It turns out I have family members that question whether I am in a cult. My immediate response is great offense to such a suggestion, but the truth is Im not clear what a cult is by definition and I probably do participate in stereotypical cult-like behavior. Within my community and neighbors, I stand in a circle with them and hold hands before a meal. We sing songs, we create our own rituals that give meaning to our lives. We coalesce our energies towards a common purpose: living lightly on the land, caring for our earth and for one another. If a cult has a dogma, thats our dogma. A lot of the definitions I find online are about a devotion to an idea, person or literary work of art (such as a cult classic film). I sure hope everyone has a group of like-minds to channel their energy towards a common idea. And I think we do that in so many ways: religiously, in national sports teams, buying a certain brand, working towards a certain cause like breast cancer or safe neighborhoods for kids. We create our own CULTures that align with how we identify ourselves. Furthermore, devoting to a persons dogma or wisdom is also something we often do, whether it is the word or a religious leader or the word of Dr. Oz or Oprah or Glen Beck. For me, I appreciate the word of Charles Eisenstein and Starhawk. Theyre not my guru as much as Oprah is not yours, but as literary leaders they do offer a certain kind of gospel. I think what has hit me so hard in the pit of my gut is that I have worked very hard in my life to find the path that makes sense for ME and I recognize it is not mainstream. And that can feel scary - for maybe you that knows me but also for me. But it is my TRUTH to live a good, rich, valuable life with people that want to share in similar work. We all make such different choices in our lives; I want there to be room for all of us and all of our choices. *stepping off my soap box*
Posted on: Thu, 07 Nov 2013 16:04:06 +0000
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