Five thousand years ago, a nomadic tribe of Bronze Age people who may have been called the hapiru began to evolve a unique idea of the relationship between Godde and humanity.
This tribe lived in what was then the center of the world, amid dozens of other tribes who worshipped gods and goddesses with names like Asherah, El, Eloah, Hannahanna, Sarah, Baal, Astarte, Marduk, Molech. These gods and goddesses had enormous power, and although they were said to have created humanity, they didn't appear to care much about their creation.
Our heroes and heroines started out in south Canaan, where they worshipped a goddess named Asherah and her consort, El. Asherah's symbols included the serpent, for wisdom, and the tree, for unity with the Earth and all living things. El's symbols included the mountain, from the top of which our ancestors felt closest to Godde.
Over the course of many centuries, a new god appeared. He was known as YHWH, which may have been pronounced Yahweh. (The writers of the Bible sometimes addressed YHWH as Adonai, which is a Hebrew/Canaanite word for "Lord." In the Bible, when you see the phrase "the Lord," it translates the title Adonai. When you see the phrase "the LORD," it translates the name YHWH.)
The male priests and prophets who served this new god insisted that YHWH is the only Godde there is, and for more than a thousand years (from about 1500 B.C.E. to 163 B.C.E.) ranted angrily against those who continued to worship the Queen of Heaven, divinity that acknowledged a feminine side to Godde's nature. Over that thousand or so years, they systematically worked to eliminate all mention of Godde's feminine side from the Bible. They succeeded so admirably that only a few traces remain.
Unique in the civilized world, our heroines and heroes had a vision of a Godde who not
only created humanity but loves us as parents love their
In this web site, you will notice that I try to consistently use the word "Godde" when referring to the Creator, the Sustainer, the Redeemer, the Deity, the Cosmic Stream. The word is pronounced "God."
Why the unusual spelling? Because, according to Genesis 1:27, Godde created both men AND WOMEN in Godde's image. Which means that although most religions refer to Godde as "Father" "Son," and "Lord," Godde is ALSO "Mother," "Daughter," and "Lady."
Do not be disheartened. There is nothing blasphemous or sacrilegious about recognizing that Godde created women in Godde's image. There IS something blasphemous about claiming that although Godde created women in Godde's image, women are still not supposed to represent Godde at the altar, because they do not have a penis just like that of the "Father." If you believe that blasphemy, or if your religion teaches that blasphemy, you're going to have a big surprise in store for you IF you ever get to heaven.
If your religion teaches that Godde created women in Godde's image but that women may not represent Godde at the altar because they aren't created AS MUCH in Godde's image as men are — for example, Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, or the Southern Baptists — march up to your nearest celebrant and shout, "SHOW ME GOD'S PENIS!"
Okay, rant over. Would you like to begin?