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in-touch.online
Theosophical Order of Service International Newsletter
EN 41 - November 2016
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Dear TS and TOS members and friends,
When asked what the TOS does, our International Secretary has come to reply, "Our activities are many and varied. Ultimately, they focus on the spiritual upliftment of others and ourselves through service to humanity." As was Annie Besant's intent, they put into action the First Object of the Theosophical Society. Some of those activities, performed by groups and individuals, are shared in this issue of TOS intouch.online as they are every quarter. We hope you enjoy reading them and perhaps even glean new ideas for service activities from them. Do you have other ideas to pass on as well?
We want to know what you and your groups are doing. Please send information about your activities, with good quality photos, to: [email protected].
Yours in service,
The TOS intouch.online team:
Nancy Secrest,
International Secretary
Rozi Ulics, Webmaster/Editing
Vicki Jerome, Proofreader
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“You are what you do, not what you say you’ll do.”
– C.G. Jung
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THE MUSEUM OF HELENA PETROVNA BLAVATSKY
AND HER FAMILY
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HPB's birthplace in Dnipro, Ukraine is now The Museum of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and her Family. It is hoped that it will become an international centre.
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TOS Hungary - pictorial report
What splendid work the TOS in Hungary is doing! Without any doubt, the photos of its recent activities bringing joy to underprivileged children and adults, will put a big smile on your face! Enjoy the pictorial report here.
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We thank the TOS's new coordinator, Mrs Adrienne Nagyiday, for this report. She is a founding member of the TOS in Hungary and a pillar of the TS.
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We wish all the best to her predecessor, Csilla Kiss, who handed over the post in April 2015 after four years of dedicated service.
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Sandra Sartori and Stefania Schiavo
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Meet the new Coordinators of the TOS Italy.
Sandra Sartori is 51 years old and has two daughters. She is the head of the Export Sales Department of a goldsmith’s company. Stefania Schiavo is 54 years old and has one daughter. She has a degree in Philosophy and she is a teacher. Sandra and Stefania are sisters-in-law and have been part of the Italian Theosophical Society since 2013. They immediately became active members of the "Gruppo Teosofico Aurora” in Vicenza and of the local TOS. They were appointed responsible for the National TOS in 2016. They have been undertaking voluntary activities by distributing meals in the soup kitchen and canteen for the poor in Vicenza.
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Sandra and Stefania are taking the reins from Rosella Milani Fanzio who retired from the position due to family responsibilities. We give many thanks to Rosella for her fine work and efforts on behalf of the Italian TOS and heartily WELCOME Sandra and Stefania!
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TOS Italy aids Syrian refugees
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The work the TOS Italy has been doing to aid Syrian refugees has been inspiring so much interest and respect across the Theosophical Movement that we asked TOS Italy to tell us about it and received this report:
We have always suffered because of wars, and the Syrian conflict with so many fleeing refugees seemed like a reminder of the responsibilities to which it was impossible not to respond.
We asked ourselves together with the whole theosophical group how we could help, how to achieve that all-embracing brotherhood which is the First Object of the Theosophical Society.
Read more here.
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Ritva Lappi, Coordinator of the TOS in Finland
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We are often asked for fundraising suggestions from our various TOS groups around the world. Here are some ideas from the TOS in Finland.
Read more here.
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What's new on the TOS International website?
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TOS International Secretary visits Eastern Europe
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In August 2016, TOS International Secretary, Nancy Secrest, gave talks and TOS presentations and met with members of the Theosophical Society and the TOS in Eastern Europe. In between presentations Nancy washed windows at the Blavatsky Museum in the Ukraine, visited a salt mine in her grandfather’s village in Poland, met with leaders of the gypsy community with whom the TOS in Hungary works, climbed castle steps and attempted mountain trails in Slovenia.
The visit arose out of an invitation for Nancy to speak at a programme in the Ukraine celebrating the 185th anniversary of HPB’s birth. The programme was held 12-13 August in the home of Blavatsky’s birth, now the Museum of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and her Family, in Dnipro, Ukraine. It featured a number of speakers including Antonio Girardi, General Secretary of the Italian Section and Svitlana Gavrylenko, Organising Secretary of the TS in the Ukraine. Additional talks and meetings were held at the TS/TOS in Kiev the following day.
Not being one to waste an opportunity, Nancy made arrangements to visit with members of the TS/TOS in Hungary and with TS members in Slovenia as well.
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Happy 5th Birthday TOS Youth Group! Inaugural President Malaika Kaput and Vice President Khyati Dubal in a cake cutting ceremony with the group.
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TOS Tanzania’s Youth Group Shines!
There is an old African proverb: “It takes a village to raise a child.” And when that village itself comprises a large number of youngsters, then voila! We see a vibrant TOS Youth Group led by youth president Chandni Mehta and bolstered by the participation and encouragement of long-time elder members of the Theosophical Society (TS) and Theosophical Order of Service (TOS), especially chairperson Sis. Lila Chohan and Assistant General Secretary Bro. Dubal.
Please enjoy this report received from the Tanzanian TOS and centred around their exceedingly vibrant youth group.
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Changing the World through Love
by Uma Bhattacharyya
We all dream of a better life in a better society. However it has become difficult to go through a complete day without becoming disillusioned, disappointed and drained by the selfishness surrounding us. So many people seem to be interested only in their personal gain. They have become rude and arrogant, critical and insensitive. In a nutshell we don’t find peace and harmony in the world. Most of us feel that there is nothing we can do to change this and we attribute the cause of our disappointment to the world. We believe that the world needs correction. From time immemorial, human efforts have been directed towards improving the world but so far these efforts have met with little success. We do not realise that the solution lies in improving not the world but ourselves. Read more here.
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Emergency Relief Needed for Victims of Italian Earthquakes
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A devastating magnitude 6.2 earthquake hit central Italy on 24 August this year in and around the city of Amarice. Several hundred people were killed and many more wounded with more than 225 people being pulled from the flattened rubble that now lies where the town/s used to be. Tremors have continued in this area since then with a magnitude 6.6 quake occurring in nearby Norcia on 30 October with about 200 aftershocks. The TOS in Italy is aiding those affected by the quakes and needs our help.
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Donations to help in the relief efforts are being gratefully received by the Italian TOS. Funds can be wired to:
Società Teosofica Italiana
Banca Popolare di Vicenza Agenzia n. 3 di Vicenza
IBAN CODE: IT79 U057 2811 8160 1657 0143 525
Description: T.O.S. Italy – earthquake project
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“Take a few moments to contemplate the question ‘What gifts do I bring to share with my Earth family?’ Go within and take an emotional scan or inventory of all the qualities that make you who you are. Be sensitive to the feelings of joy and passion that will accompany any authentic gift you have come to share. Today, commit to seeking new ways to open up the gift you are by sharing it with others.”
– Dennis Merritt Jones in
The Art of Being
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