neema said:
Wow!! this is amazing news. For what it's worth I have always thought the next logical step for the group has been to go big and incorporate. But a "church" is pure genius from a legal entity standpoint. For everyone who doesn't see how big this is, you will :)
I see from what you have written below that you realize some of the same things we have thought about.
neema said:
This step is going to open up so many possibilities in spreading the knowledge and info of the true religion... Life!
Also if the worry is that people will get the wrong idea, or we are going in the wrong direction, may I suggest you look at it from the point of strategy!
Not to mention that Vinnie and gang have done all they could to actively prevent us taking this step by all their accusations and defamation.
neema said:
This is a great strategy. Not only it can provide a good legal protection within the system for members, but in my opinion it can lead to practical projects that will give great publicity to the "church" plus help many people all at the same time. Remember that people will judge anything by its results.
Exactly.
neema said:
Think about it, a "church" can have a budget, can do multiple fundraising events for different programs, can have an actual newspaper, can have programs for the elderly, programs for the youth, programs for single mothers, counseling and solutions for variety of family and neighborhood problems. If approved of course, maybe the "church" can organize a program where it can help families losing their homes, maybe just with educating strategies alone. The possibilities of practical, actual, and lawful help to people by the members of the "church" are endless. The help can be given as an alternative choice to many other programs being offered by other groups. All of these ideas are legal possibilities that are now open, not that they will necessarily be implemented.
Exactly. And, since Bush and the gang did all their stuff about giving money to churches to operate programs, and our atty is working on our 501(c)(3) filings to make us eligible for those monies, (though we can't count on that - there may be hoops we can't jump through to get go funding), we could do a lot of different things.
Last night I was thinking about setting up places where the homeless can get decent food. And I mean DECENT food, not crap. Good whole brown rice, dried beans, veggies, etc. We could make videos to teach people the basic principles of a good, detoxing diet and show them how to cook food that is nutritious and make it tasty, too.
Then, I was thinking about buying land where the homeless and disenfranchised could come and create communities, help each other build homes...
Well, obviously, I'm getting ahead of myself, but I was sure thinking along the same lines you are.
neema said:
I guess what I am getting at is:
in our realm a "church" can have principles and can actualize those principles in life as true useful alternatives.
Yes. We have had the discussion on the forum here about creating a New Reality. All of this goes hand in hand.
neema said:
Unless I am way off, eventually when you are truly helping the marginalized and disfranchised, as they stabilize and grow many will seek out to better understand the source of this help and how they themselves can be a part of it. In my opinion it is only natural. One day very soon the uneasiness about this "church" will give way to a sense of great hope, from the collective achievements that the "church" as a whole will bring to people and communities around the world.
Exactly. We have a small start with the breathing/meditation program. Right away, that can be taught and meditation groups can be started. We will have to have workshops to train everyone, grant their ordination, and provide them with materials, but it's doable from where we are right now. Then, as groups form, they can begin to decide what they can do in their own context and community to actualize the principles.
neema said:
I as well cannot except the idea of if you can't get it "tough" you are fertilizer. As Laura says not only there are multitude of psy-op mind games that have been played on humanity as a whole, but also don't forget the active technological brainwashing mechanism bombarding us all. If the whole earth is a family how can we abandon any part of it, including nature itself?
Exactly. I mean, do we abandon our children because they aren't grown up yet?
neema said:
As I see it, with an STO philosophy, using the principles of the work and armed with an understanding of psychopathy, the true "church" of life on earth can lead humanity to salvation.
It could, but it's going to take devotion, dedication, and a lot of hard work.
neema said:
Truly, thank you from the bottom of my heart, to you Laura and the rest of the team for creating such a potential . You guys never stop amazing and inspiring us all, well at least me anyway :)
I have only read partially the Statement of Principles of the Fellowship of the Cosmic Mind, but from what I have read I can only say that I am in awe.
By the way, LOVE THAT NAME. The Fellowship of the Cosmic Mind. It has a beautiful ring to it :D
I will admit that taking this step has been agonizing for me. Like many of you, my feeling about "churches" and organized religion has been less than positive. And with all the rants I write about it, geeze... well. You get the picture. But after having those conversations with the two millionaires whose attitudes about others were obviously the means by which they became millionaires in this society, I had to think: Is that the ONLY way? Isn't there another way? A way where we don't ask "Am I my brother's keeper?" Instead we know "I AM my brother." And we act accordingly.
realitybugll said:
I have some questions!
I'm not sure exactly who or what group I should be addressing so I'm just going to say "we" which includes myself, though I'm not sure if I should. I'm wondering if we have enough funds and people to actually implement such a church as has been described.
Well, at this moment, the newly born church does not yet have a bank account, but that is coming soon. And when it gets one, it will be rather empty... but we will transfer the funds from the sales of the EE videos to that account and begin the process of sorting out those details. Whether we will continue to maintain QFG as a legal entity remains to be seen. My preference at the moment is to wind up QFG's business and not spread ourselves too thin.
realitybugll said:
Taking all the active forum members into account, I cannot really see the formation of a national church as plausible...
Well, one of Ark's favorite sayings is (adapted from the Navy or Marines, I think): "The difficult we do immediately, the impossible just takes a little while."
realitybugll said:
I do not think I have a good understanding of what the 'picture' is in the minds of you belonging to the QFS. It is not like there are already forum members holding community "breathing sessions" or lectures is there?
But there are members of QFS who are meeting to do the meditation together already and it is being taken up by people outside of QFS and the forum. There are already a dozen or so QFS members who are scheduled to attend workshops for teaching the program to others. It became obvious rather quickly that we had to do something in order for this to continue and expand.
realitybugll said:
If it was so then I would understand the need to provide legal rights for the people, but as it stands, as of now, there is nothing to protect yet is there?
See above. There is.
realitybugll said:
Also, if we do have the man power, don't we need funds and money? I cannot see such a church funded on, even mandatory, forum member contributions. I don't know how churches work but wouldn't we need to "fund-raise" and the like?
See above. For the moment, yeah, we have no money but we will soon start putting the monies from the meditation program sales into the church account and will then have a modest means of expanding. Further details will be available to members.
realitybugll said:
Sorry if this is just noise, but as my logic currently stands I don't have enough time at the moment to go through the "fellowship of the cosmic mind" thread, but I do have just enough time to post these questions I have. Maybe I am not understanding correctly what the intentions are? please feel free to refer me to any threads/post that might help my understanding, I don't need any personal replies or posts. I don't mean to waste any persons time, though obviously I am probably so it is quite untrue...
Your questions are not noise, but just understand that we do have a LOT going on already via QFS members. If you don't have time to read the threads, it's not likely that you will be able to help or be involved so you don't need to know all the details that will be provided to the membership as it begins to form.
realitybugll said:
Also I imagine at least 1 other person has a similar question to what I'm asking so it might benefit them to. sorry this is an unorganized post.
Exactly. And for those who do have time and want to be involved, I am responding with as much detail as I think is appropriate for a public forum.
Odyssey said:
Question:
Would being an ordained minister -just on paper for professional reasons of confidentiality- through Universal Life Church (http://www.themonastery.org/?destination=main) which is "non-denomonational" disqualify one for membership in the Fellowship?
I denounce it immediately. Does that make any difference?
Thanks for the chuckle!
Yeah, I think that works.
If that's the case, I'm kinda surprised to see you *here*...
wow! what strength on mind ! 
ohh jajaja come on we don't have to over act 
