my POD (Poem Of The Day) ~Before the hawk sailed In the space between the mountain & the moon Before magic made the Word Before Isis was veiled I flourished in the mirrored sea Waiting for this life With you ~hag
***
Evelyn De Morgan
Like quicksilver, the messenger of the gods, darts thru dark tangled alleys. Is he a healer, or a trickster, or maybe a thief? With a light step, in his winged sandals, he confidently goes through hidden passages in the night. In his hands a golden key has the power to open all the doors before him. There is no place dark enough or deep enough that he cannot reach. Not even the realm of the Shades, for in his role as pyschopomp he is a guide to souls, in initiation, & to the place of the dead.
Mercury is the only god allowed to come & go from the Underworld. Standing now in retrograde in Scorpio, this powerful aspect of Mercury, as ‘guide into the depths’, is especially enhanced. Mercury retrograde is about the mind turning its attention within. The psyche becomes the object of observation. And immediately the alchemical motto of the V.I.T.R.I.O.L.V.M. is evoked.
Visita Interiora Terrae Rectificando Invenies Occultum Lapidem Veram Medicinam. Visit the interior of the earth, and by rectifying you will find the hidden stone which is the true medicine. The black dirt of Egypt (al-Kemia) contains vital forces hiding in the mud.
Working on our shadow side isn’t easy, & is often avoided. It’s the soul’s journey into the vault where we keep all our secrets hidden away. Confronting our unconscious fears takes a force of will; & this transit can help.
Get ready friends, because all the shadows that emerged during the lockdown—which was a forced social Nigredo—are going to come back during Mercury retrograde in Scorpio. In alchemy, nigredo, or blackness, means putrefaction or decomposition. This is the 1st step in the cultivation of the ‘Philosopher’s Stone’. All alchemical ingredients have to be cleansed & cooked down into a uniform black primordial matter.
In analytical psychology, the term became a metaphor for ‘the dark night of the soul, when we must confront the shadow within.’
Besides the shadow work, with Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio, we might also experience the return of relationships, or external situations, which we thought were over & done with. Or perhaps we will glean some insights about them. This is what Scorpio does; it turns Mercury into a private detective. Truths are unveiled.
Mercury also performs an opposition to Uranus in Taurus; & also a strong square with Saturn – Two perfect squares immediately before & then after the 2nd stationary point.
The opposition with Uranus is about technology, means of transport & communication, betraying us. Isn’t that the way the truth often comes out, by a kind of betrayal? Messages sent to the wrong person—a classic. A slip of the tongue; or a chance encounter, revealing where we really were.
And the square with Saturn, brings deep intuition, because of Mercury being in Scorpio; which then comes knocking up against our intellectual reasoning, since Saturn is in Capricorn. Our gut is going to tell us one thing, our intellect, something else. Not only it will be very difficult to be reasonable, but it will be just as easy to be suspicious.
This year we had Mercury retrograde in all Water signs: Pisces, Cancer & now Scorpio. This created a great triangle of water in the sky. Water is the element of emotions & feelings.
Interesting that next year we will see Mercury doing the same thing in Air signs: Aquarius, Gemini & Libra; perhaps that will bring an opportunity to change our way of thinking?
***
11 October 2020 – “Speaking with the Stars”: If you’re awake in the early dawn, like I am, tomorrow, Monday the 12th, the waning crescent Moon stands very high above bright Venus. It’s been fascinating to watch Venus as morning star reveal herself. Look between Bella Luna & the goddess of Love, for Regulus, the forefoot of Leo.
1138 – A massive earthquake strikes Aleppo, Syria. The third deadliest earthquake in history with over 230,000 killed
1582 – Because of the adoption of the Gregorian calendar, this day does not exist in this year in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain
1634 – The Burchardi flood: killed around 15,000 in North Friesland, Denmark & Germany
1809 – Along the Natchez Trace in Tennessee, explorer Meriwether Lewis dies under mysterious circumstances at an inn called Grinder’s Stand
1890 – The Daughters of the American Revolution is founded
1906 – San Francisco public school board sparks a diplomatic crisis between the United States & Japan by ordering Japanese students to be taught in racially segregated schools
1918 – The Puerto Rico earthquake shakes the island with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing 1116 people
1958 –NASA launches the lunar probe Pioneer 1 which falls back to Earth & burns up
1962 – Second Vatican Council: Pope John XXIII convenes the first ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church in 92 years
1968 –NASA launches Apollo 7, the first successful manned Apollo mission, with astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn F. Eisele & Walter Cunningham aboard
1972 – A race riot occurs on the United States Navy aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk off the coast of Vietnam during Operation Linebacker
1984 – Aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger, astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan becomes the first American woman to perform a spacewalk
2000 – NASA launches STS-92, the 100th Space Shuttle mission, using Space Shuttle Discovery
***
Kristina West
Thanks to all who heard the call & took up the invitation to join us for the workshop: Sophia Working. I hope to be able to share the link to the recording soon
xox
***
‘Soul to Soul’ on-line Festival with the Central Regional Council & Speical Guests
Halloween 31 October 2020, Saturday 11 am – 1 pm PT / 1 pm – 3 pm CT / 2pm – 4pm ET
Stay tuned for details
***
The Connection Between Epidemics, the Souls of the Dead, & the Spiritual World – Leading thoughts by Hazel Archer-Ginsberg.
2 pm – 4 pm CDT 8 Nov. 2020 Our Annual All Souls Festival
With Group Eurythmy, Singing, Social Sculpture while reading the names of the dead, & Break out Sessions.
In-person at Elderberries Biodynamic Outpost & 3 fold Cultural Hub, in conjunction with the Rudolf Steiner Branch Chicago, 4249-51 N. Lincoln Ave.
