10 Dec Vancouver Council Meeting – Thanksgiving 2012
– 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
No Comments