We are pleased to announce that Bishop Gene has been invited to speak at the oldest interfaith summit in the world, the Parliament of World Religions, shortly after the 2015 Convocation takes place. The summit will be held at Salt Lake City, Utah USA from October 15-19, 2015.

This summit will host more than 10,000 participants from 80 countries and 50 religious and spiritual traditions. It is a milestone in our Community’s history that our Human Spiritual Rights standpoint will be represented at such a gathering.

Keynote Speakers—26 in all—will include:

• His Holiness the 14 Dalai Lama of Tibet;
• Dr. Arun Gandhi, grandson of the Mahatma Gandhi;
• His Excellency Oscar Arias Sanchez, former president of the Republic of Costa Rica;
• Chief Arvol Lookinghorse, 19th Generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo of the Sioux Nation;
• Rabbi David Saperstein, U.S. Ambassador At-large for International Religious Freedom;
• Dr. Eboo Patel, sociology professor of religion from Oxford University.

Bishop Savoy has been invited to speak in the forum titled “Pathways to Peace: A Panel Presentation from Different Faiths.” He will also be delivering an individual talk on peace based on the Advocates for Religious Freedom’s standpoint of universal Human Spiritual Rights.

The idea to attend the conference and the invitation to speak came through Dr. Balwant Singh Hansra, whom Bishop Savoy and Rev. Ted Staver met at the religious conference held at Seoul, Korea in October 2014. Dr. Hansra, originally from India, but now residing in Chicago, Illinois, is a former member of the board of directors of the World Parliament. Dr. Hansra invited Bishop Savoy to attend and be part of his panel following the conference in Seoul.

The first World’s Parliament of Religions of 1893 was an attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another conference on its centenary in 1993. This led to a new series of conferences under the official title “Parliament of the World’s Religions” since that time.

* * *

10,000 People. 80 Nations. 50 Faiths.

What: The 2015 Parliament of the World’s Religions

When: October 15 – 19, 2015

Where: Salt Palace Convention Center, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

The Parliament is the oldest, the largest, and the most inclusive gathering of people of all faith and traditions.

The first Parliament took place in 1893. Since, this historic event has taken place in Chicago, USA • Cape Town, South Africa • Barcelona, Spain • Melbourne, Australia – and now in Salt Lake City, Utah!

If you care for religions and nations working together in harmony with each other for the good of humanity, you should attend.

You will find:

• Trainings in dialogue, interfaith activism, fundraising, and organizing
• World-class religious music, films, exhibits and performances
• And shop ethnic, international, religious books & things

Your Opportunity to Share
In break-out sessions and circles you will share your opinions and ideas with others.

Networking & Connections
The Parliament is a great networking opportunity. 60 percent of people who attend are well-connected networkers around interfaith and common causes.

You can attend to share your faith, listen to others and ask questions.

Most people, however, attend because of the extraordinary experience and relationships which are formed at the Parliament.

How Much Does it Cost to Attend the Parliament?
You can register for as low as $150 to attend if you qualify. Pricing will go up to $550 if you register later. However, right now, you can access advance discounts open now for families, spouses, groups (like congregations, university classes, peace organizations), individuals, and children, too. The Parliament is committed to involving families and children in the Interfaith movement.

Registration and housing options range from camping, hostels, and hotels at affordable to world-class levels to meet your needs.

Once you register, reserved Parliament hotel blocks at Parliament-only rates are made accessible to you.

Camping
We are in serious negotiations to provide camping facilities.

Food Concerns
There will be a food court offering all type of food options — from vegan, to kosher, to halal — while there are all sort of restaurants surrounding the convention center.

< Visit www.parliamentofreligions.org for more information. >

Russell Ault Jr in 2007

Consociate Russell Stewart Ault Jr. (January 7, 1954–June 18, 2015) passed away unexpectedly on Thursday, June 18, at Pardee Hospital in Henderson, North Carolina. A self-employed accountant by profession, he also worked part-time in the Distance Learning Center at Blue Ridge Community College. Russell first applied to the Academy Program in 1985 and remained an active member of the Academy until 1989, when his financial and personal situation forced him to discontinue his affiliation with the Community until 2007. In that year Russell again enrolled in the Academy to complete the program and remained a Community member until his passing in 2015. The following account of Russell’s “PATH TO LIGHT” is drawn from his own words shared with us in 2007:

From the late 1970s through the 1980s, I pursued spiritual studies through the Rosicrucian Order (AMORC), Astara, and ultimately Cosolargy International. I discontinued my studies when I married, because my wife (now ex-wife) did not support my seeking and meditation practices once finances became tight. But I still meditated 20–30 minutes each day, attended weekly dharma sessions at the local Buddhist hermitage, and studied the Holy Bible frequently.

