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The Anthroposophical Society as a Michael Community

On the Word "We" in The Foundation Stone Meditation

Paperback
November 2013
9781906999544
More details
  • Publisher
    Temple Lodge Publishing
  • Published
    22nd November 2013
  • ISBN 9781906999544
  • Language English
  • Pages 56 pp.
  • Size 6" x 9"
$16.00

“What lies spiritually and cosmically at the foundation of a community like the Anthroposophical Society? In wrestling with this question, I have come to the inner conviction that it is justified to speak of the Anthroposophical Society as a Michael community.” — Paul Mackay

How can one understand Rudolf Steiner’s use of the word we in the last part of the Foundation Stone Meditation: “What we found from our hearts and direct from our heads with focused will”? What is the meaning of “we” here?

In the first part of this original and inspiring work, Paul Mackay takes this question as a point of departure, developing a unique approach to working with the seven rhythms of the Meditation. Based on personal experiences, he concludes that the rhythms express the members of the human makeup. We in the fifth rhythm has the quality of “spirit-self.”

The second part of the book considers the same we from a karmic perspective, with reference to Steiner’s lectures on karmic relationships, events in the fourth and ninth centuries, the mystery of death and evil, and the restoration of karmic truth.

“What’s the use of telling people over and over that we’re not a sect if we act like a sect? You see, something that needs to be well understood, especially by the members of the Anthroposophical Society, is what any society in our modern age requires. A society must not be a sect in any way. If the Anthroposophical Society is to stand on firm ground, the word ‘we’ can really never play a role in regard to opinion. Again and again, anthroposophists are heard saying to the rest of the world: ‘We [the Society] think this or that. This or that is going on with us. We want this or that.’ In earlier times, societies could present a face of conformity to the world. Now this is no longer possible. Within a contemporary society, each individual must really be a free human being. Only individuals have views, thoughts, and opinions.” — Rudolf Steiner (1923)

C O N T E N T S:

Preface

PART ONE:

Individuation and the Social Need of Our Time
The Rhythms of the Foundation Stone...
“We” as an Expression of the Spirit of Self-quality

PART TWO:

Rules and Exceptions in Karmic Relationships
Events in the Ninth Century
Events in the Fourth Century
The Mystery of Death and Evil
The Second Crucifixion and Resurrection
A Free-will Deed
Restoring the Truth of Karma

The Foundation Stone Meditation
Rudolf Steiner’s Blackboard Drawings

Notes
Bibliography of Books by Rudolf Steiner

Paul Mackay

Paul Mackay, born 1946 in Hong Kong, studied economics in the Netherlands and business administration in France. After working in international finance, he met and studied Anthroposophy in England and Germany between 1974 and 1977. From 1977 until 2012 he was active in anthroposophic banking, as cofounder and Executive Director of Triodos Bank in the Netherlands, then Executive Director of GLS Bank in Germany, and later Chairman of its supervisory Board. As of March 2012, he is President of the Board of Directors of Weleda AG in Switzerland. In 1996 Paul Mackay joined the Executive Council of the General Anthroposophical Society at the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland. In 2000, he additionally became leader of the Section for Social Sciences of the School of Spiritual Science.