> Maybe I'm too practical, but, if Thor, Wotan, and Apollo could
> *really* be visited and *really* talked back and provided direct and
> useful benefits (spells, feats, good crops etc.) to large numbers of
> people, it's hard for me to imagine the Judao-Christian-Islamic
> faiths, much more IG-like, ever catching on big-time.
Well, it would be inaccurate to imply that Judaism (and therefore Christianity and Islam) does not have a mystical side to it. Personally I think that the descriptions of theurgy and the progressions of the Kabbalah (going into YHVH's Garden to seek Wisdom) really resemble my idea of heroquests. I assume that Malkioni DO heroquest (please correct me if I am wrong) and that when they do they see things that are a bit like the images that are involved in Kabbalistic literature. I know that Kabbalism and other Neo-Platonic systems satisfied people for quite a long time (I expect they still do for some people).
Slightly off-topic but it would be untrue to imply that there is not this kind of dimension to the "Book" religions.
That being said, perhaps people are happy enough with Solace after death? Lighting Bolts are fine after all but are they the equal of a beatific union with god (Malkion?) for eternity?
-- John Machin (trithemius_at_...) (ICQ 16537985) --------------------------------------------- "But turn from my tongue, o gods, the madness of these men, and from hallowed lips let a pure stream flow." --------------------------------------------- Empedocles: Physics 2(3)
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