Presentations (in alphabetical order)

Babalon and the Beast: The Rise and Fall of Leah Hirsig, from

Scarlet Woman to Babalon to the "dusk wet streets" – Michael Kolson

This lecture will delineate the history of one of the most interesting and important women in Crowley's life. We will examine their history from their initial meeting, to Leah's prominent role in Crowley's initiations, to her own advancement from Scarlet Woman to Babalon. Particular attention will be paid to her time at the Abbey of Thelema and to her experiences in her own

words, culled from her unpublished diaries. We will also look at her downfall, living on the streets of Paris abandoned, "cold and an-hungered".  

Babalon – Unifying the Feminine in the House of Desire – Cindy Weinstein

This is the story of the ability of the human mind to understand. It begins with an allegorical tale of a boy who loves flowers and the long process of loving and learning and hating and understanding the flower. It engages the solve et coagula formula, the formulas of yoga and of abstract thought.

Our story then expands to look at the ways in which humanity has viewed the feminine and how we’ve approached its worship, denigration, dissolution, appreciation and understanding through the history of western religion and mysticism.

Finally -  a look at Babalon as an archetype of the unified feminine. No longer tri-form or four-fold or dual, but an anthropomorphized vision of the totality of the feminine energy. We see her emergence and the course of the development of her idea over the last aeon. We look at her manifestation as desire in the macrocosm and microcosm. We see her as a source of inspiration and an aim of attainment for women and men in the new Aeon of Horus.

This talk will steer clear of the kabbalistic and magical formulae, and will instead address Babalon and the Feminine Energy as a source of strength and unity that even the “youngest” among us can understand and utilize.

Kumari: Nepal's Living Goddess – Vere Chappell

In the center of Kathmandu lives a virgin who is regarded by pious Hindus as a living incarnation of the Goddess Durga.  Called the Royal Kumari, she presides over the most important religious festivals of Nepal, including the coronation of the King.  Dressed in rich garments and an elaborate headdress, accompanied by a plethora of priests and attendants, whenever she leaves the house she is carried aloft, as her feet must never touch the ground.  Heads of state, leading businessmen, and others who are important or lucky enough to obtain an audience seek her advice and prophetic wisdom.  Even more impressive is the fact that she begins her career as a goddess when she is just 4 years old.

This presentation will discuss the history and role of virgin goddesses, especially in the Far East.  We will explore the life of the Kumari, from how she is first selected to her retirement at puberty, when she becomes an ordinary mortal.  Rare images of the goddess will be shown (it is generally forbidden to photograph her), and the presenter will share his experience of his own (brief) audience with the present Kumari in 2004.

Lady in Red, Lady in Blue – Soror Ixel Balamke

This is an Egyptian Goddess 101 lecture about your Egyptian deities.  However, these are not the basics that you'll read in Budge or in any Egyptian Dictionary.  Information in the lecture will include the workings of Egyptian names, origin stories, symbols and their meanings, Egyptian Goddesses' abilities, etc., however much that can be possibly fit into one hour.  For those who have attended the Wine Tastings at NOTOCON, you know the excitement and information overload that is typical of Ixel Balamke’s lecture style.  There *will* be audience participation. 

Mother of Abominations: Babalon, Matter and the Alchemy of Loving The Monstrous - Jessica Melusine

What does it mean to have a goddess exalted not only as the mother of all that is beautiful and glorious, but also the mother of all that which is feared and despised and that all of these aspects are essential to life itself?

This presentation examines Babalon as the Mother of Abominations and the alchemy of loving that which is feared and rejected by the outside world and more intimately, in ourselves. We will look at Babalon in comparison with other deities including Pomba-Gira,  Erzuli Danto  and the Star Goddess. We will look at mothers of monsters, monstrous women and monstrous birth and fertility in magick, myth and popular culture.

We will talk about body politics, sexuality, gender, what it means to be an abomination, the shadowed parts of ourselves and the alchemy of loving and celebrating the abomination as well as the perfected and beautiful. We will talk about the shadowed, secret parts of ourselves, and how ultimately, the Mother of Abominations brings us closer to a perfect understanding of  our own wholeness. The lecture will conclude with a meditation and pathworking.

