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Ross Clifford

What’s with Wicca?

It’s said to be one of the fastest growing forms of spirituality in the western world. So what’s Wicca all about? What’s the attraction?

Wicca is particularly attracting many young female followers. What is it about Wicca that attracts those who are not interested in what might be understood as more traditional faith expressions?

With a strong emphasis on connection to the earth, is Wicca drawing strength from the growing concern about the health of our planet?

Wicca is a specific Neopagan religion. Its adherents are referred to as Wiccans, though the terms Witches or Crafters are also used. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the “witch cult” and “witchcraft,” and its adherents “the Wica.” From the 1960s onward, the name of the religion was normalised to “Wicca.”

Wicca is typically a duotheistic religion, worshipping a goddess and a god, who are traditionally viewed as the Triple Goddess and Horned God. These two deities are often viewed as being facets of a greater pantheistic godhead, and as manifesting themselves as various polytheistic deities. – Wiki

My regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM is Rev Dr Ross Clifford who is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales. Each week we chat about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.?

Today we looked at Wicca and asked why it continues to grow in popularity. Are there elements of Wiccan spirituality with which we can identify? Are there dangers of which we need to be aware? Could Wicca actually be pointing towards a higher truth?

You can hear our discussion by clicking the play button on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

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Ross Clifford Honoured

Ross CliffordHere in Western Australia we need to wait a few more months before we celebrate the Queen’s birthday but most of Australia is celebrating today in typical Aussie style by taking a public holiday.

As part of the celebrations the Queen’s Birthday Honours List has been released, highlighting those who have made a major contribution to our community.

Among those receiving the honour of Member of the Order of Australia is The Reverend Dr Ross Clifford.

Ross is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales and Vice President elect of the Baptist World Alliance. Each week we chat on radio about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.

Ross was awarded his honour for service to the Baptist Union of Australia, to religious education, and to the promotion of interfaith dialogue and Christian media.

He is my regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM but I couldn’t let the opportunity to congratulate him go past so I phoned him today for a quick chat. You can hear our discussion by clicking play on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

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Faith of a child

children.jpgIs our belief in God begin at birth or is it something that we pick up from those around us as we grow older?

Are we born without a concept of God? Do we begin our lives as atheists who then need to be convinced that there’s something bigger than us in the cosmos?

Oxford University psychologist, Dr. Olivera Petrovich, a lecturer in psychology of religion, has been studying the development of spirituality in children. She recently conducted cross-cultural studies involving British and Japanese children to see if children from different cultures have a similar understanding on matters of spirituality.

She was surprised to find that results were very similar in Britain and Japan. In general she found that most children have an understanding that there is a creator God at work in our universe. Very interesting results indeed considering that as a culture, Japan discourages speculation into the metaphysical, so most children are not brought up hearing about God or spirituality.

You can read an interview with Olivera Petrovich about her research here.

My regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM is Ross Clifford who is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales and current President of the Baptist Union of Australia. Each week we chat about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.

Today we discussed the research and looked at what impact such research should have on us.

You can hear our discussion by clicking play on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

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Post Secret

postcard.jpgWhat’s your secret? Is there something that gnaws away inside you that you wish you could share with someone?

I spotted this article from OC Register a few weeks back. It talks about how Frank Warren’s plan to create a unique art exhibit has turned into an international phenomenon.

In preparation for a local art show, Frank left 3,000 postcards in pizza parlors, bookstores and Washington, D.C., subways that read: “Send Frank a secret.”

Ha, ha. Art.

He got a few hundred replies, which he displayed at his booth. But the postcards kept coming – from places like China, Australia and Tupelo, Mississippi.

Their messages ranged from: I am secretly involved with my best friend’s wife. To: Everyone who knew me before 9-11 believes I’m dead.

Frank’s blog – PostSecret.com -continues to display the innermost secrets of all those who send him their postcards. If you plan on visiting the site you need to know that there are some very frank admissions with several being sexual in nature. Never the less, I think a visit to the site is worthwhile to get a better understanding of the hurts many people are carrying.

Here’s a sample of some of the most recent secrets.

If it hadn’t been for an unplanned pregnancy, my next attempt at ending life would have succeeded.

Tomorrow is my 24th birthday. It has taken that long for me to figure out who I am, and love myself. But I am finally getting there.

I’m obsessed with the fear that I will die while my husband is in Iraq and he’ll have no one to come home to.

I yelled at her for weeks about how wrong her abortion was and she still held my hand when I had one.

I pray over your package before I mail it to you. – eBay power seller.

Trick or Treat? I am haunted by the end of my first marriage and afraid this one is doomed too.

I strongly suspect that I use a lot more toilet paper than other people …. but I have no way of knowing.

I was one of those kids who always made fun of the ‘different’ kids. Now I teach the ‘different’ kids. My heart breaks every day. I’m so sorry for being a horrible person when I was younger. Eventually we grow up and realize we were wrong.

I secretly believe God lets people into Heaven based on how they treat animals.

After 38 years of using drugs I’m finally clean at the age of 50, and I’m so grateful.

My brother and sister make fun of me for not doing drugs.

My regular Wednesday morning guest on 98.5 Sonshine FM is Ross Clifford who is the Principal of Morling College in New South Wales and current President of the Baptist Union of Australia. Each week we chat about a range of issues relating to spirituality and belief.

We discussed the human need to confess our secrets during today’s segment and talked about what drives people to send their thoughts to Post Secret.

You can hear our conversations by clicking the play button on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

Would you send your secrets to Post Secret? Do have trusted friends with whom you can share your deep dark thoughts and secrets?

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