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To: alt.witchcraft
From: "Silver =^..^=" 
Subject: Re: Cult of Mastema
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 06:53:26 -0800

Kinda sounds like the long form of the 12 steps and 12 traditions of AA...
*snicker*

com_i@hotmail.com wrote:

> Dear recipient(s)
>
> For your information we have posted some material regarding the Cult of
> Mastema. Feel free to quote at own discretion, but please remember to
> state our
> name.
>
> Sincerely
> The Cult of Mastema
>
> ---------------------------------------
> THE CULT OF MASTEMA
>
> DE DATO (FROM THIS DAY)
> © CoM
>
> In honorum Mastema, Holy Prince of Legions, we hereby proclaim as
> follows:
>
> 1. The Cult of Mastema is a religious organization, primarily devoted
> to the cultic
> adoration of Mastema.
>
> 2. The Cult of Mastema is a non-profit organization. We do not admit
> paying
> members into the Cult, and we do not in any way aim to benifit
> financially from
> our efforts.
>
> 3. The Cult of Mastema is an autonomous organization. We are in no way
> affiliated with any other religious, ideological or political movement
> anywhere.
>
> 4. The Cult of Mastema is an international organization. We encourage
> all
> members to form local communities.
>
> 6. The Cult of Mastema is open to all serious applicants. We accept men
> as well
> as women.
>
> ---------------------------------------
> THE CULT OF MASTEMA
>
> GENERAL INTRODUCTION
> © CoM
>
> 1a. The CoM is a religious cult, dedicated to the adoration of the
> entity called
> Mastema. As "Archeplasma" (First Born) Mastema was originally named
> Saklitaboth (Saclitaboth), the first of seven archangels to be created
> by Kyrios
> (God) from fire. When Saklitaboth chose to defy the others he was
> expelled from
> the group, and as such he became known as Mastema. Some writers also
> refer
> to him as Samael.  The names of the other six archangels were Mikael
> (Michael),
> Gabriel, Rafael (Raphael), Zedekiel, Zalathiel and Anael.
>
> 1b. Although it may be, as stated by the much acclaimed French
> professor
> Etienne Gilson (1884-1978), that "the general plan of creation would
> show an
> obvious gap if there were no angels in it" (Gilson, "The Christian
> Philosophy of St.
> Thomas Aquinas", 1994, p. 162), the CoM ‹ through a somewhat more
> inductive
> form of approach ‹ simply acknowledges the facts as they are presented
> to us.
> There are many angels. Traditional categories include Seraphim, Cherubs,
> Thrones (thronoi), Dominations (or dominions, kyriotetes), Virtues
> (dynameis),
> Powers (exousiai), Principalities (archai), Archangels and common Angels
> (Colossians 1,16; Romans 8, 38; Ephesians 6, 12 a. o.). Although often
> claimed
> to be a cherub, the arcangel Mastema is in fact a seraph.
>
> 1c. Once expelled from the group Mastema coupled with the human Lilith
> (Adam's first wife), thus saving her from mortality and turning her
> into a demon.
> She is the Whore and mother of all other demons, and consequently she is
> adored by the Cult as an equal to her husband.
>
> 1d. Being a seraph himself, Mastema is much to large an entity to be
> summoned by common theurgy (see below). CoM members are encouraged to
> summon much smaller entities (such as minor demons), whereas Mastema
> and Lilith primarily are to be honoured and celebrated during masses.
> Since
> Mastema was born from fire, as Lilith was born from soil, one will find
> both of
> these elements present at most CoM masses. Also, Mastema is represented
> by
> the colour black, whereas Lilith is represented by the colour red.
>
> 1e. Although demons - just like human individuals - are to be regarded
> as
> autonomous creatures, in writing we generally refer to them as the
> children of
> Lilith and Mastema. By evocing them, we also acknowledge the power of
> their
> parents. By their appearance this power becomes manifest.
>
> 2a. The CoM does not worship "Satan". Members of the Cult have not
> taken side
> in a struggle against God Kyrios, and we do not condemn his apostles.
> Modern
> day secular Christianity has no interest to us at all.
>
> 2b. Since God Kyrios exists, acceptance is futile. The CoM does not
> "accept" God,
> and we do not "believe" in Him either. We hold it self evident that God
> simply is,
> and so ‹ in a very private and friendly sort of way ‹ we mostly choose
> to ignore
> Him, just like anybody else. To God we are all but an experiment,
> contrived for
> His amusement. Being almighty Kyrios does not suffer from vanity. He
> does not
> ask for hypocritical admiration, and He does not even desire our
> attention.  He
> wants us to explore.
