Offline Jedi Community Center

[Moonshadow]

I've been keeping an eye out for houses to purchase in my area in order to create a true offline Jedi Community Center. I'm looking for apartment style houses which would have multiple living quarters for many Jedi individuals or families to live, enough space to create a dojo either in the basement or garage for martial arts training and/or qigong practice, and spare rooms to use as energy healing treatment areas or quiet meditation corners.

The yard will be large enough for a garden, outdoor training, and possibly tents if we happen to host a Gathering. The area will be close to the city, but not in the city and also within 15-30 minutes of a major airport. Additionally, it will be nearby available bus stops and have plenty of space for parking, but will be secluded enough to be at least a little apart from the hustle and bustle of the neighborhood. I would also love to have nearby access to hiking trails and even a stream, but I'll have to see what's available.

Jedi would be able to either work out of the house teaching martial arts or qigong or doing energy work treatments. Or they could drive or bus to nearby employment available in the city or surrounding suburbs.

I have found a few houses already which met most of my criteria but were either unfortunately not for sale, or were not in a good location. I'm not sure how long it'll take me to find the right place, but I plan to keep searching. I am willing to take care of the down payment and purchase the house if I can find some Jedi who are willing to move in and help with the mortgage.

This is something that I've been thinking about for a long time and I'm wondering how many Jedi would seriously be willing to move and join me if I do finally find the right place.

--Moonshadow

[jdmcowan]

Wow! Sounds great. I wish I could offer to move in and help with the mortgage. Not going to happen!

However, I thought I might throw in a note to thing about in case you have not already thought of it. Any sort of dojo space should have high cielings. Weapons work always works better with high cielings. Thus, the garage may be a better space for a dojo than a basement. Though, given enough space for both, a basement dojo that is more of a meditative space might be good too.

Jeremy

[Moonshadow]

Yep, definitely high ceilings. I'm with you on that one. :) All depends on the basement, though. :p

To tell the truth, I'm not sure how many people would be willing to move and change states, but I figured I'd put it out there at least. :)

--Moonshadow

[Inari]

For what it is worth (very little to nothing lol) if I was in the US I'd be seriously considering this Moonshadow, especially since we work in complementary areas. Assuming of course I could get the rest of the family to agree lol.

[Mindas Arran]

I remember trying the same thing 7 years ago. It didn't work out so well. Don't get yourself in a bind, Moon.

[Moonshadow]

Yeah, I know. Don't worry, I won't buy the house unless I know for sure I can afford the mortgage, or have a back up plan in case things fell through. Worse case scenario, I'll simply downgrade and have all of the above, minus the additional apartments. I'm still planning to eventually buy a house that can have a home dojo and energy treatment room(s), either way. It would just be great to have a bunch of Jedi living together along with it too, though. :)

Any chance of you and Emz moving to Baltimore? ;)

--Moonshadow

[Moonshadow]

Inari,

You never know. I might fall in love with NZ when I come to visit and move there instead. :p

--Moonshadow

[Kitsu Tails]

Any chance of you and Emz moving to Baltimore? ;)

My family would kill me. They have been trying for years to get me to move back to Utah. And honestly, if we did move, I'd prefer it to be more west, not...east...I miss the mountains. And being closer to family would be a bonus, for me....and for our on the way kid who, I'm sure, when old enough...would like to know who grandma and grandpa is.

[Moonshadow]

Yeah, I love the mountains too. I'm in the same kind of boat, though. My entire family is in Baltimore.

--Moonshadow

[Inari]

I point out that I moved away from my family and we're doing fine. Lots of phone calls, the kids love getting letters etc. It's different, but not that bad really, though I'll freely admit that we were not that attached to our family.

[Kitsu Tails]

I'm sure you are, and I'm sure we could be as well (In Fact...we are doing just fine without family...I've not seen them in 7 years)

Weather we do just fine or not isn't the point however. The point is that I would "prefer" "like" "Want" and would be "Happy" if I was able to move closer to family. Is it necessary? No, Is it better? Mabey...being able to drop kids off at Grandma and Grandpas would be a 'Pleasure' on my part. Do we have to? Absolutely not. Again, being just fine or not...is not the question. :)

The answer however would be - Choosing between Baltimore and Utah, I would pick Utah.

....and now...we are getting off topic >_<

[Mindas Arran]

Any chance of you and Emz moving to Baltimore?
It would really depend on the job market.

