History of the Society

In the Michaelmas 1994 issue of Aurore, Bert Chase who had just stepped down from his office as President of the Council, reflects on the history of the Society. He describes an occurrence which took place in 1975, in the 22nd year of the Society’s life.

At that time a representative from British Columbia attended the AGM, held in Toronto, as usual. He carried with him enough proxies from the West to drastically control the outcome of the meeting in favour of members in the West. Bert Chase writes:

“Instead of utilizing the proxies to wield the controlling power entrusted in him, this Vancouver member made the decision to act out of a quite different intention. His decision was based on an experience of the essential humanity of one of the members of the Executive. In that seemingly simple private event, the decision was made to place the sanctity of the individual human being before all the structural, organizational questions which had become so seemingly all important. There was in that moment the silent opening of the heart that enabled the recognition of the other to become the direction-giving force for action.” (Aurore I,1, 1994, p.12-13)

This quiet event more than any other perhaps represents the undercurrent, if not the reality at every moment, of our spiritual growth, struggling to become a more consistent force, as the work of a handful of people in this vastest of countries moves forward.

Canada occupies the larger northern portion of the North American continent, and from the European perspective is often lumped together with the US under the general name “America”.

It is bordered by three oceans and its 3,845,000 square miles are inhabited by about 30,000,000 people, 90% of whom live along the southernmost edge, right next to the people whose culture and economic and political might we fear and yet cling to and emulate, and who know us even less than we know them. Our differences are both subtle and obvious: in social services; in the handling of a multicultural society and the existence of two dominant languages; in a certain “laissez-faire-ism”; in the question of identity; in a certain playfulness in many things; in dealing with our native population; in our international role; our trust in process and engagement, rather than firm positions. The remaining 90% of the landmass, most of which really is a true northern land, is almost uninhabited. Ours is a country of immigrants, though the arrival of many lies several generations in the past. From the beginning till this day they are in an ongoing political though rarely social interaction with the aboriginal population. Over 100 languages are spoken in Toronto which is often called the world’s most multicultural city, and the cultural mosaic in the larger urban centres has changed very quickly in the last 20 years from being largely of European extraction to being over 50% Asian, South Asian or Black, within an Anglo-Saxon framework. There is also the presence of French, the official language of Quebec, and the second official language of the whole country. Politically the country has existed as such only since 1867. Culturally, it is older and has grown out of the people’s relationship to and struggle with the land. As much of one’s life as possible is spent out of doors under the bright light of the sky, and most people have or strive to have a cottage somewhere by one of the thousands of lakes or hidden away in a remote wilderness area. The spiritual background to the forces of the land and sky here have been wonderfully described by Marjorie Spock in an article entitled “North America under a light sky” (Golden Blade 1971, p.111-123)

This country of immigrants who are learning to live with the experience of homelessness and new perspectives on old values nevertheless spends much of its energy on the question of who we are, what constitutes a Canadian, and even though this is not entirely clear, everyone fervently declares that he is indeed Canadian.

Within this background the work of the Anthroposophical Society and its approximately 500 members has evolved and taken shape, slowly finding its own voice.

Its very beginnings go back to 1941, when at Easter the Toronto Branch of the Anthroposophical Society in America was officially founded, characteristically on a farm near Bowmanville east of Toronto. The seven members were recent European and American immigrants: Else Weisheit, President, Stewart Easton, Secretary. Mr. and Mrs. Freund, Dr. Percy Ryber, Isabel Grieve and Harry Sprott.

These people worked and studied together and held public lectures until on May 19, 1953 the Anthroposophical Society in Canada was born. 26 of the 34 founding members were in attendance, and the officers were: Isabel Grieve, President, Else Whitehead (formerly Weisheit), Secretary/Treasurer. Of these founding members three are still with us: Steven Roboz, now in Vancouver, Hans Warner, still on his farm in Muskoka, and George Blumenstock, still in Toronto. These early days were truly pioneering days, and their energy, drive and sense of mission still wafts through our archival documents. In the 1980's and 1990's most of these pioneers and some who joined later passed away, and it is with gratitude and admiration that we connect with them in our hearts and minds, especially during this year of our 50th anniversary. We now have a large host of 134 departed ones who watch and help us from the other side of the threshold, if only we can learn to remain in touch with them.

