Maerian Morris
Encyclopedia
Maerian Morris is a Neopagan
author, scholar, digital and performance artist, editor, and priestess. She edited Green Egg
Magazine from 1993 to 2001, is a former High Priestess of The Church of All Worlds
, and is the founder of Westernesste
, a modern Neopagan church, and The Sidhevairs, a digital sacred arts and educational virtual world that merges visual, aural, 3D digital, performance and collaborative participatory arts with ritual to explore myth, mythopoeia, folklore
and the creation of new archetypes.
and Ernestine Barrier were both film actors and Broadway performers; her father, Michael Barrier
, was also an actor, and her mother danced with the Lester Horton
Dancers. The theater community of her childhood deeply influenced her later interests in the arts and sacred Drama. Maerian considers he father’s appearances as Lt. DeSalle on Star Trek
, and the family’s friendship with Star Trek screenwriter Gene Coon as being particularly influential on her later interests in myth, fantasy, and science fiction.
Maerian was raised in the Hollywood/L.A. area of California until she left there in her mid-teens. She has four grown children, a son and two daughters, and a step-daughter.
In early 1973, still a teenager, Maerian left home for Laguna Beach with her high school sweetheart to join the remaining satellite members of The Brotherhood of Eternal Love
who were forming “The Travelling Promised Land”, a caravan of busses and other vehicles travelling up the California Coast. Several months later she left the Caravan and moved to the San Francisco Bay area living in Eureka Valley
(The Castro District) from 1973 to 1975. She, her partner, their son and another partner moved to Guatemala where they lived for about 18 months. Shortly after their arrival, they were near the epicenter of the 1976 Guatemala earthquake
. In the wake of this quake Maerian moved to the Mayan Highlands of Guatemala working in disaster relief with CARE (relief agency) until late 1976. Only 18 at the time, and caught up in the social and political turmoil of the mid-seventies in Guatemala and El Salvador, she and her young family had some harrowing experiences and their relationships did not survive the traumas of their time in Central America.
After her experiences in Guatemala, Maerian became interested in cultural anthropology, and upon her return to the U.S. she attended the University of California, Berkeley
where she completed a BA with honors in Cultural Anthropology.
In the late 1980s, while still in Berkeley, Maerian acted as assistant editor of High Frontiers/Reality Hackers magazine (later Mondo 2000
), writing under the pseudonym of Nan C. Druid; moving North around 1990 to Mendocino County, she taught public school there for several years. At about that time Maerian (a long-time "Renaissance Faire" devotee) became a fencing instructor with the Cardiff Rose Fencing Academy, a renaissance reenactment and fencing group based in Northern California.
magazine published by the Church of All Worlds
(CAW), one of the founding organizations of the Neo-Pagan religious movement.
Maerian was employed by the CAW as editor from mid 1993 to late 2001. Believing that the role of editor for CAW demanded a deeper religious dedication to the organization, Maerian undertook religious studies in CAW, first becoming a Scion and later an ordained Priestess (1994). From 2000 to 2001 Maerian served as High Priestess of the Church during a time of significant turmoil for the organization. She chose to step back from active involvement in CAW after the Central Organization left California for Ohio, enacting organizational choices she felt had moved away from her understanding of the Church’s religious paths. Maerian chose not to resign from CAW as a member or Priestess, believing along with other long term and core members of the CAW Clergy that while the corporate entity had moved away from the core ideals of CAW, the spiritual heart remained alive and still beat strongly in many members of its Priesthood and former members. Maerian considers herself to be an inactive member of the CAW Clergy.
Maerian’s academic studies also address historical contexts for gender-atypical roles for women, particularly in medieval France, the Renaissance and the Victorian era. She has published articles on comparative religion and medieval and Victorian studies and has been invited to lecture as an independent scholar on such topics as how fencing and the art of the sword transformed women during the Victorian era as well as on cross-cultural religious approaches to human virtue and ethical behavior.
. A primary aspect of this work is expressed through an exploration of the possibilities of new media and technology and the production of sacred digital and performing arts that communicate Westernesste’s religious ideas through the use of virtual worlds.