Of all the religions known to me, mystic Christianity and Buddhism appealed to me most throughout my life. I was brought up Southern Baptist and had no problem following the beliefs of that church until I entered college. In college I started asking questions of the Baptist preachers and Sunday school teachers. Their responses typically quoted various Bible verses that did not answer my questions. I had read the entire Bible carefully by that point. And to my mind, the Bible gave examples of how each person could behave to become a more fully realized human being; however, I found that most Protestant Sunday sermons seemed to imply that emulating Jesus’s behavior was an unreachable goal. The conclusion of the Protestants was to worship Jesus so he would be an intermediary between one and God instead of using one’s entire heart, soul, and mind to discipline oneself to become like Jesus with the goal of beholding God “face to face.” That was my path of worship.

For me, the most helpful teachings of Buddhism were from the hermitage in my local community. The two Buddhist abbots held discussions on “Western” Buddhism. Their lessons were true to the teachings of the Buddha, but their practices did not include the long chanting and formal observance that are prevalent in Eastern Buddhist temples. The two abbots were ordained in both the Theravada and Mahayana traditions, but they discussed the truth given by all the great masters and welcomed seekers from all spiritual traditions. The discussions they led and the meditative practices they taught were intended to assist individuals to watch their behavior and improve their reactions bit by bit over time. The wisdom they gave was intended to be practical and for the purpose of helping individuals free themselves from destructive emotions so that they could walk in peace in day-to-day life.

I also became interested in learning more about the Seventh-Day Adventist Church and Islam. Some of the seminars offered by the Seventh-Day Adventists that I attended revealed the incredible research they have conducted into the Christian scriptures, especially those that relate to prophecy. Where the prophecy given in one place in the Bible was unclear, the Adventists found verses in other parts of the Bible that quite plausibly explained the metaphorical language of the unclear prophecy.

I knew little about Islam—only that Muslims believe that Muhammad did not start a new religion but attempted to restore the proper teachings that were given first to the Jews and then to Christians. Both of these groups had distorted the true interpretations of their scriptures. With the large number of terrorists justifying their violent actions on the Koran, I was interested in learning more about Islam if for no other reason than to be informed about the second-largest religion in the world. And I knew that most Muslims found Islam a religion that teaches peace and unity, not war.

The beginnings of my search for higher truths began when I was a senior in high school during the 1970s. I had picked up a copy of Test Your ESP by Martin Ebon, even though I had no idea what ESP (extrasensory perception) was. Once I found out, I wanted to learn more about using the higher faculties of my mind.

The second mystically oriented book I acquired was written by one of Edgar Cayce’s sons. The book discussed the psychic experiences of many people. The author found that many intuitive people were confined to mental institutions, perhaps because they were unable to cope with their gifts. Of course, back then there were many fewer individuals with knowledge of psychic matters so those who were overwhelmed by their psychic senses often did not receive the help and understanding they needed. The book also briefly mentioned how one could meditate and get in touch with these higher realities by using safe techniques.

The following year I went off to college. In addition to studying for my college courses, I was determined to learn more about the potential that one’s mind could actualize. I reread the Bible, now looking more closely at the numerous examples of seekers reaching transient states of higher consciousness and then being inspired to write about their experiences of Divine Love and sometimes to write prophecy on what one should do or avoid doing.

The search was not easy. The ministers I spoke to about these topics were at best not sure how to respond to my questions and at worst would warn me that any investigations in these areas amounted to devil worship. This latter response hardly seemed true to me since the major prophets in the Bible had the mystical experiences about which I wished to learn more, and they were definitely worshiping God. I finally decided to expand my search to groups outside the Southern Baptist tradition.

Fortunately, many spiritual groups had formed in the town where I attended college. When I joined some of them, I noticed how applying their techniques helped me as well as how other members of the organizations grew (or not) through their practices.

In 1982 I made a trip to India to meet the leader of the social service and meditation group Ananda Marga. At that time, the leader, Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar, wanted his followers around the world to come to Calcutta to meet him. While there, a number of these travelers, myself included, visited Nepal with the special intention of going to the Monkey Temple in Kathmandu.

In 1985 I made a trip to Egypt with Astara to meditate in the King’s Chamber of the Great Pyramid and to visit various energy centers in that country.