The attached chronology documents the steps in the 50 years of our work, and the manifestations of this work in the world are given in the Canadian section of the Directory of Initiatives published by the Anthroposophical Society in America. It lists 29 branches and groups, about 24 Waldorf schools and related associations, 3 adult education institutions, some 14 artistic and art therapy initiatives, several medical offices, and associations, 10 farming associations and larger farms, 8 Camphill and other social organizations, several libraries and book dealers, and 17 other retailers and service providers. There are artists, scientists and researchers, musicians, and speech artists, eurythmists, architects and writers, consultants and, of course, many teachers. Much of the literature and information about all these is gathered at the national head office and library which also provides member services, Council support and continuity in its liaison work with the Goetheanum and the corresponding office in the US. The head office also publishes a newsletter for the members.

It is an important historical fact in Canada that from the very beginning to this day, many of the members have a strong connection to the Christian Community, and its first services were held in Toronto in the same year (1953) as the founding of the Society. There are now two churches, one in Toronto and one in Vancouver.

As one reads about or remembers the coming about of all these initiatives and recalls questions people raised, issues they discussed, and articles they wrote, one can detect three phases emerging with their own characteristics. It is, however, also important to acknowledge that not everything that happened was documented and that many a step was taken or supported and many a seed quietly planted in the world or in someone else’s heart unbeknownst to anyone. All these others also contributed to the fabric of what we have achieved so far and what we might yet become.

The first phase in our history then was carried and led by strong individuals from Europe and the US who were fired up by the ideas of anthroposophy. They were purposefully and energetically offering these to the public through regular well attended lectures, while also leading study groups for members. Since these individuals had met each other in Toronto, where also the School of Spiritual Science began its work quite early, this centralizing impulse with these strong individuals as recognized leaders developed quite naturally and membership grew fairly rapidly. AGMs were generally held here. Very soon, and in a similar way, Vancouver became another focal point, with a smaller group working in Winnipeg in the early 50's.  

In hindsight one can marvel that this Toronto Michael Group was not the one who financed or led the financing of the Society’s first home in Toronto - Hill House at 81 Lawton Blvd. The money for it came from the estate of Dr. Bruce Hill in Winnipeg, far in the West!

During these first 15 to 20 years the outreach work relied heavily on speakers from the US and England, and the Goetheanum was truly viewed and experienced as the centre of the work and was visited regularly by council members. Monthly public lectures drew 100 to 120 people, and the thirst for spiritual knowledge was great. A member of the council also travelled across Canada regularly to establish contact and foster a sense of unity. Alan Howard, after his lecture tour across Canada and the US in 1972 noted that many people spoke out of a strong feeling of nostalgia of how things used to be in Europe and at the Goetheanum.

During the middle part of this phase the initiatives began to be formed, first among them the Waldorf schools in Toronto and Vancouver. As the work across the country unfolded, regional differences and distance from each other across this vast land led to a greater wish to decentralize the Council, particularly in the West and in Quebec. The Council had already begun to include representatives from the different regions, and in 1976, after some difficult times, the next step followed and healed the rift to some degree: for the first time the AGM moved away from Toronto and was held in Vancouver.

As the membership became increasingly English-Canadian of older stock and, in the case of Quebec, Francophone with the appearance of French as our other language, the second phase gradually showed its profile.

