Theos-Talk Archives (March 2010 Message tt00067)

None of us, ordinary members, and other theosophists know the 'real' reasons
why the charter is canceled.

Legally, TSA may have an arbitrary power to cancel any charter. If the
members see it as arbitrary, this is going to hurt TS and theosophy in the
long run, not to mention the impact it is going to have on the credibility
of the elected officials many of whom may be have reached very high levels
in ES/ER and Masonry and LCC, and members hold them to a very high standard.
It can also hurt the credibility of these organizations for years to come.

We all build our reputations over a long period of time. They can be
destroyed overnight.

With the world-wide publicity on Internet, members and potential members
around the world are now in a position to learn the developments in
theosophical world and hence the ball is in the TSA court.

I hope they quickly provide convincing and verifiable reasons and details of
concrete steps taken to prevent cancellation, no matter what their lawyers
tell them to do. Lawyers are gone after they do their job (and collect their
hefty fees) and theosophy in America and TSA will have to live with the
decision and its consequences for a long time, in this Internet world.

MKR
On Thu, Mar 18, 2010 at 9:06 AM, Duane Carpenter <
monad_monad_monad@yahoo.com> wrote:

>
>
>
> Orlando lodge closure.
>
>  This small excerpt from the Theosophical Society in Wheaten Ill. by laws
> clearly states that upon dissolution of a chartered lodge assets all go to
> National. This form must be filled out and signed by the individuals seeking
> application for lodge status. Once this document is signed it is very
> difficult to get  a reversal in a court of law.
>
> Bylaw 9: Lodges, Study Centers, and FederationsA. Lodges
> Section 1. Application for a Lodge Charter.............. Section 2.
> Designation of Lodges..........................
>  (c)
> ceasing to be an active Lodge of the Theosophical Society in America, for
> whatever reason, or its
> failure to remain a tax-exempt organization for federal purposes (such tax
> exemption having
> been once attained), then all of its property and assets shall be
> distributed to the Theosophical
> Society in America, an Illinois not-for-profit corporation having its
> principal offices at 1926
> North Main Street, P. O. Box 270, Wheaton, Illinois 60189-0270, for the
> sole purpose of
> promoting Theosophy in ____________;
> the Theosophical Society in ___________, the Theosophical Society in
> America is not qualified
> as exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
> amended (or the
> corresponding section of any future federal tax code), is not in existence,
> or is unwilling to
> accept the assets of the Theosophical Society in __________, then such
> assets shall be
> distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of Section
> 501(c)(3), or shall be
> distributed to a federal, state, or local government for a public purpose.
> Any such assets not so
> disposed of shall be disposed of by a court of competent jurisdiction of
> the county in which the
> principal office of the corporation is then located, exclusively for such
> purposes or to such
> organization or organizations, as the court shall determine which are
> organized and operated
> exclusively for such purposes.In the event of the dissolution of the
> Theosophical Society in _____________, or itsprovided, however, that if, at
> the time of dissolution of
> Section 3. Lodge Organization.........................
>
> ________________________________
> From: MKR <mkr777@gmail.com <mkr777%40gmail.com>>
> To: theos-talk <theos-talk@yahoogroups.com <theos-talk%40yahoogroups.com>>
> Sent: Tue, March 16, 2010 3:29:30 PM
> Subject: Theos-World TSA Elected Officials and Lodges
>
>
> Recently a question arose if the local district directors who represent our
> district have visited our lodge since their election. The answer is no. We
> have not seen any of them nor any other elected official during the last
> several years. If I were to run into any of them in the street, I would not
> recognize them except the National President who was in this city quite
> several years ago. By the way, at this time our lodge does not own any real
> estate property and hence this lack of interest from the elected officials
> may have something to do with this. Usually money talks.
>
> This brings up an important issue. The elected officials who make critical
> decisions for TSA and theosophy and the question is simply why they do not
> take time to visit the lodges in their âdistrictâ and get to know the
> lodges
> and the members.
>
> In the early days of TS when membership was growing, we find the leaders
> traveling and lecturing and this had a very positive effect on the lodges
> and had an effect on the membership. Now we have seen for decades, the
> membership is going south and it looks like the lack of personal visits by
> elected officials and interaction with lodges and members seem to adversely
> affect the growth of lodges and members. Apparently, nice scholarly
> writings
> on theosophical magazine and other publications are not helping membership
> and lodge growth.
>
> We all are aware of the elaborate attempt to identify how to grow
> membership
> and lodges. Why not try simple methods which have proven their
> effectiveness
> in the past before launching on complex methods whose outcome is unsure.
>
> IMHO, the elected officials by not visiting the lodges in their area are
> definitely distancing themselves from the membership whom they are supposed
> to serve and represent.
>
> MKR
>
> There is no religion higher than truth
>
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>
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>
>  
>


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