In 2009, Maerian and her still fledgling organization moved from Berkeley to Santa Cruz when Maerian was hired to manage the Theater Arts Department at UC Santa Cruz. There she continues her academic studies as an independent scholar. Maerian is a member of the United States Fencing Association
, The National Writers Union
and the National Coalition of Independent Scholars. She continues to be a writer, poet, storyteller, and editor.
Maerian’s primary interests lie in her work as a priestess in Westernesste. What distinguishes Westernesste from its many spiritual relatives is a primary focus upon the exploration and development of modern archetypes and mythopoetic work drawn from the literatures of fantasy, myth, folklore and science fiction. Westernesste currently finds much of its expression through mythopoeic interactions and digital arts in its virtual world property: the islands of the Sidhevairs. Maerian's digital arts and virtual events work is central to this expression.
Westernesste owns five “digital islands” known as The Sidhevairs which serve those people who are interested in the use of virtual worlds to co-create art that fosters respect for cultural and spiritual diversity. The Sidhevairs can be found in the virtual world
grid known as Inworldz. The particular creative focus is the depiction of mythology and fantasy settings that encourage the desire to protect and appreciate nature. The Sidhevairs host virtual events and religious and academic lectures on topics of interest to Westernesste members. Maerian maintains an avatar presence in The Sidhevairs as Maerian Sidhevair, the “Elenarwen” of the Faelf (a new Sidhevair archetype that combines traits of both the Elf and the Faerie). Maerian and Westernesste's members have said that this combination of roles has a resonant effect upon who the Elenarwen is— both Inworld and Out.
Maerian’s virtual world profile as Elenarwen of the Faelf notes that although she pretends to be human some of the time, she must confess to varying levels of success in that effort.
Neopaganism
Neopaganism is an umbrella term used to identify a wide variety of modern religious movements, particularly those influenced by or claiming to be derived from the various pagan beliefs of pre-modern Europe...
author, scholar, digital and performance artist, editor, and priestess. She edited Green Egg
Green Egg
Green Egg is a Neopagan magazine published by the Church of All Worlds from 1968 through 1976 and 1988 through 2000, and restarted in 2007. It was created and edited for most of its existence by Oberon Zell-Ravenheart....
Magazine from 1993 to 2001, is a former High Priestess of The Church of All Worlds
Church of All Worlds
The Church of All Worlds is a neopagan religious group whose stated mission is to evolve a network of information, mythology, and experience that provides a context and stimulus for reawakening Gaia and reuniting her children through tribal community dedicated to responsible stewardship and...
, and is the founder of Westernesste
Westernesste
Westernesste is a modern Neopagan religious and educational organization whose stated mission is to explore, celebrate and contribute to webs of information, mythology and experience; to provide voice to the Divine within and without; to explore pre- and post-monotheistic and earth based religious...
, a modern Neopagan church, and The Sidhevairs, a digital sacred arts and educational virtual world that merges visual, aural, 3D digital, performance and collaborative participatory arts with ritual to explore myth, mythopoeia, folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
and the creation of new archetypes.
Biography
Born Linda Rosemary Barrier in California in 1957, Maerian comes from a long line of theater artists. Her paternal grandparents Edgar BarrierEdgar Barrier
Edgar Barrier was an American actor who appeared on radio, stage, and screen. In the 1930s he was a member of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre and played Simon Templar on The Saint radio show....
and Ernestine Barrier were both film actors and Broadway performers; her father, Michael Barrier
Michael Barrier
Michael Barrier may refer to:*Michael Barrier , American actor*Michael Barrier , animation historian...
, was also an actor, and her mother danced with the Lester Horton
Lester Horton
Lester Horton was an American dancer, choreographer, and teacher.-Early years:Lester Iradell Horton was born in Indianapolis, Indiana on January 23, 1906. His parents were Iradell Horton and Pollyanna Horton....
Dancers. The theater community of her childhood deeply influenced her later interests in the arts and sacred Drama. Maerian considers he father’s appearances as Lt. DeSalle on Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
, and the family’s friendship with Star Trek screenwriter Gene Coon as being particularly influential on her later interests in myth, fantasy, and science fiction.