The energy of the membership was given over more to the initiatives which became strong, especially in the schools and in adult education work. Also, centres in other places were developed and grew till they had their own homes, notably in Vancouver and in Montreal. As this ‘will’ phase became stronger, the question of why one should or might be a member and support something so far away as Switzerland came more frequently. People looked for and found enrichment for their lives in numerous courses offered and looked for and did not always find the transformative results in those professing to be anthroposophists. Membership levelled off at about 500, while the circle of “friends” around the schools and the adult education initiatives, notably the Rudolf Steiner Centre in Toronto, expanded greatly. The perception deepened among many members that this work at the periphery was essential at this stage.

A second motif during this phase was a greater awareness of and turning to the land itself, not only through farming and Camphill villages based on the European models, but also by holding conferences in the country, by describing its topography and geography in our literature, turning to the question of our identity and looking at aspects of our culture and history. In 1989 a concerted effort was made to place the overall contribution of Anthroposophy squarely in our culture, as in their own fields the initiatives were already doing, by staging an extensive exhibit with surrounding conferences and workshops over ten weeks in Canada’s most prestigious public library in Toronto. During this phase also, the voice of the French-speaking Quebec members brought a fresh breath and an impulse to work more artistically and joyfully, and 1989 also saw the founding of the French Branche Jean-le-Baptiste in Montreal.

The strong work of the initiatives on the periphery and the new de-centralizing force of this second phase appeared to create a vacuum in the Society itself, particularly in Toronto. Yet this but set the stage for a chance to examine in our hearts and minds our individual relationship to Rudolf Steiner, to the Society in Canada and worldwide, and to the movement.

Perhaps the most significant event for our development in this second phase, also in the year 1989, was the first all-Canadian members’ summer conference at the Stoney Indian Reservation at Nakoda in Alberta. Its heart-warming effect on the whole country, even on those who were not there, still pulsates and sings in our hearts, seeking for a new opportunity to continue its song.

With this event, the third and most inward and perhaps difficult phase was prepared.

Our individual differences, karmic knots and different streams were and are slowly needing to be recognized and dealt with. They cannot be left any longer, hidden in the web of immediate will activities. More and more one senses a wish to work with these constructively. Workshops and courses along these lines have sprung up more recently and are being offered to the world but need also to be taken up with each other. This inner work with one another is initially perhaps more painful than the founding of a school but cannot be ignored. We do long for it, and we know that no further deepening of our work can occur without it. Many small steps have been taken or have come about seemingly on their own. Denis Schneider’s work comes to mind and can stand for that of many others. On the occasion of our 43rd anniversary he writes in one of our newsletters that our “official” aspect is not so pronounced as our wish to meet and celebrate together, learning to form living images of each other, being in each other’s presence-hearing the other’s voice, seeing his gestures. (Aurore, III,1,1996, p.8-13)

This kind of work comes from an awakening of the heart forces, and it is by nature of slow growth. It has the quality of listening and waiting and comes from an inner attitude which is perhaps the same as that which has led Canada to assume the role it has taken in the outer world - that of peacemaker. Here it is a question of knowing when “the time is at hand” so that all players can take up their part in the conversation. One aspect of this conversation is also that of getting in touch with your neighbour on this earth, as Olaf Lampson has done with colleagues in countries around the Pacific; as Monica Gold has done with friends in Russia through the outreach work of ISIS; and as many others have done with colleagues in the United States in the context of the School of Spiritual Science and council work.  It is also a question of not only gathering for oneself the fruit of someone else’s work who has the courage, or the audacity to offer it from that “third space”, but to inwardly go with such a one and not only hear what he says but also perhaps why he needs to say it out of his deeper biography, or why he says it haltingly or even poorly.

