“The Mother of All Religions,” a tour de force on the sources of Theosophy’s foundational texts, is both impressive and irritating.
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The Lion That Roared Before Lithuania Was Christian
The Žygaičiai Lion is the enigmatic centerpiece of the Lithuanian art exhibition at Kaunas’ Čiurlionis Museum
H. Rider Haggard, John Dube, and Simon Magus: The Imperial Occult
The forgotten meeting between the Victorian novelist and the South African religious and political activist—and Simon Magus’ excellent book on Haggard.
O Tell Me the Truth About Leah Hirsig: A Woman Occultist Rescued from Oblivion
Henrik Bogdan and Manon Hedenborg White’s edition of Hirsig’s diaries demonstrates that Leah was not just a footnote in Crowley’s life but a significant force in her own right.
A Modern Léo Taxil: Stephen Kent and Satanism. 4. Paranoia Revisited
True believers in Satanic ritual abuse still exist and may even persuade legislators to pass laws. Many more apply Kent’s flawed logic to “cults.”
A Modern Léo Taxil: Stephen Kent and Satanism. 3. Scholars Strike Back
Leading experts on the Satanism scare, David Frankfurter and Jean La Fontaine, debunked Kent’s theories. His rejoinder was not persuasive.
A Modern Léo Taxil: Stephen Kent and Satanism. 2. Digging for Demons
The anti-cult sociologist really believed that Satanic “human sacrifices” happened in Canada. But he admitted that he “never once came across a body.”
A Modern Léo Taxil: Stephen Kent and Satanism. 1: The Shadow of Taxil
The most famous anti-Masonic hoax is a cautionary tale to keep in mind when examining claims by anti-cult scholars about Satanic or “cultic” abuse.
Around Giacomo Balla: Italian Futurists and Theosophy. 5. The Mature Balla and Theosophy
Balla created memorable Futurist-Theosophical icons before leaving Futurism, becoming a “Fascist realist,” and returning to abstract art in his late years.
Around Giacomo Balla: Italian Futurists and Theosophy. 4. Balla’s Encounter with Theosophy
It is unclear when the artist first met the Theosophical Society. General Carlo Ballatore and politician Giovanni Amendola played essential roles.