[Moonshadow]

What kinds of jobs would you be looking for? You could always be a personal trainer or teach classes out of the home dojo. :) (I'd also make sure the house was located somewhere that we could get an official business license and would have enough parking for clients.) But if you want a regular 9-5 (don't know if that's am or pm :p), I can look for that too.

Of course, this is all just hypothetical until I actually find the house which could realistically even take years. But I just want to know whether to look on a grander scale for a real Jedi Community, or a smaller scale for just me.

--Moonshadow

[Adana]

I move anywhere at this point. The NE has become so expensive and I am struggling as it is. See how things develop in the private sector. I have been seeing someone who would love to live on a good piece of land, even with other peoople as a community, and do some farming and such. I think what used to be an idea only is slowly shaping into so much more. Heck, I pay rent if necessary to help with the mortgage.

[Mindas Arran]

What kinds of jobs would you be looking for?
Whatever job gives me benefits for my family and $15/hour in pay. I'm doing factory work right now, so just about anything is a step up.

Oh, and I want a day shift job. I'm sick of this night time BS. LoL

[Adana]

There are more opportunities closer to a larger city if you want to stay in this line of work. I hear you about night work. I would fall asleep if I had to do that, but then it;s also a matter of getting used to it too.

It would be cool to find something in a more quiet setting but yet accessible and close enough to work places.

[Inari]

It would be cool to find something in a more quiet setting but yet accessible and close enough to work places.

I hear you there Adana! This is one of the reasons we chose to move to Dunedin. It is possible to find well-set-up smaller cities with employment etc but you have to do your homework.

[Moonshadow]

I'll see what I can find in the area. I know my sister had a day shift job for $13 an hour with benefits and no special degree requirements at the hospital where I work. Hopefully by the time I find a house, the economy would have also improved a bit with more job opportunities.

--Moonshadow

[Moonshadow]

I just found a great house (http://ywgcrealty.com/popup/listing_detail/detail.htm?scope=ALL&id=38386454), great location, great set up. Just a bit out of my price range, though. I might wait and see if they lower the price, though. This is something along the lines of what I'm looking for, although I'd definitely settle for a house without a hot tub and four fire places too. :p I'll also still keeping my eye out for houses with separate apartment style rooms.

--Moonshadow

[Mindas Arran]

Wow... that IS a nice house! lol

[Moonshadow]

Yeah, I really, really like it, but don't need something quite that fancy. It really is a nice house, though. A minute's walk from a small hiking trail. A few miles from some real hiking trails. Just a few miles away from the beltway, but located on a quiet little street away from the main roads. About a 15 minute drive from the city, even less to the airport. Huge fenced in yard. A couple miles from grocery stores. Plenty of bedrooms. Plenty of room for parking. Hard to tell form the description if the cellar would be appropriate for a dojo, so I'd have to see about that. And how can you go wrong with a hot tub and fireplaces? :p

I'll keep my eye out for more houses, and who knows, maybe they'll even drop the price on this one if they have trouble selling. I might even be able to get it if I manage to qualify for a loan. But I'd still need enough people to pay at least a $2,500 mortgage a month, which is a bit steep. Although divided by 4-5 people/families is only $500 to $625 a month per person/family. The main problem is whether or not I can find a way to either sell or rent my other house so I'm not covering two mortgages, and whether or not I can find 4-5 Jedi groups willing to move in.

--Moonshadow

[Inari]

The house certainly looks beautiful (though they can leave off all the red, white and blue bunting lol) but actually I'd say it would not be a practical choice. The kitchen is not well set up for catering on a large scale, or even having more than one or two people working in it, and the dining room is too small.

If I was looking for a single residence to house a few Jedi, I'd look for several bathrooms, good storage, several 'living areas' so people can be alone or in seperate groups, possibly an ex-stable, shed, or sleepout that can be converted to a training area and possibly clinical rooms (if it was to be used as a workplace as well as a living residence). Then too there's the usual things like access, aspect, insulation etc.

[Scratbuster]

when ive finished my qualification i would be well up for living in a jedi community household

[Inari]

What is the qualification you're working on?

[Rivan Elan]

I have been looking for abandoned school buildings. Many schools have closed due to consolidation. This is an option best sought out of or on the edge of town but it provides ample room for modification and often all ready has a room that can be used as a gym.

Rivan Elan, Jedi

[Moonshadow]

How much would a building like that cost?

--Moonshadow

[Kadmiel Ad-Nuah]

I did a look googling and most old school buildings go for around $500,000.00.

