Glossary - exWitch Australia (formerly 'Born Again Pagan')

REGARDIE, Francis Israel (1907-1985)

An English-born but Americanized occultist who, in 1928 on a visit to Paris, became the unpaid secretary and companion of Aleister Crowley. The association continued until 1932 when the two parted company. Regardie was with Crowley during the period of the latter's marriage to a Nicaraguan High Priestess of Voodoo, Maria Teresa de Miramar, an era which also saw the publication of Magick: In Theory and Practice (1929) and Crowley's expulsion from France to England. Through Crowley's influence, Regardie also managed to obtain entry to British soil.

Crowley's influence is apparent in Regardie's most notable published works, his guide to practical occultism: The Tree of Life (1932) and its companion volume The Garden of Pomegranates.

He became an initiate of Stella Matutina in 1934 and rose through its grades but left the Order having become disillusioned with what he saw as a state of decay and demoralization. He gained a notoriety when he elected to publish the occult teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, thus breaking his vows of secrecy and ensuring the effective demise of both Stella Matutina and Alpha et Omega, the splinter organizations that had arisen from Golden Dawn.

PLEASE NOTE:
One of the major problems with 'defining' Paganism and/or its beliefs and practices is that it is an 'organic' movement, in that it is undergoing constant change and re-evaluation from within, and as such any 'one-size-fits-all' approach to understanding Paganism will be found wanting.

Due to the very 'organic' nature of Paganism, and the many differing Paths and Traditions within it, in many cases no one definition may be universally accepted by all Pagans. Therefore, where such cases of possible conflicting and/or contradictory meanings of certain terms occur I have endevoured to give not only the generally accepted meaning, but also any major 'variations' in belief and/or practice.

Christians who believe this difference in meaning of certain key terms, beliefs and practices to be unique to Paganism need to remember that such conflicts also arise within the Body of Christ - the Church. Take for instance the differing practices amongst Christians concerning Baptism and the different attitudes towards women in the clergy.

- Jean-Luc