The obsession with Rank

It's funny. There are one or two privelidges that have come with rank, but the quantity of added work far outstrips them. :laugh: I don't think people would clamor for rank nearly as much if they really understood that the commitment only gets deeper. The work only becomes more challenging.

What I have observed in my own experience here is that rank = responsibility. A handful of people decided I was up for it. It wasn't a reward at all. It was a recognition that I was ready to move on to other tasks.

Sure, I could shrug all that off, but I regard the work as important.

some obsess because they want what they perceive as "power" and "respect"....things that must be earned...

when i joined i did not demand rank nor ask to "skip ahead", instead i had cast off the rank i had attained outside of totjo to start anew...much like a serpent shedding its skin to continue to grow...

in truth the higher your rank, the more you are shackled...each rank comes with more weight, more duty, more responsibility...

Each of us have our own nuanced variations on the general theme of Jediism. Yet, because each of us have experienced the IP, we share something in common. Degrees have value but how and why each of us assign this value differs. Degrees are an imprecise indicator of some of the work (study, learning, etc.) we have contributed to our shared online Temple community. I encourage each of us to read the Journals of our colleagues here and also invite those who remain readers only to post your thoughts and questions.

Br. John wrote: Our content management system, Joomla, uses the term "rank bars". That led to degrees being referred to as ranks. At TOTJO Knight is a degree awarded for completing a particular initial course and then the experience of unique personal studies and projects with a Knight.

The name is really irrelevant... rank is implied because earning the degree for knight leads to increased responsibility, access and other privileges.

Cabur Senaar wrote: It's funny. There are one or two privelidges that have come with rank, but the quantity of added work far outstrips them. :laugh: I don't think people would clamor for rank nearly as much if they really understood that the commitment only gets deeper. The work only becomes more challenging.

What I have observed in my own experience here is that rank = responsibility. A handful of people decided I was up for it. It wasn't a reward at all. It was a recognition that I was ready to move on to other tasks.

Sure, I could shrug all that off, but I regard the work as important.

This reminds me of what I was taught in the church I grew up in and it always stuck with me. The ranks of the clergy weren't 'better' or had more power than others. They were simply more levels of servitude. The higher in the tiers you were, the greater you served your community.

Thinking about it, this is what I need to start applying at work too.

If one day I reach Knight, I just hope I am as wise as most of the Knights I've come across. I have much to learn, I was a strong Atheist prior to joining TotJO, so the Doctrine is my bible. But I am loving the idea of incorporating Buddhism teachings into it as well. And I think regardless of rank we are all equal.

I see the value in the ranks to a point. I always think it's weird when people call me master also. The ranks for me served nothing beyond personal goal benchmarks for myself. and to be able to serve the order in more ways.

I enjoy the responsibility that comes with it and I do not take it lightly at all.

Perhaps this is not the best comparison, but I have a similar conversation about university degrees all of the time.

I have a Bachelor's Degree in Communication Studies. I have literally never been asked to show proof of it in any job interview I have ever had. I believe it is because, unlike a medical doctor, a degree in Communications is not meant to determine proficiency in a physically APPLIED skill set. My degree is not meant to convey how well someone can communicate, but rather how well someone understands the effectiveness of interpersonal and mass media messages. I don't have to BE a good communicator in order to understand communications. I DO need to be good at surgery to be a good surgeon. The way the knowledge is applied is what determines how crucial the rank or title may be to others. I know many people with PHD's in Communications, but you wouldn't want them taking out your appendix. :blink:

As it applies here, I would likely ask a Knight to help me better understand the writings of Alan Watts because they likely have more experience with the material than I do. I can assume that because of the rank. If I seek spiritual counseling, I will go to a Deacon or Priest because the rank implies that they have completed some training and agree to provide this service to our Temple members. If I need to know a healthy recipe for scrambled eggs, the ranks here mean nothing to me.

SkiddyJ wrote: When people pick and choose from religious text what to believe that's when religions/belief systems become corrupted and people take advantage of them.

I would say it is the contrary. Water that stops flowing festers. Teachings that come from imperfect beings will always have attached to them the imperfections determined by the personal and historial context of the teachers, so clinging to a particular truth as set in stone can be a two-edged sword: in one circumstance, it can provide the focus, center and determination to get through life. But in another circumstance, it can be the anchor that does not let your ship sail in the wonderful depths of the ocean.

Jestor wrote: So, I will repeat myself, and say, "Not all doctor's get A's"... When you meet a 'rank', you (should) give them the basic respect that you would want for yourself, and adjust your opinion from there...

Exactly. As Forest Gump used to say "Stupid is as stupid does". People eventually get smart. They will be able to tell apart a phony from the real deal.

And if getting attention is all you want, then that is all you'll get.

Manu wrote:

SkiddyJ wrote: When people pick and choose from religious text what to believe that's when religions/belief systems become corrupted and people take advantage of them.

I would say it is the contrary. Water that stops flowing festers. Teachings that come from imperfect beings will always have attached to them the imperfections determined by the personal and historial context of the teachers, so clinging to a particular truth as set in stone can be a two-edged sword: in one circumstance, it can provide the focus, center and determination to get through life. But in another circumstance, it can be the anchor that does not let your ship sail in the wonderful depths of the ocean.

Jestor wrote: So, I will repeat myself, and say, "Not all doctor's get A's"... When you meet a 'rank', you (should) give them the basic respect that you would want for yourself, and adjust your opinion from there...

Exactly. As Forest Gump used to say "Stupid is as stupid does". People eventually get smart. They will be able to tell apart a phony from the real deal.

And if getting attention is all you want, then that is all you'll get.

What about radicalisation? I probably didn't say it right. For me the TotJO Doctrine will be my foundation, which most is common sense and I am already following it. What I want to learn and take from my learning is knowledge that reinforces that foundation and grows with it. But if I say that some people deserve to be put to death, that goes against the foundation set by the TotJO Doctrine. In my eyes anyway.