The Journey Begins

Square one

Reconciliation in a technologically prolific and tribally fragmented humanity is the hope that I pursue and the reason that I write.

What I have in mind is rolling the mystical möbius argument out in a serial-style fashion. Hopefully some quick (five minute max) reads that will engage your thought and invite you to participate interactively on the site or (even better) with friends in real life.

I invite, welcome, and encourage any concerns/questions/comments. I visualize a space that welcomes and encourages dialog. Please use the share tools on the posts if you are so inclined and would be so kind. Thanks for joining me! I appreciate you!

So, what do I base this ‘mystical möbius’ on?

 

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. —Izaak Walton

Springing from what?

The ground for my mystical möbius argument overall is an integral construction called an ‘orienting generality.’ American philosopher, Ken Wilber, is well known for developing this (controversial) form. This orienting generality is one I came to on a deep reflective dive into the dynamics of decency on a developmental view. I had a brief encounter with a Reconciling Ministries activist from Southwest Texas. Their idea of homophobia as a spiritual warfare matter provided the blast of insight I needed to visualize the frame for my argument.

First, I’m using Clare Graves’ developmental work and I’m applying the work of Carl Jung and Ludwig Feuerbach (regarding ‘shadows’ and ‘projection’) in order to ground this orienting-generality and it’s expression as a developmental stage model. The lens is for identifying unhealthy, pathological expressions of Blue [DQ] (order), Orange [ER] (merit), and Green [FS] (justice) values in the the U.S.A.

I’m also relating to the work of Brené Brown on “Shame” and John Braithwaite’s work in the area of restorative justice. Brown argues there is no such thing as healthy shame – the internal expression of feelings of a diminished self. Braithwaite’s work nuances the distinction between disintegrative and reintegrative shaming.

A Developmental Look At “Shadows”

OK, here is the new orienting generality I have fashioned:

• Blue (mythic-membership, law, ‘order’ values) projects its shadows onto ‘demons.’
• Orange (modern, rationalist, ‘merit’ values) projects its shadows onto ‘models.’
• Green (postmodern, pluralist, ‘justice’ values) projects its shadows onto ‘Utopian schemes.’

First, let me be crystal clear: The Kingdom of God is not a Utopian scheme! Sorry, residual clergy reflex. But it’s not—although, admittedly, Warren Carter does argue the K.o.G. is a benevolent/gracious form of Empire. That said:

“The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult; and left untried.” ~ G.K. Chesterton

However, naïve [(flat) FS] Green’s idea of justice [even if informed by Jesus, et al.] is merely a Utopian scheme–because as yet we have no structural ways to sustain the imposition of Green postmodern values onto global humanity. Utopian schemes from the left or right rapidly become totalitarian, tyrannical, and finally dystopian.

Green [FS] needs help to avoid using any form of tyranny, it’s not doing so well on that.

I don’t think we want to depend on something like what is known as a ‘Rapture’ phenomenon to supernaturally realign everyone’s value systems to conform to Green’s ‘justice’ values. Real justice demands that viable social structures that account for the anthropology that we have (not the one we wish we had) to be in place. If the structures to sustain justice are not already in place, then, minimally, structures need to be readily available in the form of ideas and resources that are practical and viable. 

So, if we simply declare that “Justice/K.o.G.” is here right now without the structures or even any practical ideas for how to create structures that can incarnate it, then it’s a Utopian scheme.

To treat the K.o.G. (or even secular justice) as such is to do it, and persons in it’s path, great violence and harm. It is not new. [cf. Matthew  11.12; Luke 16.16; John 6.15]

Update [Sept.1, 2021]

My thinking has changed regarding developmental stage theory. Except with respect to the formation of children, I’ve now abandoned the notion of stages in my approach. All the other insights remain, sans stages. To express this here, I’ve rectified the graphics below to visually reflect my new approach.

Update [Sept.1, 2018]

This blog site is endeavoring to look at reality through a very select framing. This serial blog has been my way of organizing and expressing my thoughts about ‘VALUES‘ from a Gravesian developmental standpoint. What I am trying to get at in these faint attempts to write here are the animating energies; that is, what it is that animates human beings to think, speak, and act in the ways that we do—and so I’m taking ‘values’ in a Whiteheadian, Process sense. Values constellations, or “vMEMEs” hold the keys to unlocking the energies that drive us. The hope is that over time, regular readers will pick up a basic knowledge of the double helix of human development as purported by Clare Graves’ research and the applied Spiral Dynamics [SD] model. While it can sound a bit like it at first, the SD color coding is not word salad. Hopefully, this developmental language allows discussion of very hot topics by avoiding the traps and trip wires of common buzz words and talking points so often used to package our conflicted issues.

“Here goes, and bear with me if at first I seem irrelevant.” ~ Ernest Everhard

Your thoughts?

I never know what I’ve said till I hear the response. What did you hear me say?

 

 

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Recommendations

Books:

“Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box” by the Arbinger Institute

“Anatomy of Peace” by the Arbinger Institute

“dare to lead” by Brene Brown

“Spiral Dynamics” by Donald Edward Beck and Christopher C. Cowan

‘Möbius/Graves Dynamics’ series:

Link: Perennial Leading Edge Failure #amysticalmöbius for July 1, 2018

Link: Empathy Window Opens #amysticalmöbius for July 8, 2018

Link: Being “Naïve” Green (et al.) #amysticalmöbius for July 15, 2018

Link: Flatland #amysticalmöbius for July 22, 2018

Link: There is no Truth!  #amysticalmöbius for July 29, 2018

Link: Shadows and self awareness  #amysticalmöbius for August 5, 2018

Link: Who’s higher than whom?  #amysticalmöbius for August 12, 2018

Link: Like a rainbow  #amysticalmöbius for August 19, 2018

Link: Greed and naïve Orange [ER]  #amysticalmöbius for August 26, 2018

Link: Seeing above and below  #amysticalmöbius for September 2, 2018

Link: Visibility #amysticalmöbius for September 9, 2018

Link: Humility: prudent and helpful #amysticalmöbius for September 16, 2018

Link: A double helix  #amysticalmöbius for September 23, 2018

Link: Dystopian fulfillment? #amysticalmöbius for September 30, 2018

Link: a (values/politics) mashup #amysticalmöbius for October 7, 2018

Link: Following Jesus is political #amysticalmöbius for October 14, 2018

Link: Facts are facts, right?  #amysticalmöbius for October 21, 2018

Link: Beauty and protest #amysticalmöbius for October 28, 2018

Link: He took a knee #amysticalmöbius for November 4, 2018

Link: Will Blue hold? #amysticalmöbius for November 11, 2018

Link: Who’s Blue? Whose Blue? #amysticalmöbius for November 18, 2018

Link: Change seems impossible? #amysticalmöbius for November 25, 2018

Link: Greeting change gladly? #amysticalmöbius for December 2, 2018

Link: Spiral synergy? #amysticalmöbius for December 9, 2018

Link: Solutions || Dissonance #amysticalmöbius for December 16, 2018

Link: Change Condition 4: INSIGHT #amysticalmöbius for December 23, 2018

Link: Year End #amysticalmöbius for December 30, 2018

Link: Turn the page #amysticalmöbius for January 6, 2019

Link: Mystical = Experiential #amysticalmöbius for January 13, 2019

Link: Being stuck #amysticalmöbius for January 20, 2019

Link: Do no harm #amysticalmöbius for January 27, 2019

Link: Do no harm [continued] #amysticalmöbius for February 3, 2019

Link: Do no harm [part three] #amysticalmöbius for February 10, 2019

…and so forth…