Mystery School Application
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Now the apostles were in a place called Chritir with Mary.
And Bartholomew came to Peter and Andrew and John
and said to them: “Let us ask Mary, her who is highly
favored, how she conceived the incomprehensible or how
she carried him who cannot be carried or how she bore
so much greatness.” But they hesitated to ask her …
And as they all were doubtful and pondered the matter
to and fro, Bartholomew came to her with a cheerful
countenance … But Mary answered: “Do not ask me
concerning this Mystery. If I begin to tell you, fire will
come out of my mouth and consume the whole earth.”
This passage in the apocryphal Gospel of Bartholomew identifies Mary as Crone, an image the established Church fears and consequently suppresses. The Gospel of Bartholomew goes on to say that Mary does tell the Apostles this Mystery, and the fire does come from her mouth. Only Yeshua (who is, interestingly, Lord of Fire) is able to stop it, and he comes down from Heaven to do so. Did all of this REALLY happen? Who knows? The symbolism here is what’s important, because the symbolism shows that someone in early Kristianity identified Mary with the many aspects of the Crone.
First of all, Mary is wise. She knows that she shouldn’t tell the Apostles the Mystery, and before she does so she prays to Yahweh that the world will be spared if she does reveal the Mystery. She further shows her wisdom by insisting that Peter pray, instead of her. In this way, she is careful not to offend his ego, which, by the way is blatantly displayed in another apocryphal Gospel, the Gospel of Mary (Magdala) and even in some of the canonical gospels. She doesn’t necessarily submit to men as the dominant gender here, she flatters Peter’s ego so he’ll be pacified and won’t make a scene, as he did in the Gospel of Mary when another Kristian Goddess (a woman) outdid him.
Mary knows the Mysteries, which is one of the greatest aspects of the Crone. What greater Mystery could be known than the one that threatens to consume the whole world in flames? Because of this, Mary is in a position to teach the Mysteries to others. She is willing to teach the Apostles the Mysteries, but for a price. This is often the case with the Crone, who many times will demand great personal sacrifice before teaching the Mysteries. We find this in shamanism, too, where it is called “gifting.” This is not greed, this is the wisdom that is characteristic of the Crone. By a person’s personal sacrifice, the Crone can see that person is serious about the Mysteries and holds them as sacred. Perhaps it was the Crone who demanded that Avraham sacrifice Isaac? If it was the Crone, she spared Isaac, just as Mary spared the world by asking Yahweh and Yeshua to hold back the fire prior to dispensing the Mysteries. The Crone does this often, because she has seen devotion and no other sacrifice is really necessary for her.
Mary is the priestess and sorceress. The Gospel of Bartholomew makes this quite clear. The Apostles were very afraid to risk her displeasure by asking her to reveal the Mysteries. Furthermore, Peter treated her not only as an equal, but as a superior. This was RARE for Peter. Peter insisted that she pray instead of him, because she was the Mother of God. The Apostles seemed afraid to even speak to her, except for Bartholomew. As with the Crone, they feared her because they didn’t understand her. Only Bartholomew greeted her cheerfully and asked for revelation, and she wasn’t displeased with him at all. This is characteristic of the Crone, who respects those who respect her without fearing her.
Finally, Mary is the Destroyer. That’s surprising, isn’t it? But what else would you call her? All she has to do is utter a Mystery and the world will be consumed by fire. She is the Bringer of Death, just as she began as the Bringer of Life. She has come full circle. That is why she, like the Crone, is the Patroness of Death and Completion. Like the death card in the Tarot deck, the Death Crone is not a negative aspect. First of all, where there is death there is also new life. If humans just ended at death, we would defy the laws of nature. EVERYTHING is reborn in nature. So in a way, the Bringer of Death is also the Bringer of Life.
India has a Destroyer Goddess who is also Patroness of Death, Mother of God and a livegiver. Her name is of course Kali and her mysteries are many. It is hard to imagine Mary corresponding to her.
But it isn’t always physical death that the Destroyer brings. She brings endings to situations, she brings fruition and completion to the Divine Plan. It is the Destroyer who is present at our Baptisem when we “die.” Saul of Tarsus said he died daily, and this is the gift that the Death Crone brings us. In a sense, she grants forgiveness by allowing us to die to our mistakes and guilt every day. So you see, the Destroyer is not in any way evil. She is not taboo. She is the last necessary turn of the cycle, but she is not the last step in our evolution. There ISN’T a last step on Earth…the three cycles repeat all the time. There is only a last step for us in Heaven, with the Angels and the Godhead. This is when our cycles stop, and we become a culmination of those cycles. We become more than nature – “supernatural.”
We have now gone through the beginning, middle, and end of the book. We have read the introduction, body, and conclusion of the research paper. We have seen the Caterpillar, the Metamorphosis, and finally the Butterfly. But next, we will stop seeing these aspects as separate entities. We will not see the Maiden, Mother, or Crone…we will see the Goddess as the culmination of those three aspects. We will see the whole book together, the whole research paper. On Earth she is the Triple Goddess in accordance with our cycles, but in Heaven there are no cycles. This doesn’t violate the law, “as above, so below.” She is still the Maiden, Mother, and Crone in Heaven. She just doesn’t go through them in cycles, she is all of them at once. There she is only the Nisut – the High Priestess. And the Nisut is what we will explore next.
Let’s close with a passage from the Book of Wisdom:
Now what Sophia* is, and how she came to be,
I shall relate;
and I shall hide no secrets from you,
But from the very beginning I shall search out
and bring to light knowledge of her,
nor shall I diverge from the truth.
Neither shall I admit consuming jealousy to my company
because that can have no fellowship with Wisdom.
A great number of wise men is the safety of the world
and a prudent king, the stability of his people;
so take instruction from my words, to your profit.
LESSON QUESTIONS
Please copy and paste the following questions into a new e-mail, answer them, and send them to the Mystery School with the subject line “Crone Devotional from ____________ (your magikal name)”
1. What issues from Mary’s mouth? Who is Lord of this substance?
2. What is the first aspect of Mary as Crone discussed? Briefly explain how she fits it.
3. Why might she have insisted Peter prayed?
4. What is the second aspect of Mary as Crone discussed? Briefly explain how she fits it.
5. Why does the Crone ask for sacrifices?
6. In which story of sacrifice in the Old Testament might the Crone have been present?
7. What is the third aspect of Mary as Crone discussed? Briefly explain how she fits it.
8. What is the fourth aspect of Mary as Crone discussed? Briefly explain how she fits it.
9. Explain how the Destroyer is positive.
10. What does it mean for Mary to be the Nisut?
Essay: Briefly give an example of what Wise Mary, Patroness of Death and Completion, has done for you in your life.
Exercise 1 (Required)
Reread the verses from the Gospel of Bartholomew. How might the Destroyer, the Patroness of Completion, affect the world around us?
Exercise 2 (Optional, but recommended)
Construct an altar to Wise Mary once the altar to Mother Mary has been up for a week. Vinegar, green grapes, green apples, hay, wheat, and Easter Lilies are all symbols you can use. An image of a loved one who has passed on would be appropriate, particularly of a grandmother or an elderly aunt.
Exercise 3 (Required)
Pray the Hail Mary (at your altar, if you have one). Once your week of reflecting upon the Mother is over, spend a week reflecting on the Crone while praying your Hail Mary’s.
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