David William Parry


David William Parry FRSA is a pastor, poet, author, essayist, theologist, TEDx speaker, and dramaturge. He is best known for authoring two collections of poetry, Caliban's Redemption and The Grammar of Witchcraft , as well as a collection of essays, Mount Athos Inside Me: Essays on Religion, Swedenborg and Arts. Many of his works examine the idea that beauty is a bridge to transcendence. Throughout his career, Parry has been an outspoken champion of LGBT rights, pacifism and libertarianism.

Early life

Parry, born on 25 August 1958, in Portsmouth, UK, is the first child of a telegraphist Joan Margaret "Gibbs" Keaveney and a Welsh policeman, William "Bill" Parry. He lived at Blackbrook Road, Fareham, and was educated in Nonigton School and Mile End House School in Portsmouth. He describes himself as a serial truant, who lost faith in the education system very early, when his school teachers ignored the entreaties of the entire class claiming to have seen a 'UFO' in broad daylight. During his childhood, he was fond of reading Roman poetry in Titchfield Abbey and the water meadows, playing in the garden in his grandmother's house, visiting his aunt at Christmas and sneaking downstairs at midnight to catch Father Christmas and open seasonal gifts. Among Parry's ancestors were Sir Hubert Parry, who was an English composer and teacher of Ralph Vaughan Williams.
During his late teens, he became close friends with British anthropologist and Channel 4 presenter, Richard Rudgley. His first job was in a farm as farm labourer. Subsequently, he became a postman and gardener/groundsman in HMS Collingwood and HMS Centurion. Meanwhile, as an appreciator of arts and traditional crafts, he was frequently invited to events across Fareham. In 1978, Parry spent a week in Findhorn Foundation where he met his occult teacher, Jesse Thompson, alongside future friends Sir George Trevelyan, 4th Baronet, and Eileen Caddy.
He later moved to London in the early 1980s and started work in the Registry of Friendly Societies and Building Societies Commission, a Department of HM Treasury, in Great Marlborough Street. He completed his education in King's College London where he gained a bachelor's degree in religious studies. Later, he obtained a master's degree in pastoral theology at Heythrop College, University of London.

Career

Religion and occult

Parry's church career began as a lay minister in the Metropolitan Community Church in Balham in 1987. Unable to recover from the number of HIV/AIDS-related deaths, he left the MCC in 1991 to become a lay Unitarian minister across the South London and South East district until 1998. Subsequently, he was the minister for Coverdale and Ebenezer Congregationalist Church from 1998 until 2000. His activities as a minister were described as "radical and engaging", which attracted packed congregations.
Nonetheless, to continue his search for Christ Consciousness outside the Abrahamic tradition, he became involved in neo-paganism through lectures, public rituals, guided meditation, and ecological activism. He became a "universalist" Heathen godhi and a Gardnerian Wiccan in the process. He has spoken and performed in a number of events including Treadwell's Bookshop, Atlantis Bookshop, Chez Kristof Restaurant, The Devereux for the Secret Chiefs, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Pushkin House, and Hyde Park's Speaker's Corner. Moreover, as part of Allthing, his new transient company following the closure of Gruntlers', Parry convened The London Thing at the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators in 2012. It was an international gathering of heathens, inviting notable speakers from across the world, including David Beth, Richard Rudgley, Freya Aswynn, Annemarie Jensen, Vladimir Wiedemann and Ralph Harrison. In 2013, he co-convened Quest of the Heart at Birkbeck, University of London alongside Dr Minna Koivuniemi, jointly supported by the Philosophical Psychology, Morality and Politics Research Unit from University of Helsinki and the Philosophy Department at Birkbeck. In October 2014, Parry was one of the panelists for the Francis Hutcheson Institute, "Religion – what's the point?" in the House of Lords hosted by Lord Laird.
Parry, nevertheless, returned to Christianity after being ordained a priest and bishop in Italy by Bishop Luca Satori. Two years later, he was recognised as a priest and bishop in the Old Catholic Holy See of Antioch by Patriarch Paul de Burton. Nowadays, he is an independent pastor of St Valentine's Hall, as an authorised emerging oasis community by the Metropolitan Community Church. In this capacity, he has encouraged the emergence of five churches in Africa.

