Building Communities Part III: Paths to Leadership

So far, we have covered ways to bring in quality members and to then motivate them to remain by avoiding common local body problems while promoting a healthy community using the principles of group cohesion. Of those who do remain, it is possible that a majority of them will never reach beyond III°. After all, it is perfectly acceptable to remain a Minerval forever. It must be acknowledged that there is no shame in this, and that Minervals are equally as welcome in temple as any other degree. On a case by case basis, no one person should take any initiation that they do not so will, and they should be honored for being an active, valuable member, no matter their degree.

That being said, it is, in general, in the best interest of the community to promote advancement. The reasons for this should be obvious. Increasing the competence of the local body widens the scope of potential accomplishment. The burden of responsibility can be spread out more, which increases efficacy while preventing burnout. There will be a pool of potential replacements when current leaders are ready to retire or move on. And on a larger scale, advancement means producing more sophisticated individuals who will be more capable of doing their Will, both in temple and in their own everyday lives, thereby promulgating the Law of Thelema.

With these benefits in mind, let's turn to our final chapter in Community Building: The Paths to Leadership.

Advancement

Before we continue, we must define what advancement within O.T.O. really means. Advancement in our case has two components: degree-taking and competence-building. It is important to acknowledge that degree-taking does not confirm competence, although many of us tend to see higher-degrees as an implication of it. Taking an initiation, by itself, only confirms three things: 1) that the member has been exposed to the secrets of that degree, 2) that the member does have access to the rights that degree confers, assuming that the individual is in good standing, and 3) the member has taken the oaths of that degree. By itself, having gone through a degree ceremony does NOT confirm that the individual remembers any given part of it, that the instrumental oaths have been fulfilled (except in one case), that any study has been conducted on the symbolism or information within the ceremony, and (perhaps most importantly) that the individual is ready to lead others.

The point being made here is that, although the lessons taught within our degree ceremonies are powerful and valuable, it is a mistake to assume that any given individual will integrate and manifest them. This is why every local body should provide as many other opportunities as possible for members to get leadership training and to earn trust. But, what does this look like? What are the important elements? Let's discuss these issues...

The Nature of Competence

One of the most important needs of human psychology is the need to feel competent (which is often referred to as agency or efficacy). To a large degree, our emotional well-being is founded on our beliefs of personal competence, and that we have an ability to affect things and control our environment; that we are good at what we do. This is one reason why group cohesion is so strongly dependent (in part) on having a community of people who believe that they are competent. Leadership, in this regard, has two necessary components: the leaders must be, in fact, competent, and they must assist others in becoming competent as well.

As we have mentioned, degree-taking, while an important and intrinsic activity of O.T.O., is by itself not indicative of most forms of competence. Before we go on, we must define some important areas of competence within a local MoE body. The top community leaders (both formal and informal) in every local body should, ideally, be reasonably competent in all these areas:

Degree Competence

• Full knowledge of taken oaths
• Ability to perform the signs of recognition
• Familiarity with relevant symbolism
• Ability to participate as an attendee
• Ideally, ability to perform as an officer

Magical Competence

• Ability to perform basic A.A. rituals (LBRP, Star Ruby, etc.)
• Ability to perform basic components of ritual (vibration, assumption of godforms, etc.)
• Study of the general theory and history of magick
• Familiarity with the Qabalah and magical symbolism
• Ideally will become more expert in one or more branches of magick

O.T.O. Competence

• Familiarity with O.T.O. history
• Knowledge of organizational structure
• Familiarity with foundational documents
• Knowledge of Order policies
• Familiarity with local body operations (both written and unwritten)
• Ideally will become more expert in one or more areas of LB operations

EGC Competence

• Study of Liber XV, including symbolism and ecclesiastical/magical theory
• Ability to participate as attendee
• Familiarity with all EGC rites
• Ideally, ability to perform as an officer in Liber XV
• Ideally, ability to administer all EGC rites

Thelemic Competence

• Personal study of Liber Legis and the Thelemic canon
• Continuing efforts to learn and manifest True Will
• Familiarity with the history of the Prophet
• Familiarity with Crowley's interpretations of AL
• Development of personal understanding of a Thelemic ethical system
• Familiarity with the antecedents of Thelema
• Ideally, a deeper study of Thelema within the context of world religions, ethics, and history

Communal Competence

• Development and manifestation of fraternal character traits
• Understanding of explicit and implicit rules and social norms
• Creative skills
• Conflict management
• Ability to effectively manage others and run group projects
• Communication skills
• Problem solving
• Ability to develop goals and objectives that will rally others

By no means does this exhaust all the things an ideal local body leader needs to master. Although it is indeed the responsibility of the individual to put in the effort to acquire all this knowledge, it is the responsibility of the leadership to provide 1) access to knowledge, 2) opportunities to develop skills, and 3) an environment that rewards competence.