The question of our identity and task in anthroposophy here in this place needs to be more fully developed and this cannot be done without an understanding of the place within the spiritual community of all places; and also, in the context of the extraordinary confluence of people who came here in great waves: an ancient wave coming from the north west to the south and then to the north east, where, centuries later, the Europeans Christians came in from the east and began to re-shape the entire continent.  Two questions of our geography need our deepened understanding: as a largely northern country we have yet to hear and respond to the call of the North. And secondly, how do we work with what Steven Roboz pointed out again and again: namely that according to an indication of Walter Johannes Stein the West Coast of North America plays an important part in our work in this century, as it is there that East and West meet. Finding the next step in our task in the Pacific area is one of our challenges and will entail there and everywhere in the country finding a way to explore our questions with people from other spiritual streams. A small beginning had been made in Nova Scotia through a close contact with a strong Buddhist community in Halifax, and it was an astonishing experience for me to go there, where Anna Keefe had died, and attend three kinds of services for her: one by the Catholic Church of her family, one by the anthroposophical community—perhaps her most recent home, and one in the centre of the Buddhist community, where she had made many friends.

Here in Canada, as everywhere now, questions abound as to the purpose, structure and role of the Society within the work as a whole and in connection with each member, each initiative and all those “friends” out there.

In our midst in Canada, I recall two images or models that have been put forth and that can attract people into two seemingly opposing camps. Bert Chase in a conversation once likened the Society and the initiatives to a solar system, with the Society in the place of the Sun, and the initiatives revolving around it and receiving light and sustenance from it, while evolving their own stories. The other was offered by Shirley Routledge and sees the Society as an open space in the centre, with all the separate organs (initiatives) weaving through all the activities “out there” (Newsletter, Anthroposophical Society in Canada, Summer 1983, p.1).

It seems to me that much would be gained by more work on these two images, one with a full radiating centre, the other with an empty one, like a vessel. Perhaps they can come together in a third image- that of the heart. The heart is both full and open, it radiates and receives, and the activities of the limbs are all ‘impulsated’ by that which flows rhythmically in and out of the heart.

It is perhaps fitting to end this story with a reminder of one of our elders. It is both a task and a help, namely this: that we each become increasingly aware of our individual relationship to the eternal being of Rudolf Steiner. This is pointed out again and again by Steven Roboz, and in an interview, he quotes from a lecture: “... I must bear company with everyone who has received the spirit light from me on earth, if he with knowledge, or unconsciously, has come to me as a student of the spirit, and I must guide him further on his path, on which he has set out through me.” Aurore, Easter 2002, pg12

Articles in various newsletters and journals. Also consulted were personal notes by Barbara Doerr (d.1997), and Hans Warner.

Barnes, Henry. “Who is truly a Westerner?”  IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, #83, Summer 1990, p.2

Chase, Bert. “Fashioning the Vessel of the Anthroposophical Society in Canada”. IN: Aurore, I, 1, Michaelmas 1994, p.10

Easton, Stewart. “Early anthroposophical work in Toronto”.  IN: Newsletter for the                Anthroposophical Society in Canada, #55, Autumn 1982, p. 2

Gunther, Alexandra. B. “ Between northern oceans: a view of Anthroposophy in Canada”. IN: Anthroposophy Worldwide, #8, October 2000, p. 8

Roboz, Steven “The early days of the Anthroposophical Society in Canada”. IN: Aurore, I, 1, Michaelmas 1994, p.15

---------“History of the Anthroposophical Society in Vancouver”. IN: Aurore, I,3, Winter 1995, p.17

---------“Interview with a founder”. Interview by Robert Adams. IN: Aurore, Easter 2002, p.10

Routledge, Shirley. “Anthroposophical initiatives, an exploration paper”. IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, #83, Summer 1990, p.1

Schneider, Denis.  “In the protecting light of Stella Maris: Farewell letter to Anna Keefe” . IN: Aurore, #1, St. John’s 2000, p. 28

Spock, Marjorie. “North America under a light sky”. IN: The Golden Blade, 1971, p.111

Thatcher, Philip. “North of the border”, Pt.1 and 2. IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, # 73, Epiphany 1989, p. 4 and # 78, Easter 1989, p. 10

The Anthroposophical Society in Canada: 1953 to 2003

Prepared by Alexandra Barbara Gunther, Toronto, January 2003 

Introduction

In the Michaelmas 1994 issue of Aurore, Bert Chase who had just stepped down from his office as President of the Council, reflects on the history of the Society. He describes an occurrence which took place in 1975, in the 22nd year of the Society’s life. 