>
> 2c. Mastema is not God's enemy. He is not man's enemy either. The
> battle for
> the conquest of souls is no battle between "good" (Kyrios) and "evil"
> (Mastema),
> but simply a battle between minor entities, trying hard to smear their
> opponents
> (Ephesians, 6, 11-12).  This battle has nothing to do with the
> existence of God
> Kyrios. It simply has to do with the way the world was created and it
> will continue
> for as long as He
> likes.
>
> 3a. Since spiritual creatures need to materialize in order to be able
> to act in an
> earthly manner, most of them need the assistance of humans. Through the
> forming a pact with a group of followers (Genesis17; Liber Al vel Legis
> II, 25+65
> a. o.), an entity most often will get the opportunity to materialize at
> certain places
> and under certain circumstances (Genesis 28, 16-18; 35, 13-15 a. o.),
> but it will
> however never be entirely set free. Therefore it will lie, and it will
> try hard to
> convince it's followers that they need it's protection in order to
> secure them from
> the evil of others. It will almost inevitable claim to be much larger
> than it actually
> is. CoM members are warned not to act upon all entity calls.
>
> 3b. The place of materialization is usually called a focal point. The
> circumstances
> leading to materialization is called ritual, and the ability to perform
> such a ritual is
> called knowledge of theurgy (Genesis 13, 4 a. o.). The focal point is
> like a
> gateway the entity has to pass, and so the size of the gateway will in
> effect
> determine the size of the entity appearing before you. The larger the
> entity, the
> harder is is to control. If the focal point is a human being, we call
> this person a
> medium, and should the entity manage to take residence within a medium,
> we
> say that this person is possessed. Possession is not necessarily a bad
> thing.
>
> 3c. The - as it is said - "astral plane" (whether it be "heaven" or
> "hell") does not
> belong to anyone in particular.  In refering to Vergil's notion, that
> "Facilis
> descensus  Averno" ("It is easy to enter the underworld"), each member
> of the
> CoM is called upon to develop his or her own private rituals, in order
> that the
> power of Mastema will eventually come to be manifest in a great variety
> of ways.
> CoM members are also encouraged to share their knowledge and
> experiences
> with each other.
>
> 4a. CoM members are generally called upon to uphold certain basic
> principles
> concerning decent behaviour. All members are encouraged to be discreet,
> and to
> abtain from betraying their fellow members to the public.
>
> 4b. CoM members are encouraged to explore their own potentials. They
> are not
> encouraged to be plain egoistic. The CoM does not accept the misguided
> Fascist
> notion of social Darwinism, and we do not in any way condone race or
> gender
> discrimination. The CoM should not be considered an ideological or a
> political
> movement.
>
> ---------------------------------------
> THE CULT OF MASTEMA
>
> AN INTERVIEW
> © CoM
>
> 1. Q: Is the CoM to be considered as some kind of twisted Christian
> sect? A: No.
> We believe that Jesus was truly possessed (by the entity now called
> Christus),
> but we do not accept the notion that Christus is identical with God
> Kyrios.
> Regarded as an entity Christus is no more "son of God" than Mastema is,
> and
> so ‹ you could say ‹ the CoM has simply chosen a different son to adore.
> Historically speaking, our religion has grown from Christianity, just
> as Christianity
> (as well as Islam) at one time grew from Judaism.
>
> 2. Q: Is the CoM then to be considered as some kind of satanic sect? A:
> Within
> Christian theology Satan is held to be either man's or God's opponent.
> "Satan",
> being a Jewish derogative term, simply means "opponent", and so
> Satanism is
> generally identified as a deliberate worship of evil. The CoM does not
> worship
> evil. Being perhaps the most intolerant entity of them all Christus did
> (and does)
> not accept the (potential) presence of any other competitors, and so
> his followers
> have continually been campaigning for Christian world domination (see
> GENERAL INTRODUCTION 3a). The CoM does not consider itself to be an
> anti-Christian (ie. Satanic) organization, but undoubtedly Christians
> will identify
> us as a such. There is nothing much we can do about it.
>
> 3. Q: If you believe in the entity Christus as well as in Mastema, then
> why don't
> you just worship him?
