The Role of Priest/esses

poliphilo just made a very interesting post.

His statement is that the primary job of a priest of any religion is to "stand at the edge of the world and point" to what lies beyond, reminding others that there is an edge. Anything else she does -- social work, political work, etc. -- is a distraction from that primary purpose.


My response:

I definitely agree that being on the edge and pointing to it is part of the work of a priestess -- but it seems to me that without also being engaged in the world in some way that is consistent with the basic tenets and values of her faith she and all that lies beyond the edge risk being labeled as irrelevant.

If a priestess does nothing but point to "out there" then it implies that the "out there" is not also "here with us." And it is. It must be if there is to be any point to spirituality.


Your thoughts, my friends?

Moody

I do not usually consider myself a "moody" person. I have emotional cycles, like everyone, but I try not to put too much emphasis on the downswings. I'll snarl and rant here on LJ to vent and get it out of my system, but I don't usually take those episodes very seriously. Also, I tend to recover from my downswings fairly quickly (not counting my grieving process), and on the whole I think I tend to keep a fairly even keel, and at least retain some rationality and self-awareness even in the midst of my normal bouts of frustration, loneliness, or feeling overwhelmed.

Not this week.

Last night I looked back on how I'd been feeling for the past several days, and I realized that it's as if I've been going through mood swings and mini-PMS episodes multiple times per day.

Not the way I want to live my life!

So. . . today I need to do gentle grounding "stuff": yoga on my own (not following a book or DVD), a long bath in the jacuzzi, some spiritual work that's not my usual practice cycle.

I struck out the need for a Cntrl-Alt-Delete on last night's entry, but on reflection, I think it's valid. I need to break the mood cycle with some nurturing physical activity and some variations on my usual spiritual practices.

Shout out to blessed_harlot whose yoga is inspiring me!

Sheltering with my Folks

My dad -- and his pickup truck -- will be picking me up around 4pm today to have dinner with him and Mom and see how the storm develops. I'll be bringing along supplies in case we're snowed in without power: not just clothing and blankets, but my low-tech stuff to do --

Beading supplies
Tree of Life notebook that I'm way behind on updating
Notebook with stories I've been working on and haven't had the time to finish
Tarot cards
Books on Sumerian life and religion to dig into for my Ereshkigal essays

I think my parents have some board games and regular playing cards.

I have a battery charger for my gadget, so I'll be able to retain phone and email even if the power goes out (assuming the network stays up). But no LJ.

Hopefully it will be a tempest in a teapot and no big deal, but if not, it will probably do me good to be low-tech and around family in a low-key way for a couple of days.

My Office Has a Window

I don't think I'm going to be moving my computer downstairs again.

Not for more than bits of time, anyway.

This is far too pleasant to go back to a niche in "public" space that suddenly feels far too much like a cubicle.