Shaman conference/Alan Shoemaker/Soga de Alma

[OneWorldOneTribe]

Came across this on Facebook while researching religious links...didn't find anything here with search feature.

Alan Shoemaker, www.soga-del-alma.org , / www.chinchilejo-tours.com

His bio http://www.soga-del-alma.org/featuring/presenters-a-speakers/alan-shoemaker.html

Thoughts anyone?

[Lodro]

It all revolves around Ayahuasca

[educatedindian]

It's not a conference at all as most people understand a conference to be. It's not a meeting of academics, nor of Native traditionalists. It's a couple days of pay to pray. They advertise it on the net so dabblers and curious people and spiritual tourist types can come there with the guarantee of getting to take ayahuasca.

Shoemaker is basically someone who believes in using the drug for his own (and other whites) enlightenment, but also wants to have a successful business. He's charged with trying to smuggle the drug to another country and there's a legal defense fund set up for him, but I have no sympathy for him. Trying to peddle it outside the communities is a formula for disaster, completely stripping it of its cultural context, and is even worse than peddling it to tourists.

The pay to pray "conference" speakers don't seem to even be made up of so called "shamans." It's all outsiders, European or white American dabblers or advocates. Most of them are not in academia, only one is. But the one name I do recognize is a white practicer of voodoo, Ross Heaven, whose in threads here already.

They do have a listing for curanderos, some of whom, again, are white dabblers, including one who reminds me of a white boy scout leader dressed up to play Indian. Some of the locals seem way too young to be the healers they claim to be.

[educatedindian]

Taking a closer look at the conference speakers confirms my concerns.

Shoemaker- dabbler and peddler or spiritual tourism, would be leader of what they claim is a church

Peter Gorman- journalist

Howard Charing- says he is a director of Eagle's Wing, which is a fraud outfit in England founded by the late exploiter Leo Rutherford.

Dennis McKenna- brother of the late Terence McKenna, a drug use advocate and numerology quack behind much of the 2012 nonsense. Dennis actually brags of the work done with his brother. He is a pharmacologist, and seems to be using his academic credentials to legitmize his brother's work.

Richard Grossman- acupuncture, but dabbles in just about everything. His bio on the site describes how he became such a fanatic vegetarian he almost starved himself to death.
"...studied Asian philosophy, martial arts, massage, macrobiotics, juice fasting, yoga, aikido and herbal medicine." Outside of the last, no idea why anyone would think anything else he's studied would make him an expert on ayahuasca.

Andres Ostepenko- "Visual artist"? WTH is he being presented as an expert?

Richard Fowler- "famous Amazon adventure explorer, ex Army Airborne Ranger." His sole claim to expertise is having licked frogs for the drugs on them.  
Seriously! And the silly looking paint on his face doesn't inspire confidence.

"The Teafaerie"- Yes, that is the actual name she goes by. The photo of her is amusing...
"At various times she has been a writer, nanny, actress, childbirth doula, homeless person, live-action storyteller, toy inventor, street performer, and party promoter."
Oh brother. That makes two complete flakes whose sole seeming expertise is liking to get high.

Isabella Stoloff- "Trained by Dr. Alberto Villoldo and The Four Winds Society"
IOW, a franchisee of a fraud.

Wendy Luckey- another mix and match type making the unlikely claim of being an expert in many traditions.
"Her background combines wisdom gained over many years of study, with elders in different traditions, including Native American, African, Celtic, and Dreamtime.....don Augustin Rivas Vasquez....ayahuasquera Maria Cristina Mendoza Vidal, and curandero don Theo Paredes, considered a master of plant medicines, and others that are less well known."

It's really disturbing when the least dubious person at the conference is Terence McKenna's brother...

Looking at the "curanderos" it's obvious some of them are not. One of them, Adela Navas, is a 73 year old white woman who says she has been working as a healer for 11 years. I've never heard of any healer waiting so late to begin learning. It seems likely to me that she, just like many Europeans and white Americans, probably began learning late in life from dubious people, and is now spreading that misinformation herself.

Another claims descent from the Chavin civlization. They've been gone over 2000 years.

[OneWorldOneTribe]

Guessing that this will be moved to the "Fraud" section then...

[shoemaker]

[Seven childish insults in a row removed.]
You should be sued. But I"ll let it go.
The Shamanism Conferences have invited Presenters from around the World, specialists in their fields. The Shamans that are invited are some of the finest in the Upper Amazon and Andes.
www.soga-del-alma.org

check it out. it's for next July.

all the good things,
alan shoemaker

[educatedindian]

Nice to see Mr. Shoemaker's pseudo spiritual front removed, exposing a childish, petty, and vindictive man caring less about truth or enlightenment than with making a profit.