At that time a representative from British Columbia attended the AGM, held in Toronto, as usual. He carried with him enough proxies from the West to drastically control the outcome of the meeting in favour of members in the West. Bert Chase writes: 

“Instead of utilizing the proxies to wield the controlling power entrusted in him, this Vancouver member made the decision to act out of a quite different intention. His decision was based on an experience of the essential humanity of one of the members of the Executive. In that seemingly simple private event, the decision was made to place the sanctity of the individual human being before all the structural, organizational questions which had become so seemingly all important. There was in that moment the silent opening of the heart that enabled the recognition of the other to become the direction-giving force for action.” (Aurore I,1, 1994, p.12-13) 

This quiet event more than any other perhaps represents the undercurrent, if not the reality at every moment, of our spiritual growth, struggling to become a more consistent force, as the work of a handful of people in this vastest of countries moves forward. 

Being Canadian

Canada occupies the larger northern portion of the North American continent, and from the European perspective is often lumped together with the US under the general name “America”. It is bordered by three oceans and its 3,845,000 square miles are inhabited by about 30,000,000 people, 90% of whom live along the southernmost edge, right next to the people whose culture and economic and political might we fear and yet cling to and emulate, and who know us even less than we know them. Our differences are both subtle and obvious: in social services; in the handling of a multicultural society and the existence of two dominant languages; in a certain “laissez-faire-ism”; in the question of identity; in a certain playfulness in many things; in dealing with our native population; in our international role; our trust in process and engagement, rather than firm positions. The remaining 90% of the landmass, most of which really is a true northern land, is almost uninhabited. Ours is a country of immigrants, though the arrival of many lies several generations in the past. From the beginning till this day they are in an ongoing political though rarely social interaction with the aboriginal population. Over 100 languages are spoken in Toronto which is often called the world’s most multicultural city, and the cultural mosaic in the larger urban centres has changed very quickly in the last 20 years from being largely of European extraction to being over 50% Asian, South Asian or Black, within an Anglo-Saxon framework. There is also the presence of French, the official language of Quebec, and the second official language of the whole country. Politically the country has existed as such only since 1867. Culturally, it is older and has grown out of the people’s relationship to and struggle with the land. As much of one’s life as possible is spent out of doors under the bright light of the sky, and most people have or strive to have a cottage somewhere by one of the thousands of lakes or hidden away in a remote wilderness area. The spiritual background to the forces of the land and sky here have been wonderfully described by Marjorie Spock in an article entitled “North America under a light sky” (Golden Blade 1971, p.111-123) 

This country of immigrants who are learning to live with the experience of homelessness and new perspectives on old values nevertheless spends much of its energy on the question of who we are, what constitutes a Canadian, and even though this is not entirely clear, everyone fervently declares that he is indeed Canadian. 

Within this background the work of the Anthroposophical Society and its approximately 500 members has evolved and taken shape, slowly finding its own voice. Its very beginnings go back to 1941, when at Easter the Toronto Branch of the Anthroposophical Society in America was officially founded, characteristically on a farm near Bowmanville east of Toronto. The seven members were recent European and American immigrants: Else Weisheit, President, Stewart Easton, Secretary. Mr. and Mrs. Freund, Dr. Percy Ryber, Isabel Grieve and Harry Sprott. 

