Call for Participant Research
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An ongoing study group exploring innovative ideas around money and economics. The focus will be mostly on ideas arising from the work of Rudolf Steiner and anthroposophy. Ongoing at Hesperus in Thornhill.
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Institute Rudolf Steiner Quebec Calendar
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THE ART OF LIVING COLOUR: Stephanie Barwick. An eight Saturdays course starting October 17.
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The eNews is published 10 times per year for members of the Anthroposophical Society In Canada. Please send correspondence to the editor.
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Contact Info
Anthroposophical Society in Canada
# 130A - 1 Hesperus Rd.
Thornhill, ON
L4J 0G9
Administrator 416-892-3656
Council
School For Spiritual Science |
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In these sun sparkled, multi-coloured days of nature falling back into the earth comes the inspiration to recollect ourselves after the dizzy heights of summer and to return to a deeper inner life. To help us with this we offer three articles concerning the Freedom Mystery conference and production of the first third of the Portal of Initiation. Then, in addition to that, our busy General Secretary shares impressions and experiences from both his national and international travels. Our treasurer sends an important letter with news concerning the Rudolf Steiner Foundation, the result of the review engagement and information concerning membership contributions. A further report from Bodo von Plato's visit has been received. This summer also saw a visit to Vancouver and Toronto of another Executive Council member, Joan Sleigh and a resulting report from Mark McAlister. From our Nova Scotia colleagues Duncan Keppie provides a comprehensive write up on the Delicate Balance of Gaia conference. A busy summer and already the coming summer of 2016 is claiming our attention, both here in Canada and abroad. Finally, you will find two obituaries that I was unable to publish in our last edition.
With warm greetings,
Jef Saunders Administrator
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General Secretary's Letter
Dear Friends,
Among the many events that took place during the summer season, the following were of special interest for the life of the Anthroposophical Society in Canada and for the General Anthroposophical Society as well.
Bodo von Plato
My wife and I had the great pleasure of travelling with Bodo von Plato from July 24th to August 9th as he visited Vancouver, Nelson, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. This tour gave us the opportunity to meet with friends and members in these centres as we explored together the main theme Bodo wished to share: Anthroposophy and its influence on our daily lives - how Anthroposophy can give us tools to meet the requirements of our everyday existence. (See Elisabeth Carmack's account of the Vancouver gathering and below)
This session focusing on inner work helped to deepen our sense of this contemporary enigma through conversation and exercises. Thanks to Bodo's warmth and openness, he was able to create a space in which each participant could feel he or she was truly being heard. Continue
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Treasurer's letter
Dear Friends,
A very warm greeting to everyone!
There were a few events that occurred since the AGM that council would like to communicate.
We received a letter from the Canada Revenue Agency requesting that the Rudolf Steiner Foundation be dissolved unless we plan to make it active. As there is no such plan, Council decided to dissolve it. You can see the related correspondence on the members' web site, or ask Jef Saunders, our Administrator.
The review engagement with our accountant went smoothly and the questions and responses, along with the final Financial Statements, can be found on the members' website.
We have been successfully using e-transfers to pay requests for funds and this approach appears to be the way many members' prefer. Continue
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Join us for a conference exploring the path of knowledge implicit in the Philosophy of Freedom, from Friday 23 October to Sunday 25 October, 2015 at the Christian Community Church in Thornhill, Ontario. Don't worry if you have found the book challenging to read - of if you have not read it at all! We have worked hard to make this conference widely accessible and of real value to people who are not Philosophy of Freedom enthusiasts. This conference is sponsored by the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, the Toronto Branch and the Thornhill Branch. It is also made possible by a donation from Vidar Foundation.
A performance of the first third of Rudolf Steiner's first mystery drama, "The Portal of Initiation" will be interwoven into the conference. Christian Community Priest Daniel Hafner will accompany us on this quest, delivering lectures and introducing each scene of the Portal. For more information, have a look at the article in this issue by Robert McKay entitled The Freedom Mystery Conference as a Destiny Event. You may also want to visit www.philosophyfreedom.ca. To register (and order meals), download the Freedom Flyer. Registration (without meals) will also be available at the door.