The Venusian View - Lessons of Love Goddesses – Soror Lutea

The realm of the Venusian Goddess and her historical counterparts carry a powerful mystery. Centuries of their worship have created a tremendous psychological impact upon our psyches, which has implanted qualities and powers in us all with potent life-sustaining lessons. This audio-visual presentation will explore the gifts of the Roman, Greek, Etruscan, Sumarian, Akkadian, Hindu and Egyptian Goddesses of love, with their symbols, vices, virtues, lessons and secrets. Further, we will assess the wisdom of these Venusian archetypes and discover how the sacred province of Venus within its Sephirothic domain of Netzach, can either devastate us or exalt us.

Speaker Bios (in alphabetical order):

Beth Kimbell – Sphere of Jupiter and of Healers & Hosts

Sister Beth Kimbell has been an initiate of our Order for six years.  She has held many positions in Knights Templar Oasis, including all Executive positions except Oasis Master.   Most of these positions have centered around creating an atmosphere of Fraternal Hospitality, providing a supportive environment for the work of the brethren, and promulgating the Law of Thelema.  She is also an affiliate of Sekhet-Maat Lodge.  Since coordinating NOTOCON VI, she has worked to provide others the opportunity and glory of service in the local body, but still remains active as an Initiator and E.G.C. Priestess.  In 2007, she was made Assistant National Conference Chair for U.S.G.L.

In her spare time, she works ~50 hours per week as a Laboratory and Safety Manager for a small defense and security related R&D Company, attempts to uplift humanity by setting an example of a Free Woman living by her convictions and our shared philosophy and religion, practices ceremonial magick, cooks, reads, writes, and sits relaxing under her cat obsessively watching DVDs.  She one day hopes to publish books and has recently undertaken a letterpress project.  In addition to O.T.O., she is a supporter of the Hemlock Society, the Mars Society, NOW, NORML, and the ACLU.  She also idolizes Benjamin Franklin.

Cindy Weinstein – “Babalon:  Unifying the Feminine in the House of Desire”

Cindy Weinstein, aka Soror Magdalena 463, joined O.T.O. in 1998. Having spent most of her life re-inventing the wheel, so-to-speak, it came as a great surprise to find that someone else had already thought of many of the magical and philosophical ideals that she had constructed from trial, much error, and pure intuitive foolishness. Not only that, but it had a name – Thelema. Having found her spiritual home after 40 years she soon became active in the various Southern California bodies. At the Spring Equinox of 2003 she accepted the Mastership of LVX Oasis, now LVX Lodge in Los Angeles. Cindy is an artist by trade and temperament – currently holding the position of marketing/creative director for a modestly sized corporation. She is a fiber artist, draws compulsively, writes, and performs her poetry whenever she is given half a chance. She has two grown children and two cats. She makes her home in Los Angeles, in the much maligned San Fernando Valley – which she loves in spite of what “they” say.

Eliza McBryde – Sphere of Mercury and Intellectuals & Artists

Eliza McBryde joined O.T.O. in 1997. She's a priestess, an initiator, and an active member of Sekhet-Maat Lodge. She joined the Electoral College in 2001, and served as Mentor Secretary for several years, during which time she designed and implemented the Mentor Program and the Camp in Formation Program. Formerly, she was chair of the NOTOCON Committee and currently runs the Kaaba Colloquium Thelemic Leadership Seminars. She travels widely and lives with her husband in Portland, Oregon.

Soror Ixel Balamke – “Lady in Blue, Lady in Red:  Egyptian Goddesses”

Soror Ixel Balamke is one of two founding members of Sekhet-Bast-Ra Oasis in Oklahoma City, still active with 24 years of devotion to O.T.O. under her belt.  She has served in various duties over the years in various local body officer roles, including Co-Master of Sekhet-Bast-Ra, Master of Sekhet-Bast-Ra, U.S.G.L. Initiation Secretary, helped in the founding of the US Grand Lodge newsletter Agape, and more.  Today Ixel Balamke is a Bishop who works with several Thelemic communities, assists Grand Lodge in accomplishing its strategic goals, and enjoys contributing to Leaping Laughter, her current home body, in the Twin Cities area.

