Brandy Williams - For the Love of the Gods

Alex Williams

About the Author

Brandy Williams (Washington) is a Pagan Theurgist and a Woman Magician. She is passionate about sharing the knowledge of the gods and particularly passionate about making magical traditions accessible to women. She has been an active organizer, teacher, and writer for more than thirty years, presenting frequently at conferences in the magical communities. Her books include P ractical Magic for Beginners and The Woman Magician .

Williams works in Western Traditional Magic as a Thelemite, Golden Dawn Magician, and Witch. She cofounded the sororal order Sisters of Seshat, is the founder and director of Seattle Pagan Scholars, and is a past president of Covenant of the Goddess. Since 2001, she has been active in Ordo Templi Orientis, having served as a master of Vortex Oasis and on Anahata Rose Croix Chapter. Williams is an ordained priestess in Eccclesia Gnostica Catholica and celebrates the Gnostic Mass with Vortex Oasis.

In her spare time, she sings with the Medieval Womens Choir and keeps bees.

acknowledgments

I am indebted to all the teachers in this book and to the many people I have learned from in the past and in the present. Three teachers in particular have been very kind to me in my own research and practice. Bruce McLennan, my first teacher (through the Internet) who brought Hypatia to life; whenever I have a particularly thorny question he unfailingly directs me on the right path. Tony Mierzwicki, an extraordinary teacher, meticulously recreates practice for the love of the gods. Richard Reidys Kemetic rituals brought the practice of creating living statues within the reach of contemporary practitioners; his recent passing has robbed us of a great mind and a good friend.

Glenn Turner took me seriously as a theurgist. Her ongoing belief in me has given me the courage to present and write on the subject.

Editor Elysia Gallo tells me what I need to hear and always makes my work better. I am privileged to work with her.

Alex and Ted live without me for extended periods while I write and still lavish on me their unwavering physical, emotional, and spiritual support. Without their love, my work would be significantly less joyful.

Introduction

The gods call us, and we answer. We are drawn to learn about them, approach them, move into their presence. As our love for them grows, we seek teachers who can show us the path to know them even more intimately.

Pagan instruction in the way of the gods historically passed from teacher to student, person to person. But the deliberate suppression of Pagan religion seems to have broken our connection with their teachings. What happens to the story of our lives if what we are called to do was not passed to us by our ancestors? We feel a rupture, a loss of continuity, a lack of authenticity. This is what has happened to Pagan religion in the monotheistic world. How can we bridge the gap between what we want to do and the people who could teach us how to do it?

What if there was no gap?

Theurgy is a Pagan religious and magical practice that was passed from teacher to student. Although some have declared that the connection to our Pagan past was destroyed, this book links contemporary rituals with ancient teachers, reclaiming Pagan theurgic practice in the continuity of history.

of this book, Stories from the Ancestors, tells our history from a Pagan perspective. Why tell this history in stories? We can learn philosophy from texts and rituals from academic and popular descriptions, but critical analysis keeps the teachers themselves at a distance. When we immerse ourselves in the lives of the teachers, we can recreate the experience of being in their presence, learning from them directly.

of this book, The Living Tradition, describes the specific theurgic rituals that bring us into the presence of the gods. The teachers instruct us how to engage in study, prayer, and ritual to raise our souls to the experience of the gods and of the One. As we learn from them, we realize that our practice keeps the Pagan theurgic tradition alive.

Theurgy participates in the project to restore Pagan religion. Together with indigenous peoples, reconstructionists, and those who create new paths, theurgists embody Pagan religion in living practice today.