Reflections on Spring 2010 Meet-up with Jane Lorand by Leslie Loy and John Beck
Submitted by WeStrive on Fri, 04/16/2010 - 18:25
On March 20, WeStrive had its first 2010 Meet-up, featuring the research and knowledge of Jane Lorand, a social entrepreneur out of California who has had made extraordinary ripples at YIP (www.yip.se). The Meet-up challenged participants to consider their own ways of thinking and educational paths; how well, Jane asked, do we know ourselves and how are we actualizing our potential to better serve the world?
There were Meet-ups in over four countries, including: Philadelphia-area (USA), Dornach (Swizterland), Toronto (Canada), Jarna (Sweden); more will continue in Germany and Lebanon. In the meantime, there is also a group coming together to collaboratively re-imagine the WeStrive Meet-up; if you are interested in being part of that conversation, please contact leslie@westrive.org.
John Beck wrote a reflection on his Meet-up in Glenmoore, Pennsylvania: Read more »
Seeking the True Spirit of Initiative by William Bento
Submitted by WeStrive on Fri, 04/16/2010 - 17:57
Discerning the true spirit of initiative requires an inquiry, which considers factors beyon the appearance of an action. The most significant feature of an initiative is not apprehended as a percept. Although the idea of initiative conjures up notions of an external activity, it can never be separated from the one who has initiated the action. There is always an internal field of concepts and motives standing behind every initiative. It is my contention that inquiry into this realm holds the possibility of grasping the true spirit of any specific initiative.
It would be naïve realism to conclude that all initiative springs from either a feeling to do or a compelling sense of willfulness. Such conclusions omit to consider the role of thinking and its conceptual power to engender new realities. And it is after all, the very character of great initiatives to create new realities. Another flaw in assuming the position of naïve realism is that it bypasses the individual’s own moral disposition. Only when these two areas are given serious consideration can the true spirit of initiative be found. Naïve realism simply does not distinguish the drive of egoism from the moral intuition of the “I”. The former is often a set of desires expressed as responses to outer stimuli, yet masked as initiative; whereas the latter is a free act based on a love for the significance of a deed. Read more »