Knowledge, Skills, and Character

When considering these duties to the community, it is important to consider the three branches of competence: knowledge, skills, and character. All three are vital to the health of the community, and every leader needs to have them in balance. While their definitions might be obvious, let's go ahead and provide some just so we're all on the same page.

Knowledge

This is the mental store of verifiable data. In terms of practical leadership, it should not be confused with the mystical aspect of gnosis. Knowledge derived from gnosis is of immense spiritual benefit to the individual, but it is a potentially catastrophic mistake to generalize it beyond the self. All leadership training within O.T.O. must take special precautions against confusing the two, helping members to understand the difference between purely subjective and objective knowledge. Although the line between these two is not always clear, a wise leader will not assume that her opinion has the weight of established fact.

Of the three, knowledge is the easiest to develop in other members, and this is perhaps why it is the greatest factor today in determining would-be leaders within many O.T.O. communities. Esoteric knowledge of things like magick theory, Crowley trivia, historical tidbits, and other rare minutia is highly valued, both socially and instrumentally, in the O.T.O. This is not, in itself, a bad thing; it is indeed valuable to have leaders who are highly knowledgeable. However, knowledge alone in not adequate for the development of well-rounded leaders, and attention must be paid to the other two components of competence.

Skills

This is the ability to effectively perform tasks, and is the second hardest aspect of competence to transmit to members. Things that fall in this category are proficiency in magick technique, ability to compose original rituals, ability to perform well in the presence of a group, administrative skills, creative talent (writing, drawing, acting, singing, music, etc.), technical know-how (e.g. creating a website or printing a book), construction ability, political acumen, and social skills.

For effective leadership, it is not necessary to have skills in every area. However, the more skills a person has, the more effective a leader they will be. In the O.T.O., a great deal of respect is especially given to skills within two categories: ritual and organization. Being an Order where ritual is an intrinsic aspect of its operations, it is naturally important to have excellent ritual proficiency. At the same time, when a voluntary organization is filled with headstrong independent members, the ability to organize events and maintain some kind of order is especially valuable. There is, however, one other vital skill that leaders need to have: the ability to cohere a group together tightly and to inspire them to excel (see Part II: Member Retention for a full discussion of some techniques for this).

Character

Character is the underlying matrix of beliefs and attitudes that leads to consistent, characteristic behavior. Character is not the same as personality, which is more along the lines of temperament, level of introversion, inclinations, and other similar traits that tend to be relatively stable over the lifetime, and very difficult to change substantially. Character is stable, too, but is far more malleable.

Character is something that is not only the hardest of the three competencies to transmit, but it is the aspect with the least amount of open effort put forth to promote. Perhaps this is because we are Thelemites, and believe that such things are the responsibility of the individual while also believing it is not the business of anyone else to meddle with. In the outside world, this is generally true. However, the O.T.O. is a fraternity, designed to generate a social environment that will produce Thelemic communities. Since it is a voluntary organization, it is perfectly reasonable to determine what is and is not acceptable behavior (which is the only real measure of character) within its communities.

Since it is unethical to spell out precise actions a Thelemite must take, it is far more effective and realistic to spell out general character traits, which are not behaviors per se, but guiding principles that underlie social behavior. It should be no surprise by now that the four character traits that are suggested for effective initiates (especially leaders) within O.T.O. are courage, integrity, cordiality, and foolishness. By no means are these the only effective traits to have. Rather, these should be seen as the Mother Traits from which all other positive traits derive. For example, hospitableness (a trait highly regarded within O.T.O.) is a derivative mostly of cordiality, but with aspects of integrity (it is a kind of member responsibility) and courage (letting a stranger into the home is potentially dangerous).

To summarize, effective local body leaders would ideally develop the competencies of knowledge (especially of magick theory, the details of our rites, and the social and instrumental aspects of the Order), skills (especially regarding ritual, organization, and group cohesion), and character (deriving from the Mother Traits of courage, integrity, cordiality, and foolishness).