Maerian was raised in the Hollywood/L.A. area of California until she left there in her mid-teens. She has four grown children, a son and two daughters, and a step-daughter.
In early 1973, still a teenager, Maerian left home for Laguna Beach with her high school sweetheart to join the remaining satellite members of The Brotherhood of Eternal Love
The Brotherhood of Eternal Love
The Brotherhood of Eternal Love was an informal organization of psychedelic drug enthusiasts and dealers that operated in the late 1960s. The group was founded in Laguna Beach, California. The group was headquartered in the Mystic Arts bookstore on Pacific Coast Highway...
who were forming “The Travelling Promised Land”, a caravan of busses and other vehicles travelling up the California Coast. Several months later she left the Caravan and moved to the San Francisco Bay area living in Eureka Valley
Eureka Valley
The name Eureka Valley refers to two distinct places in the U.S. state of California:*Eureka Valley, San Francisco, California, a neighborhood*Eureka Valley , a valley...
(The Castro District) from 1973 to 1975. She, her partner, their son and another partner moved to Guatemala where they lived for about 18 months. Shortly after their arrival, they were near the epicenter of the 1976 Guatemala earthquake
1976 Guatemala earthquake
The 1976 Guatemala earthquake struck on February 4, 1976 at 03:01:43 local time . It was a 7.5 Mw earthquake, centered in the Motagua Fault, about 160 km northeast of Guatemala City, Guatemala...
. In the wake of this quake Maerian moved to the Mayan Highlands of Guatemala working in disaster relief with CARE (relief agency) until late 1976. Only 18 at the time, and caught up in the social and political turmoil of the mid-seventies in Guatemala and El Salvador, she and her young family had some harrowing experiences and their relationships did not survive the traumas of their time in Central America.
After her experiences in Guatemala, Maerian became interested in cultural anthropology, and upon her return to the U.S. she attended the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
where she completed a BA with honors in Cultural Anthropology.
In the late 1980s, while still in Berkeley, Maerian acted as assistant editor of High Frontiers/Reality Hackers magazine (later Mondo 2000
Mondo 2000
Mondo 2000 was a glossy cyberculture magazine published in California during the 1980s and 1990s. It covered cyberpunk topics such as virtual reality and smart drugs. It was a more anarchic and subversive prototype for the later-founded Wired magazine....
), writing under the pseudonym of Nan C. Druid; moving North around 1990 to Mendocino County, she taught public school there for several years. At about that time Maerian (a long-time "Renaissance Faire" devotee) became a fencing instructor with the Cardiff Rose Fencing Academy, a renaissance reenactment and fencing group based in Northern California.
Relationship to the Church of All Worlds
In the early 1990s, Maerian’s experience as an editor led to her hire as editor of Green EggGreen Egg
Green Egg is a Neopagan magazine published by the Church of All Worlds from 1968 through 1976 and 1988 through 2000, and restarted in 2007. It was created and edited for most of its existence by Oberon Zell-Ravenheart....
magazine published by the Church of All Worlds
Church of All Worlds
The Church of All Worlds is a neopagan religious group whose stated mission is to evolve a network of information, mythology, and experience that provides a context and stimulus for reawakening Gaia and reuniting her children through tribal community dedicated to responsible stewardship and...
(CAW), one of the founding organizations of the Neo-Pagan religious movement.
Maerian was employed by the CAW as editor from mid 1993 to late 2001. Believing that the role of editor for CAW demanded a deeper religious dedication to the organization, Maerian undertook religious studies in CAW, first becoming a Scion and later an ordained Priestess (1994). From 2000 to 2001 Maerian served as High Priestess of the Church during a time of significant turmoil for the organization. She chose to step back from active involvement in CAW after the Central Organization left California for Ohio, enacting organizational choices she felt had moved away from her understanding of the Church’s religious paths. Maerian chose not to resign from CAW as a member or Priestess, believing along with other long term and core members of the CAW Clergy that while the corporate entity had moved away from the core ideals of CAW, the spiritual heart remained alive and still beat strongly in many members of its Priesthood and former members. Maerian considers herself to be an inactive member of the CAW Clergy.
