Mother Church * Church of the Mother
Worship/Celebration
We worship the Great Mother, Her Celestial Body ("Heaven", the Divine, God) and the universe (the earth) respectively. It is consistent with the stages of the Integral Way, as discussed elswhere. Its concrete expression is the Home Meetings, the latter being the structure in which our Worship/Celebration is taking place. In worship, we are coming together to share the fruits of our individual lives. The structure of our worship is universal, while the content varies with the contribution of the individual members of a particular community. While the basic framework is the same - the Home Meetings - a choice can be made out of several elements, to be combined according to local preferences and needs. In Mother Worship the worship usually is being led by a woman or a group of women, called mater, assisted by servants (men and women).
Exceptions are situations in which there is no female candidate. It depends also whether a woman or a man identifies her/himself with a "matriarchal" world view yes or no. Sometimes (or is it often..?) a particular woman appears to be "more patriarchal than a man". In such a case a male would have preference. The key issue is not so much gender, but the world view a person is adhering to. One of the sad things about modern times is, that the majority of women support the existing system. To have a female body therefore doesn't automatically make you a woman! Functions however rotate continuously. It means that women and men participate equally in activities undertaken by the group. The group itself is decentralized, autonomous and independent. No any decision can be imposed from outside the local community. In fact, there is no umbrella organization or superstructure. (See next page). The Home Meetings usually take place in homes of individual members.
Mother Worship is "a next step in evolution". It can be considered the successor to the women churches of the past decades. The leap has to be made from the need for identification - serving the aim of personal empowerment - towards a true spiritual-religious practice. The (often necessary) exclusive attitude has to turn into an inclusive one. The Great Mother is all-embracing after all. It finds its expression in equally including women and men. However, their roles have changed drastically. Women either identify with the Great Mother, the goddess or female saints (depending on the inclusiveness of the former), while men fulfill the role of the "son". This "son" used to be the divine lover to the Mother. His role is to sacrifice himself for the sake of the Whole. In accepting the mission, he becomes a god-hero. It is a proof, that in matriarchy men used to have a strong (masculine) role of themselves. Mother Worship is inviting men to abandon their self-defined ego-centered ambitions, in order to become (heroic) servants of the Great Mother.
HOME MEETINGS
Based on the Integral Way
Home Meetings are the key practice for people associated with The Original Tradition/ Mother Worship and Her branch Great Mother Buddhism. Through these meetings the Community takes care of its members and viceversa. Its structure is "horizontal" without any authority from above. The idea was the following. Having worked with people for so many years, we have come to the conclusion, that being cut off from "Heaven, earth and the community" with as a consequence "self-addiction" e.g. addiction to the current materialistic society is the key problem. It is the root of greed, egoism, jealousy, hatred, stress, burn-out, accumulation and exploitation. Hence, the Great Mother and Her Law of the Universe - death, permanence and rebirth - being the answer to the existential problem of today. Our initiative includes bringing people together in regular (weekly, with a minimum of two times a month) self-help meetings in which they learn to "die to the old" and become reborn. The essence of Transformation is to (subsequently) fitting in in "Heaven, earth and the (new) community". The purpose is A Joyous Life! Our basic principle is self-determination and autonomy of every group, while the program consists of the following Seven Steps:
Elements of Worship
1. To honestly acknowledge your everyday reality. (Painful) self-awareness of being cut off from the Essence
Create an atmosphere of trust. Besides anonymity some other "methods" could be very helpful here like sitting on the floor, mixing, closing the eyes and touching each other. After having found a partner the recognition e.g. vice versa sharing of painful self-awareness is being done. The partners helping each other by an emphatic attitude ("co-counseling").
2. The sincere resolve to become reborn
Some persons may come forward (one after the other), taking a seat in front of the group. They are sharing with the group an important episode of their lives, in which the longing for wholeness e.g. rebirth became apparent. In some (many!) cases it might be necessary to acknowledge one's helplessness towards one's self-addiction with subsequent surrender to the Ultimate, as the only dimension which could save you. (See also under 6.)