I issue this challenge to you Mr. Shoemaker. Name even one inaccuracy in anything I've said.

You could not successfully sue for the simple reason a judge would throw the claim out. Truth is an absolute defense against libel. What I have said is the truth. You have a collection of flakes and some obvious frauds at your ceremony selling for spiritual tourists. It does not represent indigenous people, and neither do you.

Obviously you fear us harming your profit margin. (And yes, seemingly you do make quite a bit off your spiritual tourist business, or you wouldn't have the means to threaten a suit.)

[shoemaker]

[Yet another childish insult]

You don't know me.

You're wrong about most everything you wrote.

You should find something to keep busy with.

Good luck.

[educatedindian]

Very mature and super spirchul

I'm kept pretty busy, what with being a professor teaching six classes and upwards of 150 students a semester, writing history, being happily married...and the research I do debunking down exploiters like yourself. It takes quite a lot more work than hustling tourists that confuse getting high with being enlightened.

Oh yes, flakes who claim to be faeries, lick toads, or even claim to be Chavin when the Chavin were gone 2000 years ago, they hold the moral high ground.

[labbit]

I know this is an old topic, but it's sad to see such bias on both sides rather than an attempt toward mutual understanding.

Educatedindian, you seem overly anxious to dismiss and condemn. For example, Adela has not worked as a healer for only 11 years—she started her training as a healer at age 11. And regarding Wendy Luckey, you are plain wrong in your summation and dismissal of her and frankly shouldn't judge based on Shoemaker's description rather than actually knowing this person.

[Defend the Sacred]

labbit, please go to the member introductions area and introduce yourself. I suggest you then read the sections marked for the attention of new members. I think you need to know a bit more about our community here before you will understand why we say the things we say about the people reported here. Thanks.

[labbit]

Thanks, reading some of those threads now.

[earthw7]

As a Native woman we are taught that a woman does not not as a holy person until
after she goes though Menspause so if a young woman is claiming she was taught
at a youngb age then I would know right away it was a lie

[labbit]

labbit, please go to the member introductions area and introduce yourself. I suggest you then read the sections marked for the attention of new members. I think you need to know a bit more about our community here before you will understand why we say the things we say about the people reported here. Thanks.

Done. Having done so, I stand by my post. I think I have a sufficient understanding of this site and its purpose. I also think some of the comments from educatedindian clearly violate the agreement outlined in the Disclaimer post.

I support the mission and spirit of this site... what I don't support is taking it so far that rather than ameliorating harm, new harm is caused. I consider harming the reputation of authentic healers who live lives of service to be stepping over the line.

As a Native woman we are taught that a woman does not not as a holy person until
after she goes though Menspause so if a young woman is claiming she was taught
at a youngb age then I would know right away it was a lie

o.O Because there's only one thing called Native, and it's all the same? Isn't that kind of conflation and flattening of different cultures into one stereotype exactly the kind of attitude westerners typically take toward indigenous peoples, and exactly the kind of thing this site is here to oppose?

[educatedindian]

Nothing even remotely libelous nor abusive in anything I said. Criticism is not libel, and neither is it abuse. Shoemaker coming in here and ranting like a 10 year old angry that the teacher stopped him from misbehaving certainly is abusive. I would not trust such a man to take care of a goldfish, much less be involved with healing people. And there's no evidence he has helped anyone (except for adding to his own wallet), he flat out refused to provide any.

You claim to support our efforts, but your judgement leaves a lot to be desired. You seriously think licking toads is enough to make one a genuine healer? Or being a numerology quack? Or even being a "teafairie" who likes to party?

Shoemaker's immaturity is itself enough to mark him as not fit to be a healer, not mention his profit motive.

And while there is not one thing called Native, there certainly is one thing called common sense. I call BS on that "healer's" claims too.

Come on, would you believe an 11 year old could be a doctor, or studying to be one? How many 11 year olds would you trust to go to medical school? Or studying to be a surgeon or pharmacist? I wouldn't trust an 11 year old with aspirin, much less ayahuasca.

So if a white businessman comes down to the Amazon and slaps claims of being shamanic or pseudo Native trappings on it and you'll apparently believe almost anything he says.

Seemingly the only thing you seem to have trouble believing is that Natives know Native traditions, since you're rather arrogantly lecturing us on what is real and what isn't

It seems you read some of our site, but haven't learned good judgement yet.