People look at you differently when you tell them you’re your own solo church.

Words mean things (sometimes they mean different things to different people) and we should consider what that word means when we use it and the context.

So let’s take that into consideration for just a moment. Church.

Start with some honesty, what is the highest common denominator when it comes to the word Church.

That’s easy. You look for cathedrals and places with a big sign out front, perhaps a cross or some other type of insignia displayed.

Definition from Dictionary Dot Com is heavily-laden with attaching it to Christianity but does denote where it has been used for other faiths as well. Lists it as “offensive” but not to whom so we’ll just kick that into the bin because we don’t care about that and we’ll mosey on over to one of it’s subdefinitions.

If you’re one of the ones offended and you’re about to ditch this email, I understand, however you’re about to miss out on everything, even where we agree…because you evidently didn’t do your MindCraft: Basic Training. That’s part of what that helps you get past. Moving on.

Definition #7: ecclesiastical organization, power, and affairs, as distinguished from the state.

Okay so we qualify here with an ecclesiastical organization, power and affairs as distinguished from the state.

I’m not the first one to do this. That distinction belongs to Josephine McCarthy who did what I’m doing now only she did it working with someone else. I stumbled into mine on my own and, as the library grew, books were added, some taken out, that meant deeper exploration of the texts I have, it meant a shift in some of the things that I thought I knew and thought I believed.

The difference between Miss McCarthy’s thing and mine, I’m loaded with theology, cosmology, etc. Hers is a magick school. The important thing: Structurally, they’re the same. Hers doesn’t come with a theology, mine…it’s like a bookshelf. You put the books from your faith into those shelves, explore them, develop your own services, get ordained if you want to and put it all in service to those around you…but that’s all on you how you do it. Because once the shelf is installed in your home, it’s out of my hands.

So let’s break down the reasons why being your own solo church isn’t the “consolation prize” or the dreaded fear-mongering social coercion of “You’ll meet exactly two types of crazy” in an attempt to counter your objection to remaining under the thumb.

First, let’s get the Consolation Prize argument out of the way.

Sit down, if you’re not already and grab a cup of coffee. Did you know there are people in the world that take a shift inside you personally even though it has nothing to do with them? There’s a reason for that. You hit them where they’re the most insecure. You’re a mirror of what happens when they’re wrong. If you are in an org and you feel that tug telling you that it’s not right for you, then what’s so great about staying? So you and the group aren’t a fit. People, that’s life. It happens with jobs, it happens with relationships, this shit is no different. Not one bit. So how are you then being consoled? That’s the question to ask.

“Good luck with your consolation prize!”

Consolation? For what? Why would you put it that way?

You see…just keep grilling. Question that. If they are unable to articulate their position without belittling you, and that’s what that is, then it will crumble under scrutiny and then you’ll have confirmation that your continued existence with the org was going to be fraught with friction.

“You’re going to meet two types of crazy out there.”

Listen people, I’ve been part of orgs that, while they haven’t hit me with that on my way out of the door, specifically, this is another insecurity tactic but this one plays on your fear and I’m going to absolutely take Brook and smash that fear today.

Some orgs have a bureaucracy, endless purity spirals which I’ve personally witnessed this take many variant forms but it’s the same Choronzon - the formless “demon” of dispersion we all know and really would rather not encounter and constant screeching in ways that are unreasonable.

While most of them only have maybe a few here or a few there, because we all have our assholes, some of them ran trifectas and some of them really went for the gusto.

Any reasonable person would have found themselves backed into a silent existence in the org with no way up because your continued participation is being roadblocked by someone else’s reactivity which isn’t your problem. At that point, there’s no reasonable reason to pay dues or stay. You don’t owe them. That is cold fact. Hard fact too.

That’s meant to keep you in line. The fear isn’t really yours. That’s how the person that attempts to leverage that is worried about what happens when you find people like Miss McCarthy (and trust me…she’s got visibility I’d kill Thanos for…he can keep the bling, that’s not my style) or myself and find out they’re wrong.

It’s not a consolation prize or the big pit of confusing fear that these organizations really want you to believe.

I want you to look at something factually for a moment. Go grab your spiritual text right now, I don’t care what it is, whatever is central to your faith right now, go get that.

Got it? Okay good. How often do you open it and read it yourself? How often do you study it? How much of what someone else quotes are you relying on?

Christians, some of you really do need to start thinking in terms of esoterics a bit because it would do you some good. Remember what I said about Church and what that can mean? Yes…it can mean You.

The first real benefit of becoming a solo Christian…is the deepest understanding of your faith and the closest relationship with God you’ll ever have and that is not a joke.

Do you have to have a magickal practice? No! Absolutely not. Though I counter with what is prayer if not an intentional act through supplication? But hey, you know what? Do you. That’s what this is about.

That’s the second benefit in and of itself. You’re not asking a bishop, a priest or even ME! You’re going to a direct one-on-one relationship with your deity. You do not need anyone’s permission to open that book, crack that spine and read those words.

