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Really, it's good, sound ancestral logic.

A man broke into a Shiva temple in India and stole many valuable items from the temple treasury. When the man was apprehended, he freely admitted the break-in, but nonetheless contended that he was innocent of theft.

Innocent?

Yes indeed, said the man. I stole nothing.

But the goods from the temple were found in your possession, said the authorities.

Nevertheless, I am innocent of the charges, said the man.

In India, a temple and everything in it belong to the main god enshrined therein. This is good, sound ancestral lore: any ancient Greek would have said the same. To steal something from a god—the original meaning of the word sacrilege—was accounted by the ancestors as one of the most terrible of crimes, in the same category as incest or murder.

How is it, then, that the man claimed innocence?

Because, he contended, the god Shiva does not exist. To own, you must exist. A non-existent person cannot be said to own anything. Therefore, to take things from the temple was not theft. You cannot steal something that is ownerless.

The case went up through the courts, which—understandably—were unwilling to rule on whether or not gods actually exist. One readily understands their reluctance. Courts simply don't have the standing to rule on such a question. To rule for their existence would be to exceed judicial authority. To rule against their existence would—as the case itself demonstrates—create a deeply dangerous precedent.

Finally, the case reached the Supreme Court. Their ruling was elegant in its simplicity.

The secret temple stands in the heart of the war zone.

Few people even know that it is there.

Through the chaos, the mayhem, the uncertainty, the liturgies continue.

May the people have life. May the people have food. May the people have beauty.

Twice daily, the priest makes the offering and prays on the people's behalf.

May the people have life. May the people have food. May the people have beauty.

In all times, year in, year out, the liturgies continue.

May the people have life. May the people have food. May the people have beauty.

Now, in time of conflict, to the three traditional prayers, the priest adds a fourth:

When I talk with people about the ancient Minoans, I find they often believe that everything we know about ancient Crete was dug up by Sir Arthur Evans a century ago, and that's it. But that's not the case.

Evans is famous, sure, but did you know that the Minoan site at Gournia was originally excavated by the American archaeologist Harriet Boyd-Hawes? Work at the site was still ongoing this summer (2019). In fact, work at a lot of Minoan sites is still in progress, and we're learning and discovering more all the time. Here's a sampling of what's happening these days in the world of Minoan archaeology:

Did you know that you've got people making offerings on your behalf every day?

At the Temple of the Moon, that's what we do.

Here at the Temple of the Moon, we offer and pray twice daily, morning and evening.

At each offering, along with the more specific prayers, we pray for the well-being of pagans everywhere, old and new alike.

That means you. Remember that next time that you're feeling stressed.

And, of course, we're not the only ones. In temples and shrines across Pagandom, the same thing happens every day.

Know them or don't, people are offering, and praying, for you. Every day they do this: and, indeed, across the world, our numbers grow daily.

You, too, can join this worldwide offering.

OK, here you go: I'm writing you a check. I want you to build your ideal pagan temple, spare no expense.

So what would it look like?

Would it have columns? Standing stones? Would it have a dome? Would it even have a roof at all?

What is it made from? Wood, stone, brick? Poured concrete?

What is its footprint? Is it circular? Square? Rectangular?

What's around it? A grove? An encircling temenos wall? Gardens? Is there a sacred spring, a sacred tree, a sacred stone?

What does the inner sanctuary look like? Is it large, the gathering place of many, or is it small and intimate? Are there windows? Is it dark and private, or filled with air and light?

What existing temple does it most resemble? Stonehenge? New Grange? Karnak? The Parthenon?

And this year's award for Most Beautiful Working Pagan Temple goes to...the pagan community of...(drum-roll, please)....Armenia!

The Temple of Garni, shown here, was likely built during the 1^st century CE as a temple to Mihr (= Mithras). Toppled by an earthquake in 1679, it was reconstructed between 1969 and 1975, and has since become the national shrine of the New Pagans of Armenia. They hold rituals there regularly and, in fact, are in the process of planting a sacred grove of almond trees around it.

Now that's style.

Yes, there are pagans in Armenia. There are pagans everywhere. Check out the Wikipedia page on the Armenian community and follow the links at the bottom. You'll be amazed at where they take you.

Ossetia. Daghestan. Kirghizistan. Mongolia. Across Central Europe and Central Asia, New Pagan movements have sprung up since independence like mushrooms after rain, as people ponder their post-colonial identity and direction. Tengrism—the traditional shamanic worship of Tengri, Blue Father Sky—has undergone a massive resurgence across the steppes of Asia. In some countries, pagans actually constitute a substantial percentage of the population.

Every shrine needs a keeper.

Shrines are busy places. Someone needs to sweep away the ash, compost the wilted flowers, remove the food offerings before they go bad.

In a timely manner, mind you, but not too soon. Part of the joy of shrines—part of the encounter that takes place there—is the evidence of the worship of others.

Another part of the keeper's job is to decide. Not all offerings are, shall we say, worthy.

The plastic, the cutesy, the distracting: they've served their purpose. (The worth of the offering is in the making.) Off with them to the favissa. (The Romans had a name for everything.)

After all, they've been given: they belong to a god now. Worthy or not, they still need to be treated with respect.

That's why there's a special pit for sacred garbage.

You can be a shrine-keeper, too.