Posted on 11/28/2001 5:56:58 AM PST by Cagey
LEAVENWORTH, Kan. (Reuters) - A Kansas retreat that caters to witches and pagan rituals is fighting for survival amid community talk that naked witches may be weaving magical spells in the moonlight.
The owners of the Gaea Retreat Center, a 168-acre camp west of Kansas City that is home to such annual events as the Gaea Goddess Gathering and a "Heartland Pagan Spiritual event" filed suit on Monday in Leavenworth County District Court after county commissioners effectively put the retreat out of business by denying it a renewal of its land use permit.
"They say they're afraid of us, what we do here, the sound of drums. ... They don't know how lucky they are to have us as their neighbors," caretaker Wanda Roths said. "We're very quiet, very peaceful. There has never been any trouble out here."
The Leavenworth County commissioners denied the renewal for the permit, issued six years ago, in late October after a community petition raised accusations that the retreat fostered public nudity, pedophilia, and illegal drug and alcohol use. Neighbors also expressed concern about devil worship.
The suit claims the commissioners' denial is illegal and unconstitutional, as well as violating laws protecting freedom of religious expression and practice.
Lawyers for the county declined to comment.
The retreat denies any illegal activity, and county officials say there is no evidence of any.
Roths said there are "clothing optional" locations on the retreat grounds, and witches, Wiccans and other pagans do sometimes hold nighttime meetings around bonfires. But the retreat at times also attracts more traditional religious followers, she said.
Gaea, which means "Mother Earth," offers sanctuary to a variety of alternative religions and lifestyles, according to Roths. "We accept anybody," she said.
Before its current incarnation, the sprawling site was a church camp.
What is it that the "blind" are missing in your context?.....;)
Er...uh...no excuse, sir. But when it comes on again, I'll tape it!
THE GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUUUUUUUN!
It still woulda been nice if they'd of had the nekkid pictures to back up the accusation.
I don't think you want that. We concluded earlier that they probably look alot like Al Davis.
Welcome to planet Earth. I suppose you think that you don't have a religion. That is the biggest lie of all.
You're the one who thinks it's okay to classify people who have a different religion than yours as "babies in the street" who you can "rescue" from their misguided views even if it means they "may be mad at" you for doing so. A lot of the people who you think it's okay to rescue against their will are going to resist any such rescuing. And some of your opposite numbers among other religions will believe they should be rescuing you and other other misguided Christians. Naturally you and many other Christians will resist any such rescuing.
Presto! We have a full-scale religious war in progress. Soon lots of people on both sides of the war are dead, including perhaps yourself. But that's okay with you, isn't it? After all, you'll be in Heaven. And the dead victims who foolishly resisted your rescuing (or even worse, tried to "rescue" you) will be in Hell, in spite of your utmost efforts to save them.
I'm sure God will be very pleased with what you accomplished.
Yeah? Well guess what, Astro, you're not in that "Country" yet, you're here on Earth, in North America, in the United States, where the law says butt out. So butt out, okay? Why is it so difficult for you to keep your nose out of other peoples' business? You must secretly enjoy meddling in other peoples' lives, tongue-clucking with all your tisk-tisking buddies. You're nothing but a righteous gossip columnist.
If you reject that testimony, your blood is not on my hands.
That sobbing you hear tonight will be me crying into my pillow over this devastating news. Oh Biblewonk, why hast thou forsaken me??
Don't be dense. The original poster's comments were provided in italics in my post, and biblewonk's hateful statement was provided under it in quotation marks. Quit trying to obfuscate the issue. |
So predictable?.............nothing is more predictable than some liberal spewing his "learned" knowledge regarding the "Word" too funny, Eric..........
I'll ask you directly, yet again................no obfuscations, none of that.............let's be direct, what do you say?
Ironically, I considered quoting that same verse fragment to you, because it appears to be your motto.
Are you aware of its meaning? I wondered if you either don't know or couldn't care less about its context. You seem to thumb your nose at the Word of God. You bring up "the Church" and pontificate about this and that but, when I so much as dare to recount the Creation story to make a point about your merriment toward nudity, I'm twice branded an "ignorant prude."
(Again, considering the source, I thank you.)
When I accuse him of condoning pedophilia, then you can call me hateful. |
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