The Binge Crimes: Lady Mafia - Introducing... Witnessed: Mystic Mother

Episode Date: August 23, 2022

For years, the Phoenix Goddess Temple claimed to offer “seekers” healing through sensual touch. But when an outsider exposes what’s happening behind closed doors, the temple unknowingly welcomes in a new kind of seeker—undercover detectives. What some saw as a spiritual home, the state saw as a brothel operating under the guise of religious freedom.  So what happens when your beliefs might be against the law? Hosts Katie and Leah Henoch follow the rise and fall of the Phoenix Goddess Temple and tell the story of a community still reckoning with the fallout more than a decade later. Available September 6, 2022, wherever you get your podcasts. Witnessed: Mystic Mother is part of The Binge—a new podcast channel from Sony Music Entertainment.  Subscribe  now to unlock all shows on The Binge - All Episodes. All at Once... and you’ll be the first to access Mystic Mother as soon as it drops on September 6, 2022. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I am the mystic mother of the Phoenix Goddess Temple. This is Tracy Elise. Tracy believes in the feminine aspect of God, the goddess. She also believes in the sacred power of sex. Sexuality can be improved. It can be sacred. It can be a pathway for your soul's growth and connection to the greater nature of reality.

A lot of people grow up learning that God is masculine and that sex is private, secret, sometimes shameful. So Tracy's beliefs can seem radical. For the first time in my life, I'm being told, by being a woman, you have your own power and you're more powerful than you ever knew. The temple was a spiritual home, with community events, Sunday services, and healing sessions. It was also a refuge for people dealing with trauma, abuse, and instability.

For three years, the temple grew. And Tracy's goal was to keep expanding. I felt like we were all in a boat together and trying to build something greater than ourselves. But one day, it all came crashing down. I heard, bam, bam, bam, open up, police. Can you hear me? By fall of 2011, the Phoenix police have been investigating the temple for months.

All right, we're recording. They send in undercover detectives with hidden recording devices. I told her that I would like to put my chakra in her vashakra. She said, yes, I could put my chakra in her vashakra. As she said yes, I could put my chakra in her vashakra. The police and the county attorney claimed that the Phoenix Goddess Temple was actually a brothel. This was no more a church than Cuba is Fantasy Island.

If it walks like a duck, wax like a duck, and swims like a duck, it's probably a duck. Nearly three dozen people were indicted on felony charges, including prostitution, money laundering, and conspiracy. The fallout was devastating. It shattered friendships, separated families, and divided the community. I was sad for Tracy in a way, but then it would go back to,

well, she lied to me. And a lot of people were angry, at the state and at Tracy. Tracy said the state was infringing on her First Amendment right to religious freedom, and she would risk decades in prison to defend her beliefs in court. I don't even understand why they're trying to shut my religion down. We've never been a harm to society. We've only served to help. I will pursue this to the Supreme Court. I will do it if I'm in prison.

I will do it if I'm out. This is a story about sex, religion, and power. And it raises a lot of questions. Who gets to decide what is or isn't a religion? Why is sex work still criminalized? Who does the law actually serve? And when does it do more harm than good? If an adult wants to become a sex worker,

that should not be a crime. A woman can't be building up another woman and offering her into prostitution. People tend to look at things in black and white, but it's almost never black and white. I'm Katie Hennick. I'm Leah Hennick. And from Campside Media and Sony Music Entertainment,

this is Mystic Mother, season three of Witnessed. Coming September 6th. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts to binge all episodes or listen weekly wherever you get your podcasts. It's kind of like the coming of Christ in Christianity. The goddess temple will rise again. you