[Setanaoko]

That's an idea. There was another one I had recently though. Good heavens, I stole the idea from the Mormons 0.0 (;) lol, actually I have a good friend that is Mormon, we hated each other at first, but because of all our arguments over theology and life, we've gotten a better grasp of who the other is ^^). Why not make building the actual building for a temple, a project for Jedi? It's cheaper than buying a prebuilt building, provides a few jobs for people, and buying repossessed property from the government is fairly simple.

It's an idea. Something to toy around with.

[Scratbuster]

Im an accountant in the UK, dont know how international my qualification will be but it will be at least 6 years till i am fully cert. I also am the son of a jack of all trades, so I can help with the building if you will be building it in 6 years time! :D

[Rivan Elan]

I did a look googling and most old school buildings go for around $500,000.00.

I was looking at a two story school house with a large lot and a gymnasium for 35,000. However, I estimated that it would have taken another 20,000 to 30,000 to make it serviceable again.

This was in a small community of 600. Most of these small communities have lost their schools.

Here in Lincoln there is an abandoned school in the middle of town that I am quite sure would take a half mil to get. But away from the city there is so little chance of selling something like that you can sometimes get a decent deal.

To start with I would think organizing around what are essentially "house churches" or renting space can be a good way to go as you try to build a community around the idea.


Rivan Elan, Jedi

[padwanlearner]

Hi I am new here. I live just outside of baltimore and my house and my neighbors are both for sale. They are both large townhouses. with back yards suited to gardens within 15 minutes of BWI......
I wnat to move back to the country and closer to my family.

Mary Anne

[Moonshadow]

Wow! You live just around the corner from me. I might actually come check it out if you PM me to set up a time. Don't know how likely I'll be to buy, though. There are a bunch of townhouses for sale in my own neighborhood as well, but I'm aiming to get a single family home with a possible apartment style set up instead. In the meantime, if you're interested in dropping by any of the Baltimore Chapter meetings, just let me know. :)

I was also talking to MAdamR the other day who suggested maybe buying an actual apartment building where we could use the rooms for lodging or training areas, and also rent out extra rooms for revenue. Thought it was an interesting idea, although I have no idea how much that would cost.

As for school buildings, another interesting idea, but I wouldn't want to be in a small community unless it was close to a large city. I think being close to a city is important for ease of transportation, availability of jobs, and also access to learning institutions. One of the reasons I'm hesitant to move is that I have access to so many different teachers who can help me expand, learn, and grow along my path.

--Moonshadow

[Rivan Elan]

As for school buildings, another interesting idea, but I wouldn't want to be in a small community unless it was close to a large city. I think being close to a city is important for ease of transportation, availability of jobs, and also access to learning institutions. One of the reasons I'm hesitant to move is that I have access to so many different teachers who can help me expand, learn, and grow along my path.

--Moonshadow

I agree. Some of the communities that have lost schools lost them as they were consolidated with the city.

Being from Nebraska though my idea of a large city is no doubt smaller. I have been exploring sites between Lincoln and Omaha.

[Setanaoko]

lol, well, I don't know about anyone else, but I need the ocean. :D That might be something to think about. Getting a couple of different locations. One where it is more Earth Toned (Nebraska is actually quite a good location for Earth), Water (If there was a place in Maryland it would be nice :D), Fire(....somewhere near an inactive volcano?), Air (somewhere in the mountains?)

[Rivan Elan]

Could we send Jedi internet trolls to the volcano one?

[Adana]

I live in the North East - NH - and we have the mountains, water, air, earth and some old, inactive volcanoes. I am trying to move because it is becoming increasingly too expensive here to live. I have been playing with the idea of moving to PA for the last year

[Inari]

You know, New Zealand has lots of lovely coastline, volcano's (active and inactive), Plenty of earth (and quakes), and lovely mountains and air.

(hint hint)

:p

[Setanaoko]

lol, well, let's see....

New Zealand: Fire
America: Water (Maryland!)
England: Air

Earth can be in Nebraska. :)


As to the internet trolls being sent to the volcano one...only as a sacrifice to the Volcano to appease the gods! :P (I can think of one person that I'd rather not plague Inari with, I like her too much ^^)

[Rivan Elan]

lol, well, let's see....

New Zealand: Fire
America: Water (Maryland!)
England: Air

Earth can be in Nebraska. :)


As to the internet trolls being sent to the volcano one...only as a sacrifice to the Volcano to appease the gods! :P (I can think of one person that I'd rather not plague Inari with, I like her too much ^^)

Hmmm what would we do if it spit them back out?

