Mystic South

Handsome, brilliant, unconventional and reckless, John Whiteside (Jack) Parsons was so instrumental in establishing the field of rocketry and in founding JPL (the Jet Propulsion Laboratory) that some joke the initials actually stand for Jack Parsons Lab. He was also a Thelemite; Master of Agape Lodge of Ordo Templi Orientis; friend of aspiring writer L. Ron Hubbard; and paramour of counter-cultural artist Cameron, who he met after conducting a series of sex magick rituals to manifest the goddess Babalon. What is less known is that Parsons identified his quest for personal liberation with witchcraft. This talk will introduce Parsons and delve into his writings, including "Manifesto of the Witchcraft," "The Witchcraft," and "Songs for the Witch Woman."