2012 Class Descriptions
ECUMENICON INTERFAITH CONFERENCE 2012
April 20-22, 2012 (Thursday Night-Sunday morning)
(CLASSES SUBJECT TO CHANGE - CHECK BACK OFTEN)
100-Overview - Beginner’s - Open to everyone.
200-Intermediate (Vocabulary knowledge is assumed)
THEMED CLASSES
Vedic Astrology (ASTR)
- ASTR 101 - Intro To Vedic Astrology (Tufts)
- ASTR 102 - The Gender Dance (Tufts)
- ASTR 103 - Obsession and Renunciation - The Moon’s Nodes (Tufts)
- ASTR 104 - Sattwa & Shen (Tufts & Rik Fire)
- ASTR 108 - Transit of Venus (Tufts)
Body Balancing (BODY)
- BODY 101 - Yoga (Friday) (Anna-Sara Fire)
- BODY 102 - Going Raw (The Fires)
- BODY 103 - Yoga (Saturday) (Ann-Sara Fire)
- BODY 104 - Nature Awareness Adventures (Butler)
- BODY 105 - Alternative Approaches to Temperance (Butke)
- BODY 106 - Path of the Vintner (Althouse)
- BODY 107 - Norse Healing Ritual (TBA)
- BODY 108 - Sattwa & Shen (Tufts & Fire)
- BODY 109 - Yoga (Sunday) - Anna-Sara Fire
Counseling & Recovery (COUNSEL)
- COUNSEL 101 - * Alternative Approaches to Temperance (Bowers)
- COUNSEL 102 - The Shadow Side of Eros
- COUNSEL 103 - * Shamanic Approaches to Addiction) (Butke)
- COUNSEL 104 - Obsession & Renunciation (Tufts)
- COUNSEL 106 - Sattwa & Shen (Tufts & Fire)
Gender Balancing (GEN)
- GEN 102 - The Well Tempered Male (Swiss)
- GEN 103 - Journey through 10,000 Veils (Sheika)
- GEN 104 - The Gender Dance
- GEN 105 - Inner Marriage I
- GEN 106 - The Shadow Side of Eros
- GEN 205 - Inner Marriage II
- GEN 107 - Intro To Tambor
- GEN 208 - Tambor to Inle
- GEN 108 - Transit of Venus
History (HIST)
- HIST 101 - Cave Art (PanOrpheus)
- HIST 102 - The Well Tempered Male (Swiss)
- HIST 103 - Journey Through 10,000 Veils (Miryam)
- HIST 104 - Temperance Archetype
- HIST 105 - End-Time Prophecies
- HIST 106 - Extreme Cultures
- HIST 107 - History of Temperance
- HIST 108 - Transit of Venus
Harmonizing Opposites (OPP)
- OPP 101 - Honoring Poseidon
- OPP 102 - The Well Tempered Male (Swiss)
- OPP 103 - Journey Through 10,000 Males
- OPP 104 - Temperance Archetype
- OPP 105 - The Gender Dance
- OPP 106 - Inner Marriage I
- OPP 107 - The Shadow Side of Eros
- OPP 207 - Inner Marriage II
- OPP 108 - Obsession and Renunciation
- OPP 109 - Intro to Tambor
- OPP 210 - Tambor to Inle
- OPP 111 - Finding Your Clown
Ritual (RIT)
- RIT 101 - Honoring Poseidon
- RIT 102 - Veves and Phalanges
- RIT 103 - Ancestor Worship I
- RIT 104 - Alternative Approaches to Temperance
- RIT 105 - Intro to Tambor
- RIT 205 - Tambor to Inle
- RIT 106 - Norse Ritual (TBD)
- RIT 107 - Yoga (Sunday)
Classes may fit across more than one theme.
Taking 3 classes in a single theme constitutes a Minor. Be sure to answer the questions prepared by the teacher.
Taking 5 classes in a single theme constitutes a Major. Be sure to answer the questions prepared by the teacher.
For our ongoing Interfaith Studies Certificate program, See the Ecumenicon School Tab.
If you are Ecumenicon Clergy and need classes for your ongoing Counseling CEU requirement, two classes are being taught by Ecumenicon designated counselors.
