General David Petraeus – An Archetypal Pattern?

Nov 16
2012

One more time, the archetypal pattern of the extramarital affair has reared its ugly head. Former CIA Chief General David Petraeus, became involved in an affair with his biographer, Army Reserve officer Paula Broadwell. Then Jill Kelley, a Tampa socialite, who apparently had also been flirting with Petraeus, began getting anonymous, threatening letters telling her to stay away from him. Kelley complained to a friend who was an FBI agent. The ripples spread throughout the highest echelons of the FBI and CIA as fears arose that the internal security of the United States had been breached. Emotions ranged from fear to pain to rage to guilt to betrayal to loss of trust. The story is as old as history.

Isn’t it time men and women together started looking honestly and transparently at this recurring pattern? Why does it happen, over and over, to the pain and detriment of wives, husbands, children, families, communities, nations, and the world? Isn’t it time to put this dynamic into the center of a compassionate, safe, thoughtful circle and share our experiences and grief in order to understand the biological and energetic differences between men and women, our differing needs, and the conditioned, historical, societal dynamics that have betrayed and devalued us all?

Recently, I had a conversation with a conscious male friend about the almost uncontrollable biological sex drive young males experience as they approach adulthood. They think about sex at least 50% of the time. They have sex whenever they have the opportunity. They are always looking for opportunity.

This sex drive creates a very territorial, competitive way of interacting with other males. They heckle one another, make fun of one another, verbally abuse one another, and ostracize those who don’t play the game. The jousting, whether conscious or unconscious, is a fight for a steady sexual supply. Women and children become objects, prey, and victims.

Tears flowing, my friend said, “It is so lonely. Women have a sorority based on communication, understanding, collaboration, cooperation, and compassion. Men don’t have a fraternity. The sexual drive forces them to stand alone and fight for power and control.”

Young women rarely think about sex unless they need to offer it as a temporary way to increase their self-esteem or sometimes, as their only way to eat. If they are more fortunate and have higher self-esteem, they wait to be courted by a conscious, respectful, masterful male. He buys them flowers, tells them how beautiful they are, treats them to excellent dinners in fine restaurants, and learns the skills of lovemaking so that the woman desires sexual union as much as the man. It takes money to be able to court a woman. Money is sexual power.

Individual, competing males may ultimately learn to respect the skills and expertise of other males, bond together as a football team, and together compete against other groups of males, (football teams, businesses, nation states, street gangs). The fraternity they form is still based on territory, competition and power. The ultimate need is sexual supply. The bonding far too often takes the form of gang rape, torture, war, and other physical violence.

(to be continued)

4 Responses to “General David Petraeus – An Archetypal Pattern?”

  1. Julie Mac Donald says:

    This dialogue is timely as I have recently been contemplating the topic of ethics and sexuality, and the broader topic of sexuality and spiritual enlightenment. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

  2. Nancy Oakes says:

    We have for centuries been controlled by the Catholic Church and other organizations that distorted the feminine. Even Mary Magdalene, a disciple of Jesus, the one who witnessed his crucifixion, the one Jesus gave the assignment to of bearing the news of his resurrection to the other disciples, which earned her the scriptural commentators: apostolorum apostola-the apostle of the apostles, a title that endured throughout the Middle Ages, was, condemned to the role of nothing more than a prostitute by the Catholic Church. The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) commissioned a revision which came out in 1970, stating Mary Magdalene was a follower of Christ and further she was the first to see him after his resurrection (400 years from the first Council) and the one assigned to tell the other disciples. (Until this day, the church says St. Peter founded the church given the assignment by Jesus)
    (The recent documents from the Nag Hammadi Library, which were left out of the Catholic Bible purposely, show a much different slant on Mary Magdalene and many other women of that time period.)

    But still there are those that will argue Mary Magdalene was Jesus’s wife and
    in that attempt lessens her role again as “The” most important of the early messengers and enlightened masters on our planet. She has had her position denied her from the beginning of her existence by the patriarchal societies including St. Peter who (and it is documented) was jealous of her power and knowledge.

    All of this deceit and manipulation was orchestrated and carefully planned to eliminate the feminine, not just eliminate but eradicate her power, her position as Mother, life giver, as all the goddess including Sophia, Isis, the Black Madonna etc. Not until the Catholic Church Hierarchy falls to its knees, (not the innocent people of the faith) but the truth of who these church fathers are, the darkest side of humanity, will this planet begin to understand how far we have come from the truth of our creation. Not until the balance of the sacred feminine and sacred masculine is established in true balance can we expect anything different from men like Petraeus and the women who give away their power to them. Shame on any woman who would stoop so low as to give her most sacred gift of her sexuality, her true power, to any man just for an advancement or gifts or just to say, “I slept with Petraeus!”

    We hoped that big changes would come to our country, and perhaps even a women would be elected, however we don’t need just a women, we need a WARRIOR who will lead us into the New World. A women who doesn’t give up her feminine to play like a man, a warrior who knows what power she possesses as a nurturer, a giver of life and is not deceived to think that makes her less a warrior but more the warrior! Love to the Light

  3. Suzanne Lewis says:

    Good Morning Janet,
    I absolutely love your inquiry and metaphor discussion on woman, sexuality, patriarchy.

    Can I post it on my online Journal? Also Nancy’s input, well spoken.
    Suzanne the Starrose of Idaho

  4. janet says:

    How kind of you, Suzanne! Of course.

Leave a Reply