Jessica Melusine – “Mother of Abominations:  Babalon, Matter, and the Alchemy of Loving”

Jessica Melusine is a writer, occultist and bon vivant currently operating in the DC area where she is the E.G.C. Secretary for William Blake Lodge and an E.G.C. novice. She currently writes for Popshifter.com and appears in the Seal Press anthology Working Sex. Her story “Avatar in Pink” appeared in Arsenal Pulp Press’ Lambda Award nominated Red Light: Saints, Sluts and Superheroes,  and she has lectured on “Bad Taste Bhakti” at the 2006 O.T.O. Women’s Symposium in Las Vegas.  Her writing has appeared in Boa: A Journal of New Whore Culture, Shameless: Women’s Intimate Erotica and Zaftig: Well Rounded Erotica. Jessica Melusine has self-published the zine Houri for Hire  (part of the Dark Matter exhibit at the Baltimore Museum of Art), has performed live at Ladyfest East, the Bay Area,  and Columbus, and has modeled for Faeriefantasies.com, Thatstrangegirl.com and Ssspread.com. When not writing or lecturing, Ms. Melusine loves reading, yoga, convening with Bufficrucians and spending time with her brethren at the William Blake Lodge, O.T.O.. Read what she’s up to on LiveJournal at http://www.jessicamelusine.livejournal.com

Kelly Laszlo - Sphere of Earth and of Mothers

Kelly Laszlo (Soror Na'amah) has been a member of O.T.O. since 2000, Secretary of Leaping Laughter Lodge since 2001 and the Co-Grand Lodge Initiation Secretary since 2007.  She sits on the Committee of Four for Dionysos Rose Croix Chapter and is an ordained Deacon and Priestess in the E.G.C.

 

Kelly is married to Frater Satvrnvs Baphomet and has 3 kids ages 13, 7 and 5.   She has a degree in Radio/TV Broadcasting and is currently employed at CTN Studios in Minnesota as a Production Assistant.  She is primarily a video camera operator on the sports crew, covering such events as Professional Minor League baseball - The Saint Paul Saints - as well as a lot of community productions such as high school sporting events and local concerts.  In her spare time she enjoys camping, hiking, mastering photography - both nature and portrait, and loves waterfalls and wild life.

Kim Knight – Sphere of Sol and of Leaders & Organizers

Kim Knight (Soror Aletheia Mnemonicas) is an initiate originally hailing from the back woods of Montana. She moved to Portland, OR and took her Minerval in April of 1999. She is a very active member and officer at Sekhet-Maat Lodge, serving as an Ordained Priestess and Deputy Lodge Master. Kim is also a member of the Committee of Four of Psyche-Eros Rose Croix Chapter. She has been initiating at Sekhet-Maat Lodge since 2002, works very closely with the Initiation Officer Training program, and heads up the Initiator Training programs there.

Miss Kim serves U.S.G.L. as the Chair of the National Conference Committee and as the Initiator Trainer Coordinator and Certified Initiator Trainer. She recently graduated with a Masters degree in Chinese Medicine at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine after a long path of health services including dentistry and Homebirth Midwifery and has recently opened her acupuncture clinic in Northeast Portland, Tensegrity Health Acupuncture. She has found nothing more fulfilling and beautiful than her local body, its temple, and the initiates that inhabit it and lives with her partner Geoff and their Fire Eating Dog, Miss Pig.

