Local Orginizations

One of the reasons that I am seriously considering going through this program is that being a deist, though i use the term loosely, I feel that I am lacking the feeling of community and discussion that came from being in an actual church as a kid.
I've gathered from a another post that local chapters are not forbidden. I just wanted to know if in the future if there will a way of registering and searching for local chapters, run by members who meet the obvious requirements (Knight rank, preferably completed seminary.)
I'm not talking so much about a place to preach or be preached too, but a way to establish local groups who are members of TotJO. These would be groups that could discuss personal philosophies on the journey to enlightenment, give initiates the possibility of in person interaction with potential masters, and even offer the opportunity for physical ceremonies (such as the knighting ceremony). It would also increase our visibility and make people who are looking for this kind of church aware that we exist. Everything would still be documented through the site and teachings and procedures would still be followed, but it open the church to those who want something more tangible than internet chatting and forums.
I'm new here but I really think this organization is exactly what I've been looking for, and would even make it easier for me to give my future children a path to start on without simply telling them to avoid the attempts the churches and and my parents will make to indoctrinate them till their old enough to understand what they're doing.

Hello and welcome!

I can definitely understand your desire to want to have actual, face-to-face community gatherings led by someone of authority and knowledge within the Temple structure. When I left Christianity, I left my church and the student organization I was a part of. It was a huge shock to my lifestyle and emotional health to not have that continual contact with people who I knew and who knew me. Moreover, I think it speaks to a need that humans have to feel connected, appreciated, and known by other humans. I have to stop before I get poetic. :dry:

I think everyone, regardless of what faith background you have, can benefit from the information in the Initiate Programme (IP). If you are looking for something to replace the sense of community that you get from having regular interactions with the same people time and again, I'd recommend joining a sports club or reading group. I don't want to dissuade you from going through the IP, but if you go through it on the promise that there will be a local chapter wherever it is that you live, you may (most likely) be very disappointed.

Establishing local chapters requires a lot of logistical planning and dedicated individuals to get it started. There's also the question of what a local chapter does, how to maintain the integrity's of TOTJO's methodology, and so on and so forth. It may be the case that that is not the direction TOTJO should go, I have no idea (I've only recently completed the IP and am relatively new myself).

Might I humbly suggest that you hang around here, get a few lessons under your belt, and then figure out where you want to go from there? Maybe this is a good fit for you, maybe it isn't. I can't say one way or another.

Hello Baldorf, and welcome by the way

I think that Jamie gave you some pretty sound advice there and there's not much that I can add to it.

However, I can clarify - there is the potential to set up TOTJO Chapters. It has already been attempted in the past. But, we would prefer someone leading a Chapter to be a Knight, and we do not currently have the luxury of huge numbers of active Knights (and most of those of us who are Knights or Masters are pretty busy with family, work, hobbies, online TOTJO...). So in answer to your question, yes, it is possible that at some point we may have various physical Chapters, and I think that it would be really great if we did. It's just not very realistic at this moment in time...

But, perhaps, if you stick around, get to know us and work hard, you might find yourself being at the forefront of a Chapter somewhere down the line...

If you are in:Memphis, Somewhere close to Murray, KY, Chicago, or in Arizona, there are offline chapters established. They are not necessarily ToTJO affiliated, but they each have great Jedi running them, and it will help drive home the ideas and concepts you learn here. You can even bring some of your knowledge from here to these groups and help them grow.

ToTJO also has a map around here that can help you connect with others in your area if there happens to be someone near you

Jamie Stick wrote:
I think everyone, regardless of what faith background you have, can benefit from the information in the Initiate Programme (IP). If you are looking for something to replace the sense of community that you get from having regular interactions with the same people time and again, I'd recommend joining a sports club or reading group. I don't want to dissuade you from going through the IP, but if you go through it on the promise that there will be a local chapter wherever it is that you live, you may (most likely) be very disappointed.

Well, I have plenty of groups I'm a part of, I'm not looking for this for social reasons. I simply feel the need for a stronger connection to my "church" than an internet connection, and I feel that many may share that need. And I'm certainly not worried about going through this and not finding a local group, I'm more than happy to take that initiative myself when I have reached the rank that the church feels comfortable with allowing us to speak on their behalf to that extent. I was simply suggesting that the website have an option to have these local chapters that do exist to be easily identified by members.

Jamie Stick wrote: Establishing local chapters requires a lot of logistical planning and dedicated individuals to get it started. There's also the question of what a local chapter does, how to maintain the integrity's of TOTJO's methodology, and so on and so forth.

I'm curious what you mean by this. It could be a simple lack of knowledge or maybe overconfidence because I feel like I've undertaken larger organizations than this, but I'm not sure what hurdles i should expect in the kind group I'm talking about. I don't want to take over any of the processes handled by the website (and the same website participation would be expected so it's not like the church would lose their oversight), it would simply be a place for discussion, outreach to make our presence known and available to others who may not know about us and would want to join, and a way to organize man power to support community programs that many Jedi participate in individually. It would also be a great opportunity for Knights and Masters to select Initiates for a more personal mentoring than the website provides. I assume you had some specific difficulties in mind, would you care to elaborate?

Jamie Stick wrote: It may be the case that that is not the direction TOTJO should go, I have no idea (I've only recently completed the IP and am relatively new myself).
Might I humbly suggest that you hang around here, get a few lessons under your belt, and then figure out where you want to go from there? Maybe this is a good fit for you, maybe it isn't. I can't say one way or another.

I'm certainly not here to tell TotJO how to do things, but I do feel very strongly that an offline presence is very important to supplement the online, especially with this upcoming net neutrality issue, but there is also the fact that being strictly online could prevent us from achieving legitimacy to the public that would help us do our works, and limits our reach to those who would make excellent Jedi but don't even know we are here. Perhaps my training here will only be a stop on my journey, but I will certainly complete it before deciding if that will be the case.

Its a matter of time. Dedicate some ofyours and you can see it happen with your own 2 hands, like me. Otherwise, hang here until someone else takes up the reigns. I'm not a Knight or I would open my house up as one.