I’m assuming, baseline that you, my reader, the one whose eyes are on this screen right now, are literate. You’d kinda have to be at least on some level! That’s exactly what you need. That book, a notebook, a pen and there you go. If that’s the entire structure for you because you have an entire library in one book then that’s your structure. Go. Why are you waiting on anyone to give you permission to go read that and absorb it, use it like a mirror (That’s later on down the road for MindCraft…patience, Grasshopper) or get in there and dissect it until you get it.

What you really need to do is set aside some time with that text each and every day, not just an hour or two once a week. Those first two benefits, when they finally start sinking in, they’re everything.

Next Benefit, you’re better armed against attacks. Remember what we said before about the tactics used to keep you in a group that doesn’t fit you? Yeah. They come at you and you have a calm counter. Not because you’re better than they are but rather, you know the material better than they do. You don’t even have to have a gotcha, you can just point out where the flaw in the argument is half the time. The other half?

You Don’t Owe Anyone An Explanation. See, the MindCraft: Basic Training, that’s what this teaches you. As a solo church, even if your credentials are the same as mine (ULC Monastery) then you stand as the authority.

Look at just those three things alone. You gain a deeper understanding of your own belief, a closer relationship with your deity and the ability to do it unbothered.

That’s the “crazy” that organizations bent on power are in fear of to the point they will belittle you on the way out the door like that does anything to endear the person to their position.

You become more manipulation-resistant as well. You do that because you learn to set boundaries. You decide what you’ll read, what you’ll watch, what or who you’ll listen to, etc all within reason.

Remember what I said about honesty? Okay, here’s where I’ll get honest…please have your MindCraft: Basic Training done before you read because you need to just understand these facts, don’t ruminate over them. Don’t internalize them. Just keep them in mind.

The honest thing about a solo path through a religion, it is not easy. Do not mistake freedom for ease, the two do not equate in the least. This is hard. Your epiphanies and revelations may not land, especially if you’re unsure as to how to express them.

Do you see why I recommended doing your Basic training before anything else?

The second thing, you are gonna have to be brutally honest with yourself sometimes, that’s the single most difficult thing you can do. As much as I go on about groups and how they may not be a great fit, there is nothing wrong with having a friend you can talk to about this kind of thing.

Furthermore, it’s perfectly fine to reach out to someone of another faith, especially another solo practitioner and if you claim you don’t know any…this is where you lost sight of something. You’re literally reading my stuff right now and I made the same bookshelf for you that I did for me. We can talk about that.

Some things just can’t be dealt with in isolation. While your practice and your devotion can be, crises of faith should never be dealt with alone. That’s pretty critical stuff to think about. You’re going to run into those…network a little. Besides, even if your friend is of a completely different faith than you, they’ll prioritize the friendship, guaranteed.

Note that because that’s another benefit that comes from the honestly difficult part, you find out who your true friends really are. They don’t require you to be part of their group. They don’t require you to believe the same things they do. They just know that a friend is a friend and on that you don’t bend.

That’s partially why this exists. Miss McCarthy takes you through a curriculum for a magickal practice and honestly…not gonna lie…I might just look into it because might be useful. Might not be for me. I dunno. Just willing to give it the good old Magnusson University try, yanno?

If you’re interested in a practice and a curriculum and you’re not sure how to stock your bookshelf, come on with me, I’m gonna give Quareia a look and see what’s what.

Now, here’s the big thing I want to warn you about. Your practice is not your faith. They can be linked and they can be separate things. A magickal practice or even ceremonial religious practice can be your focal point but it should not be the entire package.

If you had a hall or church that you attended, this is where I want do direct your attention for a second. If you find yourself mistaking one for the other, then it’s time to stop and actually analyze it. You have to look at it for what it is. If your practice is devotional, okay then the two are linked and that’s fine. If the practice itself serves an actual practical function, then that is separate from the faith itself, do not conflate the two.

Yes, a lot of this can be confusing and it can be scary because you don’t have a central leadership, you’re it, bud! You have to decide if a small altar or shrine in your home is right for you, if you’re going to store your spiritual books with all your others, yes, there is a lot of thought that goes into it but breathe…because you don’t have to work all of that out on your own right now.

The biggest obstacle to overcome, just setting one up.

Look, not for nothin’ here but you have no idea how long I sat on analysis paralysis wondering what would happen if I “got it wrong.”

Here’s where I pulp that fear for you.

Nothing happens.

No, I’m one hundred percent serious. Nothing at all. You botch the ceremony you constructed, okay, so it’s just data. Deities don’t hand out receipts like pro wrestlers do. You’re not forgetting to pull a punch. You’re just learning.

To close out, that’s what MindCraft teaches you. I know I promised you Meditations and I promise you, that article is coming and it’s actively being worked on. In the meantime, if you want to know why I’m delaying it, it’s because you need time with the Basic Training first. Why? Well, if you check out The Polar Temperatures In Religion, you can see exactly why the Basic Training is extremely important and then followed by Meditations.

MindCraft teaches you that your fear is noise that you can tune out at will…by just treating it like what it is; Data To Be Analyzed, Identified and Integrated. That’s it. Once you deal with that data on cold, clinical terms, the fear stops registering because it’s not life-threatening. Learn to give yourself some time.

There’s the final benefit I’ll mention, there are only two things you have right this second that you’ll never get back once its spent; your time and your health, don’t waste either of them on fear whether it’s yours or someone else’s.