What if Daedalus had not been imprisoned and forced to build a labyrinth to hold a monster-bull that would eat everyone who dared to enter its domain? (Is it true that that monster-bull was named Donald?) What if the three… Read More ›
Humor
Practical Lessons in Kindness from the Grasshopper and the Ant by Barbara Ardinger
(With apologies to Jean de La Fontaine for significant changes to his fable) Note: We watch TV or read posts on the social media, and what do see? People attacking other people. People with guns shooting other people. Racist and… Read More ›
Juno—Women Need Your Power Today! by Barbara Ardinger
Just as each Roman man had his genius, or guardian spirit of masculinity, so did each woman have her juno, or guardian spirit of femininity. Juno ruled every woman’s life, every feminine occasion. In the civic life of Rome during… Read More ›
The Healing Spirit of Sacred Play by Carolyn Lee Boyd
Many years ago I participated in seasonal, Goddess-focused celebrations featuring handmade decorations, including some by enormously talented artists who attended. One year, our spring fete was graced with gorgeous paintings, intricately woven and colorful fabric art, sensuous sculptures, and exquisitely… Read More ›
Happy Thanksgiving by Barbara Ardinger
Will our families gather for Thanksgiving feasts this year? Will aunts and uncles and cousins come from near and far to sit around our dining room tables? Does anyone have a table that’s big enough for social distancing? As I… Read More ›
Dr. Signature’s Whoopee Pack by Barbara Ardinger
As I write this in late June, the news is still pretty depressing. Pandemic. Politics. Corruption. No no no. I can’t write anything current and cheery, so here’s another bit of distracting nonsense from my so-called archive. Back in the… Read More ›
Caprine Community by Laurie Goodhart
Two recent posts, Community Immunity by Natalie Weaver on May 6, and Carol Christ’s May 11 essay, Women Invented Agriculture, Potter, and Weaving…, have spurred me to focus and finally share something that I’ve meant to for a long time. … Read More ›
Going With the Wind by Barbara Ardinger
The wind changed during the night. Even as they slept, the Witch and the Ladies of the Magic Mirror felt it and stirred in their beds. Kahlil the raven, who was sitting on the roof, felt it, too, and as… Read More ›
White Monkey Chronicles: Myth-busting in Eden BOOK REVIEW by BJ Austin
I binge-read White Monkey Chronicles The Complete Trilogy. The first time. It’s like Douglas Adams, Kurt Vonnegut, J.K. Rowling and Gloria Steinem got drunk one night and decided to write a book. A second, slower read was even sweeter. The first paragraph of… Read More ›
Happy Birthday, Dear Brother by Barbara Ardinger
Today would be my brother Dale’s 75th birthday. To honor him, I’m rewriting an article I wrote for a business magazine in Orange Co., CA, in 1992. Although I was a regular columnist for that business magazine, I seldom wrote… Read More ›
Christmastime for the Self by John Erickson
We’ve all been there.
Sitting around the tree watching the kids open presents. Attempting to enjoy a holiday meal with extended and immediate family that you may or may not have traveled thousands of miles to see. Trying with every fiber of your being to not talk about the elephant, or red hat, in the room.
Meet the Bible Bitches: Interview with Rev. Laura Barclay and Sara Hof
What do you get when you have two ladies, one a Baptist Minister living in KY and one an agnostic living in LA, making jokes and talking about the Bible? Don’t know? You get the new and exciting podcast Bible Bitches!
Happy Anniversary, Women’s March, with love from Madge by Elizabeth Cunningham
Like many in the FAR community, I participated in the world-wide 2017 Women’s March. So did Madge, the bodacious cartoon character who took me by surprise in 1990 and went on to become the narrative character of The Maeve Chronicles…. Read More ›
I’m Failing by John Erickson
“How is your dissertation going?”
