Theos-Talk Archives (March 2009 Message tt00592)

How much one can trust the TS leaders?

Recently, a very observant theosophist mentioned in another forum that the
TS election issues, disenfranchisement attempt, etc has made it to wiki.
Today everyone looks up to wiki for any information. So the activities of
the leaders around the world, especially in the "West" is available for
everyone on the Internet to see.

TS in the West has a hard time recruiting and retaining members. For an
organization whose main object is Brotherhood and whose motto is "There is
No Religion Higher Than Truth", the picture that a prospective as well as
"on the fence" member sees it pitiful. They would wonder what is going on
and the leaders working for what?

The current situation in the West is very grave IMHO, whether we recognise
it or not. Coupled with it, the actions of leaders in the West during the
last year makes it worse. So the question in the minds of readers is How
much one can trust the leaders? Who would want to join an organization with
leaders with such a baggage which contradicts the main object and the motto?
So we have to find an answer, and find it quickly.

Looking at the situation as an individual with no part in the
administration, past or present, the root cause is the great secrecy with
which the Governing Council and the leaders operate. The  secrecy of
operation is what led to the events that took place during past year and
more and it almost would have wrecked TS if the disenfranchisement attempt
succeeded. Due to the super secrecy of operation, members do not know what
is going on in the meetings or behind the scenes and it is almost impossible
to get any authentic information.

In the early days of TS, it was very transparent. Both HPB & HSO who
gave prime of their lives know how important transparency is. Master KH
warned in his 1900 and last letter, that unnecessary secrecy has killed many
organizations. No one seems to have paid much attention to it until the
election issues hit TS last year. Even then, it looks like no one has taken
quick drastic steps to bring full transparency of operations.

It looks like short of bringing in quick and total transparency at all
levels â lodge, section and international, it is going to be impossible to
recruit members â especially young members in this Internet Age due to the
low level of credibility of leaders in the West. So let us not wail or
complain if national sections disappear in the West in the next decades due
to the our incompetence to see the problems very clearly and quickly move to
fix them.

I hope and pray God will help us save the situation.

MKR

There is No Religion Higher Than Truth


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