one cross country move. In short, this “storehouse […]
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Will you walk with me?
In yesterday’s post on The Wild Hunt I talked about Awen and about my creative process. It wasn’t standard fare for that site, and not the most widely read and shared post that I’ve written, but it was a very natural thing for me to write about. A song is little more than a conversation […]
