I lie. I’ve been in several cults and helped found at least two (defunct now) secret societies.
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I am a minister of the Universal Life Church (I ordained the minister for my wedding 
), and have participated in/observed rites/ceremonies/practices of Christian (Catholic, Orthodox, various Protestant), Muslim (Sunni), Hindu (Vaishnava), Buddhist (Zen, Gelug, Nyingma), and Jewish ceremonies. I was a Mason for a while (ex-Mason now, alas, since I don’t believe in a creator god, liked Masonry though). I was (maybe still am?) a Subgenius minister/whatever that’s called. Also I stomached a fair amount of New Agey hippy crystal waving things, since I had friends into that goofiness.
Religions have always been interesting to me. I did a religious studies minor and helped out with a Buddhist interfaith dialog thing for a while with some visiting monks, so I spent time with a lot of different religious groups to try to help build bridges (it was around 2005 when the wave of religious bigotry was really picking up). Doing Classics in school, about a third of the people were there in prep for divinity school/some kind of Christian religious training, and even though I wasn’t of their faith, I got to know them and always found them interesting (I also read a few books of the NT in Greek over a year with a very gracious and kind Episcopal minister to keep practicing my Greek).
While making a ULC or Subgenius thing wouldn’t be so hard, I don’t think it’d be at all easy to make a religion. Ron Hubbard had a lot of problems getting Scientology going and it still struggles to be recognized. He did pull it off, but it wasn’t easy. Usually it’s a multi-century project.
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I met my current wife in a 19th century German sex cult, of which my mother is an ordained priestess. I met my first wife in a “skyclad” Gardnerian Wiccan coven.
I am an ordained priest/godworker in…three four (I may be forgetting) traditions over the last almost 30 years but am not really a theist. Last ordination that kind of stuck was a Zen one though my own practice is Vipassana these days. I used to invoke Loki in public in front of Odinists and get ill stares and was his professed man (Loki, not Odin). I’ve performed multiple weddings, including one for a triad in contravention of State guidelines.
I am also a former Mason and I swore my Masonic oaths on a channeled holy book received by the infamous Aleister Crowley.
##Welcome Brother.
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Oh, that’s cool! I dated a Wiccan for a while, but it never really clicked for me, I read bits and pieces to try to understand better, but never practiced anything (also I was born into a conservative Protestant family, so it took a while to grow out of the squeamishness). I took the precepts at a Soto Zen temple long ago, and took them as a Gelug (didn’t click with the Zen center here, and I love the Dalai Lama enough that I can live with being a salad-bar Buddhist to have a center and sangha).
I’m not a theist, so being a Mason didn’t work out (after I fully decided there was no version of a creator god I could mentally accept I bailed since I didn’t want to live with being dishonest with the other members of the Craft). I miss the rites, there’s something really fascinating and compelling about practicing mystery rites passed down for so long, and memorizing the catechisms is good for the brain. Holy cow, taking the Masonic oaths on a holy book received by Crowley, that’s wild.
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Gelug! Die Heretic!
I was a Nyingma and Rime practitioner, as well as having some tie to Japanese Mikkyo (their Vajrayana). My primary Buddhist teacher these days, Shinzen Young, was an ordained Shingon monk in Japan for quite a while but wound up practicing in Zen temples and teaching Vipassana.
For the most part, when it comes to daily practice, I decided against theism and bells and whistles (and incense). Give me a comfy chair and time to sit, maybe a rock or a candle to stare at if I need the input.
That said, I still leave out offerings of milk and honey on occasion. Don’t want to piss off the little people.
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Prayer goes unanswered for this persistent, pecking and peckish Praying 
Mantis.
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Given the violent events of the past week, what the world needs now is love, peace and high-minded morality.