Dear Friends – Thank you for a deep rich Michaelmas experience! Here is the recording from Michaelmas 2020: Joan d’Arc – PURIFYING FIRE: The Power behind the Will (Please let me know if you can access it?)
“So that the Michael impulses can become reality, let us become one with the flame that is enkindled today. These impulses cannot become reality without flames. But to live and work out of the flames of enthusiasm, we ourselves must become the flame. Flame is the only thing that is not consumed by flame. When we feel ourselves becoming flames that cannot be burned by flames, we can afford to leave our physical hearts behind like empty sacks, because we will possess etheric hearts, hearts that understand that humankind is entering a new age and a life of spirituality.” ~Rudolf Steiner, from “The Life of the World Must Be Constructed Anew from the Ground Up”, Arnheim, July 20, 1924. Found in “Youth and the Etheric Heart”, GA 217a
Vlad Apetrei & Irene Olid
A deep holiness broods over the dying light. Now, in ourselves we must find our own power of bestowing warmth; that we may shine from within. In the realm of the senses the plant world sinks down into death. Inwardly the fire-spirits, offspring of the lofty Beings of the Sun, bearing the Archetypal pictures of the plant kingdom, stream down into the womb of Mother Earth. All around us we see withering, the color leaving to reveal the essence. As human beings we must not allow the death of nature to draw us into sleep. In autumn we must discover the force of resurrection within, so that we can pass with full consciousness thru the gate of death with a wakened soul, in our time. This is possible by what Michael bestows as the Fire of Will. We can come into communion with the most hidden secrets of existence now, whispering: Feel yourself as bearer of the Motherhood of Nature, to conceive in love the fiery germ of Self.
May we hold the sword of light to fire up our will
~hag
29 September 2020- “Speaking with the Stars”: Bella Luna passes south of Neptune at 9 pm CDT tonight. You can find the pair in Aquarius the Water-bearer in the southeast.
Look east to find Mars above the horizon. Between Mars & Neptune on the sky is main-belt asteroid Leto, which reaches opposition at 10 pm CDT. Discovered in 1861, Leto is 76 miles across. It’s currently traveling through the constellation Cetus the Whale.
You can find yet another planet, Uranus, northeast of Mars, closer to the horizon.
The Feast Day of St.Michael & All the Heavenly Hosts, also called MICHAELMAS
1227 – Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, is excommunicated by Pope Gregory IX for his failure to participate in the Crusades. A man of extraordinary culture, energy, & ability Frederick II was called stupor mundi (the wonder of the world), by Nietzsche, also the first European, the first modern ruler – by many historians, Frederick established in Sicily & southern Italy a modern, centrally governed kingdom with an efficient bureaucracy.
He was a King of Germany, of Italy, & Burgundy. His other royal title was King of Jerusalem by virtue of marriage & his connection with the Sixth Crusade.
He was frequently at war with the Papacy, hemmed in between Frederick’s lands in northern Italy & his Kingdom of Sicily (the Regno) to the south. Pope Gregory IX went so far as to call him an Antichrist.
Speaking six languages (Latin, Sicilian, German, French, Greek & Arabic, Frederick was an avid patron of science & the arts. He played a major role in promoting literature through the Sicilian School of poetry. His Sicilian royal court in Palermo, saw the first use of a literary form of an Italo-Romance language, Sicilian. The poetry that emanated from the school had a significant influence on literature & on what was to become the modern Italian language.
He was also the first king who explicitly outlawed trials by ordeal as they were considered irrational.
1571 – Birthday of Caravaggio, Italian painter
1717 – An earthquake strikes Antigua Guatemala, destroying much of the city’s architecture & making authorities consider moving the capital to a different city
David Newbatt.
1812- Birthday of Caspar Hauser, grown up in the total isolation of a darkened cell. Theories link him with the grand ducal House of BadenThese claims, & his subsequent death by stabbing, sparked much debate & controversy.
“…It was the case of that human being, so enigmatic for many people, who was once placed into this city in a mysterious way, and who in just as mysterious a way met his death in Ansbach. An author, in order to indicate the mystery of his life, wrote that as he was carried out to burial the sun was setting on the one horizon and the moon was rising on the other. I speak, as you know, of Caspar Hauser. If you disregard all the pros and cons that have been asserted, if you look only at what has been fully verified, you will know that this foundling — who was one day simply there in the street, and who since he did not know whence he came, was called the Child of Europe — could neither read nor write when he was found. At an age of twenty years he possessed nothing of what is gained through the intellect but he had a remarkable memory. As they began to instruct him, as logic entered his soul, his memory disappeared. This transition in consciousness was accompanied by something else. He possessed at first an incredible, an entirely inborn truthfulness and it was precisely in this truthfulness that he went more and more astray. The more he nibbled, so to say, at intellectuality, the more it vanished. There would be many things to study were we to enter deeply into this human soul which had been artificially held back. It is not difficult for the student of Spiritual Science to credit the popular tradition, so unacceptable to the learned people of to-day, which relates that while Caspar Hauser still knew nothing, while he still had no idea that there were beings besides himself of different form, he exercised a remarkable effect upon quite savage creatures. Savage animals humbled themselves and became mild, something streamed from him that made such beasts gentle, although they savagely attacked anyone else. We could in fact penetrate deeply into the soul of this remarkable personality, so enigmatic to many, and you would see how things that cannot be explained from ordinary life are led back through Spiritual Science to spiritual facts. Such facts cannot be learnt by speculation but only by spiritual observation, though they are comprehensible to an unbiased and logical thinking.
