August 15, 2003

Dear Friends who love King Arthur's Court and music,

It has come to our attention that some Keepers of the Flame were unhappy with the performance of "Opus V" on July Fourth in King Arthur's Court during the summer conference. Apparently, these Keepers have spoken to others, and now even some people who did not attend the performance have added their opinions as to whether or not it should have taken place.

The spiral of joy and upliftment that was released that night in the Court was just the type of event Mother herself would have enjoyed and been proud of, as you will see later in this letter.

When Mother and El Morya named King Arthur's Court, they intended it to be used as a chapel as well as an area to hold social events. Mother's direction was that when we hold a social event, we close the large blue curtain in front of the high altar thus transforming the chapel into a "court" or a space for a social event. Focuses are also moved out of sight, including Mother Mary, Kuan Yin and the Guru's chair. The high altar is a small 6' x 6' platform that is directly in front of the Chart of the Presence. These preparations were made for the "Opus V" performance

When the two Buddha statues were placed in the Court in the 1990's, Mother commented that there would be no weddings, social events, or other activities held there. However, never allowing herself to be stuck in one place, she later changed her mind and allowed weddings, receptions, and other social events, including her 60th birthday, in the Court with the Buddhas. Neither the Buddhas nor the bust of Mark Prophet have been removed.

Mother was never fanatical. She taught us all that the way to God's heart is not through the rote following of rules and dogma. Rules are given to us to raise a standard and to guide our paths. Fanatic rigidity, however, does not allow the flow of the Holy Spirit. While no one is positioning themselves in Mother's role as Guru, we all try to follow her example. We have worked with Linda Worobec, who served as Mother's personal secretary and executive assistant for many years, and who was part of the performance, to answer some concerns people may have.

We fully support the choice to have Opus V perform at the July conference on the altar and we are enclosing Linda's letter with her additional comments in brackets that she wrote to a Keeper of the Flame and communicant addressing more specific questions.

We hope that this information will be helpful to answer the concerns of any Keepers of the Flame who might be troubled by negative emails which may have caused fear in the minds of some. While we all work diligently to maintain the sanctity of the high altar in King Arthur's Court, let us also remember that it is the high altar in each of our hearts that must be protected from the desecration of condemnation and self-righteousness.

With love, in Christ,

Lois Drake and Kate Gordon

Letter from Linda Worobec to a Keeper of the Flame:   August 1, 2003

Dear ______,

     I am happy to answer some questions for you. First, I was not a member of the conference committee. Carla Groenewegen, Neroli Duffy and the Presidents were preparing the conference program. In April or May I sent in a proposal for Opus V to perform some time during the conference, not knowing what date or time would be available. The conference committee accepted our proposal and said that July 4 was available in the evening. There was also some discussion about having another speaker on July 4 following Opus V, but this did not come about..

     I think there may be some limitation to your idea of what a spiritual retreat or conference means. It does not mean just decreeing. It does not mean just listening to dictations. It does not mean just fellowship. It does not mean just joyful activities such as waltzes, singing, hiking, camping or buying books in the bookstore. It means all of these things and more. The ascended masters overshadow our activities and bless us in many different ways, even when we are eating together in the cafeteria or walking with our friends. That is why we have Maitreya's Mystery School because there are always opportunities to raise our consciousness and express loving-kindness and holiness. The July class has always had many components to it.

     As to entertainment, Mark said that entertainment meant "enter-into-attainment." That is what Opus V tries to embody, the attainment of lifting the spirits of all of us and attaining mastery of the four lower bodies. We express joy, laugher, beauty and spiritual awareness as much as is possible for whom we all are. Three of the members are not Keepers of the Flame, but all of us pray together before we go on stage.

     Robert and I have been trained by El Morya and Saint Germain through the Messenger to be singers worthy to sing on the altar and to express our particular talents through this avenue as well as other avenues. No one knows the inner or outer training we have received or the personal instruction from Mother as to what is appropriate to raise the light. Mother had many ideas about the transmutative power of song, including her very specific directions and program song choices for the Paradise Players, which included such numbers as "Ragtime Cowboy Joe," cowboy songs and some ragtime music in various songs. Some of our members may have questioned these programs but the Guru approved them and guided us. [Our performance included a ragtime piano solo; however, it did not include jazz as some email comments asserted.]

          Mother also had her daughter, Tatiana Prophet, sing "Broadway Baby" and "100 Easy Ways to Lose a Man" on the altar without the curtain being closed. We sang with the curtain closed because that is the appropriate format for presentations that are not directly connected with church services.

     Mother liked to dance. She learned the foxtrot, swing, salsa and other ballroom dances as well as the waltz and taught them to her chelas because she was evolving also in her awareness of how energy changes. She was not fanatical. She moved with the Holy Spirit and by her love, she changed water into wine. She also was evolving in her choice of colors and what was appropriate to wear, but that is another discussion.

