Theos-Talk Archives (March 2007 Message tt00183)

Hi Perry,

Thank you for your thoughts. Let me address the problem you defined 
as the conflict between expansiveness and traditionalism from another 
perspective.

I believe that the Theosophical Society was founded with the purpose 
to spread the knowledge of Theosophy in the world and that the 
Objects of the Society are the necessary means to accomplish that 
purpose. In other words, that the "inner" work of the lodge 
(individual study, lodge meetings and so on) is the preparation for 
its "outer" work, for the interaction with the community. If the 
lodge limits itself to the "inner" work then the mentioned problems 
becomes immanent. If instead it opens itself to the community it 
necessarily involves itself in some creative process which absorbs 
and directs all the energies towards the ends which transcends 
personal interests of its members.

Nicholas Roerich said something like this: With the creative process 
there comes the quality of tolerance we need so much. If we include 
the tolerance only conventionally and superficially we create 
hypocrisy. Only with the noble creative process, with constant 
realization, comes that wonderful guest: the tolerance.

Warmest regards,
Anton


--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "plcoles1" <plcoles1@...> wrote:
>
> Thanks Anton, I know that the ES is a point of contention for some 
> within the TS.
> 
> I personally have not felt that the problems in the TS come 
> specifically from the ES.
> However there is I am sure much I don't know about it.
> 
> I'll try and briefly explain where I feel some of the conflicts 
come 
> from, leaving aside the Leadbeater issue.
> 
> One of the problems I think that continues to play itself is that 
> when some new people join the society they feel it is a kind of 
> platform for anything and everything.
> 
> When the TS doesn't live up to their expectations of what they 
think 
> it should be they can cause quite a bit of turbulence within the 
> branch especially if they have joined with a preexisting agenda, 
like 
> promoting some particular hobbyhorse they may be on at the time.
> 
> Then you get those who have been involved with the society for some 
> years, read a lot of the traditional literature of the 
society?.they 
> may appear to newcomers as being stuck in the past or not 
> progressive. 
> 
> On the one side there maybe what seems to be a force of 
expansiveness 
> and on the other traditionalism.
> 
> Expansiveness and traditionalism have this constant grappling with 
> each other.
> 
> I would suggest both have a place, however both need to use wisdom, 
> otherwise what you get is either lack of direction and purpose on 
the 
> one hand or stagnation and mindless rigidity on the other.
> 
> Sometimes we need to drop some aspects that may no longer be 
> appropriate.
> 
> For example in our branch the speaker used to stand on a stage 
> towering above the audience and the president used to sit in a big 
> chair on the stage like a king on a throne.
> 
> This thankfully was changed so that the president sat with everyone 
> else and the speaker stood on the level with rest of the audience.
> 
> This was a break from the old hierarchical mindset of superiority 
and 
> a movement towards equality and brotherhood at least in symbolic 
> terms as to how the lodge was setup.
> 
> Also the invocation was changed to a more gender sensitive and 
> inclusive form, once again a symbol of inclusiveness and equality.
> 
> The other side of the coin is when people want to overturn 
everything 
> simply because its old.
> 
> When we are at a theosophical society set up to study the ANCIENT 
> Wisdom this could be problematic however.
> 
> Theosophy does speak of a spiritual path although I know 
Krishnamurti 
> spoke very eloquently about moving beyond rigid and superstitious 
> ideas about it.
> Just a few thoughts 
> 
> 
> Cheers
> 
> Perry