All this has only been said in order to show you that the modern consciousness has evolved from another, an age-old-state when man was not in direct touch with outer objects in the modern sense, but on the other hand was in connection with facts and beings of the spiritual world.” ~Rudolf Steiner, The Apocalypse of St. John, Spiritual Science — The Gospel — The Future of Mankind
1885 – The first public electric tramway in the world is opened in Blackpool, England
1902 – Deathday of Émile Zola a French novelist, playwright, journalist, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, & an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism. He was a major figure in the political liberalization of France & in the exoneration of the falsely accused & convicted army officer Alfred Dreyfus, which is encapsulated in the renowned newspaper headline J’accuse. Zola was nominated for the first & second Nobel Prize in Literature in 1901 & 1902. His death from carbon monoxide poisoning is suspected to have been murder
1924 – Ludwig Polzer holds his 1st First Class Lesson
1954 – The convention establishing CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) is signed
1957 – Twenty MCi of radioactive material is released in an explosion at the Soviet Mayak nuclear plant at Chelyabinsk
1981 – Deathday of Adolf Arenson, German composer & Anthroposopher. Arenson editied many of Rudolf Steiner’s works, & composed the music for many of the plays & productions. Steiner mentions him at the end of Wonders of the World lecture 1
2008 – Following the bankruptcies of Lehman Brothers & Washington Mutual, The Dow Jones Industrial Average falls 777.68 points, the largest single-day point loss in its history
2009 – The 8.1 Mw Samoa earthquake strikes with a maximum Mercalli intensity. A destructive tsunami follows, leaving 1189 dead & hundreds injured.
***
Erman Yegin
POD (Poem Of the Day)
~a word, a vibration, a message Is coursing thru my blood The rust in my veins causes combustion Making room For the cosmic iron to etch itself into my palms Activating my limbs – Forging my will to awaken… ~hag
***
Tuesday, September 29 MICHAELMAS ‘Talisman for Courage’ Art Workshop with Victoria Martin 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
MICHAELMAS ‘Talisman for Courage’ Art Workshop in person at the Rudolf Steiner Chicago Branch 4249 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago. 6:30-8:30 PM Facilitated by Victoria Martin
6:30 (sunset) Doors open: orientation. Tea, nuts, and fruit are served
7 PM sharp Visual lecture and demonstration
7:15 PM –8:00 PM workshop – Pastels on flat canvas good for 100+ years (archival materials)
8:00– 8:30 PM discussion – We will learn all about symbols of The Michaelmas: Wings, Iron Meteorites/Stars, Scales of Judgment, Sword of Justice, and the Serpent/Dragon. There will be a wide selection of easy to render visual images in any/all of these 5 categories at each workstation. We will use a black charcoal pencil and the colors red, gold, and turquoise archival pastels on raw canvas size 11” x 11” this Talisman will be suitable for mounting on stretchers or framing (no glass needed).
Limited to 10 participants $15 tuition + $5 materials = $20 or pay what you will. Observers and guests are welcome at no charge, but please bring tree nuts, greens, fruit, or other paleo snacks.
Everyone: wear something RED: Michael’s color!
***
ON-GOING:
Community Study – Wednesdays at 9:30 am – 11 am at the Branch – Working with Rudolf Steiner’s Karmic Relationships Vol 6.
‘Anthroposophy’, which means Wisdom of the Human Being is a ‘Spiritual Science’ built on the research of Rudolf Steiner. Our current conversation explores: the riddles of existence, the truth of karma, the mystery of evil, historic connections, life after death and more. We incorporate ‘The Calendar of the Soul’, eurythmy, focused discussion and seasonal artistic explorations in our study.
Greetings Friends on this High Holy Day of Yom Kippur, & also the eve of the ‘Feast of St. Michael & All the Heavenly Hosts’. This year our Michaelmas theme was ‘Joan d’Arc – PURIFYING FIRE: The Power behind the Will’, & my research led me to many amazing resources, including Mark Twain’s, as well as Anthroposopher Joan M. Edmunds Books. But my main source came from Rudolf Steiner who gives us many insights into this powerful individuality.
I was particularly take by what Steiner says in ‘The Destinies of Individuals and of Nations, Lecture 5, The Nature of the Christ Impulse and the Michaelic Sprit Serving It. Berlin, 1915’; a lecture series he gave right at the start of the 1st world war. I felt called to make that my personal focus. I didn’t get a chance to share it at our Festival, so here it is for your contemplation. I hope it moves you to take action as it did me.
What is the mission of The Maid of Orleans?
From the time of her enchanted childhood around the village fairy tree, & then starting at the age of 12, & for 7 years till she was martyred at 19, Jehanne (feminine form of Joannes or John) d’Arc was inspired into by progressive Beings of the Divine Spiritual World. These powers battled the inflammatory Luciferic forces of deception prevailing in humanity at that special time right before the beginning of the Consciousness Soul Age.Joan of Arc, with the aid of Michael, (& his helpers St. Catherine & St. Margaret) was able to vanquish the seductive Luciferic forces which were vying to prevent this shift in human consciousness.
Steiner describes the miracle of her birth, how she went thru a sort of pre-earthy initiation during the potent time of the 13 Holy nights, incarnating on Epiphany, the day the Christ came into a human being at the baptism. And we can also point to her equally auspicious death. Yes it was gruesome, not unlike like the sacrifice of the Christ. In her case, it occurred because all the jealous, selfish, Luciferic forces of her enemies joined together to bring about her sacrifice by fire; not unlike the burning of Ephesus & of the 1st Goetheanum.
Paul Delaroche
At her witch trial she predicted her own death, & said that within 7 years after of her sacrifice: “the English would meet with a much greater reversal of fortune than any they had known before”.
Spiritual Science tells us that the soul of Joan of Arc continued working across the Threshold to shape these events after her death. What the spiritual powers have to bring about will occur whatever the external conditions may be. Many great individualities are working with us even now from across the threshold. The Maid’s adversaries were able to bring about her death, but they were NOT able to prevent her mission.
