Anchorage experience - Fifth Anchor ABC
Friday, September 19, 2008
Best Magic The Gathering Trample Cards
At the mercy dell'Acheronte media 
For those who read this blog for the first time I say that these "
anchors" are scattered notes and ideas developed over time based on personal experience. Nothing more than that.
In these pieces speak of a phenomenon of which are witnessed several times in recent years and has given me many questions and thoughts. These questions and would now like to share these thoughts with anyone interested.
I refer to the phenomenon that always occurs in the history of a religious group of any kind is: that crisis and the subsequent abandonment of a number of members. Which ever way you experience it is a very difficult time for the group because it is his own survival. Suffering from this situation is not only the exiles, but also those who remain in the group, though for entirely different reasons.
It is not the subject of my reflection a specific case nor intend to make judgments of some kind: My general thought is the phenomenon that interests me in this context is the only way in which members and former members behave in the face of crisis.
If the members who leave the group are limited in number, the crisis usually falls in a short time and also becomes an opportunity for verification and correction of defects and dynamic counter-productive. This happens fairly open groups where the leadership is exercised in a balanced manner and actions of leaders are designed to get the best for the group and individual. In these cases the criticisms are addressed within of the group and attempt to reach a compromise that preserves at least in part the different positions.
Unfortunately, in most cases the phenomenon does not occur in this way and not have these outcomes. I was able to personally observe the temporal evolution or involution of some religious groups and I think I can show (as usual risk of oversimplifying) that I think two factors are decisive on the type of crisis and its outcome:
1) personality characteristics and motivations of the members (both critics and satisfied)
2) the role of the social system in which the group operates in crisis
---------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- -------------
1) The personality characteristics and motivations of members critical
First case: When members critical individuals are essentially made with affective-emotional situations and their peaceful existence is not lived according to the group in which they invest all their psychological resources, their criticism is aimed at the good of the group and, when they realize that the purpose the latter no longer correspond to their expectations, I give up. A self-abandonment which leads certainly suffering, disappointment and so on., But these feelings are experienced with balance and, over time, dissolve into new experiences and new ways of aggregation.
Second case: When members critics are people for whom the group is of such importance that act as "support" in the absence of other groups or contact persons, then the emotional charge linked to membership means that the individual in the group are only the satisfaction of his emotional needs and emotional. In this case, when in which the group no longer performs this function is not acting as a support and the leader is no longer responding to expectations, the criticality is characterized by destructive aspects that may occur in several ways. ------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------------------- ---------------------
2) The role of the social system in which the group operates in crisis
The role of the social system in which the group acts is of great importance. In the case of the "seven", for example, it is perceived by minority groups outside the social system as "different" and "dangerous" and therefore tend to provoke from those who fear foreign and / or aversion. Who gives a group called the "cult" knows that there is more effective than this to raise the alarm and warn those involved in security, welfare and protect the weak. The phenomenon is complementary to
demonization of the group is always that of ' elevation of those who are credited with having discovered the sect and warned of the danger. While the group plunges into the ocean of his wickedness, who has exposed is raised to the highest peaks of morality, self-sacrifice, courage and so on.
This effect is strengthened by the amplification of the phenomenon brought about by the press whose role is simply to "hype" and "eco" that expands in all directions until you reach the largest possible number of people. Once the sect ferried through the 'media Acheron the aim has been achieved, and the hell is enriched by stories desperate souls (let hope you ch' revenue ). I witnessed this phenomenon several times, however, shows a constant: the more it is amplified in the growing phase much more suddenly and silently disappears when the "case" becomes "old" and cease to arouse interest (Audience).
Over time (sometimes months, sometimes years) the dichotomy between "bad" and "good" dissolves slowly and tends to zero in parallel with the disappearance of the news from the headlines of newspapers.
The role of the social system in which the group acts is important because it may affect the way the exiles live their abandonment of the group. This happens when the exiles are addressed to individuals and groups who offer their help. The way that lends aid is very important because the person out of a group is certainly ailing and disoriented. It is in a time of great uncertainty as it has lost a reference affective rely on. Its main motivation is to be understood, supported and guided, to be recommended to overcome his personal crisis.
The people in this situation you confide very easily with those who present themselves as an effective support and rely completely as one who is drowning and grabs the first floating object that passes nearby. That object could be a tree trunk or a snake, but when there is a risk of drowning, there is neither time nor a way to make sure. As it seems the person clings to a tree trunk.