Soror Lutea – Sphere of Venus, and “The Venusian View:  Lessons of Love Goddesses”

Sister Lita-Luise Chappell, a member since 1991, is Master of Golden Lotus Oasis. She is an EGC Priestess, a Bishop - Tau Luisa, a member of the Grand Tribunal, and operates Thelema Media, the publishing branch of O.T.O. She is a member of the Psychology Guild and the Pastoral Counseling team. She has also spoken at NOTOCON, at Kaaba Colloquium and the 2006 Women's Symposium. She is a member of Proserpente Chapter in Orange County and of Babalon Chapter in Los Angeles County. Her education background includes a M.A. in Psychology with an emphasis in Health Education from the University for Humanistic Studies, San Diego. She is certified as a Mind-Body Hypnotherapist and a Neuro-Linguistics Practitioner. She is a certified Sex Educator, a certified Sexologist, a certified Erotologist and Erotological appraiser, and operates Erotic Heritage Tours. She has her Doctorate in Human Sexuality from the Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Sexuality, San Francisco; and is now in private practice as a sex counselor in Orange County, California. She lives with her husband Brother Vere Chappell, Frater S.L.Q., and their two cats in Laguna Hills, California.

Sister Marlene – Sphere of Mars and of Warriors & Revolutionaries

Marlene Cornelius joined O.T.O. in 1986, and has served as an officer of many local bodies during her tenure in the Order. She co-founded Red Flame, a Thelemic Journal, in 1993, and has published thirteen volumes at this time. She is a chartered Initiator for over seventeen years, an ordained Priestess for fourteen, and is the High Priestess of Alpha Chapter Rose Croix. Marlene has been an initiate of the A.'.A.'. for over eighteen years. Although her focus is in solitary Work, she has written and performed in many group rituals. She considers herself primarily as a ceremonial magician with mystic tendencies.

 

Michael Kolson - “Babalon and the Beast:  The Rise and Fall of Leah Hirsig”

Michael Kolson has been studying Thelema, and the Occult generally for the past 20 years and has been a member of O.T.O. since 1993. He took his Minerval in Buffalo N.Y. at Pyramid Lodge and is currently a member of Horizon Oasis, Seattle WA. In addition to being an ardent Student of our Mysteries generally, he is particularly and currently interested in the work of Crowley's students, and has been working to publish a series of diaries from early A.'.A.'. and O.T.O. members.

Nancy Wasserman – Sphere of Luna and of Priestesses

Nancy Wasserman has been a life-long student of the esoteric sciences.  In 1985, she joined Ordo Templi Orientis and became actively involved with Tahuti Lodge, becoming a chartered initiator in 1989.  Nancy was also the first woman in history to complete an eleven year commitment to the Electoral College. She remains active within O.T.O., involved in Grand Lodge activities and E.G.C. duties as well participating in the Electoral College Mentors program. She is a devoted E.G.C. Bishop and remains an enthusiastic priestess and initiator. Her artwork and essays have been included in various publications both within and without the Order. Her first full-length book, entitled The Weiser Concise Guide to Yoga for Magicians, was released in February 2007.

Vere Chappell – “Kumari:  Nepal’s Living Goddess”

Vere Chappell (Frater SLQ) began studying and practicing magick over twenty years ago, and joined O.T.O. in 1989.  Shortly thereafter, he founded LVX Camp in Los Angeles (which eventually became LVX Lodge) and served as its master for eight years.  In 1997 he was appointed Grand Treasurer General for US Grand Lodge, a post he held until 2005 when he succeeded Bill Heidrick as Treasurer General for O.T.O. worldwide.  He continues to serve U.S. Grand Lodge as a Sovereign Grand Inspector General and member of the Education, Finance, and Strategic Planning committees, and as Most Wise Sovereign of Babalon Chapter in Los Angeles.  He is chartered to initiate through the KRE degree and has conducted numerous initiations over the last decade.  He is also a Bishop of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica and celebrates the Gnostic Mass monthly.

Outside of O.T.O., Mr. Chappell is a financial advisor and appraiser specializing in erotic art.  He has a Master's degree in Business Administration and a Doctoral degree in Human Sexuality.  His interests include photography, history, religion, and esoteric sexuality.  He has traveled extensively throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, including research trips to Greece, Turkey, Israel, Egypt, Thailand, and Nepal.  Mr. Chappell lives in Southern California with his lovely wife and priestess, Lita-Luise, and their two feline familiars.