Writing

Parry is the published author of three books. His first book, Caliban's Redemption, is a collection of occult poems that explore Parry's alter-ego, Caliban, from William Shakespeare's The Tempest, as well as his musings on sexuality, seclusion and Shakespeare. By capturing Caliban's metaphysical lyrics moment by moment, Parry slowly confronts himself as a willing prisoner on the magical island of violence and desire. He claims that neither Browning nor Nietzsche had fully grasped the ethics of redemption which can only be found in unadulterated selfhood. The book is currently in talks to be adapted as a theatrical performance, produced and directed by Victor Sobchak in 2021.
Next, Parry published The Grammar of Witchcraft, a collection of mini-sagas and poems that narrate Caliban's final journey from the surreal delights of a lesbian wedding in Liverpool, all the way back to a non-existent city of London. In himself, Parry aimed to resolve lyrical contradictions existing between different levels of consciousness, specifically between reality, the dreaming state and higher consciousness. Subsequently, unnervingly illogical scenarios emerge out of a stream of consciousness wherein bewildering theatrical landscapes actively compete with notions of Anglo-Saxon witchcraft, Radical Traditionalism, and a lack of British authenticity. Each analysis points towards those Jungian Spirits that haunt an ultimately benevolent Archetypal world.
Parry's third book, Mount Athos Inside Me: Essays on Religion, Swedenborg and Arts, is a collection of essays, which emerged after he was invited by :ru:Видеманн,_Владимир_Владимирович|Vladimir Wiedemann to participate as a speaker in three international conferences on "Mount Athos – the Unique Spiritual and Cultural Heritage of Humanity" in Salzburg, Weimar and Belgrade. The three conferences were organised by the World Public Forum under the auspices of “Dialogue of Civilizations. The book comprises eight essays or "Problems" and takes the reader on a journey to the Holy Mountain of Athos, a sacred bastion of Christian Orthodoxy. He examines the symbolism of mountains in the wider context of perennial philosophy, exploring them as a symbol of the spiritual ascent to the divine. He delves into a wide range of topics, including Emanuel Swedenborg, Quakers, European Pagans, literature, theatre, history, and the arts. Dr Bernard Hoose, Emeritus Lecturer in Moral Theology, wrote the preface of the book in 2012.
Throughout his writing career, Parry has published individual essays, poems, satirical pieces, blogs, interviews, news articles in numerous journals including E-International Relations , The European Azerbaijan Society , C. G. Jung Club London, The Oldie, Psychic World, Through The Woods, and Open Central Asian Magazine. As an occasional editor, he has also written prefaces to books by a number of notable Central Asian authors.
Parry was invited to participate as a speaker in TEDxLambeth alongside painter and historian, Haralampi G. Oroschakoff at the Royal Society of Arts in London. Their talk was entitled "a chat on conceptual arts". Parry has since built an international reputation in theatre as a conceptualist.

