First DLF Meeting Minutes (June 2001)
DLF Meeting Minutes (June 2001)
What follows are excerpts from the minutes of the first meeting of the Divine Love Fellowship, held on June 21-25, 2001 in Santa Cruz, California in conjunction with the 16th Annual Business Meeting of the Foundation Church of Divine Truth.
Excerpt from the FCDT Business Meeting Minutes:
Some [people] would like to have an association or council of the churches who are affiliated with one another by their common objective of furthering the teachings of the Padgett messages, but who are not answerable to a "mother" church. Some who prefer not to join the FCDT may be willing and desirous to join such a spiritual "umbrella" organization.
There will actually be two levels of "umbrella organization" in the Divine Love movement: The highest level is the invisible "Church in the Heart," to which all souls who pray for and receive the Divine Love belong. Members of this “invisible church” might belong to any earthly religion or philosophical movement.
The second level will be composed of people and organizations who, through the workings of the law of attraction, share the common desire of teaching and spreading the message of Divine Love as put forth in the Padgett messages. For the sake of discussion, we name this organization the Divine Love Fellowship, or DLF (this name was later agreed to in the general meeting by members present). Dave suggests that we could invite into this organization people who have shown through their participation that they are already within the spirit of the DLF.
The DLF may not need to legally incorporate as it will not initially receive financial or material donations, though in time this may change. We would establish tenets or bylaws to define membership and determine a code of conduct to keep the focus on common courtesy and respect for one another.
Question: How do we maintain the continuity of the Padgett messages? Since the original Padgett messages are in public domain, we essentially trust that each affiliate of the DLF would be charged with this responsibility. Jocelyn Harleston of the FCNB is a staunch supporter of maintaining the "original" messages.
End of excerpt
From the general meeting:
David Lampron opens meeting with a prayer, and expresses our fortune to have been blessed with the opportunity to share our experiences with one another. Michael instructs the spirits, asking those who are not interested in learning about the Divine Love to leave the meeting.
Informal discussion ensues about why the church directors don’t go directly to the angels for guidance. Why would we choose to discuss among ourselves what the best course of action should be when disagreement can be the result? It is explained that each one of us needs to be personally involved in developing our outreaches. By doing our best and giving our love to every situation, we are able to receive the best guidance from Celestial angels. They "suggest" to us how we may proceed, respecting that our free will and loving choices are the only means by which we can make solutions work. Dave Kenney suggests that spiritual progression is a long-term process; one needs to have a prolonged desire for truth.
The DLF needs a mission statement. What is its purpose? To further the work started by Jesus: pray for the Divine Love, manifest It, and build the Kingdom of Love. Brevity is recommended - the actual document may be hashed out over the coming months. Update: An abbreviated Mission Statement appears on the home page of the DLF website (http://dlfonline.net)
Does the DLF need a body of a few people for decision making? What kind of decisions would be made by this global organization? DLF may vote on the location of annual meeting and who will host it; it may vote on who to invite to join DLF as a member and, if a member "crosses the line," how to formally dissociate the DLF from that member. (Update: the DLF Workers Committee was formed for the purpose of coordinating the actual work involved in DLF projects. A consensus-based decision making process was implemented).
Summary: The DLF will eventually need a mission statement, bylaws and tenets. At present, it will not be incorporated and will not have the means to accept general donations. Money raised internally will be for specific purposes such as paying for annual conference costs (food, lodging, etc.).
The DLF will need room to grow; as it becomes bigger it will be difficult to make rules to suit the “individualistic” nature of its members. What we have in common at present is the desire to uphold the Padgett messages as Jesus’ true teachings. Among its core values can be the basic principles of the Golden Rule, i.e. respecting the sanctity of one another’s free will, etc.
It is suggested that the DLF have a website (Mark Kramer offers space on his server). The DLF mission statement and tenets may be posted at the site, as well as a list of DLF members with links to their individual websites. The site may also provide a forum for members to share their developments. Update: Mark Kramer’s server now hosts the initial DLF website: http://dlfonline.net, along with the DLF Web board and newsgroup.
DLF members recognize the larger umbrella of the “Church in the Heart,” to which all souls who pray for and receive the Divine Love belong. The DLF “umbrella,” however, is more focused in its purpose: supporting DLF members in their work of living and spreading the truth of the Divine Love. We therefore will not open membership in the DLF to those whose teachings or beliefs are not in alignment with the Divine Love message as received by Padgett (such teachings as reincarnation, worshiping Jesus as God, etc.). It is suggested that the DLF be an association of outreaches vs. individuals to keep it more focused.
The question is asked how we can evaluate the truthfulness of another’s motives and the sincerity of their desire to progress spiritually. The DLF will need to clearly define its purpose through its mission statement and tenets so that the potential member may assess whether their outreach and lifestyle fit the purpose of DLF.
Some suggested core values are:
- pray for and receive the Gift of
Divine Love
- empower others to receive Divine Love by teaching the Good News of Its
availability
- prolonged desire for truth
-loving and honest communication (expressing one’s feelings, good
conflict resolution techniques)
-respect for free will (humility)
-desire to maintain harmony, becoming examples of the Christ Love.
Dave Kenney suggests using principles similar to what Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) uses to structure their groups. He reads from the AA 12-step book the founding principles of AA. It is felt that these principles provide a good starting point for discussion.
End of general meeting.
The DLF Decision-making Process
As our expressed goal and intent, we will strive for unanimity amongst all those discussing a particular decision. In the course of the discussion, a polling thread will be established where each participant's preference can be logged, and possibly modified as the discussion progresses.
The polling period will continue for a minimum of one week, or until all agree that the discussion is complete. At such time, if consensus has not been reached, the question will be decided by a simple majority vote, using the following guidelines:
1) 'Agree' or 'yes' to equals 1 vote for the issue being discussed (valid vote)
2) 'Abstain' equals nothing, excluded from count (Actually votes to abstain; not a valid vote)
3) 'No' equals 1 vote against the issue being discussed (valid vote)
4) No Vote equals nothing. (Does not respond within given period, and is excluded from count. Not a valid vote)
5) For a decision to carry, a majority (51%) of active votes is required.
6) In the case of multiple option votes: if one idea does not receive a simple majority, then a re-vote will be held for the two leading ideas. Generally a week will be allowed for each new vote.
7) Whenever a polling thread is established, the DLFWC will be notified with an e-mail titled: "DLFWC Discussion and Poll". It is requested that only those on the leadership committee who have familiarized themselves with the topic's discussion will participate in the polling/voting.
8) A proposal may be progressively modified, meaning a point adjusted, worded better, or a point added. A re-vote may then be called, with an e-mail notification being sent out naming the topic plus the words: "Please re-vote". Each re-vote will continue for a minimum of one week, or until all agree that discussion is complete. If a modification is made for which a re-vote is not called, at least 3 more days must elapse before concluding the polling/voting period.
9) If at any time a member of the DLFWC feels that the result of this decision-making process does not accurately reflect the current majority view, a new poll/vote may be called.