• Feature Article: Another Step Forward: Laconneau Builds First Noth American Temple
• Book of the Month: The Five Gospels by Robert W. Funk
• Upcoming Retreats: First North American Laconneau Retreat
• Upcoming Pilgrimages: The Magdalene: Mother of France Mar. 27 - Apr. 5, 2007
• Regional News & Events
• Website News
• Laconneau Spotlight
• Contact Laconneau
  

Feature Article

Another Step Forward:
Laconneau Builds First North American Temple

With the beginning of the second month of the New Year comes great excitement about the new work we have planned - as well as projects that will soon be completed. In April of 2006, the idea was born to build our own Laconneau temple at Artemis house in Greenville. Now, in the beginning of 2007, the work on the temple is well under way with the doors and windows installed and the heating and air conditioning to be completed by the end of February. The temple is scheduled to be completed in time for Laconneau’s first retreat in North America (for more information, see http://www.laconneau.org/Retreats.html or the article below), and the annual Spring festival this April (http://www.laconneau.org/Beltaine.html). As the work of Laconneau expands and we begin to reach out to more women across the country, having our own temple and spiritual center is vital. With the completion of the temple comes the ability to become more completely autonomous, and provides us with a direct link to our history. With the temple, we will continue to build and strengthen the foundation of the work we do.

Laconneau will use the temple and Artemis house to hold classes, group retreats, seminars, and festivals as well as the important task of training its own teachers. Members of our community nation wide will be invited to use the temple for their own personal retreats. This is an important step in our work to reach more women.

There is still a great deal of work left to complete before the temple is ready for the April events, and Elaine needs as much help as she can get with this important task. Both the Atlanta and DC circles have made donations to help offset some of the building costs, however further donations of time and money would be immensely appreciated.

To find out what you can do to help or where to send your donations, please contact Greenville@laconneau.org.

February Book of the Month

The Five Gospels: What Did Jesus Really Say?
The Search for the Authentic Words of Jesus
By: Robert W. Funk

From Booklist: "Based on the work of the Jesus Seminar, which brought together a group of biblical scholars, this new translation of and commentary on the five Gospels offers an answer to the perennial question, What did Jesus really say? The group not only surveyed all the surviving ancient texts for words attributed to Jesus, but also examined the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas. Then, juxtaposing the Synoptic Gospels against John and Thomas, the seminar scholars began a long and arduous process to see if they could discover which sayings are close to what Jesus said, which might have originated with Jesus, those that are not his (though the ideas may be), and those that were created by his followers or borrowed from folklore. The story of how the scholars put together this translation is fascinating in its own right, but even more so is the color-coded New Testament itself, bolstered by enlightening commentary that explains why and how category decisions were made. A strong addition to religion collections.

Upcoming Retreats

The First North American Laconneau Retreat!

April 22-April 26 2007
Artemis House
Greenville, North Carolina

For the first time in North America Laconneau is hosting its traditional Spring Retreat in Greenville NC starting in the evening of Sunday April 22nd and ending on the evening of Thursday April 26th. This is a particularly auspicious time as it coincides with the inauguration in Greenville of the first Laconneau temple in North America. You are invited to join us as we celebrate this event with four days of meditation, reflection, teaching and ritual.

The retreat will lead us into the Spring Festival commencing on the evening of Friday the 27th of April at the same location. Due to accommodation and catering limitations the number of participants in the retreat must be limited to twelve women. You are required to have completed the level 1 class series to be eligible to attend. Should you wish to join us, due to limited space we suggest that you contact Artemis House Greenville@laconneau.org as soon as possible to reserve your place and arrange your accommodation. Retreat Fee: $665.00 (Includes lunch but not accommodation. For more information, contact Elaine)

Upcoming Pilgrimages

	Spring Pilgrimage to Southern France March 27 - April 5, 2007 The Magdalene: Mother of France A Pilgrimage to Southern France

This spring, Laconneau leads another pilgrimage to southern France to explore the history of the Tradition and its connections with the Cathars and the legend of Mary Magdalene. Throughout nine days of travel, intensive spiritual work and learning, women not only form a more solid foundation for their own spiritual growth, but they also begin to understand the background and solidity of the culture that forms the bedrock of our Tradition.

We welcome you to join us from March 27th to April 5th on a pilgrimage to France following in the footsteps of Mary Magdalene. Please Note: At time of writing there is only one space left on the trip, and registration closes on February 19th.