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In a conversation with Rudolf Steiner that took place in April 1922 in The Hague, Walter Johannes Stein asked Rudolf Steiner, "What will remain of your work in thousands of years? Rudolf Steiner replied: "Nothing but The Philosophy of Freedom," and then added: "But everything is contained in it. If someone realizes the act of freedom described there, he finds the whole content of Anthroposophy".1
This is a fascinating statement and open to various interpretations. Will humanity lose the great treasure that is anthroposophy over the next thousand years? I doubt it. I suspect that Steiner was addressing what of his work will be an enduring contribution. I imagine that in a thousand years, there will be many initiates working on the earth and that their collective creativity will, as is the case in all true arenas of knowledge, have incorporated and surpassed what a pioneer, like Steiner, achieved in his day. If this picture is correct, why would The Philosophy of Freedom still be relevant in a thousand years? Why is it a book for the future? Continue
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On Saturday 31 October, Christian Community Priest Daniel Hafner will deliver an introductory lecture on the Portal of Initiation. Then, TQuest Productions of Toronto will perform the first third of the Portal of Initiation. 17 of us have been working for over a year now to cultivate the imagination which is reflected in this drama. I hope you will join us!
The event will take place at the Christian Community Church at 901 Rutherford Road, Thornhill, Ontario. Tickets will be available at the door. Registration will commence at 12:30 noon. Daniel's lecture will commence at 1:00pm. The play begins at 2:00pm and will finish by 5:30pm. Price is $25. For more information, download the Portal Flyer. (This event is entirely independent of the Freedom Mystery Conference.)
This performance is sponsored by the Anthroposophical Society in Canada, the Toronto Branch and the Thornhill Group. It is also made possible by a donation from Vidar Foundation.
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THE DELICATE BALANACE OF GAIA Conference & Workshop Report: 6 - 10th August, 2015, Oakdene
Centre, Bear River, Nova Scotia.

This unique conference brought water and rocks together as subjects of Goethean observation of the processes common to water and the earth as a step towards a deepening understanding of the "Living Water and Earth or Gaia". The stage was set by presentation of a beautiful puppet production of Goethe's The Fairy Tale of the Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily by a group of South Shore Waldorf parents under the direction of Monike Wildemann. Goethe regarded the Fairy Tale as his way of presenting his most profound observations of nature in the transformation of the soul. The Fairy Tale is set in a landscape divided by a river that depicts the boundary between two lands: the land of our normal 'daytime' consciousness and the land of the super-sensible, which is not accessible to our normal sense perception. By the end of the Fairy Tale, there is a permanent bridge spanning this river, joining these two Lands together. In this context, we "read the water and rocks" using experiments, and excursions around Bear River. Workshop themes centered around the ring vortex and archetypes. Full report
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Visit of Joan Sleigh to the Toronto Area
30 September - 3 October, 2015
 Some background: In 2014, the Thornhill Group hosted a number of events relating to social art. (See: Resilience and Renewal Through Social Sculpture) The "social sculpture"workshop with Deborah Ravetz was a big highlight. Here is a comment from one of the participants: "As long as we as individuals do not look at our own "hidden, ignored and denied" issues, we will not move forward as a community. If we stay stuck in our old ways and don't dare to jump, we will not change anything. Only if we make ourselves vulnerable will we make progress. To face our own vulnerability is incredibly difficult for us, it requires such courage and strong will and not everyone is able to do take the important first step". We studied the biographies of many individuals who emerged from shattering catastrophes, bringing powerful new impulses into the world. We asked, What is hidden, ignored and denied in ourselves today? How can we help each other to break new ground and reveal our destiny? Joan takes it a step further: During her visit to the Toronto area, Joan gave talks and led seminars at Hesperus, the Toronto Waldorf School and the Waldorf Academy. Empathy was the theme running through all these events. She described how empathy is a process of deepening and challenging relationships. We can only arrive at a real experience of another person when we understand and appreciate their differences. We need to become selfless in order to experience the other's self, and in so doing, we become conscious of our own self. This indeed is social art! Full report
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Unlocking the hidden mystery of the self and the other in our time!