There are several witnesses of people and getting out of a sect, have turned to for help and support groups. Their stories are of course very different from each other. In many cases, people who lend themselves to give aid to the group are well-intentioned aid plays a positive role of emotional reassurance, allows the individual to relive, recount and calmly reflect on what happened. Contact with these people (who often have had a similar experience) proves fruitful and accompanies the person to gradually emerge from its state of confusion and suffering, recovering other relationships and other opportunities for achievement. These people over time that can discriminate good that they have received from the group and what we reject, and that in this recall as "abuse" conditioning "and so on. Often also undertake to notify their former friends and trying to communicate (where possible) their concerns, the their crisis, to ensure that they can be aware of what they have understood. This action can sometimes result in the defection of other members, but not always.
In other cases, people are aid organizations in which the emphasis is placed on the importance of take action to limit or eliminate the hazard the group to which people are in difficulty outputs. If, for example, relatives of people affiliated to an organization asking for help because they believe that their loved one has fallen into the trap of a dangerous cult, they understand the goal is to obtain the release of the person from the group and the recovery of the bonds family. The difficulty of achieving this may push those who place themselves as support group to proceed in other ways. If people "brainwashed" do not leave the sect, despite several attempts at persuasion, you can get the result in a seemingly more effective trying to hit and destroy the sect through an action that starts from the outside and try to solve the problem at its root. If the sect is wiped out, the problem is resolved.
In these cases, the escapees are comforted and re-socialization so that you finally convinced that they have been brainwashed and engage in an action considered as noble because they aimed to destroy a "cancer" affecting society and not only the individual and his family.
From what I could observe, at this point, there are two possible outcomes:
First results: the drama is and remains personal. The person denies the important choices made in the group reflecting their directives-life philosophy-values \u200b\u200b- teaching (with the resulting transformation relations between spouses, return to conditions prior to entry into the group, etc.).. The tragedy is personal and the effects occurring in the most personal and intimate relationship.
According outcome: the person you turn to fight the sect. In this case goes beyond the rejection of what was experienced in the group and its previous choices and choose to actively engage in individual or group to combat a phenomenon that is considered dangerous for the individual and society.
Once the group is in charge of the sect openly fight in a short time it has been enhanced with new characters alongside the first leaked that report abuse of various kinds, when the scandal broke, other former members enter the scene initially remained silent. They add flavors of other abuses to which they have witnessed when they were in the group and they do not have personal experience but they were spectators. Do not report such abuse, but they join to others because motivated by a dissatisfaction and concerns that were present for some time, and, in time of crisis, can be voiced with greater force and, providentially for them, great media coverage.
And now let us ask what happens in the cult and what is the success that the actions of former members and critics organizations' support and help "get in an attempt to break up the group and cause the greatest possible number of defections.
Again, the modes are very different and you can not describe all the nuances of behavior. So I try once again to distinguish two major trends that I think are representative of the complexity of the phenomenon:
1) Reaction of satisfied members that remain such. These are the members of the accused that, despite the negative testimony of former members of harsh, do not deny anything about the previous experience that continue to share values, meaning and / or doctrine. In these cases the decisions of life carried out in the group are consolidated and enhanced because the external action is perceived (rightly or wrongly) as persecution that
confirms the goodness of the experience. In these subjects the various ways in which the persecution of former friends manifests are reinterpreted in light of the teaching-philosophy-group values \u200b\u200bthat are further recognized as valid and corresponds to the truth. The active action against the sect in these cases will get exactly the opposite effect to that desired. It would be interesting to examine the personality characteristics and personal history of these members who remain, despite everything, "loyal" to their group and how they they reinterpreted and resist the unpleasant feeling of being branded as "brainwashed and sectarian." 2) reactions of the members outside the "war" being . It is configured through feelings of loss and uncertainty. It occurs in rethinking what was experienced in the group by comparing the allegations and noting that the actual critical elements, although there are, however, does not affect the essential goodness of the experience. These people (the majority) remain outside of any debate or confrontation, and they tend to literally "disappear" to avoid being dragged into a conflict between opposing parties too painful for them because the actors of the conflict are often people known and well esteemed and loved.
------------------------------------------- --------------------------------- Let us ask: what happens to
group leaders accused ?
The reaction of the charismatic leader may be very different and depends on many factors. When it comes to a bad faith individual who intentionally harms his victims in order to exercise power over them and also get economic benefits of the reaction may be to escape as happened in a case in point here in Italy. The thing that could raise some concern is that, faced with such a blatant show of bad faith, the followers of these people continue to defend and to attribute supernatural powers. In this case the charges, trial, sentencing were not enough to destroy the faith of his loyalists.
