Pathwork Additional Material No. 5

November 1, 1977

MESSAGE FROM THE GUIDE TO TRAINING GROUPS

The time has arrived, my beloved friends, when the pathwork should be given to those in other lands, or other parts of this land, to those souls ready for it. For this purpose I herewith send you an outline of a program. The inspiration to do this, and the length of it (3 months), has already been communicated. But more details will be given here. Please understand that these suggestions about the exact nature of the program merely touch upon what is necessary. You do not have to follow through in exactly the same way, as far as the choice of times of day are concerned, for example. But on the whole, the following outline includes what is necessary for a good training, condensed into the shortest possible span of time.

More details may come later, through this or other's channel. This is a beginning. Also, at the beginning it does not matter if only a small amount of people signs up for such training. Later your classes will become much larger. To lead such a training program, in whatever capacity, will also be tremendously helpful for the helpers and teachers. It will create much growth in leadership, helpership, teachership and personal maturity. So, once again, the trainer becomes the trainee.

When you have studied the program I outline here, the next step will be that some of you sit down together, open your channels, ask for guidance and the will of God, and set up a viable system in regard to the technicalities, such as how many helpers should be involved with how many trainees; how much should be the charges of the trainees so that fair and adequate compensation is given to those who help, teach and train. Also deliberate about apprenticeship -- how much can these who train for their helpership give and thus shorten their learning period, while at the same time diminishing the expenses. The next step should then be to publish the program in your Bulletin and ask who is interested in what phase of the program, so that you can compile lists of eligible helpers, teachers and trainers.

After you do this preliminary work, send out a special brochure, announcing what is intended to be given and ask for applications. To begin with, this should be done with Holland and our Washington friends. When you have both kinds of lists -- applications for those interested to help and teach, and applications for being interested to attend such a program as trainee you will have a clearer picture. Once you get started giving your creative attention to this project, things will move faster than you may now think. And, as I said, more details will come through in the form of inspirations and ideas.

I wish to make it quite clear, my beloved ones, that this is God's will. There are souls in other lands who thirst for this and ways will be found to make it possible to take this training. It may also be the will of God, perhaps quite soon, that another special building will be erected at the Center, in which trainees will live and work. Such a building can then be used for other purposes at the times no training course is run. But it is not quite that far yet for that. This is only a foreshadowing.

1. In the morning a three hour period of Lecture Study. Like in the regular training classes, 2 lectures should be taken, one to be presented by the teacher, the other one by a trainee. The Curriculum Committee should meet and select the most important lecture material to be studied during this training program. Those lectures that cannot be taken up should be used as reading material during and after the program.

2. In the afternoon, one day conceptual session, alternating with a core session the following day. Second part of afternoon a group meeting or class. In this class helpership is actually being taught in theory. Examples are brought up, perhaps from material of the personal sessions. Problems are connected with concepts given in the lectures.

3. Evening group: either regular pathgroup, alternating with meditation and prayer group. In either or both, the method of Daily Review should be taught and practiced. The material thus arising should then be transformed in specific meditation and prayer, connected with the trends or attitudes or problems under discussion.

This is the general outline. Variations can exist, for example, lecture attendance in the City, special events of the path, Saturday night groups. Except for these occasions, the trainees should work intensively on the curriculum they have to master. It is of special importance to combine the personal pathwork of the trainee with his helpership. Each and every problem coming up should be looked at as example and material how to approach a similar problem with a future worker. At the same time, the trainee must be taught the danger of inappropriately projecting his personal experience on their workers. The art of dream interpretation, and similarly, interpretation of actual events and life situations, as if they were dreams, should be paid attention to.

At the end of the program, evaluation of the trainee’s ability to be a helper should be given. This will become apparent in the course of the program, partly by trial mini sessions that are being observed, partly by the input at groups, the understanding of meditation, the seriousness of prayer, the general commitment and giving to the work, the understanding of the concepts in the lectures and -- last but certainly not least -- the sincerity of giving of the self to God's will and task.

As you begin to work out this new plan, more will be given you. The blessings of the heavens are with this undertaking and all those who give to it.

For trainees who cannot possibly take three months consecutively, it is possible to split the program into two 6 weeks periods. You will have to see what time of the year lends itself best for this program. At the beginning, the summer may be best suited, but later, this will change because a sufficient number of trained leaders, teachers and helpers will reside at the Center.