The power behind the will of the Maid of Orleans, the forces of Michael, are working still against the immoral Luciferic forces that rage in the world.
Dear friends, as you are all so keenly aware, we are also having to deal with hostile forces in our time; but now-a-days these are predominantly Ahrimanic forces; not inflaming, but hardening, materialistic forces, that have come up with the industrial age. These forces are in evidence everywhere, especially if we turn our attention not only to the mechanical element, but thru-out cyber space; a distractive shrouding of the reappearance of the Christ in the etheric.
And so Spiritual science tells us that if we remain unconscious of these forces working into our sense impressions, we are offering an abode to the dragon that seeks to stupefy us. These sclerotic forces influence our earth life, creating the fearful events happening NOW all over the globe.
In the above mentioned 1917 lecture, Steiner talks about how a sort of denial of the build up to the 1st World War had been present for a long time in the astral world, but was held back by something that was also astral: by the fear, doubt & hatred held in the feeling life of human beings. These negative astral forces were able to hold the war back, to prevent it, for a while. Steiner says: “…at 1st a fearful denial was able to stop war from breaking out. But then with the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, there emerged a ‘reversal event’ – this recalls the words from Joan of Arc: “the English would meet with a much greater reversal than any they had known before”. In that case the selfish Luciferic forces came back to destroy the English reign after the sacrifice of Joan of Arc; & in this case of the world war, all the elements of fear from the ahrimanic powers began to gather around the sacrificed soul of the Archduke, creating a focal point, a tear at the threshold.
It’s hard to really phantom this, but we know that anything that has a specific character on the physical plane will have the opposite character in the spiritual world. Everything is reversed in the spiritual world. An element that had a blocking effect, keeping the 1st world war at bay, was now acting in the opposite way, as a spur, an incitement, to war. So we see that a flip of the elements of fear, of the deceiving Ahrimanic elements, became a catalyst for war, which now a 100 years later, has led to the events of our present age, where there is constant war, in all realms of society.
Tyrone Dwelzel
But fear not dear friends, Steiner tells us that we must not try to deny or rebel against these materialistic Ahrimanic elements. We must let them strengthen us; we must develop the courage of Michael to see it as something that is necessary in our time, something that has to be present, so that we can learn to reverse the fear thru our heart-thinking – transforming these forces of resistance thru love.
Pas Beirutt
The question is: How do we make it possible for divine spiritual forces, the ‘ever present help of the spiritual world’, to enter into our actions so that we can consciously reverse fear, doubt & hatred?
How do we offer a positive resistance to this deceptive Ahrimanic element in our age, the way resistance was offered to the Luciferic element at the time of Joan of Arc?
– By taking the path towards a spiritualization of human culture – by cultivating our ability to form ideas & concepts into a thinking will for good. This is the prerequisite foundation needed to manifest the 3-fold social organism. Which we can only do if we stop listening to the prejudices & propaganda currently pounding us deeper into the materialism of our age – a voice that speaks loudly at times, or can be the faintest of whispers from the dragon within.
We generate the great strength we need to offer resistance to these hardening forces by approaching the spirit not only thru the inner powers of revelation & faith, like in the case of Joan of Arc, but by trying to concentrate our powers of understanding on what spiritual science has to give – a rational wisdom, filling us with light.
Irene Olid Gonzalez.
And when we take ahold of ourselves with this attitude, we can consciously work with what Michael, the Spirit of our Age, has to give us now in our time – Meeting every trial & test with a conscious heart-thinking, motivated by the wisdom of love.
~May we strive for at-one-ment on this solemn fast day, in preparation for our journey into the Michaelmas season, where we must kindle our own light of thinking.
28 September 2020 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Retro. Saturn halting its westward motion, coming to an apparent stop 10 pm CDT tonight. The planet of universal memory will then begin moving eastward again — although not as quickly as Jupiter. The King questioner switched directions September 12 & is tracking east much faster than Saturn. Jupiter will ultimately catch up with the ringed planet December 21 for an extraordinary close conjunction that will bring Saturn as close as Jupiter’s own moons.
Our own Moon has pulled away from Sagittarius, where the giant planets now sit, so consider spending some time in this constellation tonight. The tiny dwarf planet Pluto, lies roughly between Saturn & Jupiter, Southwest of Saturn & Southeast of Jupiter.
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
551 BC – Birthday of Confucius, Chinese teacher, editor, politician, & philosopher of the Spring &Autumn period of Chinese history
1203 – Deathday of Alanus ab Insulis, Theologian, poet, teacher at Chartres. Alan’s philosophy was a sort of mixture of Aristotelian logic and Neoplatonic philosophy. The Platonist seemed to outweigh the Aristotelian in Alan, but he felt strongly that the divine is all intelligibility and argued this notion through much Aristotelian logic combined with Pythagorean mathematic
“Do not hold as gold all that shines as gold”
In the Anticlaudianus he sums up as follows: Reason, guided by prudence, can unaided discover most of the truths of the physical order; for the apprehension of religious truths it must trust to faith. This rule is completed in his treatise, Ars catholicae fidei, as follows: Theology itself may be demonstrated by reason. Alainus even ventures an immediate application of this principle, & tries to prove geometrically the dogmas defined in the Creed
Rudolf Steiner speaks extensively about this powerful Platonic individuality in many place such as: Karmic Relationships: Esoteric Studies – Volume III, lecture VI – THE SCHOOL OF CHARTRES
1899 – Deathday of Giovanni Segantini,an Italian painter known for his large pastoral landscapes of the Alps. He was one of the most famous artists in Europe in the late 19th century. In later life he combined a Divisionist painting style with Symbolist images of nature. He was active in Switzerland for most of his life.