Dont the Japanese use 5 elements? Air, Fire, Water, Earth and Void?

Also, the nice thing about your selections is that it covers a lot of area. Southeast Asia, Europe and North America.

Be Mindful of the living Force, Be Mindful of the Moment

Rivan Elan, Jedi
www.thejediway.com

[Kitsu Tails]

You know, New Zealand has lots of lovely coastline, volcano's (active and inactive), Plenty of earth (and quakes), and lovely mountains and air.

(hint hint)

:p


I sure wouldn't mind living in New Zealand. My dad went there for his Missionary work, so I got to see some of the things he brought back with him as well as hear the stories...

Wells and the Emerald Isle would be quite lovely as well.

[jdmcowan]

Dont the Japanese use 5 elements? Air, Fire, Water, Earth and Void?

You'll find some variation over time and place in Japan since they have had so many different influences. However, the most common division I have seen in Japan seems to be: Fire, Water, Wood, Metal, Earth.

Jeremy

Addendum: It's always good to do research before posting. But, knowing that I have seen different systems represented in Japan, I thought to do a little more research after posting. The system I have posted appears to be the traditional Chinese system. I have not mixed up my Asians (heaven forbid) - it is also very common in Japan. In fact it is used to name the days of the week (which probably heavily influences its familiarity for Japanese). However, Miyamoto Musashi used the system that Rivan Elan quotes and so it is probably more popular among martial artists and is often considered more Japanese (though it appears to be a popular division of elements throughout the world). J.C.

[Scratbuster]

ok id love to live n new zealand but set... england for air?!?! were the flattest most smog ridden poluted country there is!! england would be better for earth, especially in kent the garden of england, with its rolling hills and masses of woodland... buckinghamshire would also be good, but not for air lol

[Rivan Elan]

LOL, Nebraska could easily enough be air. The wind starts picking up speed in the Rockies and doesn't slow down until it gets over past us and by Chicago. Generally the only trees in Nebraska were growing along rivers or planted originally as wind breaks. We have some man made forests but as I look out my window in my office I see great open fields and a lot of sky for miles and miles.

Some people cannot deal with the open space well while flatlanders sometimes have trouble in woods and mountains.

As for air our biggest industries are farming and insurance so (except for some damage out west to the water table with run off) there is not much in the way of pollution here.

Rivan Elan, Jedi

[Inari]

So, we've moved from 'an' offline community center to several world-wide ones. I'd be more than happy to facilitate a NZ center, but I don't think I can do it by myself, just in the same way that Moonshadow would have trouble doing it by herself (affording it etc). Plus of course can something really be a 'center' if there is only one Jedi running around in it? It's a bit of a lonely image, isn't it.

For me, the key is people's willingness to get together physically to see something like this done. Talk is cheap, and forum postings are even cheaper (unless of course you have a dial up connection :p). From what I've seen over the years, very few people are willing and/or able to move, for a plethora of reasons. That leaves us either stuck in no-mans-land or forced to look around us for like-minded people. Angelus has done a great job of putting a Chicago group together, perhaps the first center will end up in the 'Windy City'.

[Kitsu Tails]

To be honest...but Chicago is the most central location of active offline 'Jedi' in progress right now. Yes i know...there are other locations...But chicago is the closest to most and thus the most logical location for a center...if one was to ever be created...and even then I highly doubt it would be used as a living place for most, save for those without family, or aren't stable in there own homes. Just my personal opinion

[ren]

England would go well with water... There's no lack of coastline and plenty of rain :P

Either way, the type of locations will depend on what you want to do there. If you're looking for (Jedi)work, you want to stick with generally poor cities. For more peaceful retreats, I'd go for the mountains. Which are good for exercise too.

[Setanaoko]

lol. Well, Texas has a good amount of Jedi in it, specifically Austin.

Trust me, we can work around things. Australia is not far from you, Inari, I think, if we got to the point where we could do this, it would pick up speed. I didn't say that we would end up opening up all at once. :) It would be a gradual process. So, we've got it switched about:

New Zealand: Fire
Nebraska: Air
Maryland: Water
England: Earth

It would come down to, who should open up first. The UK has a group....-which...depending on our meeting...may or may not...I'm going to leave that alone until we have our meeting, lol. Anyways, the UK might not be completely alone in this endeavor. Opening up a location in the US and the UK at the same time might not be too far of a stretch. Once people see that it is caught on, we may be able to rally some of our Aussies and other members in New Zealand to open up a location out there not long after, and set up the second location in the states about the same time.

