Who is this John of St. John’s-Tide?
Studying Rudolf Steiner’s work on the Gospels, we gain profound insights that have the power to touch deep truths buried in the unconscious regions of our soul, regarding one of the most powerful personalities in the history of humankind. In the Gospel of St. John the Evangelist, right after the mighty description of the evolution of the cosmos, we read: “There came a man, send from God, his name was John.” (John 1.6.)
In the original Greek, Ιωάννης Johannes, is made up of the vowels “E – O – Ah“, 3 very powerful Eurythmy gestures. The “E” represents the upright human being – one arm pointing toward heaven, the other left to rest, grounding toward the earth; an admonition to be here now.
The “O” is a round gesture of “inclusive inwardness”, an embracing of the soul.
The “Ah” is an opening to heavenly revelation; both arms raised in a V, becoming a vessel that opens to heaven, a gesture of “vision, reverence &revelation”.
The Gospel of St. Luke describes the birth of John; how an angel appeared to the priest Zechariah, telling him, “your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, & you shall call him John.” (Luke 1.13.) The angel also foretells the task of this being John: “… even from his mother’s womb will he be filled with the Holy Spirit. And he will turn many sons of Israel to the Lord their God again. He will be his forerunner and will pave his way, bearing within him the spirit and power of Elijah, to change men’s hearts so that fathers shall rediscover the meaning of childhood, and those who have become alienated from God shall find the meaning of Good again. So shall he make a well-prepared people ready for the Lord “(Luke 1.15-17.)
The birth of John takes place just after the height of Summer, on June 24th, framed by the births of the two Jesus children. On the one hand, the birth of the Matthew Jesus child on January 6th, with the visitation of the ‘three wise men from the East’, taking place in Bethlehem. And months later, we hear of the other birth, of the Luke Jesus child, on December 24th, with the heavenly revelation to the shepherds.
In another mystery, we see the spiritual body or angel of Gautama Buddha, which appears in the etheric-astral realm, first, in the meeting between Elizabeth, (just before John the Baptist is born), with Mary, the mother of Jesus (Luke 1.39-56.) & then also at the revelation to the shepherds (Luke 11.8-15.).
Rudolf Steiner tells us that the Gospel of St. Luke brings us a new form of Christ-centered Buddhism, expressing the kind of love & compassion that can be understood by even the simplest souls. The interplay between the 2 polarities of the Buddha to John the Baptist is interesting to contemplate.
John the Baptist’s sermon at the river Jordan shows how the teachings of Buddha come forward in a new form. – Just like the Buddha declared certain truths & warnings in his famous sermon at Benares some five hundred years before, so too did JB speak in a similar way. Buddha says: “Do not think, because you are a Brahman, you are able to advance …“
John changes this admonition to fit his time, saying: “Do not think, because you are children of Abraham …” Buddha gave the teaching of love & compassion – JB gave the parable of the man who has two coats, how we must share with those that have none. And just as the monks came to Buddha with questions; now the tax collectors & soldiers come to John the Baptist.
After his life as an ascetic, JB begins publicly preaching & baptizing. In the 5th Gospel, Steiner describes how JB worked with the community of the Essenes.
Yep there’s more tomorrow (Remember, the Festival of St. John last 4 weeks)
Blessings and Peace ~Hazel Archer Ginsberg
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Rudolf Steiner’s Lectures on this day
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
25 June 2020 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Get in on the conversation between Regulus & waxing Bella Luna, happening now. On star charts, Regulus – also known as Alpha Leonis – is located at the base of a star pattern that appears like a backwards question mark. This pattern, known as The Sickle, makes up the head & forequarters of Leo the Lion. Ancient Arab stargazers called Regulus by the name Qalb al-Asad, which means Heart of the Lion. It’s also sometimes called Cor Leonis, also meaning the Lion’s Heart. This same name was said to have been given to Richard the Lionhearted.
The constellation of Leo the Lion is part of the ancient story of Hercules & his 12 trials.
In the first of his trials Hercules is tasked with finding & killing the Nemean Lion – whose hide is impenetrable. Hercules doesn’t know this at first & shoots the Nemean Lion with arrows, which do nothing but make it really, really mad.
Being Hercules, he decides to make a mad dash toward the Nemean Lion rather than run away. The lion bounds into its cave, which has two entrances. Long story short, Hercules blocks off an entrance, rushes into the cave, & crowns the Nemean Lion over the head with his club.
In order to prove his victory, Hercules is supposed to bring the pelt back to King Eurystheus. After trying a few different tactics, he finally figures out that the only thing that can cut the skin of the Nemean Lion is with its own claws. Hercules brings the pelt back to Eurystheus, but ends up keeping it to use as his own personal armor.
In different versions of this story either Zeus or Hera decides at this point to create the Leo constellation.
It was Hera who first begged Gaia & Tartarus to create the god/monster Typhon, who happens to be the Nemean Lion’s father. Some legends say that Selene the moon goddess nursed the Nemean Lion; named because Hera, angry at Zeus, sent it to Nemea to live, next a shrine to Zeus. So anyone wanting to worship Zeus had to get past the lion first.
After Hercules conquered the Nemean Lion, Hera, took pity on the creature (or perhaps felt guilty) for it getting it hunted down , so she allowed it to live amongst the stars, next to Selene, the moon goddess, who adored him.