Theatre

Parry founded his company, Gruntlers' Arts Group, in 2008 as a loosely-connected group of "imagists", staging regular arts and cultural events at The Poetry Café in Covent Garden and Russkiy Mir in Bloomsbury. Gruntlers' featured theatrical productions, literary salons, book launches, and cabarets in the style of Cabaret Voltaire. The events were usually labelled as "Gothic", "surreal", "chilling poetry" or "High Art made accessible". Since its early days, Gruntlers' sought to celebrate little-known creatives from elsewhere to English-speaking audiences. Indeed, in 2010 Parry was sponsored by The European Azerbaijan Society , the Caspian-Khazari Society, and the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan, to introduce British audiences to the work of Mirza Fatali Akhundov with the UK premiere of The Botanist Monsieur Jordan and The Sorcerer-Dervish Mastali Shah. Parry described the production as "making history" as well as representing "continuity from Shakespeare". Additionally, he referred to the strong female characters as well as cross-cultural errors that comprised the story. Thereafter, in the same year, he presented the Azerbaijani poet Imadaddin Nasimi at Pushkin House, London, during a multimedia event. Yet, Parry's first major theatrical production as director and producer was Professor Elchin Efendiyev’s Dadaist Shakespeare: A Comedy in Ten Scenes both Serious and Tragic at the Horse Hospital in 2011. Gruntlers' was brought to an end in 2012.
Nevertheless, following the success of Shakespeare: A Comedy in Ten Scenes both Serious and Tragic, Parry was invited by Efendiyev once again to direct his other play Citizens of Hell, about the tyrannical attitude of Stalin towards Azerbaijan. Parry's role as director was transferred to Nick Pelas, making him a senior producer for the rest of the production. According to Pelas, Parry's vision of the piece was maintained throughout the show. Citizens of Hell was staged in Theatro Technis, Camden, in July 2013.
Subsequently, as part of his new emerging theatrical troupe, Parry founded Theo-Humanist Arts in 2014 and spent the next three years directing as well as producing virtual and private theatrical shows alongside coordinating arts salons in a variety of locations, mainly the foyer of the London Welsh Centre, corridors of Queen Elizabeth Hall and St Peter's Church, Clapham. In 2014, during a brief stint with David Icke's internet TV station, The People's Voice, Parry directed a 10-episode virtual performance, Anglo-Saxon Poetry, performed by Andrew Rea, for Art@The People's Voice. In the same year, Parry was invited by Lord Laird and Dr Roger Prentis to stage his own mini-drama, A Day in the Light, for a private audience about the life and humanitarian work of Albert Schweitzer, performed at the House of Lords following a talk given by Doctors Without Borders. The play could not be filmed or advertised due to the Chatham House Rule. In the following year, Parry wrote and directed a 13-minute mini-drama, Fate’s Good Fortune, about the death, life and moments in purgatory of the former president of Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev.
In 2016, Parry was approached by journalist, Paul Wilson, to direct and produce Shakespeare Tonight, written by Wilson and the Australian comedian and writer, Tim Ferguson. The show welcomed packed audiences and was part of the Camden Fringe and Edinburgh Fringe. Additionally, he acted as creative director for the Anglo-Russian play Cincinnatus based on Vladimir Nabokov's Invitation to a Beheading. Parry terminated Theo-Humanist Arts in 2016.
Parry has similarly acted in a number of plays, as Hatamkhan agha in The Botanist Monsieur Jordan and the Sorcerer-Dervish Mastali Shah, Alfred Hitchcock in Nick Pelas' Hitchcock Homage, and General Ivolgin in Victor Sobchak's adaptation ofThe Idiot. In a documentary that revolved around his life, Caliban's Kingdom, Parry performed as himself, while in 2012, he was the "naked man" in a Christmas-special episode of Him & Her.

Podcast

As an extended branch of Theo-Humanist Arts, Parry co-founded a weekly podcast show called THA Talks with Paul Obertelli in 2014 to create a platform that encouraged "Free Thoughts and Open Minds". As an instant success, the show has invited international influencers, including Freya Aswynn, Professor Raymond Tallis, Richard Rudgley, Cyrus Yavneh, Sölvi Fannar, JP Sears and Special Head. In 2018, however, Parry ceased his role as a regular co-convenor, but has often appeared as a guest.
In January 2020, Parry became a panelist on Leo Lyon Zagami's show, The Pew, alongside Roseanne Barr, Lowell Joseph Gallin and John Barnwell. The Pew was sometimes broadcast on Barr's YouTube channel. The show ended after 13 episodes.
Nowadays, Parry is a regular speaker in Alan Cox's Sunday Morning Spiritual Service on ParaMania Radio, and has also been a guest speaker on TEDxLambeth Conversations Beyond Antinomies, Truth Frequency Radio, The Pure Paranormal Radio Show, Aeon Byte Gnostic Radio, Paranormal Concept and ADX-Files.

Politics

Parry is a life-long libertarian as well as a member and former press officer of the Libertarian Party. He co-founded the Extremist Club with Jez Turner in 2015, which were convened at the Old Coffee House in Soho, London, as a way to bring together extremely-gifted people to discuss politics in the tradition of classical liberalism. Notable speakers have included author and Member of Parliament for Majilis, Mukhtar Shakhanov, writer Anthony Peake, human rights activist Sundus Saqi, philanthropist Jillian Haslam, not to mention Andrew Withers from the Libertarian Party.
Parry has been falsely accused of being a neo-fascist and "prominent right-wing occultist" by a few grass-roots news reporters in UK Indymedia, Circle Ansuz and Hope not hate. The allegations were never proven.
Parry was briefly the cultural officer for the Socialist Motherland Party of the British Isles in 2018.

