In 2004 after I left the corporate world I traveled into the Languedoc region of France to write a novel about Mary Magdalene and also about the crusade against the Cathars or Albigensians, the "Pure Ones."
My mother used to tell me that I talked about the Albigensians when I was young and always asked her about them, and about the crusade against them. Therefore, traveling into that region became part of my destiny.
I was also there to research the legends of Mary Magdalene that are profound in the Languedoc and in Provence overall. She is the Patron Saint of Provence. My book, "A Song of Songs: Mary Magdalene Awakes" came out in 2008. I have since pulled the book as I am in a re-write mode to incorporate other elements and characters, like a Female Warrior Archangel.
I lived in Montpellier France for a period of time and because I can speak passable French I was able to gather literature on this crusade and travel through the length of the Languedoc region researching the legends around this event.
This place was very familiar to me, the sad, listing remnants of Templar castles and battlements, the streets worn smooth by passion and infamy. The Catholic Church turned against the Cathars because people were leaving the church is droves to follow them. The Pure Ones believed that there were two gods: the god of evil that ruled the material world, including the church and the God of Love, that one could access directly. There is a lot to be said for this, given the current state of our world.
Of course, the church believed that the teachings of the Cathars have been wiped out, but that is not so. When I was in Montpelier there was a large global conference on the Cathars, and many of the people in the region told me that their teachings had been submerged in folk songs and fairy tales, into the words of the troubadours. They never disappeared at all.
In fact, given that we now live in an age where Gnosis or direct revelation supersedes anything we can find in organized religion I would have to say that the Cathars, and others of like mind and heart, have had the last word.
Light is as perennial as the grass and the seasons, and always wins. It will never be overcome.
My mother used to tell me that I talked about the Albigensians when I was young and always asked her about them, and about the crusade against them. Therefore, traveling into that region became part of my destiny.
I was also there to research the legends of Mary Magdalene that are profound in the Languedoc and in Provence overall. She is the Patron Saint of Provence. My book, "A Song of Songs: Mary Magdalene Awakes" came out in 2008. I have since pulled the book as I am in a re-write mode to incorporate other elements and characters, like a Female Warrior Archangel.
I lived in Montpellier France for a period of time and because I can speak passable French I was able to gather literature on this crusade and travel through the length of the Languedoc region researching the legends around this event.
This place was very familiar to me, the sad, listing remnants of Templar castles and battlements, the streets worn smooth by passion and infamy. The Catholic Church turned against the Cathars because people were leaving the church is droves to follow them. The Pure Ones believed that there were two gods: the god of evil that ruled the material world, including the church and the God of Love, that one could access directly. There is a lot to be said for this, given the current state of our world.
Of course, the church believed that the teachings of the Cathars have been wiped out, but that is not so. When I was in Montpelier there was a large global conference on the Cathars, and many of the people in the region told me that their teachings had been submerged in folk songs and fairy tales, into the words of the troubadours. They never disappeared at all.
In fact, given that we now live in an age where Gnosis or direct revelation supersedes anything we can find in organized religion I would have to say that the Cathars, and others of like mind and heart, have had the last word.
Light is as perennial as the grass and the seasons, and always wins. It will never be overcome.