From Her Lips by Barbara Ardinger
There was an old woman who lived in a shoe, She had so many children she didn’t know what to do. She gave them some broth without any bread; She whipped them all soundly and put them to bed. Look!… Read More ›
Satirists as Public Theologians by Melissa James
Why satirists have become our public theologians (or why I am doubling down on feminist theological ethics as public theology)… Did you see the Daily Show last night? I’m sure it was all over your Facebook feed and Twitter. The… Read More ›
A Fairy Tale Starring Real Fairies (with apologies to W.S. Gilbert) by Barbara Ardinger
Once upon a time very close to right now and in a realm way too much like our world there lived the Sisterhood of Faeries. We remember their names. There’s the Faerie Queen, Belphoebe, who spent much of her time… Read More ›
All-Male Nonsense by Kecia Ali
A brilliant site has been making the rounds of social media: allmalepanels.tumblr.com. I became aware of it just in time to suggest a post: an all-male symposium at Cambridge Muslim College on the future of the madrasa. The original article, since removed, touted its diverse participants, but as… Read More ›
Cheeky Buddha by Oxana Poberejnaia
Feminism can be loud and in your face. Feminists can be unapologetic and radical in their statements. I could never bring myself to be abrupt with proponents of patriarchal views. Being a middle class Brit from a Soviet background, I… Read More ›
Masyanya’s Punk Buddhism by Oxana Poberejnaia
In autumn 2001 I attended a youth workshop in Moscow, where I saw for the first time a brand new flash animation character who would accompany us in our young adulthood. Her name is Masyanya. She is a leader of… Read More ›
Who Are the Pagans? by Barbara Ardinger
It has occurred to me that it’s possible that some of the bloggers and readers of this site may not know very much about pagans, so here’s a little New Year’s lesson. The first thing to know is that pagans… Read More ›
The Found Goddesses of Good Eats by Barbara Ardinger
August 1—Lughnasadh (pronounced LOON-us-uh) or Lammas—is the first of the three traditional harvest festivals of the traditional Celtic calendar that most pagans follow today. And what naturally follows harvest? Feasting, fairs, and festivals. To help us celebrate the season, here… Read More ›
Review of “The Book of Mormon” by Ivy Helman
My friend and I won two tickets to “The Book of Mormon” showing as part of Broadway in Boston. Having known nothing about the musical, we were curious and excited to be going. Nearly two weeks later, we are still… Read More ›
Don’t Worry, I Won’t Marry Your Girlfriend: Sexuality, Identity, and the Easy Laugh
No longer having to deconstruct the larger cultural and sexual narratives, heterosexuals who do not support marriage equality or feel threatened by homosexuals return to their one source of power that reinforces the ideology that they are on the right path: the Bible. “Marriage is between a man a woman,” or “A man shall not lie with another man as he would a woman,” becomes the newly reinforced heterosexual rallying cry and the progressive progress that occurred in the past becomes nothing more than a joke.
Fun With Bumper Stickers By Barbara Ardinger
I was driving through one of the more conservative corners of Orange County, California, a couple weeks ago and went past a very pretty brick church with a tall, proud steeple and signs in the front yard giving times of… Read More ›
When Music Touches Your Soul by Elise Edwards
It’s incredibly liberating to have the co-mingled sensation of being elevated by aesthetic delight, affirmed by words that reflect the life experiences of you and your loved ones, and honored by another’s desire to relate to you. This type of… Read More ›
No One Is Safe from the Parodist (Part 2) by Barbara Ardinger
I suppose I should be ashamed to admit this, but I once worked as a freelance copywriter for a multi-level marketing company. I suppose I should be ashamed to admit this, but I once worked as a freelance copywriter for… Read More ›
No One Is Safe from the Parodist (Part 1) by Barbara Ardinger
Now, with only a minimum purchase, you can save your loved ones—your friends—your neighbors—your business associates—from eternities of suffering and torment. Our new Multi-Level Marketing company guarantees Eternal Salvation for you and your entire downline. Some days, it’s just not… Read More ›
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