Newsletter of the Portland Branch of Anthroposophical Society in Portland, Oregon www.portlandbranch.com Volume 3.12 December 2007

Christmas Gift to the ChildrenJohn C. Miles – Director of the Micha-el Institute, Portland, OR 503 774-4946 or johncmiles@usa.net

Nearly ninety years ago, during the early days of the first Waldorf School the idea arose that the teachers should give the children of the school a gift to mark the sacred time of year. This time of the twelve Holy Nights when the world steeps itself in darkness and re-activates its cosmic impulse and when human beings find their insights and impulses of will regenerated towards the coming year is indeed both holy and sacred.

Rudolf Steiner suggested to the teachers that they prepare medieval mystery plays to perform for the children and he happened to have access to some that had been discovered by his friend Karl Julius Schroer. Herr Schroer had discovered these plays in a village near Pressburg in Hungary where, on an island in the middle of the Danube, the inhabitants of a Bavarian village called Oberrufer had moved. They had been obliged to migrate there to escape an epidemic in the later medieval times, and because they were strangers in a strange land they looked inward as a village, did not move with the times, and preserved their medieval culture.

Not only did they preserve the words of the plays, they also preserved the sacred rituals with which the plays were performed. The blood-ties influenced these proceedings much more than we would imagine, as the tasks of playing the parts and producing the plays were handed down from mother to daughter from father to son. A Master oversaw the whole proceedings as producer and director and his word was law. During the six weeks of rehearsals each year lascivious and lewd behavior was forbidden as was the imbibing of intoxicating liquors. The whole village of peasants worked earnestly and vigorously towards producing a fine performance of the Paradise Play on Christmas Eve, the Nativity and Shepherds’ Play on Christmas morning and the Kings’ Play on January 6th, the old Christmas Day.

When I first taught in a Waldorf School my mentor, Juliette Compton-Burnett, who was herself instructed in the plays by Rudolf and Marie Steiner, took great pains to tell me that when Rudolf Steiner gave these plays to the teachers to perform he also gave many indications as to how to perform them. He always saw the three plays as a trilogy. Each play needs the others to complete the picture of the sacred events. He indicated that: the Paradise Play should be seen as an epic play in that it relates the interactivity between the human and the divine: a Nativity and Shepherds’ Play should be seen as a lyric play in that the mood of the divine is manifest for

humanity: a Kings’ Play is a dramatic play in that it depicts humanity, cut off from the divine, searching to reconnect with the spiritual world each in their own individual way. To bring this about in each play Rudolf Steiner gave a different color lighting theme for each: Paradise – red; Nativity – blue; and Kings’ – yellow.

He also emphasized that is was important that the players saw the plays as rituals rather than entertainment, and he suggested that the teachers imitate a peasant walk especially during the processions. This means that in walking the foot meets the ground in a full and loving way as a peasant would walking in his field engaged in sowing.

Some years after listening to these descriptions I found a copy of a lecture given by Rudolf Steiner on December 27th, 1910, many years before he gave the plays to the Waldorf School teachers to perform. In it he describes the mood created for the performing of the plays: “What was it that people actually experienced during those weeks? Their experiences, translated into actual feelings, were that the human beings had descended from a divine-spiritual existence to the deepest depth on the physical plane, that the Christ Impulse had been received and the direction of man’s path reversed into one of re-ascent to divine spiritual existence. That is what was felt in connection with everything to do with the Christ Event. Hence it was not only Christian happenings that people liked to present, but just as the Church calendar couples Adam’s and Eve’s day on December 24th with the birthday of Jesus on the 25th, a performance of the Paradise Play was followed directly by the Play presenting Christ’s birthday, denoting the impulse given for man’s re-ascent to divine-spiritual existence. And this was deeply felt when the name EVA resounded in the Paradise Play – EVA, the mother of humanity, from whom human beings had descended into the vale of physical life. This theme was presented on the one day and on the next there was a Play depicting the impulse which brought about the reversal of man’s path. This reversal was indicated in the actual sounds: AVE MARIA. AVE was felt to be the reversal of EVA: AVE-EVA. People were deeply stirred by the words which rang out countless times to their ears and hearts from the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth centuries onwards and which were understood. “It was felt that the Paradise Play must be performed in the mood of piety befitting the Holy Night of Christmas. This was a deep conviction, and as anthroposophists, when we hear how the performers in the Christmas Plays rehearsed, how they prepared themselves, how they behaved before and during the performances of the Plays, we may well say: ‘Is not this reminiscent of the attitude to truth adopted in the Mysteries?’ – although that, admittedly, was a matter of even greater