Alternative Approaches to Temperance (Duane Bowers, LPC) & Shamanic Approaches to Addiction (Monica Butke, LPC)
CLASS DESCRIPTIONS (ALPHABETIC)
Alternative Approaches to Temperance; Terrapin; Saturday, 10:00 am; This workshop will look a temperance and cigarette smoking, temperance and over-eating, and temperance and the mundane. Alternative approaches to attain temperance will be discussed, and self hypnosis techniques for those three concerns will be taught. (BODY 150, COUNSEL 150, RITUAL 150); (Duane Bowers, LPC) (COUNSELING CEUs)
Ancestor Worship; How to set up a place to honor your ancestors. Why have an altar? Why speak to them?Prince Georges; Saturday, 10:00 am; (RITUAL 101) (Rev. Patty Taylor)
Cave Art; Trance-Induced Cave Art of primitive cultures in France, South America and South Africa, showing how these visions were triggered by controlled use of psychotropic substances; Prince Georges; Friday, 3:00 pm; (HISTORY 130) (PanOrpheus)
Closing Ceremonies; Prince Georges; Sunday, 12:00 NOON; (All)
End-Time Prophecies; Can collective and individual Temperance avert the worst of the end-time prophecies; Terrapin; Saturday, 1:30 pm; (HISTORY 140); (Panel discussion with PanOrpheus)
Extreme Cultures; Terrapin; Sunday, 9:15 pm; (No, not the kind in your refrigerator.) Do nations really have to go overboard in their persecutions of minority populations, before people finally decide the karmic cost is just too great? In this panel discussion, the “purges” of Germany, Croatia, Rwanda, and other nations will be explored. What can people do, to prevent this from happening again? (HISTORY 160) (Panel)
Finding Your Clown; Prince Georges; Sunday, 9:15 am; She shows us how to heal and balance negativity in yourself and your environment by letting your suppressed Inner Clown out to play. “Here come the Jesters, 1, 2, 3…”All clowns will be given an opportunity to show their colors at Closing Ceremonies; (OPP 140, RITUAL 140) (Barbara Berman)
The Gender Dance; White Oak; Saturday, 10:00 am; You may be aware that half of the zodiac signs are masculine and the other half are feminine, but what does that really mean? And how does it play out in your chart and your life? Much of our difficulties stem from gender-confusion. What happens when the planets shift polarity — does it make a person gay or lesbian? How can you use this understanding to become more authentically masculine (pro-active) or feminine (creative)? (ASTR 160, OPP 160, GEN (160) (Rosanna Tufts, MMDA)
Going Raw; With so many people losing the fight against excess weight, could an all-raw-food diet be the answer? It may be easier than you think! Rik and Anna-Sara Fire share their experiences in this hands-on workshop, including how they not only attained better health, but greater spiritual clarity. Terrapin; Friday, 3:00 pm; (BODY 110); (Anna Sara-Fire, Rik Fire)
History of Temperance; Silver Spring; Sunday, 10:30 am; Suffrage, Discrimination, and Religion; How the Temperance movement started shortly after the formation of the republic and remained an undercurrent until after the Civil War with the rise of the Women’s Sufferage Movement. The growing political influence of women and the rise of prejudice against immigrants lead to the passage of the 18th Amendment that created Prohibition. (HISTORY 110) (LuAnn Day)
Honoring Poseidon (Opening Ritual); Prince Georges; Friday, 10:00 am; One of the Big Three from the Greek pantheon (along with Zeus and Hades), Poseidon is a fearsome God to sailors and landlubbers alike, a bringer of storms and floods. Like Zeus, he is also notorious for his voracious sexual appetite. Yet his realm is the birthplace of organic life on Earth. In this ritual, we will learn to use the Temperance image to give us a “calm sea and prosperous voyage; RITUAL 110, OPP 110) (All)
Inner Marriage I; Prince Georges; Saturday, 1:30 pm; Lady Gaga was “born this way.” Are you who you were born to be? Geniuses like Lady Gaga and Steve Jobs are masters of the Inner Marriage of feminine and masculine energies. Identify and activate your inner energies to birth your fullness of life. (GEN 190, OPP 190); (Cathy Powers)
Inner Marriage II; Prince Georges; Saturday, 3:00 pm; Guided meditation. Class 201 is not a prerequisite. (GEN 290, OPP 290); (Cathy Powers)
Intro to Tambor; Prince Georges; Saturday; 6:00 pm; Why tell stories, why rewrite the old tales with contemporary twists? A Tambor has traditional parts, the libation, the peristyle, the calling of the Orisha, the ancestors, the drawing of Veves, the holding of space for the diviners, and then the Spirits intervene and write a new story. Learn the parts and understand the faith. (GEN 121, OPP 121, RITUAL 121); (Rev. Charles Butler Neto)
Journey Through 10,000 Veils; Prince Georges; Friday, 5:00 pm; Her fascinating personal tale of being born Jewish in Hollywood, and ending up as a Sufi mystic, brings the Muslim perspective back to Ecumenicon. (HIST 121, OPP 121); (Shekha Miryam Kabeer Faye)
Many Visions of Harmony; The Temperance Archetype in Multiple Decks; Prince Georges; Friday, 8:00 pm; In our opening evening, Geraldine Amaral will give us an overview of the Temperance card with focus on the deeper esoteric meaning. Via a stunning Powerpoint presentation, participants will explore the many layers of the Temperance archetype. We think of the “Temperance Angel” as a template for balance and harmony, and we will end the evening by playing the Temperance “Game.” This is a hands-on event. All Tarot decks welcome! (HISTORY 101, OPP 101) ; (Geraldine Amaral)
