ARTICLES

Toward a Techno Rave Future?

HEALING EVERY CELL

By Joe Marti

Toward the entrance to the Historic Sweets Ballroom in downtown Oakland, I was greeted by Israel -- a man in his twenties hailing from "el mundo," Spanish for 'the world'. He beckoned me inside, handing me a flyer promoting the festivities underway upstairs. When I inquired about the golden Miraculous Medal he wore on his neck, he told me that it represented the goddess he worships, Morgaine. She had formerly been called Morgan le Fay, who careful students will recall as a witch in the Arthurian legends.

I was here this Sunday night (September 26) to attend the 'Techno Cosmic Mass: Body as Sacred', presided over by controversial theologian Matthew Fox. The defrocked Dominican who was silenced by the Vatican in 1988 is president and founder of the University of Creation Spirituality located in Oakland. The program, a neo-pagan religion with a twist of New Age and pseudo-Catholicism, has been operating since 1977, first in Chicago and now in the East Bay. According to official literature, the program is "designed to bring the artist, the mystic, and the prophet out of every student through courses which tap into both the rational and the intuitive dimensions of the human psyche."

According to the program, "The Techno Cosmic Mass, rooted in Western liturgical tradition, integrates ecstatic music and dance, urban shamanism, multimedia imagery, and Eastern and indigenous spiritual elements to create a multi-cultural, intergenerational and ecumenical form of worship." Techno Cosmic Mass does not claim to be a Catholic Mass. Fox himself has put up his shingle in the Episcopal church since 1993, when he was expelled from the Dominican order. This fact does not prevent ex-priests such as Fox from performing a valid Mass. I was struck by Fox's use of symbolism. A tree/altar in the center of the ballroom floor served as focal point, with around 150 souls sitting and encircling the tree (reminding me of the architecture of many modern Catholic churches). A woman's wordless vocal exercise wafted through the speakers. Another woman urged all of us to lie on the floor and touch ourselves in what in what she called a "soothing experience." She said, "Place your hand on your body in a way that is comfortable." (I decided to sit this one out.) While this soothing took place, images began to appear on screens at the four corners of the room: a screaming face, a yak giving birth, a woman being slapped, a child crying.

At one point, a slide of an African fertility goddess was projected onto the screen. I wondered if it could be an expression of a pro-life position on abortion. Next we were instructed to touch the floor and heal the earth with our rejuvenated "power". As the people touched the floor, they were urged to call out the part of the earth that they felt was in most need of their healing. Murmuring followed. A woman's voice pierced the darkness, lending power to her cause,"Frogs!" she cried. In the next phase of the service there were two notable instructions. "Rise up and place your hand on your heart," said the oratress, "now reach out to another person and touch them. There was a brief scuffling as several people hurried to touch a young blonde woman who was wearing a bikini top.

After the touching, Fox moved to the consecration. He didn't say the words according to the Missae Romanum, but a tuneless plinking reverberated from the stage, and Fox detailed the first 500 billion years of life on earth, from the Big Bang to our gilled ancestors. Much was made of "healing every cell" and "rejuvenating yourself with light." The blood shed on Calvary not being up to standard, Fox culled together "all other blood and all other waters" into his Jamba Juice of Cosmic Convalescence. He also gave thanks to various historic luminaries, including the White Buffalo Woman, Mohammed, Ghandi, Mary. It was comforting that Fox saw fit to include Jesus as one of the "Great Spirit's many prophets."

After the bread and wine (non-alcoholic was available) communion took place, the techno rave music revved up in celebration. Men pounded primitive drums with bare hands as the throng danced in formless abandon. Behind the silhouette dancing on the sheet before me danced the man with the clothing deficit. He moved as though he was on fire. Indeed, he may have been. The point of all this, it was explained, was to celebrate the communion and render the dancer in a trance-like state. The effect of this was limited because the power kept cutting out in the main ballroom.

Exiting the event, I asked people for their reactions. Almost everyone mentioned "powerful". Someone said, "very tribal, wasn't it?"