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significance. We know that in the Mysteries truth could not be received in any superficial mood of soul…

“This deep study of the Christmas Plays was something that could be highly instructive for the present age when the realization that Art is the offspring of piety, of religion and of wisdom has long since been lost! Simple as was the presentation of these Christmas Plays, it nevertheless indicated a flowering of man’s whole nature. In the first place those taking part in the Plays must absorb into their whole

character something that was like an essence of the Christmas mood. They were also obliged to learn how to speak in strict rhythm. At the present time, when the Art of speaking in the ancient sense has been lost, there is no inkling of the vitally important role played by rhyme and rhythm, or of how every movement and gesture of those otherwise accustomed only to handling flails were rehearsed in minutest detail. The actors devoted themselves for weeks on end to practicing rhythm and intonation, and were wholly dedicated to what they were to present. The essential charm of these old Christmas Plays lay in the fact that in rhythm, intonation and gesture the whole human being became articulate.

“When the Christmas days were over, the actors taking the parts of the Three Holy Kings walked through the villages. I still remember seeing the Three Kings going through the villages from house to house. They wore the most primitive costumes imaginable but their way of bringing the appropriate facts to the notice of the people at the right time of the year and their complete forgetfulness of self, induced a mood of soul that will be incomprehensible to our age unless there can be a spiritual awakening. What should awaken in us as the life of the spirit, transformed through Anthroposophy into Art, can be presented in Plays which transcend the normal standards of the present age.”

Long after the Christmas decorations are put away the students of the Micha-el Institute will attempt to bring the Kings’ Play back to life. Perhaps when the Christmas presents have long been forgotten we can re-create the holy ambience of that sacred time of year on the old Christmas day of January 6th. Please come and join us in the Music Room at the Portland Waldorf School, 2300 SE Harrison in Milwaukie at 4:20pm on Sunday, January 6th. The play takes a little less than an hour and is suitable for adults and children in the middle and high school.

The Forest Kindergarten Experiment in Portland, Oregon

By Marsha Johnson, Portland, OR Shining Star Waldorf School Director 503 753 4459

Outdoor early childhood schools emerged first in Europe in the outdoor programs in Scandinavia known as Wood Kindergartens which were first formed in the 1950s. The concept spread to other parts of Europe including Germany and England, and by the late 1960s there were hundreds of outdoor classes for children ages 3 to 6 years old spread across most of western countries. The kindergartens were thought of as ‘schools without walls or ceilings’, and the children played outdoors year round and immersed in a visual and sensory nature experience. It was observed that these children developed very adept abilities in particular areas such as gross motor skills, creative play, social development, depth perception and visual acuity. The children of such programs also seemed to develop great physical vitality and strong

If you are interested to learn more about the Portland Branch of the Anthroposophical Society, please call Diane Rumage at (360) 241-7854.The Portland Branch Thanks the following Members and

Friends for their Generous Donations in 2007!Marion Van Namen Twila Rothrock Sacha EtzelTom Klein Ruth Klein Jannebeth Röell Nina Churchill Scott Churchill Cheri MunskeRudy Marchesi Jeffrey Levy Pam GuettlerDiane Rowley Winifred Minor Kendall WeaverYvonne de Maat Lisa Masterson Ann Marie BleyPeter Bennett James Knight Leslie CoxRon Ennis Betty Baldwin Samuel Bell-StalnakerJames Lee Marsha Johnson Tish JohnsonRobert Kellum Donna Patterson Dan GuedemanVirginia Berg Michael Pinchera Robin O’BrienJo Warrick Forkish Kevin Kane Barry LiaPara Winingham Jeffrey Rice Tige GrinnellDiane Rumage Christopher Guilfoil Annalysa LovosJan Barnett Lynn Madsen Kathleen R TaylorAmy Thomas Cedarwood School Barbara StrongMargaret Kerndt Julie Foster Walter RiceTammy Dailey Wagner Lisa Masterson John TakacsJoan Takacs John Miles Anne CreadickAngela Sparks Nancy Pierce Celia KaneMia Ellers Patricia Dair

The Portland Anthroposophic Times is published twelve times a year by the Portland Branch of the Anthroposophical Society in America to serve members and friends in the wider anthroposophical community. Printed copies of the newsletter are available at the Steiner Storehouse, Portland Waldorf School, Cedarwood Waldorf School, Shining Star and Swallowtail School. The newsletter and calendar are also posted on the Portland Branch website at www.portlandbranch.com.