Recent work
At the same time that her work as editor of CAW was ending in late 2001, Maerian lost her home in a fire and moved back to the Bay Area taking a job as an administrative analyst at her old alma mater. While employed at UC Berkeley she pursued independent graduate study there in rhetoric, folklore and comparative literature, focused upon the study of Hellenic religion and philosophy as well as medieval French literature particularly as it touched upon Arthurian legends, the Grail myths, and female agency.Maerian’s academic studies also address historical contexts for gender-atypical roles for women, particularly in medieval France, the Renaissance and the Victorian era. She has published articles on comparative religion and medieval and Victorian studies and has been invited to lecture as an independent scholar on such topics as how fencing and the art of the sword transformed women during the Victorian era as well as on cross-cultural religious approaches to human virtue and ethical behavior.
Westernesste and The Sidhevairs
In 2002, Maerian Morris incorporated a former Nest of CAW into a separate new religious organization, Westernesste. Maerian is Westernesste’s founder and its first ordained Priestess. Westernesste shares much in common with CAW, but has a different religious focus that draws extensively upon mythopoetics and the expression of religious concepts through the arts, exploring Earth-centric, animistic, pantheistic religious concepts through cross-cultural myths and their expression as modern sacred arts. A particular focus of Westernesste involves modern explorations of the Eleusinian MysteriesEleusinian Mysteries
The Eleusinian Mysteries were initiation ceremonies held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at Eleusis in ancient Greece. Of all the mysteries celebrated in ancient times, these were held to be the ones of greatest importance...
. A primary aspect of this work is expressed through an exploration of the possibilities of new media and technology and the production of sacred digital and performing arts that communicate Westernesste’s religious ideas through the use of virtual worlds.
In 2009, Maerian and her still fledgling organization moved from Berkeley to Santa Cruz when Maerian was hired to manage the Theater Arts Department at UC Santa Cruz. There she continues her academic studies as an independent scholar. Maerian is a member of the United States Fencing Association
United States Fencing Association
The United States Fencing Association is the national governing body for the sport of fencing in the United States.The USFA was founded in 1891 as the Amateur Fencers League of America by a group of New York fencers seeking independence from the Amateur Athletic Union...
, The National Writers Union
National Writers Union
National Writers Union , founded on November 19, 1981, is the trade union in the United States for freelance and contract writers: journalists, book and short fiction authors, business and technical writers, web content providers, and poets...
and the National Coalition of Independent Scholars. She continues to be a writer, poet, storyteller, and editor.
Maerian’s primary interests lie in her work as a priestess in Westernesste. What distinguishes Westernesste from its many spiritual relatives is a primary focus upon the exploration and development of modern archetypes and mythopoetic work drawn from the literatures of fantasy, myth, folklore and science fiction. Westernesste currently finds much of its expression through mythopoeic interactions and digital arts in its virtual world property: the islands of the Sidhevairs. Maerian's digital arts and virtual events work is central to this expression.
Westernesste owns five “digital islands” known as The Sidhevairs which serve those people who are interested in the use of virtual worlds to co-create art that fosters respect for cultural and spiritual diversity. The Sidhevairs can be found in the virtual world
Virtual world
A virtual world is an online community that takes the form of a computer-based simulated environment through which users can interact with one another and use and create objects. The term has become largely synonymous with interactive 3D virtual environments, where the users take the form of...
grid known as Inworldz. The particular creative focus is the depiction of mythology and fantasy settings that encourage the desire to protect and appreciate nature. The Sidhevairs host virtual events and religious and academic lectures on topics of interest to Westernesste members. Maerian maintains an avatar presence in The Sidhevairs as Maerian Sidhevair, the “Elenarwen” of the Faelf (a new Sidhevair archetype that combines traits of both the Elf and the Faerie). Maerian and Westernesste's members have said that this combination of roles has a resonant effect upon who the Elenarwen is— both Inworld and Out.
Maerian’s virtual world profile as Elenarwen of the Faelf notes that although she pretends to be human some of the time, she must confess to varying levels of success in that effort.