These people worked and studied together and held public lectures until on May 19, 1953 the Anthroposophical Society in Canada was born. 26 of the 34 founding members were in attendance, and the officers were: Isabel Grieve, President, Else Whitehead (formerly Weisheit), Secretary/Treasurer. Of these founding members three are still with us: Steven Roboz, now in Vancouver, Hans Warner, still on his farm in Muskoka, and George Blumenstock, still in Toronto. These early days were truly pioneering days, and their energy, drive and sense of mission still wafts through our archival documents. In the 1980's and 1990's most of these pioneers and some who joined later passed away, and it is with gratitude and admiration that we connect with them in our hearts and minds, especially during this year of our 50th anniversary. We now have a large host of 134 departed ones who watch and help us from the other side of the threshold, if only we can learn to remain in touch with them. 

The attached chronology documents the steps in the 50 years of our work, and the manifestations of this work in the world are given in the Canadian section of the Directory of Initiatives published by the Anthroposophical Society in America. It lists 29 branches and groups, about 24 Waldorf schools and related associations, 3 adult education institutions, some 14 artistic and art therapy initiatives, several medical offices, and associations, 10 farming associations and larger farms, 8 Camphill and other social organizations, several libraries and book dealers, and 17 other retailers and service providers. There are artists, scientists and researchers, musicians, and speech artists, eurythmists, architects and writers, consultants and, of course, many teachers. Much of the literature and information about all these is gathered at the national head office and library which also provides member services, Council support and continuity in its liaison work with the Goetheanum and the corresponding office in the US. The head office also publishes a newsletter for the members. 

It is an important historical fact in Canada that from the very beginning to this day, many of the members have a strong connection to the Christian Community, and its first services were held in Toronto in the same year (1953) as the founding of the Society. There are now two churches, one in Toronto and one in Vancouver. 

As one reads about or remembers the coming about of all these initiatives and recalls questions people raised, issues they discussed, and articles they wrote, one can detect three phases emerging with their own characteristics. It is, however, also important to acknowledge that not everything that happened was documented and that many a step was taken or supported and many a seed quietly planted in the world or in someone else’s heart unbeknownst to anyone. All these others also contributed to the fabric of what we have achieved so far and what we might yet become. 

The first phase in our history then was carried and led by strong individuals from Europe and the US who were fired up by the ideas of anthroposophy. They were purposefully and energetically offering these to the public through regular well attended lectures, while also leading study groups for members. Since these individuals had met each other in Toronto, where also the School of Spiritual Science began its work quite early, this centralizing impulse with these strong individuals as recognized leaders developed quite naturally and membership grew fairly rapidly. AGMs were generally held here. Very soon, and in a similar way, Vancouver became another focal point, with a smaller group working in Winnipeg in the early 50's.   

In hindsight one can marvel that this Toronto Michael Group was not the one who financed or led the financing of the Society’s first home in Toronto - Hill House at 81 Lawton Blvd. The money for it came from the estate of Dr. Bruce Hill in Winnipeg, far in the West! 

During these first 15 to 20 years the outreach work relied heavily on speakers from the US and England, and the Goetheanum was truly viewed and experienced as the centre of the work and was visited regularly by council members. Monthly public lectures drew 100 to 120 people, and the thirst for spiritual knowledge was great. A member of the council also travelled across Canada regularly to establish contact and foster a sense of unity. Alan Howard, after his lecture tour across Canada and the US in 1972 noted that many people spoke out of a strong feeling of nostalgia of how things used to be in Europe and at the Goetheanum. 

During the middle part of this phase the initiatives began to be formed, first among them the Waldorf schools in Toronto and Vancouver. As the work across the country unfolded, regional differences and distance from each other across this vast land led to a greater wish to de-centralize the Council, particularly in the West and in Quebec. The Council had already begun to include representatives from the different regions, and in 1976, after some difficult times, the next step followed and healed the rift to some degree: for the first time the AGM moved away from Toronto and was held in Vancouver. 