It's all in how you market things and play your cards. I have full faith that it could work to our advantage. The money is definitely an issue, but it's being worked on. This is one of the primary goals of "Force Realists". The first step for FR, is to establish that we are not going to give up on the project, from there, I'm hoping to start it up as a small business and help it grow from there to aide in getting up money for these projects we keep talking about. In time, there may be a possibility of producing other works-books by various members of the community that can aide in such efforts. Of course, the latter one might be a little bit more difficult to strive for.

[Kitsu Tails]

lol. Well, Texas has a good amount of Jedi in it, specifically Austin.

Yes, but non of them come together and meet offline as often as the Chicago chapter does. (As far as I know) That is what I meant....the most concentrated and active 'offline' Jedi who get together like a center would entail is in or around Chicago.

[Setanaoko]

*smiles* Fair enough. ^^

[Master Alex Winward]

I like that idea Moonshadow, an seriously if I lived in yer area, I would actually consider takin part in yer venture in creatin a offline Jedi trainin center

[Rivan Elan]

There have been several, over time, who have noted that the majority of Jedi do not want to leave their area and they may already have families who (if they are not Jedi) would not necessarily be interested.

I could conceivable move from country to country with my job (London, Tokyo, or Berlin for instance) and possibly assist this. But with kids and grandkids my wife may not be very eager about moving. When it comes to it perhaps I could seek temporary duty assignments...

I know of a couple that have dedicated part of their farmland and a doublewide mobile home to a spiritual retreat available for any who want to use it. They maintain the cost so it is free. This is a possibility for something that single Jedi could do if they had the resources to do it. Also building a network of Jedi homes where travelling Jedi could stay could also be a useful beginning.

[Setanaoko]

DISL (Dauphin Island Sea Lab) runs a pretty nifty idea. They have people that work full time, and give workshops year round to colleges to keep up their costs. Over the summers, they run a sort of summer camp for people across the nation to come and participate. The summer camps could be for those of us that don't live in the area to come out and run teach the program. Those who wanted to teach full time, could run a sort of "semester" out to the local colleges in the area. Adults for the summer (perhaps a 4 week deal for high schoolers [that's how long the DISL ran], 1-2 weeks for adults [because some need to get back to work, but 2 weeks might be pushing it, but 1 week isn't bad]).

[Rivan Elan]

A jedi summer camp would be an excellent idea (copy and paste that into Coelescere's discussion if you get a chance.)

I thought it would be cool if at some point the Jedi could sponsor a Montessori school for kids. The Montessori philosophy seems like it would go with the Jedi very well.

[Zaron]

I like the summer camp idea it's easier on the jedi involved plus it is alot easier to explain too parents that we would only be with their kids for a summer then a full blown jedi temple which would be for a while.

[Sentinel]

Myself and a few other Jedi are currently writing an offline curriculum for training Jedi, this is known to a few and will be for use when we start organizing gatherings in the UK. This is not going to happen overnight as everything that is written and organized must be tested and proven first.

[Moonshadow]

Sounds great. Looking forward to the completed product!

--Moonshadow

[Rivan Elan]

I would like to see it as well. Moonshadow has anything new happened on the house front?

Baltimore is not a place I would want to live I am afraid. Although I do have a soft spot for the Shenandoah in Virginia. I have looked at the Fairfax office or the Arlington office as a place to possibly live. Chicago is also not a place I would take my family to. I have visited there enough.

For now Lincoln, NE holds me and, with the economy I feel secure in our 4% unemployment rate that is actually shrinking and not growing. We actually got a write up on the front page of USA Today as the best place in the US to live, start a business, work or raise a family. I was a bit surprised since one does not often expect their home town to be featured as such.

Anyway, I guess stodgy has its advantages in a weak economy.

I am limited to staying where I can continue to make my pay which, at the moment, means I must stay with my employer. While there are sites all over the US transfer can be an issue because there must be an opening. At the moment jobs are tight and no one is moving or leaving. I am a GS-12 and with pay and benefits it is hard to match that anywhere that I have found - at least as things are now.

[Moonshadow]

Nothing new yet. It doesn't seem like many, if any, people are willing to move in general, so I'm just keeping my eyes open for any good housing opportunities if they should pop up. Otherwise, this is more of a long term goal and I'm not really in any rush.