When a leader is personally convinced of its powers and the highest goal of the group he founded it follows all the ups and downs and do everything possible because the group will survive even in the face of more intense action outside world. In extreme cases, when the leader is highly disturbed and mentally unbalanced, may, as a last act of authority, to decide on self-destruction and his loyal followers ready to obey to the end. Cases of murder collective suicide are well known and several times I wrote it myself.
When the leader is considered innocent in the face of accusations tries to defend himself with the tools that supply it with justice and this is always supported by the part of followers who remained faithful .
In Italy there is a case in which the leader has been tried and found guilty. It 'been in prison and had to compensate a lot of money to people who accused him. Despite this, both he and his followers (who helped raise the necessary amount) have always been confident of his innocence and they attributed the outcome of the trial of false testimony and subsequent miscarriage of justice. The negative outcome of the process was interpreted as "an injustice allowed by the Lord as a proof of faith." Years later, the group founded by this person grows and spreads in different countries around the world. The prestige of the leader and his followers' trust in him is not in the least cracked.
Similar cases have occurred in the internationally known religious movements whose leaders came under process as Ikeda (Soka Gakkai), Moon (Unification Church) and so on. The movements led by such people still exist and, after the inevitable changes, always enjoy "good health".
How to explain this phenomenon? Why
action to destroy a leader and his group do not always get results?
Me I am often asked, and I can not say that they have resolved a question so difficult. However I would try to think a moment about what makes a person "charismatic"
.
I think the answer to two questions I made both in the characteristics of charisma. For charisma in this context mean that set of characteristics inherent in a person who makes very lovable, worthy of consideration, respect and even reverence by those who share its values, philosophy or doctrine. I believe that the "charisma" of a person, as you do all you can not undo or destroy. What you can do is hit hard to discourage and weaken, undermine the positive image in all ways.
None, however, as we have seen, can be assured that this action will produce the desired effect. I have observed that certain leaders Charismatics in the attack of the outside world begin to experience the transforming role: no longer feel the leaders, but victims. They do not pretend: they feel truly victims in this way and are perceived by their followers remained faithful. Sometimes there is an inner process of self-criticism that brings the leader to take on imaginary crimes and real crimes, in an attempt to atone for "the sins of everyone, even those were not his.
Oppressed from the aggressive from the outside and suffering caused to many members involved in the "war" tend to take on full responsibility and see the humiliation to which they are subjected as a means of redemption. When this happens, except for the few who attack them and accuse them, the authority and the authority of these leaders is not tarnished in any way. If it were possible, even if only for a short time, re-group, this authority, which derives from charisma, is reflected as before the crisis and perhaps more than before.
I think I can say that
the charismatic leader acts as a catalyst powerful emotions, deep feelings and experiences that seem to always accessible and available to re-create the cohesion of the group while it is (physically) dispersed. The experiences shared in the experiential group as they are still internalized at deep levels.
The power of the charism is expressed at its maximum when the leader dies because he continues to live for his followers in his words, his gestures and his teachings. This explains the survival of groups for decades, even after the demise (temporary or definitive) of the leader. Over time, the group undergoes changes which are inevitable because it imposes the death of the leader, but the "spirit" remains and the charisma continues to act even if "transformed."
The reappearance of the leader (or a replacement for his influential) is sufficient to restore the system that comes together like a puzzle whose pieces each to regulate themselves in order to recover place.
These observations refer to different cases: when the leader was jailed after being found guilty when he was accused and later acquitted of the worst crimes, when his image was damaged by the 'help of the media and even when he died. The charisma continues to live after him, internalized, revived and reinterpreted by those who follow the steps.
I would not conclude this plug, with a note of pessimism, but with a word of healthy realism. I that would be appropriate to address the problems with the humility of those who can recognize the complexity and seeks to prevent its occurrence, the only "weapon" very effective and especially those with no contraindications to any medications "aggressive" are: to kill a virus wipes out the entire immune system of an individual.
E 'wise? But most of all: it is useful to achieve the aim, that is healing?
I leave it to anyone looking for the answer. I think I've found.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Published by Edizioni San Paolo 's ABC Raffaella Di Marzio and Introvigne
Data Bibliographic
Publication date - September 2008 Edizioni San Paolo Cinisello Balsamo (MI) 2008, first ed. 64 pages - format 15x21
ISBN 9788821563171
Description
http://www.paolinitalia.it/libri/catalogo.asp?p=9&isbn=9788821563171
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