TODAY in 1924 – Rudolf Steiner gave his ‘Last Address’ in Dornach GA 238 ‘The Individuality of Elias, John, Raphael, Novalis’ with the Michael Meditation:
Springing from Powers of the Sun, Radiant Spirit-powers, blessing all Worlds! For Michael’s garment of rays Ye are predestined by Thought Divine.
He, the Christ-messenger, revealeth in you — Bearing mankind aloft — the sacred Will of Worlds. Ye, the radiant Beings of Aether-Worlds, Bear the Christ-Word to Man.
Thus shall the Heralds of Christ appear To the thirstily waiting souls, To whom your Word of Light shines forth In cosmic age of Spirit-Man.
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, a c t i v e l y !
1978 – Deathday of Pope John Paul I, born Albino Luciani, served as Pope until his sudden suspicious death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history.
***
Tuesday, September 29 MICHAELMAS ‘Talisman for Courage’ Art Workshop with Victoria Martin 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
MICHAELMAS ‘Talisman for Courage’ Art Workshop in person at the Rudolf Steiner Chicago Branch 4249 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago. 6:30-8:30 PM Facilitated by Victoria Martin
6:30 (sunset) Doors open: orientation. Tea, nuts, and fruit are served
7 PM sharp Visual lecture and demonstration
7:15 PM –8:00 PM workshop – Pastels on flat canvas good for 100+ years (archival materials)
8:00– 8:30 PM discussion – We will learn all about symbols of The Michaelmas: Wings, Iron Meteorites/Stars, Scales of Judgment, Sword of Justice, and the Serpent/Dragon. There will be a wide selection of easy to render visual images in any/all of these 5 categories at each workstation. We will use a black charcoal pencil and the colors red, gold, and turquoise archival pastels on raw canvas size 11” x 11” this Talisman will be suitable for mounting on stretchers or framing (no glass needed).
Limited to 10 participants $15 tuition + $5 materials = $20 or pay what you will. Observers and guests are welcome at no charge, but please bring tree nuts, greens, fruit, or other paleo snacks.
Everyone: wear something RED: Michael’s color!
***
ON-GOING:
Community Study – Wednesdays at 9:30 am – 11 am at the Branch – Working with Rudolf Steiner’s Karmic Relationships Vol 6.
‘Anthroposophy’, which means Wisdom of the Human Being is a ‘Spiritual Science’ built on the research of Rudolf Steiner. Our current conversation explores: the riddles of existence, the truth of karma, the mystery of evil, historic connections, life after death and more. We incorporate ‘The Calendar of the Soul’, eurythmy, focused discussion and seasonal artistic explorations in our study.
Dear friends – You are welcome to join us tomorrow at 9:30 am CDT for our Annual Michaelmas Festival Onlinehttps://zoom.us/j/97955920156 Meeting ID: 979 5592 0156
The color theme to honor Joan of Arc is white, red & gold, so if it is your will, dress in any of these colors to add to the festive community mood.
We will have an art project. Supplies needed for decoupage: votive or tall glass prayer candle, tissue paper, images of Joan, magazines, glue.
We will also be doing copper rod eurythmy, a broom stick works 😉
Jen Zimberg has joined the program & will offer her music
Michaelmas 2020: Joan d’Arc – PURIFYING FIRE: The Power behind the Will –
Date: Saturday 26 Sept. 2020
*PLEASE NOTE TIME CHANGE: Doors open at 9 am for Potluck Breakfast, Coffee, Bagels & Fruit provided. Meet in the back-makers-space our Heartland-Schreinerei. Donations Encouraged.
Festival: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm – Leave for Zinniker Farm Prep Day* (details below)
In-Person at: Elderberries Biodynamic Outpost & Cultural Hub in Chicago – The ‘Have Seeds House’ in LA – ‘The Arc’ in Atlanta – Hudson NY
LucienDante Lazar– Ring the Iron Bell – Welcome (10 minutes)
Group Singing: Michaelmas Time Song (5 Minutes)
Angela Foster – 1. Social Sculpture: The Purifying Fire (10 minutes) (for those joining on zoom, supplies needed for decoupage: votive or prayer candle, tissue paper, images of Joan, magazines, glue)
2. Leading Thoughts, & ‘Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc – Preface’ (10 minutes)
Mary Spalding – ‘Courage Dear Hearts’ Biography of Jeanne d’Arc (10 minutes)
Mary Ruud – Copper Rod Eurythmy: (10 minutes)
Frank Agrama & Dottie Zold with Jen Zimberg interweaving songs – A Michaelic Will: Joan of Arc, Sophie Scholl, Saint Odilie and Jesus of Nazareth. (30 minutes) ‘We are dealing here with a superhuman entity, a being who lived in the spiritual world and heard humanity crying out in misery, calling out to the spiritual worlds for help. This being prepared to receive the Christ Being.’ ‘Humanity cried out in pain and torment, and its cries rose up to that spirit being, who responded by seeking permission from the Sun Spirit to become imbued with Christ.’
Frank Agrama and Dottie Zold, of Elderberries and Have Seeds community, will look at the biographies of these individuals who developed the quality and capacity to work out of ‘a culture of selflessness’ in their community, and the impact this had on the world as young people becoming. We can understand these individuals’ path of sacrifice, as a reflection of the archetype of Jesus of Nazareth, during his growing and seeking years as spoken of in Rudolf Steiner’s Fifth Gospel.
‘Michael is a being of Strength, Courage and Will. He is Sun spirit. He wishes to be regarded.’
Group Singing: Firmly on the Earth I Stand (5 minutes)
Biography Work in Break out Groups – Sharing a story of courage from our lives: Each person takes 3 minutes to tell their tale. (15 minutes)
Harvest from the break out groups – Large Group Sharing (5-10 minutes)
‘The Passage’ by Lucian Dante Lazar (15 minutes)
Impressions, Q’s from the piece – Large Group Sharing (5-10 minutes)
Everyone takes a turn Ringing the IRON, Rudolf Steiner’s ‘Verse for the Michaelic Age’ given at his ‘Last Address’ (5 minutes)
Group 1: Springing from Powers of the Sun, Radiant Spirit-powers, blessing all Worlds! For Michael’s garment of rays We are predestined by Thought Divine.