Questions, suggestions and submissions may be sent by e-mail to anthroposophy@earthlink.net. Items selected for publication in the Portland Anthroposophic Times may be edited for style, content and length. The deadline for submissions to the Portland Anthroposophic Times is the first day of each month for publication in that month’s edition. Submit calendar items to branchcalendar@mindspring.com no later than the first of each month for publication in the next edition.

Editor:..................................................................................................James LeeCalendar:.....................................................Jannebeth Röell and Diane RumageEditorial Support:.......................................Jannebeth Röell and Diane RumageProofreading:................................................................................Diane RumageCommunications:........................................Diane Rumage and Jannebeth RöellLogistics..........................................................Tish Johnson and Donna KellumWebsite:..............................................................................................James Lee Hardcopy Reproduction:.........................................................................Kinko’s

Please submit your Donations to the Portland Branchc/o Ruth Klein at 3609 SE Center, Portland, OR 97202

general health. Only in times of extremely cold weather or thunderstorms did the children retreat indoors or to a nearby covered and heated shelter, away from the elements. Even in the snow, the children played.

One of the most famous such programs is Nokken, located in Denmark which has been in continuous and successful operation since the 1970s. Helle Heckmann is the inspired founder of the Nokken program and offers a close look into its mission, function, day to day operation, and the benefits for the children of such programs in a volume named for the school. She describes in intimate and compelling detail how such a setting for the young child to age six can embrace and enhance their physical and spiritual development. Helle is in great demand as a speaker and guest at Waldorf schools all over the world.

I first encountered the book, Nokken, when sitting in the Portland Waldorf School Library fifteen years ago and the vivid images of young children, free in the forest and fields, struck a resonance at that time in my heart that still plays a beautiful melody. It seemed so very appropriate to help children to feel comfortable and friendly with the great outdoors, the woodsy settings of the fairy stories, the farm fields and barns of the folk tales, and beautiful wild places of the Northwest outdoors. Over the next nine years as I directed the Summer Program at PWS, and later, while founding Cedarwood in 1996-97, the topic of the Forest Kindergarten arose in conversations and planning meetings, always a bit elusive and eventually falling down on the priority list of the time, never quite within reach. I recall once enjoying a conversation with Kindergarten Teacher Margaret Meyerkort, speaking of telling stories of forest and farm, and a young child sweetly and quietly asked after the story was finished, ‘What is a well, teacher?’ How can the children of today relate to what they have never seen?

Creating Shining Star School in 2003, the dream of these small beings flitting in and out of sunlight glens, moving through forested trails, crossing sparkling streams, persisted. I began to lecture and write about a condition that I had noticed since the mid 1990s, in which young children, ages six and older, were displaying characteristics of what I have since called “Early Academic Fatigue Syndrome”. These children were coming into the Waldorf schools as applicants from other institutions, revealing signs of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion. At a very young age, they were ‘burnt-out’ on learning. Heavy academic loads, early intellectualization in the nursery classes, a continuous ‘diet’ of information and memorization had resulted in an entire generation of young children who dreaded school and all its responsibilities. They were suffering from ‘nature-deficit disorder’.

In many public and private educational institutions, recess and outdoor play have been nearly abolished. Many urban schools now forbid running or tag games at recess. At home, due to concerns about safety and possible dangers, neighborhood

outdoor play and unstructured wild places have disappeared. The children are ferried from inside the home while inside a vehicle to an indoor classroom and later to an indoor gym or pool for ‘exercise’, then home to the indoor house to do more ‘work’. To my eyes, these children looked grey and prematurely aged. As they settled down into the Waldorf style classroom with its twice-a-day outdoor play, and the healthy rhythm of carefully planned inward and outward imaginative activities, it was easy to visually perceive that grey-ness slipping away over the next few weeks. I can still recall, vividly, a small brown eyed boy of seven, who asked very seriously and with a tinge of fear deep in those dark eyes, at the park after main lesson on his first day, “Mrs. Johnson, when does ‘school’ start?”

