There are so many conversations about tolerance these days.  I had thought by 2012 our species would have grown past basic issues of prejudice.  What has happened instead is that our shrinking world has put us face-to-face with people who are different than we are.  For many people, knowing there were different types people in the world was much less unsettling than having to actually acknowledge those people as equals, neighbors, or peers.

Constantly I need to remind myself that here in the US mixed-race marriages only became legal within my lifetime, and women have had the right to vote for less than a century.

Recently, ordained ministers of the United Methodist Church conducted a protest at their General Conference.  They occupied the assemble floor and served communion, wearing rainbow colors, to decry the Conference’s decision to continue a policy of non-inclusion for members of the LBGT community.  It was a protest of which Saul Alinsky himself would have been proud.

Perhaps some people fear tarot because tarot is a reflection of life, and of truth.

Well-placed fear can protect us and keep us alive. Fear of failure, success, change and growth can keep us from living.

When we walk in fear we lose so many opportunities for joy. That may be the ultimate goal of the spiritual journey, no matter what the culture or belief set may be. We all need to learn to walk in faith, rather than in fear.

There is a lot of misunderstanding of tarot in the world. Some of it comes from well-intentioned tarotists.

For once, I am not talking about the Gypsies who use tarot to swindle their clients. We already know they are propagators of misunderstanding. I am referring to smart, spiritual tarot students and practitioners who haven’t yet found the sweetest spot of tarot interpretation and understanding – the Middle Way.

The concept of the Middle Way (or the Middle Path) is Buddhist, although its tenets show up in many philosophical teachings. A secular way to describe it is the happy medium, which is also a great play on words when talking about tarot.

There is a human tendency to believe there are those among us who possess spiritual gifts that are greater than human. Our religious mythology is rife with demi-gods, prophets, saints and gurus.

It is not my intention to argue the divinity of Christ, for instance, nor the enlightenment of Buddha. It is my intention to point out that these archetypes are plentiful throughout history, and in seemingly every culture. For some reason, we humans need examples of humans who have a greater connection with the divine than we seem to.

On the other hand, most religions include the concept of divinity that resides within and around each one of us. The idea is that each of us is divine, and part of a greater spiritual whole. In Christianity, we call this the Holy Spirit. In Wicca we “Draw Down the Moon,” to invoke the Goddess into a human priestess.

For this week’s blog post, I had intended a different topic. Recent events in the news take precedence. There was an article in the Sun-Sentinel about the sentencing of Gypsy psychic Olivia Evans.

First, here is the letter I have written to the Sun-Sentinel. I don’t know if they will publish it, but it contains everything I want to say to the public. Following that, I will give my comments to the metaphysical community in general, and the tarot community in specific.