Whats Your Views/advice On Joining A Temple Or Similar Group? Options

I want to join a temple or group to help further myself. I am not aware of any officially magic groups since I live in central Ohio, in a medium sized town. However there is a very large free mason temple in my town. But I don't think this is what I am looking for, I met on of the guys that was higher up and spoke to him about it and quite frankly I thought he was an idiot. He knew everything, and seriously I mean everything this man must have obsessive interests in trivial pursuit games and jeopardy ect., however he seemed sort of socially awkward and I stopped taking him seriously once he brought up "star trek" on his own. He also said he was a 33 degree mason which I think he wasn't supposed to say because he leaned in and whispered it to me when I asked. But if anyone has had any positive experiences I would like to know.
There are various Golden Dawn sort of groups that let you join online with "astral initiation" but I am skeptical. So what are your experiences and advice? I would like to join a serious group with similar interests.

This post has been edited by ☞Tomber☜: Aug 13 2010, 06:17 PM

Ohh this is a fascinating topic. I think that it'll start raining bottles of that stuff once we get this started

I really do think you need to have a "system" of magick/occultism (or some such); otherwise, you're just "making it up," and I challenge you to find a SINGLE system that wasn't built on previous systems of religion/magic/spirituality.

I definitely agree with the latter here, and I don't dispute that.

But, every single 'system' is basically made up upon the times we sit down, either get high, or think that we're being touched by angels, and we make up stuff. If I ever actually use ceremonial, all of my tools, the extra slaves, and everything else is completely energetic. I think that hypothetically that's not supposed to be okay? (according to the paradigm?), but it sure as hell works far better than the physical for me.

Lovecraft made up his stuff. Sure, he borrowed plenty of mythological lore, but Harry Potter did too. As did any book that ever mentions stuff. What's wrong with making stuff up?

I've heard some discussion on the "importance" (or irrelevance) of having a teacher or guide. I think a book can be a teacher, if the book is good enough. But a book isn't going to call you on your mistakes, either.

I am confiscating a bottle of Merlot from Satan. There's been a grave miscommunication. Or I think I didn't say something, something along the lines of that. I have a series of handlers that float about teaching me stuff. They more or less facepalmed and groaned when I figured out the solid definition of what magic"K" was.

Most people have the connection to a guide or something, I'm guessing, so I still don't get why would you want a human buffer when you can go straight to the source?