Having taken all this in over nearly 20 years, and recalling with great clarity my own idyllic childhood spent in the foothills of the Pacific NW Coast lands, playing outdoors until the ‘streetlights’ came on, it was easy to connect the loss of our outdoor experiences with the loss of childhood in America. Indoor supervised, media-cized, and pre-digested entertainment and edu-tainment have replaced the great outdoors in most homes. Education has been replaced by the age of info-cation. These observations were both disturbing and inspiring at the same time!

At Shining Star Waldorf School, I considered the idea for beginning such a NW Nokken each year and I wore out several sets of tires driving around looking for that perfect location for our own NW Nokken, only to run into the nearly unassailable barriers of Oregon laws and rules including land use permits and conditional use restrictions. Here, farmland is farmland and protected from any other use, and urban sites are closely regulated for changes in occupancy. In addition, there was the barrier of transporting children to further way country sites for the city folks who were most interested in a nature-immersion program for their young children, with rising fuel costs contributing its own challenges. It did not seem balanced to create an outdoor program what required the young child to sit in a car for two hours each day.

Last spring I was made aware of a property near Tryon Creek State Park (over 700 acres of wilderness near Lewis & Clark College), which had originally been considered many years ago for the then-developing PWS program. A parcel of

farmland, yet with barn and farmhouse, fields and animal pens, outbuildings and chicken coops, remained just on the west side of the park. Developers had been foiled by a large and supportive group of patrons who gathered millions of dollars to purchase and protect this 7.2 acre farm and young activists had been recruited to live on the land, farming and caring for the animals. Tryon Life Community Farm is located less than 15 minutes from the city core area and was seeking educational proposals. Shining Star Waldorf School submitted a proposal for the Mother Earth Bio-Immersion

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Kindergarten and was ultimately approved by the governing body of the farm to begin in the fall in 2007.

The site has several large gardens, interesting and unique outbuildings constructed of cob or recycled artistic materials, including a yurt-tent, known as the Yome, which will serve the children in times of severe weather. In fall and spring, garden foods will be used in creating the snack, in cooler months, hot porridge and aromatic cider from thermos containers will fill the small tummies. Toys for the class will consist of gifts from Mother Nature, the natural playthings of the archetypal child! Parents are helping with the longer field trips into the woods each week, festivals, and construction of storage areas. The entire Shining Star School Community (over 100 families enrolled in 2007) supports the nonprofit farm via joint fundraising and assistance with farm projects.

Teacher Molly Rice and Assistant Kelly Hogan came forward to lead the first class at the farm and on September 6, 2007, eleven children assembled to enjoy their first day of a “Wood Kindergarten”. These brave families and teachers are creating history in the NW with this first fully nature-based K

program. The children enjoyed a playful day in the fields and on the farm and a long hike along a sunlit forest trail before returning to the outdoor kitchen to create a delicious garden-snack. The teachers reported a golden moment when 11 small human-faces lined up to meet and make friends with 12 goat-faces! What a charming picture! By afternoon, eleven pink-cheeked and rather sleepy small children headed happily home for a rest and sweet dreams.

Rudolf Steiner emphasizes in his lectures and writing about the pressing need of our times to connect children with nature. We feel that we have taken a brave step towards meeting that aspiration

with the founding of the Mother Earth Kindergarten at Tryon Life Community Farm. Please join us in support of TLC farm and the school by visiting our websites: www.shiningstarschool.com and www.tryonfarm.org.

Encircling Light – Expectant SilenceA Conference on the North

Philip Thatcher, General Secretary, The Anthroposophical Society in Canada, Vancouver, B.C.

From August 1st to 8th, 2009, the Anthroposophical Society in Canada will host the Encircling Light – Expectant Silence Conference on the North in Whitehorse, Yukon. We welcome members and friends of the worldwide Anthroposophical Society to participate in the work of this week.

