Holy Nights

7 PM Nightly

Dear Friends,

We would like to invite you all to our Holy Nights gatherings!We decided on reading World History and the Mysteries in the Light of Anthroposophy, lectures given by Rudolf Steiner from Dec.24th 1923 to January 1st 1924, exactly 100 years ago.

We will not meet on December 31st or January 6th.

On January 6th we will gather to celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the re-founding of the Anthroposophical Society by Rudolf Steiner, from 1:30- 4:30 at Camphill (details will follow).We decided to practice the song “I Feel My Destiny” by Julie Courtney each night before the reading, because we will sing that song at the January 6th event. 
Recordings of the music (from Esther), can be downloaded here, along with the sheet music if you wish to practice at home:

• Soprano Audio File (mp3)
• Alto Audio File (mp3)
• Bartione Audio File (mp3)

On Sunday, December 10th we will have a one-time practice session for this song at Susan Cook’s house (directions below) at 11 am, led by Esther. We will provide the sheet music then. If you would like to join us, please let me know (wandabtaylor@msn.com ) so I can give Susan a head count.

We will have 10 nights (starting 12-26 and ending 1-5) to read the 9 lectures of World History and the Mysteries in the Light of Anthroposophy, so on January 5th we will read the first lecture from Christ and the Human Soul(GA155). I will provide copies! Details and directions are available on the community calendar page: https://proto.sfbbi.org/calendar/.

If you have any questions, please contact me wandabtaylor@msn.com.

Happy Holidays!

Wanda

Do you love to sing, or yearn to sing, or wish that you could sing? Singing is a precious expression of our humanity and our voice is the most essential tool that we have for living our lives.  

Singing unites people, creates community and can be a pure expression of our soul as well as a direct connection to the spiritual world.  It also provides a deeply nourishing opportunity to receive renewal and self-care.

You are warmly welcome to join the 8th Foundational Singing Training of the School of Uncovering the Voice that begins this February! Everyone is eligible to attend, regardless of singing abilities. It is a transformational experience; not only is it inherently beneficial for your whole being; you will also discover the potential of your own unique and beautiful voice.  More information can be found on our new website: https://www.werbecksinging.org/We would be grateful if you would please share this message with anyone in your greater community who might be interested. 

While the group sessions for the upcoming training are held for a handful of days twice a year in Northern CA, most, if not all of the included private singing lessons can be held over Zoom, which makes this training manageable for people who live outside of CA.

Special message for those of you who are connected to schools:

Waldorf schools are at the forefront of understanding the value of singing and its positive impact on the healthy growth of children.

In an ideal world, every school contains teachers who have free, natural singing voices and can lead and model beautiful singing for the children and the greater community. Even better; imagine a community where everyone feels confident and comfortable singing!
Although many Waldorf teacher trainings contain some elements of the anthroposophical singing method, Uncovering the Voice (also called Werbeck singing) we have found that most teachers benefit from additional training in Uncovering the Voice. 

We are offering a special discount for schools: if two or more staff members of the same school register together, they each get $50 off of the tuition per semester. 

In addition, as an experienced, credentialed Waldorf class teacher and choir leader, Shayndel is also available for private mentoring of teachers in developing their singing abilities and working with grade-specific songs, from early childhood through the grades. She also mentors sound healers and singing professionals.

The Santa Cruz and Monterey Bay Branch is pleased to present:
Friday, December 15, 7:00 PM at the

Resource Center for Nonviolence, Santa Cruz

The Oberufer Shepherd’s play is a unique community Christmas event being performed one night only at the Resource Center for Nonviolence, December 15, at 7 PM. It has been performed every year since Medieval times by people around the world. It takes the Christmas story from the point of view of the Shepherds in a unique, humorous and warm-hearted way, with amateur local actors and musicians.

The cast this year is drawn from Hidden Meadow, the Santa Cruz Waldorf School, the Anthroposophical Branch, Blossom’s Farm, and Camphill Communities California. The special community feeling engendered by this event will be palpable to anyone. 

This traditional religious story can serve to kindle in any of us the soul-light  that can awaken in the depths of winter.

“City people today are hardly capable any longer of completely appreciating to its full depth what is connected with our annual festivals.  It is hardly possible to feel that magic which passed like a spiritual breath through the souls, through the minds of those who believed that they were carrying Christ in their heart during the great festive events at Christmas or Easter.   To feel this magic which passed through humanity in these periods like a spiritual breath has become really quite difficult …if we look at what ordinary people were able to feel when they were presented with the child in the manger … then we can say: such moods, such feelings should awaken in us when we look at what can be born in our soul… “

Rudolf Steiner, discussing the Oberufer play, Berlin, December 22 1910

Resource Center for Nonviolence

612 Ocean Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Requested Donation: $30 for families (any size!) or$20 per adult
No one turned away.

Susan Cook, David Eyes, Douglas Wylie
The Core Group
Santa Cruz & Monterey Bay Anthroposophical Society
a branch of 
The Anthroposophical Society in America
coregroup@anthroposophysantacruz.com

….It is the distinctiveness of the Christmas Impulse of the Anthroposophic Society, that this Anthroposophic Society has become imprinted with a full character of a public organization. With this deed nothing else is expected of a member of the Anthroposophic Society than what each member themself is expecting: to receive through the Anthroposophic Society what flows within the Anthroposophic Spirit-Movement. No other responsibility is requested if one becomes an Anthroposophist. The commitment to be a decent human being is probably obvious…..Rudolf Steiner

On December 28th, 1923 amidst the ruins of the first Goetheanum, that burned to the ground through arson the year before, about 800 Anthroposophists gathered around Rudolf Steiner in the Schreinerei  for a new beginning. During what is known as the Christmas Conference, he founded the new Society by laying a new foundation stone. This time it was given in the form of the Foundation Stone Meditation placed in the heart of each member of the society, to become a foundation to stand on and an anchor. He introduced the Vorstand of the organization and he himself became the president thereof – a spiritually significant deed! 

Worldwide there is an initiative of organizing celebrations commemorating the 100 year anniversary of this significant event, and I’m reaching out to hear your thoughts, ask for your participation, and contributions if you feel moved to.

Let’s strengthen and tune our organs of sense perception through stories, memories, lectures, inspiration, practice and artistic activities. Let us create a vision and inspiration for the future.

Ideally we will work rhythmically over several days to penetrate the Foundation Stone Meditation, through Willing, Feeling and Thinking, given in the time between December 26- January 1, 1923. A conclusion will follow on January 6th with presentations, as the echo of our work.

If you feel inspired to contribute with an activity, would like to host at your home or workshop, like to give a talk, guide us in meditation, have stories to share or ideas for the future, please respond to katja.wishart@me.com . All’s welcome and nothing too small to share!

There is a livestream every Monday at 11 am PST on Goetheanum.tv with various topics connected to the Christmas Conference

https://goetheanum.tv/categories/livestreams-en?locale=en_us

https://medicalfreedomsf.wixsite.com/nov4

https://www.tickettailor.com/events/medicalfreedomsanfrancisco/1034750#