Dispute Over Claims of "Lost" Book

Comments

December 4, 2008 at 1:25 pm

(1) Steven L. Akins says:

Since the publication of my translation of the Lebor Feasa Runda, there have been innumerable blogs posted on the internet by various talking heads and spin doctors seeking to acquire some notoriety by perpetuating assorted half-truths and other misinformation in regard to what the Lebor Feasa Runda actually is, what it says, and my own agenda in publishing it. In nearly every case, these defamatory remarks and accusations have been completely based on hearsay, rumors, and other third-hand information, with no attempt on the part of those spreading these uninformed allegations to actually take the book in hand, read it, and see exactly what it is and has to say. Many of those seeking to condemn the Lebor Feasa Runda, such as Erynn Rowan Laurie (author of Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom), C. Lee Vermeers (co-author of The CR FAQ), and Phillip A. Bernhardt-House (The Phillupic Hymns) are authors themselves (albeit far left-leaning ones), who have published their own books pertaining to Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism and no doubt see the book that I have published as a competing title which may stand in the way of selling their own books and promoting their own agendas (which are notably characterized by feminism, multiculturalism, and alternative sexuality). Thus as a right-leaning conservative Pagan author who has no interest in promoting these causes, it comes as little surprise that those who embrace such philosophies should resort to hysterics and irrational rhetoric as a means of discouraging the reading public from making up their own minds and judging the validity of my work for themselves in an unprejudiced manner unaffected by outside influences.

One of the main allegations that have been put forth against the Lebor Feasa Runda is that it is somehow racist in nature. Let me assure any potential readers that nothing in the Lebor Feasa Runda could in any way be characterized as being racist in either tone or content. The book contains a number of old Irish sagas pertaining to the Celtic gods, the Celts themselves, and outlines the means by which the Celts interacted with their gods in a religious manner. Nothing in the text pertains to other races or ethnicities, nor offers any judgment as to the inherent qualities or character of any cultural group or nationality outside of Ireland. As an individual whose own ethnicity and heritage stems from that culture, my interest in it, it’s spirituality, traditions, and native literature should be apparent.

Another criticism that has been put forth against my work is that it was never submitted to peer review. As an independent scholar, it has never been my duty or my obligation to have any of my work vetted through an academic review process. Furthermore I intentionally avoided this as a means of protecting the privacy of living individuals related to the German author of the transcription of the Lebor Feasa Runda which I have translated, as it was their wish to retain their rights to privacy in the interest of their own personal involvements and associations which have no bearing on the work itself. For this reason I have not sought to publish the original German transcription of the Lebor Feasa Runda, but have chosen instead to make my own English translation of it available to readers who may find its contents to be of interest and use in pursuing their own spiritual path toward enlightenment. I have made every effort to render an accurate translation of the material presented to me, and have purposely done so in a style and manner that I feel is befitting a religious text of what I believe to be of great antiquity. Those who disagree are free to do so, but the text should be allowed to stand on its own merits, and the right to accept or reject it should rest with the individual reader, and not with those whose own self-serving interests are tied to discouraging its intended audience from arriving at their own opinion of it.

Steven L. Akins