When I travelled to the Goetheanum in November 2004 for my first General Secretaries’ meeting, I had no thought of such an event as this. Yet when I met my Norwegian counterpart, Frode Barkved, who was the other new General Secretary at that meeting, the possibility of such a Conference rose up between us. When I brought the idea back to our Council and other colleagues in Canada, there was agreement that we should explore the possibility of our hosting this event, ideally in one of our northern communities. Two trips to Whitehorse, Yukon, in August of 2006 and 2007 by members of the organizing group convinced us that Whitehorse could work as a site for the Conference, even though the only visible anthroposophical activity there is a pre-school run by Chalia Tuzlak, a trained Waldorf early childhood teacher. Yet during these two visits, some remarkable doors have opened to us through the selfless work of the Yukon Convention Bureau on our behalf and significant personal contacts, especially with First Nations individuals through Meta Williams of the Yukon First Nations Tourism Association. In August of 2008 our Council will meet in Whitehorse for four days, along with Seija Zimmerman and Paul Mackay, two colleagues from the Goetheanum involved in the Conference. During these four days we intend to converse with First Nations’ elders. We will speak together about our situation as human beings in our time and also about ways in which an engagement with First Nations colleagues can be an integral part of the Conference activity.

The Conference theme is a timely one. During recent years we in Canada have been waking up to our northern identity. The melting of the polar ice cap, issues of sovereignty and resource extraction from a north becoming even more accessible and vulnerable due to climate change are symptoms of underlying questions we need to address out of anthroposophy. In the words of Anthony Perzel, a filmmaker and Conference workshop leader, “The north is not all about resource extraction. There is a special quality about this region of our earth. The north is truly a place that reflects Michaelic activity. Vidar’s role remains a mystery; however, one senses that spiritual activity is quite different there.”

What is this special quality in the north? When, for instance, one stands at the 60th parallel, as I have both in Oslo and Whitehorse, under a sky that comes closer to the earth, the reality of a spiritual world also draws closer. At the same time, a more intense experience of oneself as a human being becomes possible. When the mountains and trees shrink into an expanded landscape reaching to the horizon, the upright human being stands forth. Such a picture brings to mind the verse by Rudolf Steiner, “Stars spoke once to man.” What is the connection between a northern sensibility and the consciousness that we must now speak to the stars? The significance of the north for the future of humanity—that will be a primary theme and research question during the Conference week: What does the north make possible for us as evolving human beings? And in what ways is that

possibility being threatened by current developments in Canada’s north and in other northern countries?

Morning theme presentations during the week will be given by individuals from various northern peoples. Sergei Prokoffief, a Russian and member of the Executive Council at the Goetheanum, will speak about the destiny of northern peoples in relation to the Cosmic Christ and to humanity as a whole; Frode Barkved, the General Secretary for Norway, will speak to issues arising from the experience of our Nordic colleagues. We hope that our First Nations colleague, Meta Williams, will agree to speak out of the experience of Aboriginal peoples in Canada’s north. Lisa Del Alba of Fairbanks and Mary Lee Plumb-Mentjes of Anchorage will explore the place of Alaska in the northern mosaic. Hannes Weigert, Chair of the Council in Norway, and Monique Walsh, Chair of the Council in Canada, will explore in the mood of research the relation of the being Rudolf Steiner identified as Vidar to the destiny of northern peoples. I will give the opening presentation out of the theme of the Northwest Passage and the 1770 – 1771 journey of Samuel Hearne to the Arctic Ocean. Seija Zimmerman of Finland, the newest member of the Executive Council at the Goetheanum, will give the closing presentation on “The Kalevala: Taking Humanity into the Future.” Workshops will be offered on four afternoons of the week; each workshop runs throughout the week and will have both a thematic and artistic component. Workshop leaders from Canada, Alaska, Norway, Denmark and Sweden are already engaged in research and preparation for the fourteen workshops being offered. On Sunday afternoon, August 2nd, participants will travel for an hour in one of four directions from Whitehorse, to observe the landscape in each direction with the guidance of First Nations’ interpreters. The day will close with an evening of First Nations’ storytelling at the Beringia Interpretive Centre. Wednesday afternoon and evening, August 5th, will be open, to allow participants to explore Whitehorse and its surroundings as they choose. Some optional excursions will be offered, including two with a First Nations orientation and an outing to Kluane Nat. Park, at the Yukon/Alaska border.