Quotes on love, peace and morality from a religious icon, Mother Teresa and a scientific icon, Albert Einstein–From: http://mobile.brainyquote.com/
“Force always attracts men of low morality.”–Albert Einstein
“Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.”–Mother Teresa
“Love is a better teacher than duty.”–Albert Einstein
“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”-- Mother Teresa
“People love chopping wood. In this activity one immediately sees results.”–Albert Einstein
“One of the greatest diseases is to be nobody to anybody.” Mother Teresa
“Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.”–Albert Einstein
“Let us always meet each other with smile, for the smile is the beginning of love.”-- Mother Teresa
“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”–Albert Einstein
“Peace begins with a smile.”–Mother Teresa
“Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts.”–Albert Einstein
“Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”–Mother Teresa
“You can’t blame gravity for falling in love.”–Albert Einstein
“I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”–Mother Teresa
“Everyone should be respected as an individual, but no one idolized.”–Albert Einstein
“Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do… but how much love we put in that action.”–Mother Teresa
“True religion is real living; living with all one’s soul, with all one’s goodness and righteousness.”-- Albert Einstein
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I’m too tired to take a drink…sigh.
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I got you covered.
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Mythical 
A princess in ancient Africa-Kemet finding a baby and naming him Moses, is about as ridiculous as a princess in ancient China finding a baby and naming him Lebron or Trayvon.
Good, because drinking can make a human or goddess violent and blood thirsty. 
One great thing about African-Kemetc/Anu religious mythology, is the inclusive number of revered, powerful, and important goddesses, like, Ma’at, Isis, Sekhmet, Hathor, Nephthys, Nekhbet, Nut, Bastet, Seshat, Tefnut, Wadjet etc…etc…etc…
The following article is also referred to as " The Destruction of Mankind" This version is shorter than the myth of “The Destruction of Mankind”–but includes part of the myth.
The older “Destruction of Mankind” myth has many similarities to the biblical myth of God flooding the earth and killing humans in the story of “Noah and the Ark”
Ra now realized that Hathor-Sekhmet would destroy the human race completely. Angry as he was he wished to rule mankind, not see it destroyed. There was only one way to stop Hathor-Sekhmet, he had to trick her. He ordered his attendants to brew seven thousand jars of beer and color it red using mandrakes and the blood of those who had been slain. In the morning Ra had his servants take the beer to the place where Hathor would viciously slaughter the remnant of mankind.
Ra’s servants poured the beer mixture on the fields. And so, Hathor-Sekhmet came to this place where the beer flooded the fields. Looking down, her gaze was caught by her own reflection, and it pleased her. She drank deeply of the beer, became drunk, fell asleep, and abandoned her blood thirsty quest.
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Oh my god, 
In post 1272:
She’s drinking excessive alcohol while consoling, comforting and carrying a baby on her right shoulder. If she consumed excessive alcohol while that precious baby was in her womb; that would explain why the baby may need to be consoled–and why laws should be changed to persue child abuse charges against mothers who drink excessive alcohol while pregnant.
[quote=“khepra, post:1286, topic:71023”]
consoling, comforting and carrying a baby[/quote]
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How bad can it actually…
clicky…
Ooooohhkayyy.
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Reported discovery in Israel of the atrocious and barbaric Philistines 
An unrivaled discovery on the southern coast of Israel may enable archaeologists to finally unravel the origins of one of the most notorious and enigmatic peoples of the Hebrew Bible: the Philistines…
Famous confrontations (real or mythical?)–with the evil Philistines in the scriptures of Judaism and Christianity~
I Samuel 5:1-4
1 And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.
2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.
3 And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.
4 And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him.
I Samuel 5:8-9
8 They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither.
9 And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction: and he smote the men of the city, both small and great, and they had emerods in their secret parts.
I Samuel 18:27
27 Wherefore David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men; and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full tale to the king, that he might be the king’s son in law. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife.
I Samuel 17:23-24
23 And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them.
24 And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.
I Samuel 17:48-51
48 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.
49 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.
50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.
51 Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled.