The Path of Leadership

There are, actually, four paths to leadership within O.T.O., three of which are formal and one informal. The three formal paths are ecclesiastical, initiatory, and administrative; the informal path is communal. The pathway to leadership rarely travels along one path only, although usually one or two are the main focus.

There are two powerful benefits to promoting leadership competency within every local body. The first is that the development of both trust and a sense of self-efficacy are strong predictors that a member will stay highly motivated and active within the group. The second is that it creates a larger pool of experts, which broadens the scope of local body activity and provides competent replacements when current leaders are ready to move on to other responsibilities.

Because the benefits are so compelling, it is imperative that every local body create various paths to leadership for their members. Please reread that last sentence....notice it didn't say anything about hand-holding, impelling members to unwilled actions, or sacrificing the joy within our ceremonies. Fortunately, none of these are either/or scenarios. Rather, there are two sets of responsibilities: one is the duty of the leadership to create the opportunities for competence-building, and the other is the duty of the individual initiate to take advantage of those opportunities. Please note that in the Three Pillars of Stewardship, it states clearly that every local member should accept the responsibility of treading those local paths of service for which they are inclined and capable.

The Ecclesiastical Path

For many local bodies, the Gnostic Mass is the central formal activity, and provides the clearest and most accessible path of service for most members. The Order is in a state of transition at the moment, with lines of authority being shifted. At this point, ecclesiastical authority is vested in the Episcopate (the Bishops), which they then extend to the Priests, Priestesses, Deacons, and Novices they supervise. Although the body master has some limited authority, such as the scheduling of ceremonies and the setting of some local performance standards, the authority (though not necessarily the "power" or capability) to celebrate Liber XV exists within the relationship between a Bishop and her clergy and novices.

It is important to note that authority and competence are two very different things, and this can get a little sticky. For example, if a supervising Bishop for a Novice is geographically distant, she might be satisfied with the apparent knowledge of the supervised (via email, phone calls, et cetera), but the local Master cannot help but notice that the performance skills are lacking. Or worse, what happens when the Bishop is nearby and she and the local Master disagree on performance skill? This scenario is not unheard of, and this essay suggests that, on an informal level, supervising Bishops would be wise to accord the Novice's local leadership (i.e. the BM and practicing clergy) some ability to provide training opportunities for new officers. Further, I suggest that while theory and specific textual interpretations is the business of the Bishop, things like ritual presence, vocal skills, discussing our rituals with guests, working with co-officers, and other "non-text" competencies have a distinct impact on the well-being of the local body, and therefore fall under the (co)jurisdiction of the local leadership.

However the relationship between Bishops and LBMs works out, it is certainly the duty of the local body to provide opportunities for ritual experience. For a LB that wants highly competent Mass officers, a wise leadership will offer experiences that go beyond the regular celebration itself.

This actually starts before an initiate even becomes a novice—it must begin with information. Every local body should have information at hand to give to every new initiate to let them know how our church works. This can include our organizational structure, lines of authority, explanation of jargon, entryways to participation, a description of our rites, and perhaps a brief history of EGC. The flip side of this is to offer ecclesiastical classes. It might be a good idea to have several kinds pre-constructed, so that there could be a set for newbies and a set for experienced members. Some could cover Liber XV specifically, and some could cover the EGC as a whole. Although all would be valuable, it would be especially useful for those first entering our communities.

The flip side to information is experience. A local body that wants to have a competent pool of Mass officers would be smart to offer workshops to all members, especially the newer folks. These can be as formal or ad hoc as desired. What's important is giving members the opportunity to actually practice the roles, along with experienced clergy present to provide practical advice (knowing that the supervising Bishop can trump these suggestions). The more mature community would also offer opportunities to practice our less common rites, especially Baptism and Confirmation. A sophisticated LB might even offer training experiences that go beyond the text of Liber XV, such as having an initiate skilled in acting provide workshops on things like vocal skills, body control, and pacing, all of which have a strong impact on public ritual.

The Initiatory Path

Although less common in most local bodies, our rites of initiation are the co-equal flip side to our ecclesiastical work. Unlike the EGC, the line of authority goes straight from the Sanctuary of the Gnosis to chartered initiator, without any one-to-one supervision. As such, training can be difficult. Fortunately, USGL now offers initiator training for members who are Third Degree and higher, which is excellent. However, this is not the best entryway to MMM leadership, but is rather an intermediate step along the path. For a deeper competence, training must begin sooner.