     I take my direction and training from Mother. She is the embodiment of progressive revelation because she is the Guru. She would say one thing one day and the opposite the next day in order to confound the carnal minds of the rote chelas that think if they only do everything "right," they will get to heaven. There are no perfect chelas, but there are the perfect hearts of chelas who are becoming one with God.

     I believe you should have followed your intuition and not attended the performance if that is what your Holy Christ Self was directing you to do and I am sorry if you were offended by the Beatles' words and tune to "Money Can't Buy Me Love." There was no rock beat in this rendition of the song, which Mother has explained is the major problem with rock music, i.e., the syncopated rock beat. The lyrics are innocuous. It was a light-hearted comedy song set in the madrigal style of the 16th century. For your information, there are many Christian songs that have direct quotes or lyrics from the Bible but are really rock music because of the beat. It takes the discernment of the heart to know the difference. Mother also had a favorite Beatles' song that she liked to listen to at her home.

     "Harmony in Marriage" again is a comedy song that, of course, does not express the highest union of man and woman. Like the roles in Shakespeare's plays, there are many relationships that teach us wisdom, especially the character of the fool. This song was meant to be tongue-in-cheek and to expose the foibles of superficial marriage life. The song wasn't meant to endorse this life, but rather to ridicule the silly ways in which some couples maintain married life.

     I do challenge your notion that decrees and dictations given through the first part of the conference were then diverted into a wedge in our consciousness or a wedge into the community by Opus V. There was no desecration of the altar. Many, if not all of the people in the Court were uplifted and joyous. They laughed and sometimes had tears in their eyes from the touching moments that meant something to them. We had beautiful songs such as [Mother's keynote,] "Beautiful Dreamer" which Mother has heard us perform for more than three years. We sang "God Bless America," "Simple Gifts," "Benedictus" which means "Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord" and "Elegance" which was in a previous Paradise Players revue. Every song had a purpose which was to lead the energies in an upward spiral to "Waiting for the Light to Shine." Laughter opens the heart and then you can inspire with a gentle song that has a deeper meaning. The spiral of light was there to be perceived by those who were receptive to the joy flame.

     Many people had just the opposite reaction to our program from your experience. To quote two long-time chelas, Mark and Julie Pollard, "Please tell Robert that the song he sang (All the Things you Are) is still ringing in my mind The entire evening of the 4th was very Saint Germain - like a page out of the Magic Presence." "Thanks Linda I can't tell you how much we enjoyed your performance at the conference. It was just awesome. Is there any chance it was recorded? Could I get a copy of the music?" We have had so many positive comments that they would be too numerous to mention here.

     Annice Booth and Marilyn Barrick saw the performance and thought that it was so uplifting, so wonderful that they suggested we take Opus V on the road and tour the teaching centers and study groups and use our performances as an outreach tool for the ascended masters. In fact, they said that Mother would have absolutely loved the show and would have been in the front row cheering us on. [Rev. Annice Booth also assured one Keeper of the Flame that Mark Prophet would have loved the show. We have no intention of touring the teachings centers and study groups with Opus V because we have other full-time jobs.]

     I brought your comments to the Ministerial Council to see if they had any problems with the program and every one of them said it was a great program, the highlight of the conference and there was nothing wrong with any of the music or songs. They all thought it was an inspired evening that uplifted the spirit and souls of the conferees. If the Ministerial Council, comprised of long-time ministers and chelas of Mark and Mother, could find no fault, then I am at peace. Tastes differ and I respect your right to have a different opinion and experience, but we do have the violet flame for anything that is not in keeping with what anyone may perceive.

     In terms of broadcasting the event, we had suggested that it not be broadcast and that decree CDs be played for those not in the Court because our performance is such a visual experience and much would have been missed by just hearing it. However, the broadcasting team and requests from subscribers indicated that the subscribers would have felt left out of the program and I have heard many encouraging remarks from those who heard the program on the internet.

     _____, God works in mysterious ways. I respect you and the abilities for which you have been trained. I am confident in my training and mantles and by God's grace, I am in my position for many reasons. I have been trained by Mother and I strive to embody all that she taught me, as we all do.

     I close with a statement from Mother about a staff member, "If he's inharmonious, if he's in a state of condemnation or any human vibration that has to be dealt with before you can consider whether the person has a good or bad point because inharmony is 100% error, 100% wrong." ______, I pray that you are not in a state of condemnation. We have much more work to do on the planet. I will not be responding to you again on this issue.

Sincerely, with love,

Rev. Linda L. Worobec

Cc: LBS, TC/SG