• Deities—Capitalism, Greed, Materialism and Consumptionism
• Primary Dogma—Profit, no matter who or what is destroyed or hurt
• Primary Doctrine—Egotistic greed
• Worship Times—24/ 7
• Primary Worship Season—End of November to beginning of January
• Primary Belief—Consume, Consume, Consume
• Location—The World

As I was driving on the highway a few weeks back, I happened to notice a construction site that in the future will be the location of a well-known retailer as well as the site of many other merchant stores. From the road, the rock formations reminded me of the stone structure of a Hawaiian Heiau (temple). In a split second, I realized that our legacy for future generations will not be such magnificent spiritual edifices such as was left to us by the Hawaiians, the Mayans, and the Egyptians, to name just a few such spiritual cultures. Our legacy will be—temples of capitalistic greed. That is the current path of our society.

However, that is not the only future possibility. Do not let this materialistic mind set be the legacy that is left behind, or that you leave behind—each one of us can make a difference.

As we enter this season of compassion, love and the return of light, the ‘spear of truth,’ focus on the true meaning of this time of the year. This is my most favorite season of the year. It is a time when the earth and the ancestral cultures of the past honored the darkness but gave cheer and thanks for the return of light, the returning sun, and all that it meant spiritually, metaphorical and symbolically.

Historically and spiritually, this is the month (at the time of the winter solstice) of the birth of the light-bringers. These are the messengers of love and light—the hero-shamans that first brought the knowledge of the fire of the heavens, the knowledge of the light in the darkness, to all of humanity. These heroic messengers of light are born of the Virgin—the constellation Virgo. In the heavens Virgo is a Y-shaped group of stars resembling a cup that just happens to rise in the Eastern sky at this most spiritual time of the year. This is the mythic Holy Grail, the Cup of Light, the Bowl of Love that is Light—all the key to the metaphoric message of these virgin light-bringers—that the sun, the spiritual sun, is contained within all beings and all living things. This is the message that certain institutionalized religions do not want humanity to hear: that each one of us, like the light-bringers, is also a virginal vessel of love and light. No inborn sin here, just intrinsic love and light.

Let each one of us in our own way honor and cherish this time of the year. This is a season of hope, joy and compassion, a time when we leave our caves of darkness to be re-born of light and love. And it is this light, of our soul, that we bring to the world to share in love, peace and harmony.

Celebrate and give gifts of joy buried beneath your own green Tree of Life—a Tree of Fire and Light—this is symbolic of the light of knowledge and life within and without. And, please do not forget that this celebration and honoring lasts for 12 full days.

Happy Celebration of the Re-birth of Light.

Jim, Sher, Jamie and Jess