Group 2: Michael, the Christ-messenger, reveals in us Bearing humankind aloft — the sacred Will of Worlds. You, radiant Beings of Ether-Worlds, Bear the Christ-Word to human beings.
Group 1: Thus shall the Heralds of Christ appear To our thirstily waiting souls. Your Word of Light shines forth to us In the cosmic age of the Spirit-Human.
Group 2: We, disciples who would know the spirit, Follow Michael’s beckoning Wisdom, To take the Word of Love, Willed by Worlds, Into our highest aims of soul-work; actively!
12:30 pm – Goodbye – Thank you – Off to Zinniker Farm –
*From Petra Zinniker: Our fall preparation making will take place on September 26th at 1:30pm, here at the farm. We will be making 3 preparations this year: Horn manure, Chamomile and Dandelion preparations, and have a potluck dinner with a campfire afterwards.
*Please bring a dish to pass and a lawn chair for the potluck*
Please RSVP! Space is limited. Although this is an outdoor event we want to make sure everyone can find the space they need. Dress for the weather!
25 September 2020 – “Speaking with the Stars”: Conjunction of Moon, Jupiter & Saturn!!!
Saturn glows in the south after dusk – a steady yellowish light in the constellation of Capricornus, close to the left of brighter Jupiter – highest in the south at evening twilight. The beneficent King reversed its retrograde (westward movement relative to the stars) on September 12th after halting above the handle of the Teapot of Sagittarius. This evening at dusk you’ll find Jupiter, the expansive thinker – the questioner, next to Saturn holding the memory of the Universe, there to the upper left of the waxing gibbous Moon. They will continue this dance of looking into the past to see World events & how they will move into the future thru our conscious questioning, up until their big conjunction on Winter Solstice.
van Gogh
When we look up to the wonder of the starry world, when we contemplate the whole process of the universe with its glories and marvels, then we are led at last to the feeling that all the glory that lies open to our view in the whole universe that surrounds us only has meaning when it is reflected in an admiring human soul. -Goethe
Birthday of Cleophas, disciple on the road to Emmaus Luke 24:13-32. This occurs three days after the crucifixion, on the day of Jesus’ resurrection. The two have heard the tomb of Jesus was found empty earlier that day. They are discussing the events of the past few days when a stranger asks them what they are discussing. “Their eyes were kept from recognizing him.” He soon rebukes them for their unbelief & gives them a Bible study on prophecies about the Messiah. They ask the stranger to join them for the evening meal. When he breaks the bread “their eyes were opened” & they recognize him as the resurrected Christ, Who immediately vanishes.
Cleopas & his friend hasten back to Jerusalem to carry the news to the other disciples, & learn that The Christ has also appeared to them. The same event is recorded in Mark 16:12-16:13.
810 – Birthday of John Scotus Eriugena, Christian mystic philosopher, translator, theologian & poet. John “of Ireland” (Eriugena means “Irish-born,” where the Scotti were an ancient & extensive tribe) is a major figure in the development of mystical spirituality in western European Christianity. He served as the primary translator-conduit for ideas from the great Greek Christian minds of the Middle-East & Near-East to come into Europe. ‘God is both immanently within and transcendentally beyond all beings’ Expanding richly on the idea of the apokatastasis or “universal salvation” of all souls in God’s all-saving Divine Love. Eriugena also wrote of the conscious Return (reditus)& merging of all beings into God. No souls (including the souls of animals & the demon-souls) would be left out of this grand return, no one would be damned to suffer forever in hell or wither away into oblivion. Eriugena’s enlightened view reveals an astonishingly positive scenario of a triumphantly compassionate, ever-loving God who is the Heart, Source & Substance of everyone.
“…we come across wonderful characters such as Scotus Erigena, a monk from Scotland called the Scottish St. John, who later lived at the court of Charles the Bald. He did not get on well with the Church, and it is told that the brothers of his order tortured him to death with pins. Of course, this is not to be taken literally, but it is true that he was tortured to death. A splendid book was written by him, On the Divisions in Nature which reveals a great profundity of thought… “. ~Rudolf Steiner, Occult Signs and Symbols, lecture 3, GA 101
1789 – The United States Congress passes the Bill of Rights
1930 – Birthday of Shel Silverstein, American author, poet, illustrator, & songwriter
1970 – Erich Maria Remarque, a German novelist who created many works about the terror of war. His best known novel is All Quiet on the Western Front (1928). This made him an enemy of the Nazis, who burned many of his works
1978 – PSA Flight 182, a Boeing 727, collides in mid-air with a Cessna 172 & crashes in San Diego, killing 144 people
***
“Once I spoke the language of the flowers, Once I understood each word the caterpillar said, Once I smiled in secret at the gossip of the starlings, And shared a conversation with the housefly in my bed. Once I heard and answered all the questions of the crickets, And joined the crying of each falling dying flake of snow, Once I spoke the language of the flowers. . . . How did it go? How did it go?” ― Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends
“Ideas are for Anthroposophy Vessels, formed out of love, Into which the being of humanity, Is brought from the spiritual worlds. Clothed in thoughts formed with love The light of true humanity Shall shine through Anthroposophy. And knowledge is but the form In which through humanity It shall be possible That the true spirit from the widths of the world Will focus in human hearts It may enlighten human thought. And as Anthroposophy Really can only be grasped through love, Therefore it is love creating If it is grasped by the true being of humanity. Therefore, in the midst of furious hatred A place of love could be built in Dornach. And words Will not be coined in the Anthroposophical realm As they are usually coined today. Words are formed That are all intrinsically pleas. Every word in Anthroposophy If it is spoken in the right sense Is fundamentally a plea A reverent plea: A plea That the spirit may come down to humankind“. ~ Rudolf Steiner, From the 1922 The Christmas Foundation; Beginning of a Cosmic Age
***
Igor Zenin
Calendar of the Soul by Rudolf Steiner, Translated by Roy Sadler
v25, Autumn Equinox, I may, belonging to myself now, begin to shine a dawning inner light across the darkening of space and time. To sleep is nature’s urge; the depths of soul shall wake and bear the sun’s warm glow through winter storms and snow.
