Dear friends –

It’s not for nothing that American Elections are always held right around the time of the Cross- Quarter, between Autumn Equinox & the Winter Solstice, when the Sun enters the sign of the Scorpion – The darkening of year when we celebrate Halloween & All Souls & The Day of the dead…etc…

Rudolf Steiner gave many indications about the work of the ‘dark brotherhoods’ who enslave the dead, harnessing the forces of these deceased human beings, who were so materialistic in life that they are able to be held back from entering the light, kept in the sphere around the earth so that these immoral occult groups, who are in turn working with powerful adversarial beings, can pervert & use them for their own selfish purposes, with the goal of hindering the course of true human evolution.

Alex Grey

Let those on the side of light call to our beloved dead to send a counter force of love & support from the spiritual world to inspire & activate the good for all.

 

Let us rise in our thinking to meet the true Folk-Spirit of America, Columbia, whose name comes from the word “columba” meaning “Dove of Peace” – to dethrone the false Uncle Sam with his war mentality.

 

Today, & every election day, I ask Her to guide us & empower us, inspiring us to re-member our true human heritage in this time of muddled ethics & selfish falsehoods.

How I wish Her statue was still behind the Speaker’s chair in the House of Representatives. We need the virtues She represents, now more than ever, to remind us to strive towards our highest ideals.

Personifying values in the form of goddess has a long history; Libertas, goddess of liberty, among others. Our own Statue of Liberty, actually entitled Liberty Enlightening the World, is directly modeled on classical depictions of Libertas.

“…Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
‘ With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
~These words, written by Emma Lazarus, are engraved inside the statue of Columbia Liberty.

The UK was represented as Brittannia, France as Marianne, & Switzerland as Helvetia.

The Statue of Freedom atop the dome of the Capitol combines symbols of Liberty & Columbia: she wears a classical gown & a helmet topped with the distinctively American eagle. Unifying the two, atop the legislative heart of American government, is a statement that these ideals are the pinnacle of what it means to be American.

Whether you think of her as an archetype, a Folk-Spirit, or an old goddess with a new name, Columbia is the personified ideals of liberty & freedom in America. She represents virtues that the best of humanity can unselfishly strive toward.

But have we as a people lost sight of these values? Has she left us? Have we deserted her?

America as goddess, with its personalization of the emerging nation of the United States was founded before the Revolutionary War. She was represented in simple Native American garb, standing in contrast to the Old World’s overly grand caricature.

Another patriot leader, Thomas Paine, included Her in his poem, the “Liberty Tree,” referring to Her as “The Goddess of Liberty.”

“In a chariot of light, form the regions of the day,
The Goddess of Liberty came,
Ten thousand celestials directed her way,
And hither conducted the dame.
A fair budding branch from the gardens above,
Where millions with millions agree,
She brought in her hand as a pledge of her love,
And the plant she named Liberty Tree.

The celestial exotic stuck deep in the ground,
Like a native it flourished and bore;
The fame of its fruit drew the nations around,
To seek out this peaceable shore.
Unmindful of names or distinctions they came,
For freemen like brothers agree;
With one spirit endued, they one friendship pursued,
And their temple was Liberty Tree.

Beneath this fair tree, like the patriarchs of old,
Their bread in contentment they ate,
Unvexed with the troubles of silver or gold,
The cares of the grand and the great.

But hear, O ye swains (a tale most profane),
How all the tyrannical powers,
Kings, Commons and Lords, are uniting amain
To cut down this guardian of ours.
From the East to the West blow the trumpet to arms,
Through the land let the sound of it flee;
Let the far and the near all unite with a cheer,
In defense of our Liberty Tree.”

 As the USA became a nation, Lady Liberty became the official symbol of some of its newly formed states. In addition, Lady Liberty images appeared on coins, paintings, stamps, & in sculptures throughout the land, including the colossal bronze Statue of Freedom, which was commissioned in 1855 & in 1863 set on the top of the dome of the US Capitol building in Washington, DC, where it can still be seen today. As well as the Statue of the Republic, now in Jackson Park, Chicago, formally part of the Columbian Exhibition of 1893.

 

The most famous depictions of the American Freedom Goddess, the Statue of Liberty, was a gift from France to the United States in honor of America’s 100th birthday, designed by French Freemason & sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi with the assistance of engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. The head of Lady Liberty’s statue wears a crown with solar rays, similar to the crown on the Colossus of Rhodes, a magnificent monument to the Sun God Helios that once stood astride a Greek harbor & was considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The seven rays on Liberty’s crown represent the seven continents & seven seas. The torch Liberty holds in Her right upstretched hand is the Flame of Freedom, & underneath Her feet are broken chains representing overcoming tyranny & enslavement. The tablet Liberty holds in Her left hand is inscribed with July 4, the date of the signing of the Declaration of Independence & the birth of the USA as a nation. Her flowing gown is similar in design to depictions of Libertas.

“Liberty relies upon itself, invites no one, promises nothing, sits in calmness and light, is positive and composed, and knows no discouragement.” ~From Walt Whitman’s Preface to Leaves of Grass (1855)

Doesn’t this description sound a lot like qualities held by our Time-Spirit Michael?

What would it be like to rise in our thinking to meet Columbia? To bring Her qualities to bare once again in our great land?

“O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties, Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet, Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat, Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control, Thy liberty in law”!

~”America the Beautiful” lyrics by Katharine Lee Bates, music composed by church organist & choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Episcopal Church in Newark

As the midterm elections occurs today,  we are called upon to direct the clear shining of Michael’s thoughts, Columbia’s inspiration for Equality, Freedom,  & Sister/Brotherhood, & the transforming Christ Will, into the unconscious realm of the dragon where Venus now meets the poison sting of Scorpion.

