Sea of Faith Christchurch Group

I’ve just watched Nigel Latta’s excellent documentary on Bert Potter and the Centrepoint community. In a mix of archival footage, revealing comments by Potter himself, interviews with members and ex-members of the community, and commentary by Nigel Latta , it shows how what began as a therapeutic community became controlling and manipulative, what began as a movement of sexual liberation for consenting adults turned into exploitation of children to satisfy adults’ sexual needs. What began drug-free ended up manufacturing, using, and selling drugs. Continue Reading »

David has alerted us to two websites that make it possible for ordinary citizens to make their views known and to pressure those in power.  That is one way of not just talking about the issues but actually taking action.

Avaaz.org

350.org

Hugh has alerted us to the following youtube video, which is a good overview of mainstream geological understanding of what we have been going through:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTvFDSpmh3A

Also the following by Bronwyn Hayward on resilient citizenship:

http://resolve.sustainablelifestyles.ac.uk/news/bronwyn-hayward-talks-about-resilient-citizenship-youtube

You can find Wardah’s PowerPoint presentation to us here: http://sofchch.blogtown.co.nz/files/2010/09/The-Sufi-Tradition.pdf

David introduced us to Niall Ferguson’s book “The Ascent of Money.” In following up on this subject, I discovered that Niall Ferguson has presented a four-part TV series on the same subject.  Thanks to the American Public Broadcasting Service, you can watch this on your computer; just click on http://video.pbs.org/program/1155680272/.

I found the series easy to watch and full of insight into the rise and rise of money. What is missing for me is a critique of the monetary system – not simply complaints about the greed of particular individuals, but a critique of the system itself. Money seems to be behind war and violence. The need to pay back debt plus interest fuels the ever-increasing exploitation and degradation of the planet.  It seems that we need a spiritual or religious perspective on money, so that we make a connection between the two areas that David mentioned: the Sunday morality and the  Monday reality.