Shiloh Sophia
mirror v28, I can, revived within, now feel my own wide breadth of being, my strength of sun-empowered soul, whose radiance of thinking solves life’s riddles, and lifts the wish-fulfilling wings left lame by hope.
v28 is very special. The Soul Calendar also has a 24 hour rhythm! Human thinking has its first mention here after the opposite verse, 2, says, ‘thought’s power sheds its separate strand’. v28 can be a mantra for the soul every morning on awakening… This is something that could be added in 3 weeks time when we reach v28 in the year’s calendar.
***
Screenshot from the “Sky Guide” app. The sidereal zodiac, shared by Sandra Eastburn
21 September 2020 – “Speaking with the Stars“: The messenger of the gods: Mercury & the bright star Spica stand side by side in Virgo this evening. Start searching for them in the west right after sunset, when they’re already quickly sinking toward the horizon. Once Virgo disappears from the evening sky, look east past Libra & into Scorpius to find the waxing crescent Moon. Nearby is bright red Antares, which depicts the star-studded Scorpion’s heart. After these sights have set, move your gaze further east still to find Jupiter & Saturn, shining near the Teapot of Sagittarius. The giant planets are now just under 8° apart; they will continue drawing closer over the next few months until they reach a spectacular close conjunction December 21.
Feast of St. Matthew, a 1st-century Galilean, the son of Alpheus. As a tax collector he was literate in Aramaic & Greek. After his call, Matthew invited Jesus home for a feast. On seeing this, the Scribes & the Pharisees criticized Jesus for eating with tax collectors & sinners. This prompted Jesus to answer, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ I did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Matthew 9:12-13)
“When seeking to describe the whole course of these events as related in the Gospel of Matthew we should have to say The writer first directs his attention to answering the question: What kind of physical and etheric body could serve such a Being as the Christ for His life on earth? And because of what the writer had experienced he could answer: In order that a suitable physical and etheric body could be prepared it was necessary that they should pass through forty-two generations of the Hebrew people so that the attributes laid down in Abraham might be fully developed. He could then continue to answer the question further by telling us: Such a physical and etheric body could only provide a fitting instrument if the greatest individuality humanity had so far produced for the comprehension of the Christ—that is the Zarathustra individuality — made use of them up to his twelfth year, at which time he had to leave this body and enter another. This was the body of the Jesus of whom the writer of the Gospel of Luke tells. From this point, the writer of the Gospel of Matthew, turning from that to which he had given his attention at first, deals exclusively with the Jesus of whom we read in the Gospel of Luke, and follows the life of Zarathustra until his thirtieth year. The moment had then come, when the astral body and ego-bearer had been so far evolved by Zarathustra that he could sacrifice them to the mighty Being — the great Sun-spirit — who descended from spiritual spheres and took possession of them. This was the moment of the baptism by John in Jordan.” Lecture 12 on The Gospel of Matthew by Rudolf Steiner
19 BC – Deathday of Virgil, Roman poet
1780 – American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold gives the British the plans to West Point.
1792 – French Revolution: The National Convention declares France a republic and abolishes the absolute monarchy
1860 – Deathday of Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher & author
1866 – Birthday of H. G. Wells
1934 – A large typhoon hits western Honshū, Japan, killing 3,036 people
1938 – The Great Hurricane of 1938 makes landfall on Long Island in New York. The death toll is estimated at 500-700 people
1942 – In Dunaivtsi, Ukraine, Nazis murder 2,588 Jews
1972 – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos signs Proclamation № 1081, placing the entire country under martial law marking the beginning of his authoritarian rule
1976 – Orlando Letelier is assassinated in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the Chilean socialist government of Salvador Allende, overthrown in 1973 by Augusto Pinochet
1991 – Armenia is granted independence from Soviet Union
1993 – Russian President Boris Yeltsin suspends parliament & scraps the constitution, triggering the Russian constitutional crisis
1996 – The Defense of Marriage Act passes the United States Congress. The law prohibited federal recognition of same-sex marriage, while allowing states to adopt any marital definition of their choosing
1998 – Deathday of John Wood, Anthroposophical translator
1999 – Chi-Chi earthquake occurs in central Taiwan, leaving over 2,400 people dead
***
The Central Regional Council Invites ALL to our Michaelmas Festival: ‘Courage Born of Wisdom’ – Wednesday 23 September 2020 –On ZOOM – 7:15 pm CDT – 8:30 pm
1st CRC performs a telling of a tale from ancient Chaldea where EA gives birth to Marduk, precursor to Michael.
Proverbs 24: 1-9
then “Wisdom Built herself a house*”…7 members of the various sections of the Anthroposophical Society will stand as Wisdom’s 7 Pillars to share how Courage was born from Wisdom leading to their work in the world.
Pedagogical Section –Michael Holdrege Youth Section – Stephan Ambrose Medical Section –Drs. Molly & Quentin McMullen Eurythmy – Barbara Richardson Social Science Section – Doug Wylie BioDynamic Agriculture – Rand Carter Three-Folding – Dorothy Hinkle-Uhlig
with Original songs by Lucien Dante Lazar!
