Thoughts from an inspiring conference with Dorit Winter
- by Warren Cohen
A hundred Waldorf educators, administrators and parents
came together on November 8-9 to explore spiritual questions in Waldorf
pedagogy. Dorit Winter, the director of
the Bay Area Center for Waldorf Teacher Training, led us with two intensive
keynote lectures:
♦ What
are the esoteric roots of Waldorf education, and how are we nourished by this
source?
♦ How
are these esoteric roots reflected in the Waldorf curriculum?
Dorit dove into these challenging questions with rigour
and led us on a rewarding journey through many of Rudolf Steiner's core
insights into the spiritual nature of the human being. It is in working through
this knowledge of the true spiritual nature of the human being that Waldorf
pedagogy so distinguishes itself from other streams in education. Dorit
reminded us that all of anthroposophy is permeated and is founded upon the fact
that the Christ Impulse plays a central role in human development and equally
in the development of humanity. Christ gives to each person a living imprint of
that which lies in potential for all of humanity, the possibility of becoming
capable of both freedom and unconditional love. This development is not
guaranteed for all people, but may come to fruition through a combination of
hard work and grace.
The Christ Impulse
In Steiner’s lectures to the teachers at the first
Waldorf school, he stated that the Christ is the teacher's teacher. The Christ
inspires the highest self of the teacher to address that which is highest in
the becoming of the child. The Christ Impulse is implicit in most of Steiner's
books and lectures and is often discussed explicitly as well. There simply is
no avoiding the connection between the Christ Impulse (also the Christ Being)
and Waldorf education. But what does he mean by the Christ Impulse? Steiner
employs a great variety of terms to characterize that which lies as a spiritual
archetype for human development, the spiritual ideal towards which human beings
may strive. These include: Christ Impulse, Christ, Christ Being, Representative
of Humanity, Human Archetype, Macrocosm…. These represent the spiritual fount
that has impacted all people regardless of race, religion or belief. In fact,
Steiner describes the spiritual being, Christ, as standing beyond religion
(although claimed and shaped by many) and applying to all peoples.
Nevertheless, this term carries with it a lot of cultural
baggage and can easily be confusing. Rather than hide from this challenge and
possible confusion, it is incumbent upon us as Waldorf educators to penetrate
it with our conscious striving for truth. It is our task to see if actively
working with these insights can inspire a deeper level of pedagogy,
colleagueship and humanity.
Dorit suggested that the best way to get to know the
Christ Being (Impulse) is through observing and interacting with children
before the age of 3 1/2. These young children are learning at a miraculous pace
how to walk, talk and then think. Never again in their lives can humans
assimilate so much wisdom seemingly from thin air. This is because at this age
the highest spiritual wisdom is pouring directly into developing children. They
are wide open and remarkably receptive. Imagine for a moment if a person were
able to learn how to learn again in this way. Imagine what might become
possible. What might the adult equivalent be to learning how to walk, talk and
think?
Living thinking
Dorit encouraged teachers to develop a "living
thinking", a capacity to think that is mobile and can respond to each
individual situation both creatively and responsibly. But, she cautioned that
it is hard work to stay in this active and open in the realm of thinking. It
can at times feel like "ants swarming in your brain." This discomfort
brings with it new possibilities. We cannot solve existing problems with the
same thinking that has led us into them. We must develop new, intuitive,
interconnected thinking that can grow and change with each situation. This in
fact is one of the foremost tasks of Waldorf education: to foster the capacity
for living and compassionate thinking in the students. This is a path of
education that leads children towards wholeness and freedom.
Dorit offered so much more with many well researched
citations. Perhaps it would be best to end this report with the thought that
true self confidence rests upon trust in God. This trust can become an
ever-flowing fount for life and a deep source of modesty:
"Not me, but Christ in me."
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