BROTHERHOOD & KANEL BULLE
December '09 |
Often I'm astounded by what passes as common sense today. A few weeks ago I heard a leading environmentalist say that large-scale geoengineering (changing the planet to offset climate change) might be necessary because science has shown that "behavior modification" (changing ourselves) is almost impossible. ...Really? Have we not changed radically over the centuries and millennia? And at the personal level, am I no different than I was as a child?
What is worse than such a static, unchanging image of man is the image itself. Everywhere it is assumed that man is little more than a ravenous, self-interested consumer and that his natural state is as Hobbes described: "nasty, brutish and short." Indeed, this is the foundation on which our economy is built. But it's wrong. Man is not only interested in himself, and when he pretends to be, other people starve. This is a dangerous game. In reality, Brotherhood is the guiding principle for economic life. Sure, the profit motive is real, but we must be clear: it's merely a driving force. Ideals are different. Our forefathers knew how power and privilege gnawed at the soul of man yet simultaneously recognized as "self-evident" the twin truths of Freedom and Equality. Today we must do the same with Brotherhood...
Continue reading our end of the year letter here.
Dear friends,
Above all else, a spirit of Brotherhood is needed today. Social problems can no longer be solved by lone individuals in ivory towers (or white houses), instead we need to cultivate a capacity for "social thinking" - for thinking together. Out of such an active dialogue a shared spirit can emerge. If we're also able to trust and care for each other, then we can begin to work.
This is where Think OutWord is - we've only just begun our actual work, we're only just beginning to meet each other. In order to give you a window into who we are, we've posted everyone's bios on our website, as well as the Principles and Practices that we've decided to work with as a group. Please check these out. The Principles and Practices document is an important one for us, a first articulation of the culture we want to cultivate and the agreements we want to make with each other.
One recent development in the Core Group was a weekend workshop on Non-Violent Communication (NVC) that we did with Luigi Morelli at the begining of November. NVC was illuminating - a valuable lens for observing the underlying gestures and power dynamics at work in our language. We also brought a number of Think OutWord's friends together and held a World Cafe (which is another important social technique enabling groups to go deeply into their questions and tap into their collective intelligence). All of this was a further exploration for us into the realm of the social.
What I most want to share though is what is taking place outside of Think OutWord, by kindred organizations working all over the world in the same spirit. I recently traveled with two fellow Think OutWorders - Peter Buckbee and Lachlan Grey - to Switzerland and Sweden. Across that big, beautiful ocean are some incredible individuals and organizations. These are our brothers and sisters! Our first stop was the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland, which we're happy to report is alive and well! The Youth Section was a hive of activity that poured into an amazing weekend conference called Coming Into Conversation (co-sponsored by the Social Science Section). One important discovery for us was another approach to discussion and group work called Open Space Technology. This was brought to us by Valentin Vollmer of IDEM, which is an amazing network of young people who are organizing workcamps and projects all over the planet to help bring about positive social change.
The second leg of the trip was Jarna, Sweden. The best hot chocolate I've ever had and the cinnamon buns (Kanel Bulle) were invincible. (Here's a recipe for those delectable treats... I don't know if it's any good, but the picture of them looks right.) We didn't actually go there for the sweets though. We went there for YIP (the international Youth Initiative Program) and we were not disappointed. This is a year-long training in Social Entrepreneurship that works with incredible teachers such as Nicanor Perlas, Orland Bishop, Jane Lorand, Eric Utne and many others. The organizing team is badass. The students are stellar. Our daily quota of six hours of sunshine revealed a sparkling, permanently frosted landscape. Saturday night I danced holes into my socks in an old wooden barn. This was good.
A few other things I'm super excited about:
- The Credere Fund, a program of Think OutWord, recently awarded its 2009 cycle of grants! The projects include a marionette production of scenes from Steiner's Mystery Dramas and a biodynamic farming project in Zimbabwe. Read about more of the projects in our announcement on WeStrive.
- Have you heard of WeStrive yet? It's an online community for socially and spiritually striving folks. A good place to find out what's going on and to share your thoughts and initiatives with the world. Instead of this old "I'll write an eNews and send it to you every 3 months" deal, we could all be dialoguing in real time. Genius. You'll find the Youth Section, YIP and Think OutWord on there...
- Rudolf Steiner Audio. Who knew? 76 super-fresh books by the Doctor read by some guy on a mission. Download them to your iPod and listen while you're baking Kanel Bulle (Swedish cinnamon buns)!
- If you're on the East Coast of the United States don't miss a Christian Community conference entitled "Sexuality and Consciousness" with Lisa Romero from January 1-4, 2010, in Spring Valley, NY. It will be kicked off with a New Year Masquerade that benefits Think OutWord. Hope to see you there!
Lastly, an appeal. We're doing important work, as are all the other organizations I mentioned. All of these organizations depend on free gifts to survive. Even if you have no money, think about donating $5 to the organization that you're most enthusiastic about. What does this do? It's a sign of interest, a sign of solidarity and brotherhood. It says "I'll feed you, and you'll feed me... we can trust each other." (Even $5 does this - money is powerful stuff.)
Donate to Think OutWord here.
Merry Christmas all. Yours,
Seth Jordan
Creative Director,
(& Kannel Bulle Enthusiast),
Think OutWord
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