For For detailed information including the planned itinerary, please visit: http://www.laconneau.org/travel.html
To reserve your place contact laconneau@laconneau.org

Atlanta, GA: February Events

Saturday, February 3:
Women’s Circle
9:30 p.m. in Marietta, GA

Friday, February 9:
Film Screening and Discussion
7:30 p.m. in Decatur, GA
Film: Uncovered: the War on Iraq, followed by a discussion about the film

Sunday, February 18:
Men and Women’s Circle
9:30 p.m. in Roswell, GA

Atlanta Region Coordinator:Atlanta@laconneau.org

Greenville, NC: February Events

Saturday, February 3:
Women's Circle
6:30 p.m.
Artemis House, Greenville

Sunday February 11:
Meditation 12:00 p.m.
Film screening 2:00 p.m.
Artemis House, Greenville
Film: What the Bleep Do We Know?
Please bring something to share for a late lunch/snack

Thursday, February 15:
Introduction to Laconneau
7:00 p.m.
Artemis House, Greenville

Friday, February 16:
Women's Circle
8:00 p.m.
Artemis House, Greenville

Saturday, February 17:
The Magdalene Seminar
10:00 a.m.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Greenville
To register, or for more information, please contact Elaine.

Sunday February 18:
Level I Beginner's Course
10:00 a.m.
Artemis House, Greenville

Sunday February 25:
Meditation
12:00 p.m.
Artemis house, Greenville

Greenville Region Coordinator:Greenville@laconneau.org

Washington, DC: February Events

Saturday, February 3:
Level IV Advanced Course - 10:00a.m. - 4:00p.m.
Women’s Circle - 6:30p.m.
Falls Church, VA     

Sunday, February 4:
Level I Beginner's Course
10:00a.m.
Falls Church, VA

Monday, February 5  
Level II Intermediate Course
6:30p.m.
Washington, DC   

Tuesday, February 6:
Level II Intermediate Course (continued)
6:30p.m.
Washington, DC

Wednesday, February 7:
Introduction to Laconneau
6:30p.m.
Washington, DC   

Saturday, February16:
Women’s Circle
6:30p.m.
Washington DC   

Sunday, February 25:  
Film Screening: Who Killed The Electric Car?
3:00p.m.
Falls Church, VA

DC Regional Coordinator: dc@laconneau.org

_

Philadelphia, PA: February Events

Wednesday, February 7:
Film Screening
7p.m. at 741 S. 5th Street, Philadelphia
Film: An Inconvenient Truth

Sunday, February 25:
Film Screening and Introduction to Laconneau
3.30p.m. 134 N. 21st street, Philadelphia
Film: Secrets of the Dead: Amazon Warrior Women
The film screening will be followed by the introduction class and a light dinner

Philadelphia Region Coordinator: philadelphia@laconneau.org

Regional News

Atlanta Regional News:
Laconneau Georgia has developed a Book Exchange Program for their growing community to have better access to Laconneau reading materials. It is open for general use to anyone having completed Level I Courses or above.

Greenville Regional News:
The Greenville circle is continuing its work in establishing another women’s circle in Chapel Hill. Because there were too few students for the original Level I class in January, it was cancelled and those students will take part in the Level I class in Greenville this month. The Greenville Circle also plans to host a Magdalene Seminar in Chapel Hill this March, at the Episcopal Church, through which we will be able to reach more women. Currently, any women in the Chapel Hill area who are interested in Laconneau are invited to join Greenville events.

Philadelphia Regional News:
The Philadelphia circle is in its first stages of formation, and our first event in January was a great success. Using that momentum, and the interest of the women in the Philadelphia region, we will continue to build a strong circle.  We will continue to host film screenings, book discussions and classes.

Website News:
The Laconneau calendar will soon be changing faces. We are currently working on a better online solution for Laconneau's calendar needs. Stay tuned as we update this part of the website - you'll see a new solution in the coming weeks.

Web Updates: If you have changes concerning your region's activities, please submit them to philadelphia@laconneau.org by the 15th of the month. Your changes will appear on the website by the 1st of the following month.

Can you share our laconneau.org web address with others? This is a great way to network with people who are interested in Laconneau's activities or who want to keep up with our calendar.

Contact Laconneau

Please contact your region coordinator with questions or updated regional information.

In Atlanta, GA: Atlanta@laconneau.org

In Greenville, NC: Greenville@laconneau.org

In Washington, DC: dc@laconneau.org

In Philadelphia, PA: Philadelphia@laconneau.org
 
Please visit our website, www.laconneau.org, for the complete calendar, further articles, the book of the month, Laconneau’s history and further information.
 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

You are receiving this newsletter because you attended a Laconneau course or seminar. If you would prefer not to receive emails from Laconneau, kindly email Laconneau Admin at admin@laconneau.org to be removed from our mailing list.