Central Asia

In 2013, Parry was interviewed by The Guardian about the UK Border Agency's treatment of a Russian-born poet, :ru:Гальпер,_Александр|Alex Galper. Galper was invited by Parry to attend a poetry-recital event in London, a gathering that did not manifest because he was detained and deported due to British visa clampdown at the time. Parry said "I am still hopping mad with anger about it. I wanted to get some Beat poets together and there was a lot of interest. Then I got a call from Alex at the airport and he could not understand what was happening to him".
Parry became the first Chairman of Eurasian Creative Guild in 2012, a non-profit organisation creating networks and ensuring genuine interaction between artists across Central Asia and Europe. In this capacity, he convened ECG as well as Open Eurasia and Central Asia Book Forum and Literature Festival meetings, involving book launches, concerts, poetry evenings, photo exhibitions, round tables, tours, competitions, and presentations about creatives from across Eurasia, alongside Marat Akhmedzhanov, Vice Chairman of ECG. In recognition of his work as a poet and dramaturge, Parry is often invited to Central Asian countries, including Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Indeed, in 2016, he presented a new edition of his book The Grammar of Witchcraft at the National Library of Kazakhstan, the American University of Central Asia in Bishkek, Osh State University in Osh, and as well as Nur-Sultan. When interviewed by the BBC World Service in Kyrgyzstan, he stated "the steady commercialization of the book industry has completely killed people's reading culture". Parry became a member of ECG's Advisory Board, after he stepped down as Chairman in 2015.
As a convenor, Parry curated Yunus Emre Institute's Meet the Author Series in 2018. Speakers included Jonathan Wood, Nigel Humphrey, Michael Dante Alexander Baron, Daniele-Hadi Irandoost, Jillian Haslam and Sonia Poulton.
As an occasional literary editor, he has edited Russian speaking books of prose as well as poetry, including Vera Rich's translation of Belarusian poets, Raushan Burkitbaeva-Nukenova, Zaur Hasanov, Lender Mambetova, Kanybek Imanaliev and Herold Berger amongst others.

Key themes

The primary thrust behind Parry's works is the idea that beautification is a bridge to higher consciousness. As a British surrealist, his overall religious attitude towards life has adopted the form of Conceptualist expression in the arts. For Parry, Conceptualism is the principle methodology, whereby an artist must focus on the meaning of a piece.
His work in theatre is drawn towards Sacred Theatre on both practical and theoretical level, a term he has phrased to denote the significance of looking for the sacred in theatre. His main influences in this regard are Antonin Artaud's Theatre of Cruelty and August Strindberg's Chamber Theatre.
Sexuality, especially homosexual love, is a running theme in Parry's written works.
Parry is noted for his distinct use of prose poetry as a writing style in the entirety of his works.

Critical reception

Parry's first collection of poems, Caliban's Redemption, was described by reviewers as "beautiful", while The London Magazine noted the book was "truly wonderful and fascinating". One reviewer described the collection as "packed full of gems, to be mined by any that have the stomach". Bernard Hoose, for example, said "A quick read of the book could easily cause one to miss this point, mainly because Parry is particularly adept at descriptions of the tenebrous side of life".
Parry's second book, The Grammar of Witchcraft, was similarly received on publication. Iain Sinclair remarked the book was a "A Haunting Conceit". Neil Watson labelled the collection "a uniquely phenomenological study of witchcraft replete with phantasmagorical imagery, transcending ordinary experience in a unique and unforgettable manner". Johan Alstad noted "The great platform of diversity in this work is interspersed by mystical works. Traces can be made to Jung and other Masters manifesting its importance and relevance".
English transgender novelist, Jean Winchester, said Mount Athos Inside Me is "an outstanding book to cherish", and that it is "astonishing both in depth and content". Dr Roger Prentis said, "The endearing and intriguingly-intertwined mixture of the discussion of Mount Athos in a historically broad swathe of literature with theological and personal reflections on life, religions and philosophy makes a compelling read". Also, Shaig Safarov noted "David Parry paints a complex picture involving mythology, folktale, and philosophy, to express the grandeur of his subject, while staying mindful of the potent politics surrounding this treasury of Byzantine creativity". Father Dr Robert McTeigue SJ describes Parry as "a man of extraordinary erudition and artistic sensitivity". Digital Journal called Parry, "a multi-talented man".
Parry's first theatrical production, The Botanist Monsieur Jordan and The Sorcerer-Dervish Mastali Shah, was described as "remarkable" and its performance as "palpable", while the humour retained "its freshness". Dr. Ali Atalar, Chairman of Azerbaijani House in London, said he was “impressed” by every component of this event. Regarding Elchin's play, Jonathan Wood said, "This performance was a true statement of radical intent, with it secret cultural time bomb successfully detonated under the chins of the establishment, showering them with LOVE and the promise of the rebirth of emotional revolution, in dramatic form".

Awards and honours

Books