> A: Because Christus is not attractive to us. Christus is about death
> and the end of
> everything, wheras Mastema is the guardian of life. Through Jesus
> Christus
> hoped to bring about the end of this world (Matthew 16, 28 and 24, 34;
> Luke 9, 27
> a. o.), but fortunately he did not succeed. Even though Christians
> still seem to
> consider total oblivion a desirable solution, CoM members tend to think
> otherwise. We much prefer hanging around.
>
> 4. Q: What is the difference between an angel and a demon?
> A: Demons tend to be somewhat more independent than angels. Also, they
> are
> easier to deal with. Angels are ‹ in a spiritual sense ‹ quite heavy
> creatures, and
> as such they are hard to manoeuvre. They talk a lot. Demons often just
> want to
> have sex ... They're more fun to be with.
>
> 5. Q: What do they look like?
> A: Common angels look like human bundles of chain saws with loads of
> tiny
> mirrors attached to them. It's the only way I know how to describe
> them. They look
> like humans made of rotating light ... although somewhat larger than
> most men.
> Also, they shriek. Demons come in all possible shapes. When possession
> takes
> place, you won't get to see them at all.
>
> 6. Q: What happens during CoM rituals?
> A: There are many CoM rituals. Some of them has to do with celebration,
> and
> some of them has to do with theurgy. We encourage all members to develop
> their own private rituals.
>
> 7. Q: Do CoM members all wear black clothes and listen to heavy metal
> music?
> A: No.
>
> 8. Q: Could you tell me about Lilith? What does she mean?
> A: Well, Lilith doesn't exactly "mean" anything. She simply is. I guess
> you could
> say that Lilith has an equal importance to us as Mary has to the
> Catholics. We do
> not consider her to be the Mother of God, though. She's the female
> aspect.
>
> 9. Q: Then why do you refer to her as "The Great Whore"? Isn't that
> degrading to
> women?
> A: To some women, perhaps. We do not aim to be political correct.
>
> 10. Q: But don't you like women?
> A: You have to understand ... In Christianity, Mary is celebrated as an
> example to
> be followed by all women. Virginity, purity, humility and so on. Women
> are
> regarded as less valuable than men, and also ‹ as history has shown
> again and
> again ‹ they are considered dangerous. This is why St. Paul proposed to
> all
> Christian men that they should marry ... solely for the purpose of thus
> avoiding
> the temptation to appreciate other women (I Corinthians 7, 2). Lilith
> wanted to be
> reckognized as an equal to Adam, and for this she was thrown out of
> Eden. As
> tradition will have it, she was expelled simply because she wanted to
> be on top ...
> supposedly an unacceptable sexual position ...
>
> 11. Q: Perhaps this is why there is something called "the missionary
> position"?
> A: Yes, perhaps. The Christian way to do it.
>
> 12. Q: But even if the Christians consider Lilith a whore, why do you?
> A: There is
> no shame in being a whore. In society today, whores are paid to offer
> their
> services, and they ought to be reckognized for their great sacrifices
> and efforts.
> Celebrating Lilith is celebrating freedom from moral slavery. She is
> woman
> sexuality unbound ‹ the quite opposite to Christian degradation ‹ and
> so we see
> no reason why not to call her a whore. If you find the term offensive,
> it's because
> you have chosen to submit to Christian moralities. That's your problem.
>
> 13. Q: How many CoM members are there, and how many of them are women?
> A: I won't tell you.
>
> 14. Q: Do you affiliate with other religious groups?
> A: No.
>
> 15. Q: What about The Church of Satan?
> A: No. Members of The Church of Satan are atheist, and so we have
> nothing in
> common with them. We consider the Church of Satan to be nothing more
> than a
> secular protest against Christianity.
>
> 16. Q: But donΉt you not agree with this form of protest?
> A: Not really. Christianity poses no threat to anyone anymore, and so
> generally
> we see no real point to discussing the matter at all. Also, as already
> stated, the
> CoM is not an anti-Christian organization. We don't need someone to
> disagree
> with.
>
> 17. Q: What sort of people apply for membership?
> A: Men, women, witches, occultists, Satanists ... All sorts of people.
> We like to
> compare the CoM to a field with a whole lot of farmers running about.
> They all
> grown different crops - angels as well as demons - but still they are
> able to benifit
> from each other. Go ask, and you'll find someone to teach you how to
> grow a
> demon of your own.
>
> 18. Q: So you do not ask your members to worship Mastema?
> A: We tell them that Mastema is the rain that keeps on pouring. We tell
> them that
> Lilith is the soil. We ask them to reckognize this. Nothing else.
