I gave a talk on the Apocalypse of St. John recently (even the word has fearful connotations, doesn't it?!) and I just wanted to share with you a couple of the main points. Firstly, the word "Apocalypse" itself means "revelation", "unfolding" or "unveiling". It doesn't mean "catastrophe" or "end of the world" as some think. So, something is being revealed. Something is unfolding or being unveiled. In this sense, I think we can say that we do live in "apocalyptic times" as it does seem that much is being revealed these days, about the machinations behind the way the world works. It also made me think of how human life itself is an "unveiling". We learn more and more about who we are as we get older. Parts of ourselves are "revealed" by the situations we find ourselves in. Another point was that the book of revelation is not there to scare us, though there are some frightful images therein. So too with the images in Daniel, Ezekial and other prophetic books of the Hebrew Bible. According to Steiner, the purpose of this book of spiritual initiation (written in a strange initiation language, which should not be taken literally or materialistically) is to fire our will to do our best for the "good evolution of humanity". One way to read that is: do everything I can to spiritually grow, spiritually strengthen myself and grow in wisdom and love for my fellow human being and the beings of the earth. Thanks for being a part of this group. Best wishes Mick

I hope you don't mind me speaking personally here for a minute: As I get older, I realise more and more that all the previous identities I built up, are not actually me. I don't feel bad about them. They were necessary. They were all I had. But as time goes on I begin to notice old thought patterns, habits and ways of being falling away. I've always questioned everything, but now I'm not even sure who's doing the questioning. Someone said to me once that we continually build up a paradigm with which to understand the world. Then, step by step, life goes about dismantling this paradigm with it's small or big tragedies, it's disappointments and it's revelations...and we have to build up a whole new paradigm! Even the spiritual paradigms we have need to continually be renewed...otherwise they just become another dogma to cling to. Then there's the fact that as we grow, we find more and more parts of ourselves, that we didn't know existed...even as other parts die away. This can be wonderful and terrifying. But all is growth...and it doesn't seem to end. But maybe we can also find "rest" within this continual growth and movement. This is my big challenge and something I want to solve. This journey the self is not for the faint hearted. But if you're on that path to becoming more and more of who you are (whoever that is), welcome. Warm wishes Mick PS. would love to hear your thoughts and experiences on this. Please feel free to comment below and I'll get back to you asap (Art work: Antonín Slavíček - "In the Veltrusy Park", 1901)

Let us know in the comments: - what brought you here? - what you'd like to get out of being here? - what you'd like to learn? - what you'd like to share? Thank you!

Let's get the discussion going! Pop your questions, thoughts, insights into the comments below... Thank you Mick PS. yes, I will be posting random intriguing images 😉

This is an article I wrote a little while back...I'd love to know what you think! Let me know in the comments below. I’m an Aussie living in the south-west of England. But most of my work these days is with people in the USA. I regularly come into contact with people from different sides of the political spectrum and the overwhelming thing I’ve noticed is this:Each side thinks the other side is evil. Not just silly, misinformed, a bit wrong, or misguided…but actually evil. If each side thinks the other is evil, where does that leave us? Where does it all end up? Civil war? What can be done about it? Is it hopeless? Those who don’t take the red vs blue stance, believe that both sides are controlled by other forces beyond them. The banking cartels, the deep state, the illuminati etc etc. But ultimately, the effect is the same. “My opinion is right and yours is wrong”. Clearly, direct political action like protesting has a negligible effect. Voting, even when handled legally and fairly is mainly directed towards the 2 party system. But many on both sides believe that the election process has been hi-jacked anyway (by the other side, of course). I believe the solution lies closer to home. And I’m not talking about “finding peace in yourself before creating peace in the world”, although this has its place. I’m talking about seeking a new way forward with the people we disagree with. Try this on for size: Next time you’re having a conversation with someone who disagrees with you, listen to them. I mean, really listen to them. Try to actually understand their thought processes. Aim to be able to argue their case better than they can. Put aside your own opinions for the duration of the conversation. Decide to hang them up on the hook like a coat. Don’t worry, they’ll still be there when the conversation is over. In fact, your opinions will raise their head continually throughout the conversation, usually in the form of a strong desire to contradict, tell them they’re wrong, yell, scream or maybe even lash out. That’s ok.