The Virtues of the Stars Building a Monastic Code
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. There was a time when I began examining several fairly intense principles in search of an ascetic approach to Thelema. That ultimately softened and turned toward a more cenobitic-inclined study in the pursuit of a ‘what...
Integral Thelema
Integral Thelema is a weekly newsletter promoting the growth, education, and application of integral Thelemic philosophy and theology with a focus on application to real-world concerns in pursuit of wholeness in all four primary domains, and to the complex issues in the world, through a framework of applied Thelema in 360°of life.
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A Way of Spiritual Formation Maturity in the Aeon of the Child
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. If there is one thing that continues to plague my thinking about modern Thelema, it is something a mentor of mine once said—and I’m paraphrasing here—that just because Crowley was a magician doesn’t mean that everyone...
Thelema and Authority A Tripartite Approach of Equilibrium
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Let’s talk about a-a-a-authority. I know. I know. It’s a dirty word in Thelemaville. The moment you drag out the word authority people start to think you’re about to slap on the chains and drag them off to the salt...
Mere Thelema Street Theology—A Plain and Simple Thelema
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. I’ve offered three weeks of technical theology—doctrine, hermeneutics, and exegesis—which are, granted, a bit simplified for general consumption. But now I want to turn it around and go in the other direction. I want to...
Thelemic Exegesis A Critical Evaluation of the Study of Thelemic Scripture, Part II
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Exegesis in Thelema is not a passive act of textual analysis or mere number crunching but a transformative engagement with its sacred writings. Interpretation, in this sense, is not about imposing external authority...
Dreaming of an Impossible Future Idealized Thelemic Community Planning
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. This post came up in my personal Facebook memories from 19 March 2022. Yeah. Three years ago! I had been working overnight in a residential youth shelter and was mulling over some ideas of what I thought would make a...
Thelemic Hermeneutics A Critical Evaluation of the Study of Thelemic Scripture, Part I
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Hermeneutics broadly refers to the study of interpretation, especially of texts, language, and meaning. It is relevant in multiple domains—including philosophy, law, and literary criticism—but is most notably linked to...
Thelema: A Religion? Who’s Still Afraid of Crowley's Big Bad Wolf?
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Religion, as such, has become one of the largest boogiemen of Thelema since Crowley proclaimed calling Thelema a religion “a rather stupid kind of mischief.”Crowley, Aleister. 1994. “Religion–Is Thelema a ‘New...
Doctrinal Triage The Importance of Doctrine in a Time of Spiritual Infancy
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Frankly, if I’m going to start out blunt here, I’m going to say it bluntly: Thelemites have...
Between the Beast and the Bitch A Brief Assessment of Aleister Crowley and Ayn Rand
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. I understand that I may lose a few people to this topic, as I usually do, but here we go. Introduction I am generally loathe to tell stories about my adolescence, though in this case, it seems like a good way to...
Ethics
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Politics
Will of the Commons Thelema and the Tragedy of the Commons
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. In 1968, the xenophobic, eugenics proponent Garrett Hardin wrote his now-famous article in Science...
Thelema and Fascism An Open Letter to Those Who Fail to See
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. You ask if the Law of Thelema is opposed to fascism and I must immediately say yes. We live in a time when fascism raises its ugly head and, even now as all eyes turn toward the...
Psychology
5 Habits for the New Year New Year’s Clickbait. Duh!
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. It’s the new year! Welcome to 2025! I feel like it’s going to be a wild year no matter how it all shakes out. A lot of change happening around here. A lot is staying the same too. We’re two months in on the new puppy,...
True Will Some Ill-Advised Thoughts on the Matter
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. The concept of the so-called True Will can be a tricky little beast. It’s thrown around by...
Theology
Thelemic Hermeneutics A Critical Evaluation of the Study of Thelemic Scripture, Part I
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Hermeneutics broadly refers to the study of interpretation, especially of texts, language, and meaning. It is relevant in multiple domains—including philosophy, law, and literary criticism—but is most notably linked to...
Thelema: A Religion? Who’s Still Afraid of Crowley's Big Bad Wolf?
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Religion, as such, has become one of the largest boogiemen of Thelema since Crowley proclaimed calling Thelema a religion “a rather stupid kind of mischief.”Crowley, Aleister. 1994. “Religion–Is Thelema a ‘New...
Doctrinal Triage The Importance of Doctrine in a Time of Spiritual Infancy
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Frankly, if I’m going to start out blunt here, I’m going to say it bluntly: Thelemites have...
The Desert Refuge Revisiting a Lockdown Meditation
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. During the COVID lockdown years, I spent some time...
Cutting Through The Bullshit A Jungle Polemic
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. I want each man to cut his own way through the jungle.Crowley, Aleister. 1989. The Confessions of Aleister Crowley: An...
On the Nature of Death A Contemplative Letter to a Friend
I pulled a letter out of my archives and decided to share it with you this week. It was written in 2020, around the second anniversary of my dad’s death. I was in the middle of a summerlong experiment of “writing real (snail mail) letters” on various formal topics to...
Special Dispatch
Learning and Unlearning A Personal Introspective Manifesto
Originally written in 2001. Updated in 2007. Minor textual corrections and footnote commentary in 2024.Now seemed like a good time to bring this back out. Maybe I needed a reminder.Thelema is more than just empowerment. It’s embodiment. It is the embodiment of...
Pedagogical Perspectives On Thelemic Teachers
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. I commented recently that I grew up in a highly conservative Baptist church that was a bit different than most. Unlike in the majority of typical Southern Baptist-affiliated churches of the times, our preacher was...
Eyes Wide Shut Personal Lesson in Ideological Bubbles
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. I grew up in a sheltered childhood. I was raised within a Southern Baptist evangelical environment, but it was a paradoxical mix of standard 1970s end-of-the-world messaging and 1980s Satanic Panic paranoia with a load...