by Elizabeth Carmack
Friday evening 24 July 2015, I was at the Rudolf Steiner Centre in Vancouver, Canada. I had come to listen to Bodo von Plato lecture on "Philosophy, Anthroposophy and Everyday Life." The following morning we were asked to give a free interpretation of what the lecture had meant to us. My original quotation captured the essence of the process of inner transformation presented in the lecture and although originally formulated as a stream of consciousness statement, for the sake of grammatical accuracy and intellectual clarity it now takes a more complex form on the page. Asked to present my summary statement for purposes of publication I decided to write a detailed interpretation of Bodo von Plato's lecture. My text captures my understanding of the lecture, which remains faithful to interpreting the value of these ideas for our time. Continue
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FREEDOM MYSTERY CONFERENCE: October 23 - 25 Christian Community,Thornhill, Ontario. Devoted to the exploration and experience of the path of knowledge which is implicit in the Philosophy of Freedom by Rudolf Steiner. Flyer & Registration
STAND ALONE PERFORMANCE OF THE THE FIRST THIRD OF THE PORTAL OF INITIATION,
with an introductory lecture by Christian Community Priest, Daniel Hafner, Oct. 31, 2015, 1:00pm - 5:30pm at the Christian Community,Thornhill, Ontario.
STEINER, BEUYS AND THE BEES: November 1, Rudolf Steiner Centre Toronto, Prof. Frederick Amrine. Flyer RSCTWebsite
THE HIERARCHIES - LECTURE FOR MEMBERS: Daniel Hafner,
November 1, 10:30am. Trillium Waldorf School, Guelph.
SOCIAL AND ANTISOCIAL PROCESSES - we need both, but each in the right way: Daniel Hafner.
November 1,1:15pm. Trillium Waldorf School, Guelph. Poster
CHILDHOOD INNOCENCE TO GROWN-UP WISDOM: Friday and Saturday, November 6 & 7,
Rudolf Steiner Centre Toronto,Waldorf Development Conference, keynote with Dorit Winter.
IMAGINATION AND COURAGE an evening of Eurythmy: Saturday December 12, 7:30pm. Christian Community, Thornhill. Poster
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Encountering Our Humanity See side panel
| August 2016
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Newsletter Subtitle |
Month Year |
Dutch DeLight
Summer School for Biographical Conversation
Biographical Conversation is an art where craftsmanship and creativity, empathy and intuition meet. Knowledge of the Biographical Development is the basis. This gives an understanding of the human being, developmental possibilities and a deep sense of coherence. Skillful biographical conversation is true craftsmanship. It helps someone to find and listen to their inner wisdom, and find their own track again. Brochure
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R�al Choini�re 1932 - 2015
For the members of "Vers les Sources" of the Eastern Townships as well as the community of Waterville, the recent passing away of R�al Choini�re leaves a great void. We had all become very attached to our dear friend who had recently arrived in our region. R�al moved back to the Eastern Townships in 2008 in order to follow his grandchildren who would be attending the local Waldorf School that year. R�al would constantly talk about and promote the benefits of the Waldorf school, the exceptional work and devotion of the teachers as well as his gratitude for all the wonderful interactions with the community members. This is where R�al first made contact with the Anthroposophical community. R�al would regularly attend to the Anthroposophical society's meetings and then became a member of "La 1re Classe" a few years before passing away. R�al was first introduced to Anthroposophy in 1999 at the age of 67. Continue
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Guy (G�za) Agoston
January 25, 1933 - May 21, 2015
By Claudette Leblanc
In one way, G�za was born into Anthroposophy, the science of the spirit inaugurated by Rudolf Steiner in Europe a t the turn of the last century, through his deep connection to his mother, Olga, a lifelong Anthroposophist in Hungary. But it might be perhaps more accurate to say that G�za and his mother were so connected because they shared a common love for this new pathway opened up for the modern human being who not only recognizes that there IS a spiritual world, but that it is possible for the human being to come to KNOW and understand it through schooled, conscious experience, as an extension to natural science. He was a devoted student on this path. On one trip back to Hungary with his son Thomas, G�za fondly showed him the old villa in which he lived with his family, where he and his mother would talk of important spiritual matters. He was an avid reader and researcher into the worlds on both sides of the threshold over the course of his whole life. Continue
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Anthroposophy Worldwide - #10
***NOTE NEW PASSWORD***
If you would like to see the archive of past issues, go to the Goetheanum website, c lick on user login at the bottom left of the page. Username: awmail. Password: faust1
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