& a closing about the connection between Michael, The Christ & Anthroposophia!
Meeting ID: 820 7046 0900 One tap mobile +13017158592,,81116556762# US (Germantown) +13126266799,,81116556762# US (Chicago)
Dial by your location +1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) Meeting ID: 820 7046 0900
LucienDante Lazar– Ring the Iron Bell – Welcome (10 minutes)
Group Singing: Michaelmas Time Song (5 Minutes)
Angela Foster – 1. Social Sculpture: The Purifying Fire (10 minutes) (for those joining on zoom, supplies needed for decoupage: votive or prayer candle, tissue paper, images of Joan, magazines, glue)
2. Leading Thoughts, & ‘Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc – Preface’ (10 minutes)
Mary Spalding – ‘Courage Dear Hearts’ Biography of Jeanne d’Arc (10 minutes)
Copper Rod Eurythmy: (10 minutes)
Frank Agrama & Dottie Zold – A Michaelic Will: Joan of Arc, Sophie Scholl, Saint Odilie and Jesus of Nazareth. (20 minutes) ‘We are dealing here with a superhuman entity, a being who lived in the spiritual world and heard humanity crying out in misery, calling out to the spiritual worlds for help. This being prepared to receive the Christ Being.’ ‘Humanity cried out in pain and torment, and its cries rose up to that spirit being, who responded by seeking permission from the Sun Spirit to become imbued with Christ.’
Frank Agrama and Dottie Zold, of Elderberries and Have Seeds community, will look at the biographies of these individuals who developed the quality and capacity to work out of ‘a culture of selflessness’ in their community, and the impact this had on the world as young people becoming. We can understand these individuals’ path of sacrifice, as a reflection of the archetype of Jesus of Nazareth, during his growing and seeking years as spoken of in Rudolf Steiner’s Fifth Gospel.
‘Michael is a being of Strength, Courage and Will. He is Sun spirit. He wishes to be regarded.’
Group Singing: Firmly on the Earth I Stand (5 minutes)
Biography Work in Break out Groups – Sharing a story of courage from our lives: Each person takes 3 minutes to tell their tale. (15 minutes)
Harvest from the break out groups – Large Group Sharing (5-10 minutes)
‘The Passage’ by Lucian Dante Lazar (15 minutes)
Impressions, Q’s from the piece – Large Group Sharing (5-10 minutes)
The Mars / Saturn Square (10 minutes)
Everyone takes a turn Ringing the IRON, Rudolf Steiner’s ‘Verse for the Michaelic Age’ given at his ‘Last Address’ (5 minutes)
Group 1: Springing from Powers of the Sun, Radiant Spirit-powers, blessing all Worlds! For Michael’s garment of rays We are predestined by Thought Divine.
Group 2: Michael, the Christ-messenger, reveals in us Bearing humankind aloft — the sacred Will of Worlds. You, radiant Beings of Ether-Worlds, Bear the Christ-Word to human beings.
Group 1: Thus shall the Heralds of Christ appear To our thirstily waiting souls. Your Word of Light shines forth to us In the cosmic age of the Spirit-Human.
Group 2: We, disciples who would know the spirit, Follow Michael’s beckoning Wisdom, To take the Word of Love, Willed by Worlds, Into our highest aims of soul-work; actively!
12:30 pm – Goodbye – Thank you – Off to Zinniker Farm –
*From Petra Zinniker: Our fall preparation making will take place on September 26th at 1:30pm, here at the farm. We will be making 3 preparations this year: Horn manure, Chamomile and Dandelion preparations, and have a potluck dinner with a campfire afterwards.
*Please bring a dish to pass and a lawn chair for the potluck*
Please RSVP! Space is limited. Although this is an outdoor event we want to make sure everyone can find the space they need. Dress for the weather!
Tuesday, September 29 MICHAELMAS ‘Talisman for Courage’ Art Workshop with Victoria Martin 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm
MICHAELMAS ‘Talisman for Courage’ Art Workshop in person at the Rudolf Steiner Chicago Branch 4249 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago. 6:30-8:30 PM Facilitated by Victoria Martin
6:30 (sunset) Doors open: orientation. Tea, nuts, and fruit are served
7 PM sharp Visual lecture and demonstration
7:15 PM –8:00 PM workshop – Pastels on flat canvas good for 100+ years (archival materials)
8:00– 8:30 PM discussion – We will learn all about symbols of The Michaelmas: Wings, Iron Meteorites/Stars, Scales of Judgment, Sword of Justice, and the Serpent/Dragon. There will be a wide selection of easy to render visual images in any/all of these 5 categories at each workstation. We will use a black charcoal pencil and the colors red, gold, and turquoise archival pastels on raw canvas size 11” x 11” this Talisman will be suitable for mounting on stretchers or framing (no glass needed).
Limited to 10 participants $15 tuition + $5 materials = $20 or pay what you will. Observers and guests are welcome at no charge, but please bring tree nuts, greens, fruit, or other paleo snacks.
We will discuss organizing some of the ALIANT Next Steps
Review ELIANT’s Charter, Vision, and Mission Statement –
Take up a biweekly study of Rudolf Steiner’s Speaker’s Lectures for the Threefold Commonwealth from 1921, found in Communicating Anthroposophy. (We place an order and coordinate shipping, if you are interested please message us, and if you would like support purchasing a book, let us know! ) –
Study our countries’ Constitution wherever we are living.
Join Zoom Meetinghttps://zoom.us/j/96695622019 Meeting ID: 966 9562 2019 One tap mobile +13462487799,,96695622019# US (Houston) +14086380968,,96695622019# US (San Jose)
Dial by your location +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 646 876 9923 US (New York) +1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) Meeting ID: 966 9562 2019 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/aeEGUaSyqT