1767 – Mexican Indians riot sending the Jesuit priests home
1767 – Deathday of Georg Philipp Telemann, a German Baroque composer & multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family’s wishes. Telemann one of the most prolific in history, was considered by his contemporaries to be one of the leading German composers of the time—he was compared favorably both to his friend Johann Sebastian Bach, who made Telemann the godfather & namesake of his son & to George Frideric Handel. Telemann made an important link between the late Baroque & early Classical styles.
1822 – Deathday of E. T. A. Hoffmann, a Prussian Romantic author of fantasy & horror, a jurist, composer, music critic, draftsman & caricaturist. His stories form the basis of Jacques Offenbach’s famous opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He is also the author The Nutcracker of which the famous ballet is based.
1876 – Battle of the Little Bighorn & the death of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer.
1900 – The Taoist monk Wang Yuanlu discovers the Dunhuang manuscripts, a cache of ancient texts that are of great historical & religious significance.
1910 – Igor Stravinsky’s ballet The Firebird is premiered in Paris
1924 – Beginning of the Curative Pedagogical Course by Rudolf Steiner in Dornach
1940 –France officially surrenders to Germany
1947 –The Diary of Anne Frank is published
1950 – The Korean War begins with the invasion of South Korea by North Korea
1978 – The rainbow flag representing gay pride is flown for the first time during the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade
1991 – Croatia & Slovenia declare independence from Yugoslavia
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POD (poem Of the Day)
~Sun your # is 1
multiplied by millions
i am 1 too with a 1000 longings for unity
no before & no after
only a exaltation of now in the timeless 1…
see you there
~hag
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Friday 26 June OR Sunday 28 June, 2020 Goethe’s Primordial Plant Workshop with Victoria Martin
Urpflanze Magic Art Workshop with Victoria Martin – Create your own Totem Plant Portrait on 8 x 32 Archival Canvas.
$15 – $25 (or pay what you will) includes Tuition & All Materials. Space is limited to 10, so please reserve your spot. Each session is a stand alone event.
2 opportunities to Create:
Friday 26 – Doors open 4:30pm, Lecture, Demo & Art Making: 5 pm – 6:30 pm, Critique & Soiree 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
OR
Sunday 28 – Doors open: 2:30pm, Lecture, Demo & Art Making: 3 pm – 4:30 pm, Critique & Soiree: 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Please bring Paleo Snacks to share. RSVP by Thursday June 25 Contact viccimartin@gmail.com or call 312-961-3380.
~Rudolf Steiner Branch of Chicago Festivals & Programs Coordinator Hazel Archer-Ginsberg
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Sat. 27 June 2020 Werbeck Singing workshop 9 am – 5 pm
9 am – 3:30 pm Sat. 27 June 2020 with Alicia Burns at Elderberries 3-Fold Bio-dynamic Outpost & Cultural Hub 4251 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago, IL. 60618
$25-$65 or pay it forward
…the human voice needs no training, it is already there, finished and perfect as an entity. What the voice is waiting for is liberation. We should speak of freeing the voice, or better yet uncovering the voice, and not voice-training. ~ Valborg Werbeck-Svärdström, creator of the Werbeck Singing Method
Details TBA. for more info. contact Frank Agrama
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August 8-18 ‘Classroom Alive’ Youth Open-Source Learning in Chicago
We’re starting up with Culture in our community – join young people here in Chicago for a 10 day walking journey – Classroom Alive Chicago!
Exploration & experiencial learning all over Chicagoland, starting at at Elderberries 3-Fold Bio-dynamic Outpost & Cultrual Hub 4251 N. Lincolon Ave. Chicago, IL. 60618
for more info. contact Ultra-Violet Archer, or Frank Agrama
Details TBA #ClassroomAliveChicago2020
Thank you for forwarding this flier for any interested young people –
Co-sponsored in part by The Rudolf Steiner Branch Chicago Hazel Archer-Ginsberg, Festival & Program Coordinator
August 20-23, 2020 Questions of Courage Youth Conference at Elderberries
Questions of Courage 2020 in Chicago – August 20-23 Elderberries Biodynamic Outpost and 3Fold Cultural Hub 4251 N. Lincolon Ave. Chicago, IL. 60618
August 20: Check-in, share conversation, build the ground for the journey together.
August 21-22: Travel to Wisconsin Move together towards the land, link up with Farmer John and Haidy Angelic Organics Biodynamic Farm, and also with Dana and Phil Burns at Healing Traditions and Alizur farm. Connect with the land, plants, animals, and one another, through creative explorations and “roughin’ it” type amendments. Sleep under the stars or indoors.
August 23: Return to Chicago Enter back into the metropolitan context, into the social questions of urban life, and close the gathering together at Elderberries, setting the ground for future work out of questions of courage that are present.
Other locations and collaborators are currently in dialogue, and will be updated here.
The gathering is essentially about stepping into the living natural element, step by step, making an integral connection, with one another, ourselves, and the elements that support us here on the Earth…”
registration: https://docs.google.com/…/1FAIpQLSdY7KXHkjUPV2h9UD…/viewform
Thank you Elderberries for giving us an anchor to build our heartland gathering around!
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August 27-30, HOW WE WILL 2020
At Elderberries 3-fold Bio-Dynamic Outpost
for more info. contact Frank Agrama or Dottie Zold
Details TBA Co-sponsored in part by The Rudolf Steiner Branch Chicago -Hazel Archer-Ginsberg, Festival & Program Coordinator
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