Shenandoah is definitely beautiful but a bit too isolated from the majority of studies I'm currently involved with.

--Moonshadow

[RyuJin]

i think the best location for a temple would be within an hour of a concentration of jedi ie:someplace with 5-10 jedi,start small, then in time spread out...establish a larger temple only after gaining a large enough fellowship...

[Mindas Arran]

i think the best location for a temple would be within an hour of a concentration of jedi ie:someplace with 5-10 jedi,start small, then in time spread out...establish a larger temple only after gaining a large enough fellowship...
That would be Michigan. :D

[jdmcowan]

No way! Chicago had 9 at our last gathering. Though I suppose western Michigan comes close to being "within an hour" and is within a few hours of quite a number of other Jedi.

[Kitsu Tails]

well actually for the longest time Michigan was one of the highest populated locations for Jedi....however I think most of us have gone to the way side and vanished unless they are still about and I've just not seen them....

[RyuJin]

the frozen north...from what i've heard there's quite a few in florida as well, mostly south florida...though i'm hoping to change that by increasing the number in west central florida....

[Mindas Arran]

Yeah, I think Chicago is the highest concentration now... still, that's only a few hours away, so if that's where Moon wanted to go, I'd be okay with that. haha

[Rivan Elan]

It would be great to see Michigan and Chicago leading the way on this. Maybe others could learn from your efforts and we could get several actual sites around the country.

[Jedi Strange]

It is good to see different groups working towards this goal.

May the Force Guide Us

Jedi Strange

[cat27]

I think that is a wonderful idea. Count me in!!!

[Dav Kenso]

I have a question or two. Are there any Jedi who see the advancement of the Jedi Order as their main goal in life? I know there are Jedi all over the world but as for the United States I would think that somewhere in the midwest like Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma or such. It would be a central location for the Jedi in the whole country. Would anyone actually relocate to an unfamilar location? I love the idea of building a Jedi temple somewhere and living as a Jedi group. In my opinion the best idea would be a farm where we could provide for ourselves as much as possible. Just some ideas and questions.

MTFBWY

Dav Kenso

[RyuJin]

this actually been discussed a few times on jedipraxeum-oklahoma.org and at templeofthejediorder.org

the praxeum is located in oklahoma (if no one could tell :D )
and templeofthejediorder is based in texas. both are legal nonprofit religious/educational sites with irs tax exemption status. it's only a matter of time before one of them establishes a physical presence.

[Dav Kenso]

I hope I don't offend anyone but I have had a few discusions with John that runs Temple of the Jedi order and he is about as close to a Jedi as Greedo. I do not believe the Jedi should be an established religion. I think it undermines all that Jedi are suppose to be.


MTFBWY

Dav Kenso

[jdmcowan]

I don't know anything about the Temple of the Jedi Order or any other groups (besides the Chicago Jedi), so I am not necessarily speaking directly about any of them. The problem is that if you want to be tax exempt and receive tax exempt donations you must be charitable (i.e. give away most of the money to a specific cause), educational (i.e. be accredited as an institution that offers a regular set of scheduled courses), or religious (no additional restrictions). I use Jedi as a philosophy that can be applied within any religion and not as a religion in its own right. Thus I cannot support it as an established religion either. Unfortunately that means that the only way for me to give "tax exempt" money to any Jedi would be if it was an accredited educational institution.

Certainly some people feel that it should be a religion. But I can also see why some groups on the fence about the "religion" thing would lean towards it to get the tax benefits.

As for me, I will continue to give my after-tax money to Jedi activities that I feel deserve it.

[RyuJin]

temple of the jedi order is arranged in an unusual way, there are 5 rites, each rite represents a different branch of religion ie: buddhist, abrahamic, pagan, pureland, judeo-christian. the rites allow followers of various religions to incorporate jediism with their other religious views.

as for me i'm in the buddhist rite.

john himself is the first to admit that he isn't jedi, he is a pastor and also carries a law degree. while he is the founder of the temple he actually leaves the majority of its workings to the council as he actually isn't on the council (for legal reasons). i've done considerable research and consultation with a lawyer about establishing a non-profit, and for legal reasons if i did establish one i couldn't be on the board of directors(or council) for it.

for me jediism is a philosophical lifestyle, a collection of ideals to live up to. some would call it a religion...tomatoes, tomahtoes...about, aboot....it's all the same

[Setanaoko]

Coelescere Covenant is a Non-Profit Organization now (Rivan Elan is the founder of CC). We are educational and spiritual.