3. Seeing that you are neither your thinking nor your problems
The leader of the group - preferably a different person every week - tells the group about how the mind works. Emphasis is laid on the mechanism of self-addiction as the cause of suffering and its consequences in daily life, with the birth of the inner observer - awareness - as your new identity. Information can be obtained from the websites (See: Teaching).
4. Awakening (meditation)
This consists of fifteen minutes of relaxation (in the chair or on the floor) and silence, in which you watch the inner side of your eyelids. Very soon you will discover that "you are here, while your eyelids are there". Taking this seriously is the essence of awakening...By doing this exercise regularly (at home every day, at least one time), the inner observer will become more stable, clear, empty etc., while at the same time watching your thoughts, emotions and desires in front of you. There appears to be a inner distance between the two. The miracle is this: You are free! (See: Teaching).
5. Re-integration of your rejected parts through emotional self-integration (ESI)
The text of the emotional self-integration (eight steps) can be found in above mentioned website (See: Teaching). It may be printed out and distributed among the members of the group (which may be different every time). This text is a manual for everyday life. In the weekly meeting participants will share their experiences, successes and difficulties with each other. The aim is to restore personal wholeness and integrity. Extension of "personal integration" is to (once again) fitting in in "Heaven, earth and the community". For additional methods, see: "Heaven and Earth Exercises".
6. Taking refuge in the Great Mother
Again this is a moment of silence (f.e. ten minutes) in which the members contemplate their personal relationship with the Great Mother, realizing Her saving activity through Her Law of the Universe. An inner whispering (mantra) may come up. One example is "Praising the Mother". While breathing in you whisper "Praising", while in the lowest point of exhalation you repeat - with clear awareness - "the Mother", feeling Her quality of Nothingness. Others may visualize giving back their addiction to the Cosmic Womb, while repeating "death" while breathing out and "rebirth" while breating in. Or you simply repeat OM ("Matrix", "Womb"). (See: Teaching).
7. Celebration
This is the concluding part of the session, which is entirely up to the members how to fill it in. This may vary from chanting OM, music and dancing to sharing drinks and food (some of which may be offered to the Great Mother) to mutual healing in case of minor disorders* to mutual exchange of experience with regard to the free Personal Health Plan** ( http://welcome.to/FreeWHC/ Step 1) to organizing a monthly "Full Moon Celebration".***
* See a.o. guasha, the Chinese jade stone therapy: www.guasha.8m.com
** A two monthly program to optimize your health free internet publication. See: http://welcome.to/FreeWHC/ Step1
*** More about this in Step 6: www.originaltrad.faithweb.com chapter "Taking Refuge". Additionally, the other practices mentioned in the same file - f.i. Ancestor Worship, Song of Praise - may be used in the celebration. They can be also practised at home. In fact all methods described in The Integral Way (See: www.originaltrad.faithweb.com chapter "MatriCommunity") are considered to be very beneficial. They are the Source from which everybody can draw on. So you may add practices like the Heaven & Earth Exercises, Living Zen/Vipassana, Purification etc. to your Way. The entire Integral Way is made available to those who wish to deepen their spiritual quest. It is offered as a Retreat. Please contact us for more information.
PS. As said before Home Meetings are the core of our Tradition. They are based on self-rule. Inspiration a.o. were the respectable AA (Alcohol Anonymus) groups. All groups are autonomous without any steering body above them. The only thing everybody is committed to are the Seven Steps. Local groups can ask for assistance though. This may consist of e-mail contact about certain problems or personal help.
PS. Home Meetings usually do not exceed some twelve to twenty participants. If more people want to attend (making reservations by telephone because of limited space is always a good idea) the groups will split into two. After having attended weekly meetings during at least half a year, you may set up a new group.
PS. Participating in a Home Meeting is entirely free of engagement. You are not supposed to take any further commitment whatsoever if it doesn't feel like.
PS. It will be appreciated, if a local group lets us know about their existence. Potential participants who ask us about where to go, may then become referred to you.
Gerald G.May "Addiction &
Grace", 1991 HarperCollins
Christina Grof "The Thirst for Wholeness,
Attachment, Addiction, and the Spiritual Path", 1993 HarperCollins
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