Evening activities will be varied and are still being formed. One evening will be under the leadership of Noemi Glen, Eric Schneeberger and Cari Burdett, members of the Section for the Spiritual Striving of Youth. Our intention is that younger members and friends will participate in the Conference as a whole, and take responsibility for the Conference program on that particular evening.

For conference participants as a whole, the day will begin with Conversation Groups, preceded from Monday onward by speech activity led by Marianne Tvedt of Norway. The Conversation Groups are a golden thread running through the week, placed at the start of the day to allow us to bring the work of the previous day through the night and providing an

opportunity for us to take up Conference themes in ways that work for each particular group. On the closing Saturday afternoon, each group will have an opportunity to share an aspect of its working with the whole of the Conference. The Conference will end with a festive meal and a social evening featuring local musicians.

At our meeting this coming January, the Canadian Council and Class Holders will consider how a lesson or lessons from the First Class of the School of Spiritual Science can be integrated into the fabric of the week in a way that supports the whole of the Conference.

The conference registration fee of $450 CDN will cover the Conference venues at Yukon College and the Arts Centre, the costs for the Sunday outing and shuttle buses to and from the College and downtown Whitehorse, along with two catered dinners at the College for the opening and closing Saturday evenings and bag lunches for the Sunday outing. Lunches throughout the week will be provided at the College at an additional cost, in order that we may be together at that time. Breakfasts will also be available at the College. Except for the two catered dinners included in the registration fee, participants will be on their own for evening meals.

We have room blocks at four Whitehorse hotels at the 2007 rates. Bed and Breakfast accommodation is also available, along with the Beez Kneez Hostel and tent sites at the Robert Service campground just outside of Whitehorse.

We have obtained a Convention Code from Air Canada. This number, available upon registration, will enable participants to travel to Whitehorse from anywhere in the world at a 10% discount on Star Alliance flights, provided the flights are booked through Air Canada. Flights, several per day, would be routed through Vancouver. For travellers from Europe, Condor Airlines flies directly from Frankfurt to Whitehorse every Tuesday and Thursday from May through October.

Full details about all aspects of the Conference will be available on our website, www.encirclinglight.ca, which will be in operation early in 2008. A number of members in the US Society have already indicated an interest in participating in this Conference. If your interest has become a clear intention to join us in Whitehorse from August 1st to 8th, 2009, please let us know. You can email me at philipthatcher@shaw.ca. There is an Inuit saying to the effect that the Spirits seek us out from time to time because they are in need of human warmth. That is the time for us to listen carefully to what they are saying, and to what the expectant silence of the North is asking, because the Spirits are trying to tell us what we are really thinking. The warmth of the human ego is where the Christ can live; that warmth can become the gift each participant will bring to the Yukon in August 2009.

Ongoing Events and Study Groups

African Drumming CircleEach first Monday of the month that school is in session, at Cedarwood School, 3030 SW 2nd Avenue, downstairs in the kindergarten room (you'll hear us). No experience necessary. Bring your own percussion instrument and inspire and be inspired by your fellow drummers. Jan 7, 2008, Feb 4, Mar 3, Apr 7, May 5, Jun 2. $5 donation suggested - more info: Marion Van Namen 503-956-4046.

Anthroposophical Medicine Study GroupOnce a month Monday (after the second Sunday) at the Takacs Clinic 7-8:30 PM. John Takacs at johntakacsdo@hotmail.com or Kevin Kane at drkev@involved.com.

Curative EducationSecond and fourth Friday 7:30 PM – 9PM study of Rudolf Steiner's Education for Special Needs. Call Betty Baldwin for information 503-747-6367.

EurythmyTraining offered by Portland Eurythmy on weekends and evenings. Please contact Natasha Moss at 503 233-0663.

Karmic RelationshipsWorking through Rudolf Steiner’s Karmic Relationships Cycle of lectures. Call James Lee for information 503 249-3804.

Mystery Dramas, with Speech-Formation ExercisesTwo Wednesdays a month, 7:30 - 9:00 PM in NE Portland. Currently working with Rudolf Steiner's Portal of Initiation and the Genesis lectures. No acting experience necessary, just a love of the Word. Call Diane Rumage at 360 241-7854 for information.