As the membership became increasingly English-Canadian of older stock and, in the case of Quebec, Francophone with the appearance of French as our other language, the second phase gradually showed its profile. The energy of the membership was given over more to the initiatives which became strong, especially in the schools and in adult education work. Also, centres in other places were developed and grew till they had their own homes, notably in Vancouver and in Montreal. As this ‘will’ phase became stronger, the question of why one should or might be a member and support something so far away as Switzerland came more frequently. People looked for and found enrichment for their lives in numerous courses offered and looked for and did not always find the transformative results in those professing to be anthroposophists. Membership levelled off at about 500, while the circle of “friends” around the schools and the adult education initiatives, notably the Rudolf Steiner Centre in Toronto, expanded greatly. The perception deepened among many members that this work at the periphery was essential at this stage. 

A second motif during this phase was a greater awareness of and turning to the land itself, not only through farming and Camphill villages based on the European models, but also by holding conferences in the country, by describing its topography and geography in our literature, turning to the question of our identity and looking at aspects of our culture and history. In 1989 a concerted effort was made to place the overall contribution of Anthroposophy squarely in our culture, as in their own fields the initiatives were already doing, by staging an extensive exhibit with surrounding conferences and workshops over ten weeks in Canada’s most prestigious public library in Toronto. During this phase also, the voice of the French-speaking Quebec members brought a fresh breath and an impulse to work more artistically and joyfully, and 1989 also saw the founding of the French Branche Jean-le-Baptiste in Montreal. 

The strong work of the initiatives on the periphery and the new de-centralizing force of this second phase appeared to create a vacuum in the Society itself, particularly in Toronto. Yet this but set the stage for a chance to examine in our hearts and minds our individual relationship to Rudolf Steiner, to the Society in Canada and worldwide, and to the movement. 

Perhaps the most significant event for our development in this second phase, also in the year 1989, was the first all-Canadian members’ summer conference at the Stoney Indian Reservation at Nakoda in Alberta. Its heart-warming effect on the whole country, even on those who were not there, still pulsates and sings in our hearts, seeking for a new opportunity to continue its song. 

With this event, the third and most inward and perhaps difficult phase was prepared. Our individual differences, karmic knots and different streams were and are slowly needing to be recognized and dealt with. They cannot be left any longer, hidden in the web of immediate will activities. More and more one senses a wish to work with these constructively. Workshops and courses along these lines have sprung up more recently and are being offered to the world but need also to be taken up with each other. This inner work with one another is initially perhaps more painful than the founding of a school but cannot be ignored. We do long for it, and we know that no further deepening of our work can occur without it. Many small steps have been taken or have come about seemingly on their own. Denis Schneider’s work comes to mind and can stand for that of many others. On the occasion of our 43rd anniversary he writes in one of our newsletters that our “official” aspect is not so pronounced as our wish to meet and celebrate together, learning to form living images of each other, being in each other’s presence-hearing the other’s voice, seeing his gestures. (Aurore, III,1,1996, p.8-13) 

This kind of work comes form an awakening of the heart forces, and it is by nature of slow growth. It has the quality of listening and waiting and comes from an inner attitude which is perhaps the same as that which has led Canada to assume the role it has taken in the outer world - that of peacemaker. Here it is a question of knowing when “the time is at hand” so that all players can take up their part in the conversation. One aspect of this conversation is also that of getting in touch with your neighbour on this earth, as Olaf Lampson has done with colleagues in countries around the Pacific; as Monica Gold has done with friends in Russia through the outreach work of ISIS; and as many others have done with colleagues in the United States in the context of the School of Spiritual Science and council work.  It is also a question of not only gathering for oneself the fruit of someone else’s work who has the courage, or the audacity to offer it from that “third space”, but to inwardly go with such a one and not only hear what he says but also perhaps why he needs to say it out of his deeper biography, or why he says it haltingly or even poorly. 

