[Oe List ...] Our Legacy: Next Steps?

Sun Dec 19 20:37:50 CST 2010

p.s. in the course of "explaining" don't destroy the "mystery".

Susan

From: oe-bounces at wedgeblade.net [mailto:oe-bounces at wedgeblade.net] On Behalf
Of Jaime Vergara
Sent: Saturday, December 18, 2010 9:30 PM
To: oe at wedgeblade.net
Subject: Re: [Oe List ...] Our Legacy: Next Steps?

The programs we developed, modified and in some cases discarded over the
years.

Gordon, what happened to University 13? 

My ESL English would not meet "someone else ...." challenge, but thanks for
your continuing professorial guidance.  Your four points can be made into a
good speech!

Jaime

-----Original Message-----
From: Gordon Harper <top-nw at clear.net>
To: Order Ecumenical Community <oe at wedgeblade.net>; Colleague Dialogue
<dialogue at wedgeblade.net>
Sent: Sun, Dec 19, 2010 12:19 pm
Subject: [Oe List ...] Our Legacy: Next Steps?

Many thanks to all of you who contributed your lists of what our community's
legacy has to include.  These are gathered now on the Repository
(http://wiki.wedgeblade.net/bin/view/Main/BrainStorm), and we'll add others
to the page as they appear.  That your thoughts had a role in sparking the
wonderful "Yes" initiative of the Cocks and Holcombes, as well as all the
yesses that generated, makes for a delightful Christmas combination.

Perhaps it's time to see if we can carry this one step further yet.  The
marvelous listing we've generated, however meaningful to those of us who
were there, wouldn't mean much to one who wasn't.  We're currently hoping to
pass on or at least make available some of these pieces of our legacy to
another generation in the ICA / Oklahoma City University OIKOS partnership.
What would most help us do that?

I find myself looking for two things now that could build on what we've
started.  

*	First, an intuitive gestalt.  If some of us would take a shot at
saying now what the three, four or six major aspects of our legacy consist
of, I'd find that rather thrilling--and some of these might form the basis
for future conversations with that Oklahoma crowd.  These key elements or
components would again be an individual, very personal take or witness on
our heritage, none complete or perfect, but they could catalyze another
level of great dialogue.  Can we still "go snake eyes" on such a list?

Maybe we could think of this as akin to what Randy Williams did so
beautifully this past summer at the OIKOS gathering, when he, along with
David Dunn's help I believe on the Power Point, presented a succinct and
intelligible depiction of our life and work to the assembled faculty and
students.  What if each of us had just been tapped to sum up and explain who
we are and what our community might have of value to share with future
members of the League?  What would our 4 x 4 look like?

These wouldn't have to be as terse as most items on our brainstorm list
(skip the three-to-five words requirement, as many of you helpfully did in
your brainstorms).  Each could be a sentence or even a paragraph, as we
prefer.
*	Second, some expanded explanation, preferably in generally accepted
English, of items we listed in the brainstorm.  "Imaginal Education"
requires a paragraph or two just to give others a fleeting glimpse or
whispery taste of what those words point to.  Same with "religious houses"
or "two suitcases."  One of us might start on one of these, and others chime
in with additional detail, which would be great.   Again, as these are
generated, Len and I will try to add them to the Repository (or you of
course could do that yourself).    

(This makes me think of that old ICA Glossary that some of the young interns
initiated and their successors continued to add to over the years, that
circulated in the old Phoenix office.  It was their explanation to each
other of commonly used terms that newbies would hear in the course of their
daily work.  Be fun to see it, if someone from down there still has it on a
computer.)  

So, those are my two suggestions for ways to pursue the conversation and
contribute further to the legacy discussion.  I'm going to kick it off with
my own four points for the proposed talk.  The foundational things about our
legacy that I'd want to hit (at least at this moment) would be:

---------------------

1.	Our Methods.  The amazing set of intellectual, social and spirit
methodologies that we developed, tested on ourselves and then took to the
world.  These of course include but go way beyond ToP.
2.	 Building a Movement.  Our understanding of what made for authentic
community, our attempt to demonstrate a form of missional and disciplined
intentional community and to build that outward in the symbolic, movemental
and extended order and in the local and organizational communities with
which we worked.
3.	Our Foundational Assumptions  The core beliefs about the way life is
that we operated out of, that held us together, that we sought to embody and
communicate in things like RS-I, our singing and rituals and our projects.
4.	Our Historical Journey.  The stories of how we began and what
happened to us along the way.  The programs we developed, modified and in
some cases discarded over the years.  What we sought to awaken or put in
place as we tried to discern and respond to the call and claim on our lives.

------------------------

Well, there's my first run at a talk I have no intention of ever giving.
Ask me tomorrow, and it will almost certainly be different.  I can't imagine
even lightly brushing all of this in as succinct a fashion as Randy managed
in his presentation.  Still, as we all know, in the lecture method you start
with lots more than you'll finally use.    

OK, have a great holiday, everyone, and as facilitators as fond of saying,
"Someone else . . . !"

Gordon

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