Embryogenesis in Myth and ScienceWe are beginning a study of the above book by Thomas Weihs, Anthroposophical physician and teacher.   It compares the Genesis of the Bible and creation myths with the science of embryology enlightened by Anthroposophy.  We meet weekly on Tuesdays from 7:30 - 9:00 pm at 3046 NE 33rd Avenue, Portland, OR 97212 (with a break during the Holy Night readings).   Contact Diane Rumage 360 241-7854 for information.

Portland Youth Discussion GroupThe Portland Youth Discussion Group, a group of people youthful in mind, body and spirit, gathers to discuss questions of how Anthroposophy compares and relates to other ideas in the realms of philosophy, spirituality, religion, economics, social activism, individual and social development, and relationships. We welcome new people who are open to exploring

Spiritual Science and conducting their own research to join us. For more information, please contact Leslie Loy at (503) 819-3399 or leslielal@yahoo.com.

Portland Waldorf School Community ChoirEvery Friday morning from 8:45 - 10:00 am (at the Portland Waldorf School, 2300 SE Harrison Street, Milwaukie) in the music room of the high school building, whenever school is in session. Anyone in- and outside the PWS community who enjoys singing songs through the seasons, across the centuries and around the world is very welcome, including drop ins. This event is free and a community builder.  More information: Marion Van Namen (503) 956-4046.

Spinning and Spiritual ScienceGathering on the first Saturday of each month, 3 PM to 5PM, to study Art as Spiritual Activity, lectures by Rudolf Steiner 1888-1923. We work with the fiber arts and spinning wheels. Call Marsha Johnson 503- 309- 4223 to sign up. 

Waldorf Education and Teacher TrainingLectures and courses conducted throughout the year by the Micha-el Institute. Contact John Miles at 503/774-4946. johncmiles@usa.net

Upcoming Events

DECEMBER 15Tales of WonderWool Horse Puppet Theater presents seasonal Tales of Wonder in puppetry and storytelling with Cheri Munske. Sat, December 15, 11:00am and 1:00pm; Bothmer Hall, 5915 SE Division St. $5.00 donation requested. Contact 503 772-2632 or woolhorse@earthlink.net.

 DECEMBER 24Christmas Eve GatheringJoin us Monday evening December 24th from 11.30 pm till 12.15 am in Bothmer Hall (5919 SE Division Street, Portland) for a celebration of the birth of the light with readings from the Gospels, music and candle light. For further information or if you'd like to contribute to this gathering, contact Marion Van Namen at 503-956-4046 or marion@octavemusictherapy.com

DECEMBER 26- JANUARY 6Holy Nights Readings: Apocalypse of St John by R. Steiner. Wednesday, Dec. 26th, John & Joan Takacs, 3628 SE Tenino Street, 503- 775-5004 Thursday, Dec. 27th, James Lee & Jannebeth Roell, 3135 NE 17th Avenue, 503-249-3804 Friday, Dec. 28th, Mary Jo AbiNader,3128 SE Salmon Street, 503-239-7078 Saturday, Dec. 29th, TBASunday, Dec. 30th, Cheri & Martin Munske, 7652 SE Lincoln Street , 503-772-2632

Monday, Dec. 31st, Valerie & Mark Hope ,2606 SE 58th Avenue, 503-775-0778Stay and celebrate the New Year including dropping of leadTuesday, Jan. 1st, TBAWednesday, Jan. 2nd, John and Valerie Miles12160 SE Mt. Scott Boulevard, 503-774-4946Thursday, Jan. 3rd, Peter Bennett and Anne Kollender3813 SE Roswell St, Portland, OR 97222, 503-786-6995Friday, Jan.  4th, TBASaturday, Jan.  5th, TBASunday, Jan.   6th, Tom & Ruth Klein, 3609 SE Center Street, 503-777-3176

JANUARY 6Oberufer Kings Play4.30-5.30 PM performed by students of the Micha-el Institute held in the Music Room at Portland Waldorf School, 2300 SE Harrison, Milwaukie. Contact 503 774-4946 or email johncmiles@usa.net