The last segment of the Michael imagination can be a meditative force as you make your way to GO VOTE:

Ye, the disciples of spirit knowledge,
Take Michael’s wisdom beckoning,
Take the Word of Love of the Will of Worlds
Into your soul’s aspiring, actively!
~Rudolf Steiner

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The Karma Project – A Western Approach to Reincarnation & Karma – November 7, 2018 – 7:15 pm CST (8:15 pm EST)

“ … something is present in us that is like a more sensible person who gladly turns to the eternal, divine, spiritual powers that live in and animate the world. Then, in our inner life, we become certain of a higher inner individuality existing behind the outer one. Through thought exercises such as these, we become aware of the eternal spiritual core of our being. This is extraordinarily significant. And once again, this is something we can actually do”. ~Rudolf Steiner, A Western Approach to Reincarnation and Karma, Chapter 4, “Knowledge of Reincarnation and Karma through Thought-Exercises”, Stuttgart, 20 February, 1912 … focus of the November 7 meeting!

The Central Regional Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America invites you to join our ongoing study conversation. The study has been divided amongst five volunteers who will summarize their section to rebuild it as a foundation for our conversation. Please familiarize yourself with the lecture if possible so you will feel comfortable sharing your reflections and thoughts with the group.

This collection of lectures has been republished by Anthroposophic Press under the title: “A Western Approach to Reincarnation and Karma”

This will be a “Zoom” conference call allowing us an opportunity to see one another while conversing (or audio only if you prefer). To connect to the audio/video-conference:
Option 1. Click link below if you wish to connect through your computer (a headset is recommended)
https://zoom.us/j/320455319

United States: +1 669 900 6833 or +1 646 558 8656
Access Code: 320-455-319
Option 3. You can use a combination of Options 1 and 2 (computer and phone). If you use the phone, please turn off the audio on your computer to prevent audio feedback.

Please join us!
Agenda for our Study Call

7:15 Welcome and Introductions
7:18 Verse
7:25 Study led by six volunteers
Mary – pages 53 to 56
Nick – pages 56 to 60
Hazel – pages 60 to 63
Travis – pages 63 to 65
Alberto – pages 65 to end
8:05 Conversation
8:25 Identify volunteers for our next study call (Chapter 5): January 9
8:28 Close with verse

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Friday 30 November 2018 – 7 – 9 pm
HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT: THE MYSTERY OF THE APOCALYPSE with Margaret Shipman
‘Apocalypse’ today almost always means war, but its primary definition is REVELATION. the Book of Revelations seems warlike until we begin to delve into the messages, seals, trumpets and bowls as stages of initiation! We will explore the complexities of this amazing book of the Bible by taking a journey through the 7-pointed star and the Apocalyptic Seals of the 1907 Munich Conference.
AND:

Saturday 1 December 2018 – 10 am – noon
THE CHRISTMAS CONFERENCE
How can we begin to understand the importance of The Christmas Conference of 1923/24? Can it be understood as so profound to consider it a second turning point of time?
We will take a journey with the foundation stone, beginning with the laying of the first stone, a physical one, for the first Goetheanum, in 1913. Then — through the phoenix experience of the 1922/23 fire, and its journey back to earth a year later—we find it again, as a foundation stone meditation planted into our hearts. The introduction of The Foundation Stone Meditation was a central focus of the Christmas Conference week. It was one of three great gifts which Rudolf Steiner brought at this time as powerful spiritual tools for human evolution.

Margaret Shipman has been a member of the Anthroposophical Society for 30 years and considers the work of Rudolf Steiner to be the core of her life. In 2002 she started a national study group for anthroposophy – ‘Geographically Engaged Members Studygroup’, or G.E.M.S. She is also a cellist and pianist and spent 36 years repairing and making instruments of the violin family. She co-authored the book titled Violin Restoration with her mentor, Hans Weisshaar, who was in the second-ever Waldorf class and met Rudolf Steiner as a child.

For more info. contact Hazel Archer Ginsberg

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Wed. 5 December 2018 CRC Zoom Call 7:15pm – 8:30pm – Reincarnation & Karma
with special guest: Dr. Ross Rentea: “A presentation from the karma and the work together of Rudolf Steiner and Ita Wegman”

Steiner considered I. Wegman a true “friend”, companion over many incarnations, and invaluable helper. In her incarnation in the 20th century she collaborated with him in writing a book, asked decisive questions that led to the Christmas Foundation Conference, the First Class, and more. We will look especially at their working together on the “Fundamentals of Therapy” a work on which R. Steiner put finishing touches until hours before crossing the threshold.

Ross Rentea, MD, has been practicing anthroposophical medicine in Chicago for 35 years. He is a member of the Anthroposophical Society(1972), the First Class of the School for Spiritual Science(1974), the Physicians Association for Anthroposophic Medicine (1984) and the Christian Community (1976). He has served on the Board of the American College of Anthroposophic Medicine. He has lectured nationally and internationally, and published and written numerous scientific research articles and recently (2017) the book “Childhood Illnesses and Immunizations”. Besides anthroposophical medicine his current interests are in better understanding the seven Rhythms of the Foundation Stone. He is a co-founder of the True Botanica Company www.truebotanica.com and the Lili Kolisko Institute for Anthroposophical Medicine www.koliskoinstitute.org .

For more info. contact Hazel Archer Ginsberg

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Rudolf Steiner Branch of The Anthroposophical Society, 4249 North Lincoln Avenue. Chicago, IL 60618 (map) Check out our Web site! Chicago, IL (Anthroposophical Society in America)

The newly renovated (& lazured) Elderberries 3-Fold Space is currently available for rental on PEER SPACE for classes, events, meetings, retreats, art exhibits, family parties, etc…