>
> ---------------------------------------
> THE CULT OF MASTEMA
>
> CoM POLICIES ON PERVERSION
> © CoM
>
> 1. Sexual perversion is what seperates man from all other animals. As
> man ‹ as
> it has been said by some ‹  is the only religious animal around, so it
> could
> equally be stated that man is the only one species to be burdened with
> an
> inclination towards perversion. Man is the perverted animal.
>
> 2. Man's existence ‹ existence as opposed the notion of mere being ‹
> relies on
> man's conscience. Conscience is what sets us apart ‹ even from our own
> selves,
> our decaying bodies as well as from our senses ‹ and perversion in this
> respect
> simply denotes man's particular mode of being in regard to man's own
> sexuality.
> As conscience hinders man to once again become an animal, perversion
> will for
> ever subdue man's animal urges to reproduce.
>
> 3. Since the concept of perversion (according to Freudian definitions,
> as indeed
> according to any definition) has to do with man's abibility to enjoy a
> non-productive form of sexuality,  Western societies generally hold
> perversion in
> disregard. Bourgeois capitalist thinking ‹ greatly influenced by
> Christian doctrine ‹
> does not applause non-productive activities, and since modern
> capitalism to
> some extend is upheld by the enforcement of body politics
> (institutions, police,
> prisons and so on) capitalist thinking mistrusts all form of non-public
> sexual
> behaviour.
>
> 4. In order to control man's perversion such socities also upholds a
> strong
> economy of emotions. Man is taught what to long for (romance, love,
> marriage);
> he is taught how to search, and he is taught how to behave
> (philandering, loving,
> faithful). Since the invention of the modern bourgeois family, Western
> countries
> have faught hard to maintain the idea of family life as a prime
> directory for all new
> citizens to come along. In accordance with this ideology, societies have
> condemned all notions that enjoyments  equal in pleasure to those within
> wedlock could possibly be obtained anywhere outside marriage. Men as
> well as
> women have  thus been taught to abstain from masturbation; married
> folks are
> still taught no to expect any real pleasure from having affairs, ‹‹ and
> since family
> primarily is to serve as a steady productive unit within society,
> everyone is taught
> to disregard such perverse impulses that could threaten the all
> important stability
> of the contrived structure.
>
> 5. As family life crumbles, societies obtain new ways of controling
> their citizens.
> As emotional potentials are untied from the idea of marrital bliss, new
> psychic
> policies flourish; ‹ teaching man yet again what to expect, what to do,
> and how to
> behave. Through ethical and economical glorification of the confession,
> all
> citizens are requested to share their innermost thoughts and desires
> with the
> public, consequently throwing suspicion on those who do not.
> By deluding the citizens into believing that confession in itself is
> desirable for any
> individual, socities are able to uphold a strong degree of
> transperency, thus
> enabling them to minimize non-productive waste. This particular
> delusion has
> been succesfully transmitted through secondary ideologies concerning
> self-realization, gender rights, freedom of speech a. o.  Psychic
> policies have in
> recent years helped legalize certain forms of perversion, mainly by
> transforming
> them into economically exploitable sub-cultures, but most perversions
> never the
> less still remain unacceptable to the powers that be.
>
> 6. Man is the perverted beast. To accept perversion is to embrace
> manhood for
> what it is. Condemnation is betrayal. The Cult of Mastema wishes to
> encourage
> all men and women to act upon their perverted urges; we applause deviant
> sexual behaviour, and we call upon all members to accept each other's
> peculiarities. (Since CoM regard human life and integrity as values to
> be
> treasured we do not accept people with inclinations towards violent
> acts, cruelty,
> rape, or child abuse as member of our Cult. Having acted upon their
> urges such
> people should be dealt with by the criminal system.)
>
> 7. Man is the religious beast. CoM regards the positive appraisal of
> sexual
> perversion as part of our religious faith.
>
> ***
>
> Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
> Before you buy.

--
"Woman, this is no common child you are carrying. Within the cradle of your
womb cries a girl child with curling gold hair and gentle green eyes of
great beauty. Her mouth is a crimson fruit with a tongue full of sounds
sweeter than the wild music of the hills. But out of her beauty will arise a
sharp sword to split apart the Tree of Ulster."

Thus was cast the druid prophecy that would damn the beautiful Deirdre to a
fate of prisoner, rebel, fugitive and, inevitably, firebrand of destruction.