Training should begin in regards to the content of our initiatory rites; the first step in having competent officers is to have competent initiates. The MoE rituals are complex and multilayered, and it would be highly effective for a LB to offer degree-specific workshops. One kind is a degree review, where the various signs of recognition are practiced and the oaths and obligations discussed. Another can be a degree overview which can explore the ritual as a whole, including discussions on symbolism, magick, godforms, and stories of individual experiences. The latter example can also be as formal or relaxed as the LB desires, which could either be led by a chartered initiator or self-run by initiates themselves with an initiator present simply as a resource...a combination of the two might be the most effective.

As with Liber XV, the vital flip-side to knowledge is experience. Therefore, it is possible to offer walkthroughs for initiates, so that they can get another glimpse of what they went though (which can be more effective than simply reading a script). Finally, training opportunities should be offered that would allow members to practice the various roles, including that of the initiator. A few years of such experiences would be a fantastic preliminary to the more formal GL training offered at Third Degree.

Since character is the third suggested aspect of competence, degree-specific overviews and workshops could be a great place to discuss how the initiations apply to social behavior. In some cases, behavior is clearly spelled out in the oaths, but that should not be the only model source. The themes and events within the underlying "story" are potentially excellent sources for understanding character and fraternal behavior.

The Administrative Path

These are the jobs that make the local body run. Of course the official three are Master, Secretary, and Treasurer—although many local bodies create "unofficial" officerships to fill in the gaps of administrative work. Although such jobs are not usually as sexy as EGC or initiatory officers, they are absolutely vital to the functioning of the community. Moreover, they can provide excellent leadership experience.

Considering the importance of administrative duties in a local body, it is imperative that training opportunities are offered for this area of competence. One of the best ways to do this is to tap new members to fulfill low-impact ad hoc admin duties, especially in combination with experienced leaders. The easiest example is to create assistantships for the Secretary and Treasurer. Depending on the size of the LB, these two could have more than one assistants. This has the dual benefit of helping out the lead officers (which might help prevent burnout) while teaching members how the LB actually functions administratively.

One of the single most effective entryways to local responsibility is to have new members assist in ways in which they are already competent. The existing leadership would be well-served by having every local member inform them as to their skills and experience, perhaps even creating a simple survey that could be filled out. Such a database would be invaluable as the LB grows in size. When there is a need in the LB that matches someone's skill-set, create a project and tap that person to lead it. Perhaps they can partner up with a more experienced member to learn how things are done in a LB, but they should be given as much "authority" over the project as reasonably possible. You can look to the model above to get an idea of all the various types of competencies that someone might bring into the local body that a project can spring from. By having them help in ways in which they are already comfortable and experienced, they can then also learn OTO-specific competencies that might eventually lead to more formal positions within the body. Remember, this is also a great way to develop group cohesion as more people will feel like they are involved in the success of the community.

Another possibility for training was presented in Part II, which was the model of task groups called Brigades. As a brief review, these are groups of initiates that are dedicated to accomplishing distinct tasks, which can be either ad hoc (e.g. building a dais) or ongoing (e.g. outreach). Each Brigade is led by a Brigadier, who reports to the Body Master and is (along with the BM) responsible for developing and fulfilling the group's goals and objectives. Such a position would be an incredible way to learn many things, including: how to develop goals and objectives, learning to work with and manage other initiates, and how to work with local body operations.

Such methods give current leadership many other benefits, making them a win/win proposition. The local body gains more experienced members, which deepens the pool of future competent leaders. Also, more things can actually get done, making the LB more effective and productive. Since responsibility and labor is spread out, burnout becomes less likely than if only a handful carries all the burden. Finally, there will be a more cohered group, which will up morale, strengthen dedication, and increase participation, making the OTO experience more fulfilling and dynamic.

The Communal Path

Formally, there is no such discrete path to leadership within O.T.O., but community is deeply embedded within our Order and we need to devise effective ways to develop competent community leaders within our local bodies. In terms of leadership, this aspect of competence can be summed up in a few key categories:

• Group cohesion and inspiration
• Problem solving and conflict management
• Good communication
• Excellent fraternal behavior (i.e. good character)

Naturally, the three formal paths of service would be greatly enhanced by the addition of these skill-sets. Moreover, Aleister Crowley wrote that such competencies are imperative to gaining admission to the higher degrees. He writes in "Concerning the Law of Thelema" (CLXI): "...advancement in the Order depends almost entirely on the possession of such qualities [as independence, tolerance, nobility of character, and good manners], and is impossible without it. Power being the main desire of man, it is only necessary so to condition its possession that it be not abused. [...] Work is invariably found for persons possessing [intellectual eminence and executive ability], and they attain high status and renown for their reward; but not advancement in the Order, unless they exhibit a talent for government, and this will be exhibited far more by nobility of character, firmness and suavity, tact and dignity, high honour and good manners..."

