I.B.M. Member Profile

Lord BlackSword

About Joseph Caulfield

The BlackSwords

Lord BlackSword is a member of, the Society of American Magicians New England Regional Vice President, the President of the Society of American Magicians, Assembly 118, Nashua, New Hampshire, a member of the Inner Circle of Bizarre Magick, the British Society of Mystery Entertainers, and the International Brotherhood of Magicians, Order of Merlin, Shield.

Lady BlackSword is also a member of IBM, ICBM, PSYCRETS, the Treasurer of SAM 118 and the SAM NH State Deputy.

Lord BlackSword is often mistaken for that trial lawyer, family mediator, guardian ad litem, and martial arts teacher, Joseph Caulfield, but he is much handsomer! Lady BlackSword is often mistaken for that systems analyst and quilter, Kathy Caulfield.

Joseph has always kept a foot in both worlds.

He grew up in Boston, but now lives with his wife, Kathy a/k/a Lady BlackSword, on a farm in a small town of about 1700 citizens called Lyndeborough, NH. A town rich in history, it was founded in 1735 by the family of one of the judges who presided over the Salem Witch Trials, and was originally called "Salem Canada". Then in 1792, The Proctors also moved to Lyndeborough. “Witchcraft John” Proctor had been hanged in Salem in 1643. During the late 1800's, Lyndeborough was a resort town for vacationers from Boston, and its ponds supplied a lot of the ice for Boston's refrigeration.

Joseph graduated from Boston Latin School in 1967. Although he came from a line of lawyers, his parents discouraged him from becoming a lawyer, advising him that “lawyers don’t get the respect anymore or the money.” His aunt was a lawyer in the '20s, when most judges would not let her, a woman (!), set foot in "their" courtroom. His father was a well-respected trial attorney, trying jury cases at 80, and his mother, 93, was still practicing law until her stroke. Following their advice, Joseph set out to become a medical doctor, and was awarded the Ford Foundation Regional Award for experiments involving photoluminescence in calcite.

In 1968, he was accepted into the honor’s program at Boston College as a premed chemistry major. However, it was the ‘60s, and Joseph soon switched to a split major of English and comparative religion, and designed and taught a course under the auspices of the English department, called “Seminars on the Occult.” There, he taught students to critically examine various claims of the paranormal, conducted experiments in past life regression hypnosis, visited haunted houses, and attended séances, armed with infrared cameras and various scientific measuring devices.

In 1971, Joseph attended Suffolk Law School where he received the Degree of Juris Doctor Cum Laude.

He began practicing law in downtown Boston, following the family tradition. Joseph also accepted a teaching position at Suffolk Law School in 1975, where he became an Executive Director of Legal Assistance, lecturing in Family Law Practice and Trial Tactics. He taught a clinical course for 3rd year law students, running a legal assistance bureau in Charlestown, representing battered women from the inner city.

During the ‘70s and ‘80s, he taught an integrative system for self awareness based on the teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Aleister Crowley.

In 1990, Joseph was one of the founders of the Skeptical Inquirers of New England, and served as their first Investigations Officer and Legal Officer.

In 1991, having studied martial arts since a child, he became the Founder and Chief Instructor of Black Sword Aikido, which combines Japanese and Chinese fighting arts with meditation, breathing exercises and the study of philosophy. It's a pain-compliance art, with many joint locks, throws, and pins.

Joseph has published and lectured in the areas of law, mediation, comparative religion, martial arts, and magic.

The type of magic The BlackSwords perform is referred to as Bizarre Magic, Theatrical Magic, or Mystery Performing. Whatever it’s called, it is performing magic in a manner that produces a moment of transcendence for your audience and leaves them with something much more than “How’d he do it? Oh yeah, mirrors.”