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Now begins the strangest and most intense part of my "Truth" story.
I have no hesitation is saying that, after our departure from SL in late 2006, we were LED to come back in Spring 2007 because we would be needed there to stand against a pervasive evil. We were not the only ones who were given this task of course. We were only part of a wider mission to overturn a takeover attempt by false "apostles and prophets", and in God's strange and completely unexpected way he used people that we had initially dismissed as hateful opponents of the truth.
Sometimes God wants us to perceive the hypocrisy of the church system: that genuine truth is universal and can therefore be seen by rational beings whether they are in the christian system or not, and conversely --- deception, evil-speaking and arrogance are not exclusive to the secular world outside the Church! In other words, what has the appearance of "good" can be the evil; and the evil can be the "good".
First Conversations
Around April 2007, I happened to drop into Second Life on one of my irregular visits, to pick up my "salary" and bank it. I thought just for once I'd drop in on Truth to see who was around. I popped into the Dokimos Cafe on the Truth Island, and a small group of people were talking. It turned out to be interesting and useful, and I was accepted and treated well.
That was new. I told my husband and in the next few weeks we both started to go back to SL, almost exclusively on Truth. Soon we had a circle of friends who accepted and welcomed us. It was refreshing. Little did we know that the time was building comradeship and strength for the battles ahead.
A stranger had been appearing in our midst almost every day. She was called "Calliope Simon" (at least her avatar was) and she was an oddball.
I had a run-in with her almost immediately, but at the same time - underneath the sarcasm and spitefulness - she showed genuine humour, and tolerance of wisdom. She had an enquiring and quick mind, and was very fast to pick on hypocrisy and stupidity.
She could cut down a fool in a moment, but then applaud a sensible and honest reply, even if she didn't agree with it.Theologically she appeared to have been raised a Jew, but was now into philosophy, and various fringe "wisdom" cults. It appeared to some of us that she came to the Truth sim not just to be objectionable (although she could be mean at times) but to sit and discuss our point of view.What she hated most was hypocrisy and sanctimonious attitudes.
She wouldn't give any houseroom to meaningless trite little christian sayings, but if she encountered somebody who could express their faith in an intelligent way, she was genuinely interested. Over the weeks we came to see her as one of our group, always a little wary of her need to show off, or do something spiteful. But that was (we knew) to stop people becoming too close. To those she trusted, she became almost friendly, and she began to open herself up a little, so we prayed she would eventually see that there WERE some caring intelligent Christians who did not fit her preconceptions about them.
It is a strange fact that much of what happened to us and to Second Life at that time, and to all the Christian sims, hinged around Calliope Simon and her many fake identities. I'm sure that would give her ego an enormous boost, but it's a fact that now cannot be denied. Whether or not you feel that is a "good" thing is perhaps beside the point.
To understand the nature of our banter, exchanges, arguments and conversations, you'd need to see the many transcripts of our conversations. They were often hilarious, witty, piercing and wise.
Making no secret of her disgust at organised religion in general and Christiaity in particular, Callie also befriended many of us on Truth and was genuinely loyal to those who respected her, and defensive of her friends. She was a difficult person to like, but if you made the effort, you were rewarded with brief glimpses of her tenderness.
Above all she tried to keep her "weakness" and need hidden, under a facade of brash, brittle sarcasm and her avatar filled with symbols of pain and death. Yet, in the times we spent together on Truth, we danced, joked, shared stupid little fun fights and cartoon avatars, as well as combatting the abusive visitors who came to make trouble.
Here you can see on Truth sim "Calliope Simon" in one of her many alts, with her close friends MorelloCherry Raymaker and Isobel Hocken.Establishing the Parameters
The lines began to be drawn almost as soon as we met. Some people would stand for no nonsense, some were only out for a laugh. Some were sound, experienced and mature Christians who could give and take; some were flighty and incapable of the slightest discernment and either overreacted, or took offense, or ran away. This covered most of the Christians there, but also an assortment of others joined in - cross-dressers, religious nuts of various types, interested friends, agitators looking for trouble, pathetic losers who wanted attention, and the out-and-out griefers. It became, over time, easy to spot somebody who was coming to Truth simple to cause trouble and be offensive, or someone who came in an antagonistic frame of mind but who was prepared to listen and discuss things - to a point. We tried hard to make a distinction between these, BUT, it wasn't always supported by others or the staff.
Callie's Attitude
In Calliope's case, she came to the sim every day and delighted in offending everyone there, but to those who interracted with her day by day it became obvious that she was standing up for the genuine Christians and loathed the pretenders and the supercilious. In her way, she admired those who answered her back. She even began to defend them. Certainly, she became not just a regular visitor, but a funny and witty conversationalist. A kind of grudging acceptance and fondness grew up...and Calliope knew it, although it would have been the very LAST thing she'd ever admit.
When straight-laced religious types dropped by, thinking they could "take the floor" and astonish us all with their abilities, it was Callie who cut them down to size - and often used one of her arsenal of "weapons" against them...these included enclosing them in a can of "Spam", hovering them in the air, or setting them on fire. If they wouldn't stop spouting, she ejected them off the sim - and although she could be cruel and disruptive, she could also be useful too, in doing or saying what we could not.Needless to say, nobody got "hurt" with these weapons, but feelings ran high and the stuffed shirts started to complain to the management. Before long, Callie was being ejected herself, and California Condor started his campaign against her.
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