Theos-Talk Archives (August 2009 Message tt00077)

In a recent message I sent to several members of TS, I mentioned about the
critical issue of membership recruitment and retention outside India. I
contended that membership is the most important issue to the growth of TS.
While the rules and regulations issues may be self-serving and to further
the personal agendaâs of some GC members, they have no effect on the
recruitment and retention issue since this is purely local and no amount of
tinkering or arguing about the rules and regulations is going to have any
effect on membership.

Recently I received a message from a General Secretary that I was wrong in
my comment that in one Section, no new lodge has been chartered in 50 years
and in another Section, a new lodge was chartered recently in the last 58
years. I gently replied to the GS citing the sources for my comments so that
my information can be verified independently.

I was really appalled by the ignorance of the General Secretary about such
basic facts about membership. I do not know where they get their
information. If only this GS had taken time to sign up to this maillist, the
latest and correct information would have been available. Many of them may
claim they are too busy with their work. (A good excuse; but no one believes
it.) It is their job to keep abreast of current information.

Some times, I wonder, if many of them are waiting for orders from beyond
Himalayas before reading and participating on Internet maillist such as
this.

We want to attract new young members to the theosophical movement. When
young men and women see a bunch of old men and women with a lot grey hairs
who do not know how to use Internet, what kind of message they are sending.
Many times when I meet young people, they do not even ask my name. They ask
my email address. Does this not say something about what is going on in the
young community.

Let us hope some will open their eyes and see what opportunities they are
missing.

MKR

visit theosophy.net


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]