- by Jean Balekian
Dear Friends,
During the Thanksgiving weekend, from Thursday to
Monday, the Council members and the General Secretary met in Vancouver. We of
course always discuss the administrative issues at hand, but also take
advantage of this time together to deepen our anthroposophical work, which is
at the root of our task.
On Thursday morning, following a round table
discussion of the activities taking place in the various regions, we took up
chapter 12 of The Philosophy of Freedom,
the chapter dealing with moral imagination.
This chapter set the stage for our work to come by leading us from moral
imagination to intuition and ethical individualism, which in turn can lead to performing
truly moral deeds. Our conversation was enlivened by the different viewpoints expressed
and by our gratitude towards Rudolf Steiner for having described this path of
knowledge to us.
This activity, which entailed serious reflection,
carried its fruits into Friday morning’s work concerning our imagination of the
Council itself. We had carried the question of the Council’s task throughout
the year: is it purely an administrative body, or is it an organ of perception
which can allow us to weave bonds among members and make visible the work of
anthroposophy in Canada? This concept of the Council as an organ of perception
requires self-knowledge and knowledge of one’s fellow colleagues, and also
requires that each one be able to perceive his or her individual place on
Council. As we shared our biographies, we felt an emerging sense of warmth and
concern for the others. This feeling accompanied us through a drawing exercise using
pastels led by Dorothy LeBaron, which was in effect a continuation of our
conversation, but this time in forms and colors. The result was an image in
which the various individual viewpoints contributed to make up a dynamic
composition.
As to our
administrative work, we agreed that we would give a new impulse to the
communications aspect in both its printed and electronic forms. We discussed
how these elements could become a space for sharing activities across the
country and for developing a sense of community. We all agreed that it would be essential to
develop a fully functional website for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada that
could serve as a portal of introduction and would contain a link to ENews. The immediacy
of this medium could perhaps best reflect the rapidly developing activity in
Canada. On the other hand, concerning printed publications, Glimpses is undergoing a transformation
and will contain research articles requiring more reflection time on the part
of the reader.
We shared this
intention during our meetings with members in Vancouver and in Duncan. The
communications aspect aroused great interest during these conversations. The
project was seen as both a potential answer to our need to stay informed and as
a help in developing our sense of community.
We carry the warmth of these conversations with us and thank you for
your support.
I join my
colleagues in wishing you a light-filled Advent season.
Jean Balekian
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