Norse Healing Ritua; Dynamic healing circle from Norse Tradition; Prince Georges; Saturday, 10:30 pm; (BODY 130, RITUAL 130) ;(TBA)
Obsession and Renunciation; White Oak; Saturday, 3:00 pm; The North and South Nodes of the Moon (the eclipse points) are often treated as an afterthought, if at all, in Western Astrology, but in Vedic they are major players. Wherever they land, they show you where you have a tendency to go overboard in life, or, conversely, try desperately to avoid something that is so revolting to you that the very thought of it makes you feel sick! But since the Nodes are shadows, not actual planets, they function as the subconscious level, below our awareness. How are they driving you? How do you find balance between your appetites and your aversions? (ASTR 170, COUNSEL 170, OPP 170) ; (Rosanna Tufts, MMDA)
Path of the Vintner / Wine & Cheese Party / Auction; An opportunity to meet a working vintner working with a non-profit and help Ecumenicon grow! Prince Georges; Saturday, 6:00 pm; (BODY 120); (Patricia Althouse) (Everybody)
Sattwa & Shen; White Oak; Saturday, 10:30 pm; The medical trend nowadays is to control our turbulent moods with designer drugs. But could Big Pharma be doing more harm than good, long-term? What if we shifted our focus away from “fighting depression” and instead took steps to “promote serenity”? This class introduces the concepts of “sattwa” from Ayurveda and “shen” from Traditional Chinese medicine, and strategies for achieving them in your spirit and body. (ASTR 140, BODY 140, COUNSEL 140); (Rev. Rik, Fire, Rosanna Tufts, MMDA)
The Shadow Side of Eros; Silver Spring; Saturday, 1:30 pm; a discussion of sexual compulsion/addiction. Does such a thing really exist? What does it look like, how do we care for its sufferers, and how do we protect our sex-positive community from accusations and slander? (COUNSEL 130, GEN 130, OPP 130); (Anita Wagner)
Shamanic Approaches to Addiction; Terrapin; Saturday, 3:00 pm; This class will give a quick overview of basic neurobiology & psychology of addiction, and introduce shamanic/spiritual theories of addiction. Students will have the opportunity to explore direct knowledge of addictions through Pathworking/Shamanic Journeys, learn about co-occurring disorders of mental illness, hear personal stories from addicts themselves, and practice skill learned in-lecture. (COUNSEL 120) ; (Monica Butke) (COUNSELING CEUs)
Tambor to Inle; Prince Georges; Saturday, 8:00 pm; A Tambor is a spiritual storytelling from several West African diaspora traditions which blends drumming and dancing with Pataki )(teaching stories). This year’s story is Inle and the Middle Way. His parents are Oggun the blacksmith and Yemayah the Goddess of Compassion. They don’t get along, fireworks threaten, and Inle must find his own way, in the swamps, of the Middle Way. (GEN 221, OPP, 221, RITUAL 221); (Rev. Charles Butler Neto)
Transit of Venus; White Oak, 10:30 am; So you think the Winter Solstice of 2012 is going to be a big deal? It may be nothing compared to the spectacular lineup of June 5, when we will have the last Transit of Venus in our lifetimes (not to be seen again for 105 years), preceded within hours by a lunar eclipse, with a Jupiter conjunction blessing the whole mashup. The last Transit of Venus in 2004 saw the collapse of a longtime sexual taboo (gays were permitted to marry in Massachusetts); could this next one bring the culmination of that trend? What could the Transit bring to your love life, whether you are gay or straight? (ASTR 180, HISTORY 180, GEN 180); (Rosanna Tufts, MMDA)
Introduction to Vedic Astrology; White Oak; Friday, 1:30 pm; Have you ever felt you don’t “fit” your sign? Or that you’re “stuck with the stars you came in on?” It could be because your planetary positions are off by almost an entire sign! Learn about the amazing accuracy of Vedic Astrology from India, which uses the sidereal zodiac. This system, which is less psychological and more predictive, comes with a protocol of planetary remedies to finally get the stars on your side; (ASTR 101); (Rosanna Tufts, MMDA)
Veves & Phalanges; Veves are spiritual circuit diagrams drawn by Voudoun, Ifan, Umbanda, and Condomble practitioners to honor and respect the Orisha; Phalanges (the word means fingers) are the minor spirits of the Umbanda pantheon, the guardians of individuals. Come and explore a visualization of the Hands of the Spirit which move through us to draw the diagrams of the soul. Prince Georges; Friday, 1:30 am; (RITUAL 120) (Rev. Charles Butler Neto)
The Well-Tempered Male; Silver Spring; Friday, 3:00 pm; In recent decades, women succeeded in building a new myth of the feminine; why was the parallel “men’s movement” turned into a joke? Let’s build a new myth of the Mature Masculine! (GEN 150, HIST 150, OPP 150); (Tom Swiss)
Yoga; Prince Georges; Friday, 8:30 am; Saturday, 8:30 am; Sunday, 8:30 am; Balance your Spirit and Body for the whole day! (BODY 101, BODY 102, BODY 103) (Rev. Anna-Sara Fire)
