Prior to beginning this module and to the daylong session:

Bring: Your ethical guidelines: agreements, codes of conduct, grievance policy. Either print them out or be able to access them on a device.

Prompt 1: Power plays out differently in the roles and positions that we hold. We may be able to see something more about our relationship to power by looking at the other roles we have as a parent, partner, eldest child, professional… Choose a role and consider the kind of power you hold in that role.

Prompt 2: We all have tendencies to put what we don’t like about ourselves on to other people. This can also happen inadvertently when we are teaching. Describe a situation that has happened for you recently, or in the past with students, peers, or other teachers.

Handout/ chart: Violations of Spiritual Trust

How would you explain this chart to someone who is going through an ethical crisis or dilemma in their sangha?

Article: Hierarchy is not the Problem
Choose a section of the article that you disagree with or feel did not quite sit right with you. Start your reflective conversation there.

Goals:

1. Ethics are not yours alone. They arise in the relationships you have, the situations you live with, and the world you inhabit.

2. Alternative to causing pain is feeling pain. The process of being activated or going passive, of processing internally or externally. Bringing your inner world to meet the outer.

3. Continuing reflective exploration and starting a healing process from the impact of systemic ethical misconduct.

Materials Relevant to this Module:

Schedule

Importance of Sharing

Violations of Spiritual Trust

Four ennobling truths/tasks

Additional Resources:

Article: How to make power-with transparent

Article: Betrayed trust: Should straying clergy be restored to ministry?

Post:

Evaluation