JANUARY 7Logo Portland BranchToday is the last day to enter your logo for the Portland Branch. Please send it to John Miles 12160 SE Mt Scott Blvd, Portland OR 97086

JANUARY 11, 2008The Alchemy of AgricultureA workshop with Dennis Klocek, founder of the Coros Institute at Frey Vineyards in Redwood Valley, CA 95470. For info and registration visit the website www.corosinstitute.org

JANUARY 16-24Micha-el Institute –Introductory Course “Community Building: The Social Impulse of the Waldorf School”1/16 [Wednesday] The Social Evolution of the World; 1/17 [Thursday] The Threefold Social Order for today and its future development; 1/23 [Wednesday] The Waldorf School as an expression of the Threefold Social Order; 1/24 [Thursday] The Social Tasks for Humanity – now and in the coming age; held in the Music Room at Portland Waldorf School, 2300 SE Harrison, Milwaukie.Contact 503 774-4946 or email johncmiles@usa.net.

Wednesday, JANUARY 23Portland Branch Council meeting7 PM at the home of Ruth and Tom Klein and, 3609 SE Center, Portland OR 97202, phone: 503-777-3176. All Branch members are welcome to attend.

FEBRUARY 7-29Micha-el Institute –Introductory Course “Eurythmy”2/7 Kindergarten to Grade 5; 2/14 Middle and High School Eurythmy; 2/21 Therapeutic Eurythmy and Movement; 2/29 Eurythmy as a Performing Art; held in the Music Room at Portland Waldorf School, 2300 SE Harrison, Milwaukie. Contact 503 774-4946 or email johncmiles@usa.net.

Sunday, FEBRUARY 10First Class of the School of Spiritual ScienceBothmer Hall, Blue card required – Discussion at 8:30 AM, class at 9:30 AM sharp. Please contact Jannebeth Röell 503/249-3807.

Friday, OCTOBER 24, 2008An Anthroposophical Publisher's Private Conversations with Saul Bellow on SpiritualityA lecture given by Stephen Usher. This lecture tells the story of how Saul Bellow came to write the foreword to Rudolf Steiner's BOUNDARIES OF NATURAL SCIENCE. In the process of obtaining the foreword publisher Stephen Usher came to know Bellow and had a number of interesting talks with him about Steiner's spiritual scientific discoveries including those described in Work of the Angel in Man's Astral Body. The talk will explore the conversations and Bellow's attitude to Steiner and Anthroposophy.  It will also discuss what Bellow had to say about Steiner in HUMBOLDT'S GIFT, a book for which Bellow received the Pulitzer prize. 8PM Location TBA, admission $15.00

Saturday, OCTOBER 25Anthroposophist Rudolf Steiner & the Three-Folding of SocietyA lecture by Stephen Usher. The lecture will explore the history of the threefold idea, the idea, and its opponents.  Going back to 1917 Stephen Usher will point to the moment when Steiner first postulated the idea in a conversation with Otto Lerchenfeld in response to Lerchenfeld's heartfelt question about how to bring some sanity into the madness of the First World War.  The basic threefold idea will then be outlined along with Steiner's idea of the Fundamental Social Law and the Law of True Price. From there the lecture will look at the opponents of the Threefold idea both historical and current. 8PM Location TBA, admission $15.00

Sunday, OCTOBER 26 The Christmas Foundation Conference and the Foundation StoneIn this presentation Stephen Usher explores the central event of the Christmas Foundation Conference of the Anthroposophical Society (Dec. 1923-Jan 1924) with particular emphasis on the events of December 25, 1923.  In particular the talk will explore the distinction between the Christmas Foundation Verse and the Foundation Stone itself. Members with Pink cards only, 4 PM Location TBA, admission $15.00

AUGUST 1-8, 2009Encircling light-Expectant SilenceAnthroposophical Society in Canada hosts this conference on the North in White Horse, Yukon. Full details about all aspects of the Conference will be available on our website, www.encirclinglight.ca, which will be in operation early in 2008. The flyer can be viewed online at www.portlandbranch.com.

 

Jannebeth Röell, RN, BFAArt Drawing

Color wellbeing

(503) 249-3807 jannebeth@mindspring.com

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Julie E. Foster MSN, FNP

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