NEWS & NOTICES - JULY to AUGUST 2010
( Download a printable copy of the Newsletter HERE )

NOT I, BUT THE OTHER IN ME
– A talk by John Cunningham from California
On Sunday, the 18th of July, I will give a talk at The Christian Community entitled Not I, But the Other in Me, where I will share my some results of my ongoing research into an anthroposophical understanding of Compassionate Commun-ication (aka Nonviolent Communication), the work of Marshall Rosenberg. The purpose of this research has been to uncover and articulate the anthroposophical basis underlying Marshall Rosenberg’s work. My hope is that its practical value might flow more freely into the social life of our schools and anthroposophical initiatives. Out of my love for Rudolf Steiner’s work and the life of the Steiner schools in particular, and the challenges we often encounter in the social realm, I have sought to contribute in this way. In this talk, I will share my present understanding.

Over the course of the last year, The Philosophy of Freedom has been at the heart of my study and searching. As a result, from the two great halves of this work—The Science of Freedom, and The Practice of Freedom—I will to seek to frame an architecture through which to shed light on the simple, yet profound, insights at the heart of Marshall Rosenberg’s practice. Together, we will think about thinking, observe the unobserved, and wonder about the “exceptional state.” We will look into the archetypal social phenomenon and the extraordinary fact that it was first described in the Appendixthat Rudolf Steiner added to the 1918 edition ofThe Philosophy of Freedom.

I will suggest that we can find an esoteric articulation of “feelings and needs”—the central concept upon which Compassionate Commun-ication is based—within the Psychosophy lectures given by Rudolf Steiner one hundred years ago this year. We will find ourselves within the two streams of time—also found in those lectures—and their relationship to the practice, meaning and mission of empathy (and self-empathy) in this moment, in our times. In the end, we may come to wonder about empathy’s role in the development of the highest of our twelve senses—the sense of I, or ego, and how it lives in Not I, but the Other in me.

Such is the daunting task—in my mind—I give myself. That I will succeed is doubtful; that I will do my best will be my wish and hope.

For those who would like to receive by email a handful of excerpts from Rudolf Steiner pertaining to this topic, send me an email at johncunningham@jeffnet.org with Not I in the subject line and I will send you a pdf file. You can also go to my website at www.empathy-conexus.com and download a copy of my booklet, Compassionate Communication and Empathy’s Awakening. You are warmly invited.

John Cunningham

CLASSES
Confirmation classes will start on Tuesday 20 July at 5pm in our church at 10 Rawhiti Rd., One Tree Hill. They are going to be held fortnightly. You are welcome to join our classes.
If you would like further details please, feel free to contact Andrea on 579 1508 or andrea.tomanek@gmail.com

Andrea Tomanek