The question of our identity and task in anthroposophy here in this place needs to be more fully developed and this cannot be done without an understanding of the place within the spiritual community of all places; and also, in the context of the extraordinary confluence of people who came here in great waves: an ancient wave coming from the north west to the south and then to the north east, where, centuries later, the Europeans Christians came in from the east and began to re-shape the entire continent.  Two questions of our geography need our deepened understanding: as a largely northern country we have yet to hear and respond to the call of the North. And secondly, how do we work with what Steven Roboz pointed out again and again: namely that according to an indication of Walter Johannes Stein the West Coast of North America plays an important part in our work in this century, as it is there that East and West meet. Finding the next step in our task in the Pacific area is one of our challenges and will entail there and everywhere in the country finding a way to explore our questions with people from other spiritual streams. A small beginning had been made in Nova Scotia through a close contact with a strong Buddhist community in Halifax, and it was an astonishing experience for me to go there, where Anna Keefe had died, and attend three kinds of services for her: one by the Catholic Church of her family, one by the anthroposophical community—perhaps her most recent home, and one in the centre of the Buddhist community, where she had made many friends. 

Here in Canada, as everywhere now, questions abound as to the purpose, structure and role of the Society within the work as a whole and in connection with each member, each initiative and all those “friends” out there. In our midst in Canada, I recall two images or models that have been put forth and that can attract people into two seemingly opposing camps. Bert Chase in a conversation once likened the Society and the initiatives to a solar system, with the Society in the place of the Sun, and the initiatives revolving around it and receiving light and sustenance from it, while evolving their own stories. The other was offered by Shirley Routledge and sees the Society as an open space in the centre, with all the separate organs (initiatives) weaving through all the activities “out there” (Newsletter, Anthroposophical Society in Canada, Summer 1983, p.1). 

It seems to me that much would be gained by more work on these two images, one with a full radiating centre, the other with an empty one, like a vessel. Perhaps they can come together in a third image- that of the heart. The heart is both full and open, it radiates and receives, and the activities of the limbs are all ‘impulsated’ by that which flows rhythmically in and out of the heart. 

It is perhaps fitting to end this story with a reminder of one of our elders. It is both a task and a help, namely this: that we each become increasingly aware of our individual relationship to the eternal being of Rudolf Steiner. This is pointed out again and again by Steven Roboz, and in an interview, he quotes from a lecture: “... I must bear company with everyone who has received the spirit light from me on earth, if he with knowledge, or unconsciously, has come to me as a student of the spirit, and I must guide him further on his path, on which he has set out through me.” Aurore, Easter 2002, pg12 

Bibliography

Articles in various newsletters and journals. Also consulted were personal notes by Barbara Doerr (d.1997), and Hans Warner. 

Barnes, Henry. “Who is truly a Westerner?”  IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, #83, Summer 1990, p.2 

Chase, Bert. “Fashioning the Vessel of the Anthroposophical Society in Canada”. IN: Aurore, I, 1, Michaelmas 1994, p.10 

Easton, Stewart. “Early anthroposophical work in Toronto”.  IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, #55, Autumn 1982, p. 2 

Gunther, Alexandra. B. “ Between northern oceans: a view of Anthroposophy in Canada”. IN: Anthroposophy Worldwide, #8, October 2000, p. 8 

Roboz, Steven “The early days of the Anthroposophical Society in Canada”. IN: Aurore, I, 1, Michaelmas 1994, p.15 

---------“History of the Anthroposophical Society in Vancouver”. IN: Aurore, I,3, Winter 1995, p.17 

---------“Interview with a founder”. Interview by Robert Adams. IN: Aurore, Easter 2002, p.10 

Routledge, Shirley. “Anthroposophical initiatives, an exploration paper”. IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, #83, Summer 1990, p.1 

Schneider, Denis.  “In the protecting light of Stella Maris: Farewell letter to Anna Keefe” . IN: Aurore, #1, St. John’s 2000, p. 28 

Spock, Marjorie. “North America under a light sky”. IN: The Golden Blade, 1971, p.111 

Thatcher, Philip. “North of the border”, Pt.1 and 2. IN: Newsletter for the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, # 73, Epiphany 1989, p. 4 and # 78, Easter 1989, p. 10