One common misunderstanding is that such traits are only found "naturally"; that one is "born with it." This is simply not true. These are skills, like any other, and can be learned (although some will certainly have more talent for it than others). The first step is to acknowledge their importance and to dedicate the local body to offering opportunities down this path of leadership.

Some areas are easier to learn than others. Fortunately, competencies such as communication skills, conflict management, and group organization have been studied for decades, and there are many excellent books on these subjects. Therefore, in these areas there is no reason to reinvent the wheel. As members begin to climb the local ranks, it is perfectly reasonable for a local BM to insist on mutual training in these competencies, which could even be a prerequisite for certain leadership positions.

Just for a start, here are some books to explore:

• Messages: The Communication Skills Book, by McKay, Davis, & Fanning
• The Art of Talking So That People Will Listen, by Paul Swets
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey
• When Goliaths Clash, by Howard Guttman
• Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory and Practice, by Brian Gibbons
• Group Cohesion, Trust and Solidarity, by Thye & Lawler (very technical)

Ultimately, the best social training tool for new members is through modeling excellent behavior. Although every initiate is duty-bound to obey degree oaths, our leaders should also embrace the spirit of our initiations to their full extent openly to the community. Moreover, they must embody the principles they expect from others in the community. That being said, there are techniques that leaders can employ to actively promote fraternal character.

The first is to articulate openly the kind of character that the local body demands. Being Thelemites does not obligate us to tolerate antisocial behavior justified by "True Will." Read Crowley's quote again above...clearly he expected O.T.O. initiates, especially leaders, to be honorable, noble, and well-mannered. But what does this mean, exactly? Local leaders should decide for themselves how to present these concepts. I have offered two models that could be used: The Three Pillars of Stewardship (Material Sustenance, Service to Community, and Fraternal Support) and the four Character Traits (Courage, Integrity, Cordiality, and Foolishness). Again, these are not demands for precise actions, but models that guide positive fraternal behavior.

Whatever models a local body adopts, after they are articulated (in a contract, in the newsletter, on the website, stated during LB meetings, et cetera), the hard part is to actively reward such behavior. The best method for this is the awarding of trust, which can be done by giving authority and with sincere statements of appreciation (do not underestimate the power of the latter method). Exactly how trust is given will be a matter of circumstance, but excellent behavior will not be promoted unless the member knows that she is doing something right. Keep in mind that this kind of attention is most importantly paid to the community's newest members, who are just learning the local mores and unwritten rules.

The flip side of this is the dissuasion of behaviors that violate the fraternal model. Again, how this is done is a matter of context, but it has to happen if poor behavior is expected to cease. Members who are consistently social leeches, dishonest, needlessly confrontational, or otherwise cause chaos or discord in the local body need to be given an opportunity either to change or choose to leave the community. Techniques for dealing with this can be found in the aforementioned types of books on communication and conflict resolution skills.

Ideally, the best way to transmit behavior models is to have the existing membership invested in them. If the majority of them accept the basic concepts behind the models, then they will be far more likely to see that new people learn them. Once a certain number of people are rewarded (say, with officerships or other signs of trust) due to excellent fraternal behavior, they will be far less willing to let newer folks get by with poor fraternal behavior. Remember, this cannot happen unless the behavior model is clearly articulated (which is why it can be beneficial to adopt models such as the Four Character Traits and the Three Pillars of Stewardship, because they can be discussed openly with initiates of every degree, while also being general enough to allow MoE oaths to take them to more sophisticated levels of understanding).

Conclusion

Developing competence in our communities has a number of compelling benefits, while avoiding it has none for the local body as a whole. On the one hand, it increases member dedication, expands the scope of capability, and promotes exceptional fraternal behavior. On the other, it provides replacements for leaders exiting in the future (helping to ensure the longevity of the local body) and spreads out the labor so that burnout is less likely. On both hands, it helps create effective and dynamic communities.

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