In 1988 I traveled to China with a t’ai chi instructor and a number of his students to visit Wuhan Mountain, where t’ai chi had originated, as well as other locations relevant to the origin and practice of t’ai chi.

My quest came to a sudden end in 1992 when I married a woman who claimed spirituality and meditation were extremely important to her; however, within a year of the marriage, she had changed her actions and spent most of her time in front of the television set instead of continuing her artistic crafts and direct contact with nature. Her constant complaints about finances led me to spend more time working and to eventually drop out of the spiritual groups I had joined.

A few years later she left me, but the divorce and property settlement were not finalized until 2000. During that time I joined no mystical groups but continued to meditate on—my own at first, but after 2006, with the Buddhists who had moved into the area. I also attended a few seminars sponsored by the Seventh-Day Adventists.

Initially I felt that these organizations were enough to remind me of the ancient wisdom that had been given thousands of years ago and to help me grow spiritually. However, by that time things were not as they had been before. Ever since I had first encountered Cosolargy in the 1980s and heard how important our Sun was to not only our physical lives but also to our spiritual lives, I had been monitoring the unusual events taking place on the Sun.

Solar Cycle 23 was supposed to have attain its maximum in mid-2000, but the maximum continued for a few years longer. The intensity of the solar flares had also been at unusually high levels. From my findings, there seemed to have been more X-class flares (the most powerful class of flare) during the first few years of this millennium than during any period in the past. The general consensus was that global warming was due primarily to increased greenhouse gases around the Earth created by human technology; however, this belief did not explain why the Martian polar ice cap was melting at the same time as those on Earth. Nor did this belief explain the increased energy of the atmospheric storms on Jupiter and Saturn. What if global warming were due to the increased energetic output of the Sun? The next Cycle, the 24th, was predicted to be 30–50 percent stronger than its predecessor. And the peak of the Cycle was predicted to be in the auspicious year 2012.

Another major event that would happen in the year 2012, according to several reports, was the crossing of our solar system over the galactic plane, an event that happens twice every 62 million years. This period is about equal to that of the alautun cycle, the longest cycle of the Mayan calendar. Some authors stated that the Mayans believed 2012 to be the year that time was to end and then restart again (although I had found one author who reported that the current cycle would not end until October 12, 4772). I considered that crossing over the galactic plane could be a time when the Earth would encounter more meteor strikes since there could be more debris floating in the region of the galactic plane than is usually found in our solar system; this could pose a new risk that Earth had not faced in recorded history.

I also considered that as the Earth was crossing the galactic plane and heading toward the northern side of the galaxy, its inhabitants might encounter ever increasing amounts of light—electromagnetic radiation—in the form of cosmic rays coming from a large group of galaxies in the direction of the constellation Virgo. The DNA of all living creatures might be damaged or transformed. In fact, a study of 500 million years of fossil data, which was published in Nature in 2005, indicated that the greatest risk of extinction occurred every 62 million years.

All of this might be relevant to the dawn of the new cosmic age spoken of in the Teachings of Cosolargy, I thought. If nothing else, this information provided fuel for my quest for truth, using both my brain, when researching data from the physical sciences, and my intuition, when contemplating information from mystical sources.

Even though I had developed my brain to process immense amounts of information and had attempted to develop my intuition as well, I still felt the need to really awaken my consciousness.

What I had not found was a system of spiritual transformation that incorporated information of the great changes in the energy coming to all people on the Earth as well as practices to use these ultradimensional forces to activate the higher centers in sincere seekers. And that is why I wished to again enroll in the Academy of Cosolargy to learn the spiritual disciplines and to be of assistance to others in these changing times.

Russell Ault Jr, 2007

 On Friday, May 22, 2015 the country of Japan was umbrellaed with a sunbow display that lasted virtually the entire day. Hundreds of people across the country submitted pictures of the phenomenon to local Japanese newscasts.

On that same day, another little known and unusual event took place prior to the appearance of the  sunbow. At 4:30 am, shortly before sunrise, about 30 people from Australia, Canada, Ireland, Japan, and the U.S. gathered at Lake Biwa for a Sunrise Celebration. Lake Biwa is the largest fresh water lake in Japan, located 51km NE of Kyoto.

The sunrise gathering was embellished with music and chants from three different cultures and an early morning Japanese dance in traditional dress.  During all the music and chants, the friendly appearance of two large hawks (4ft wingspan) circled above the celebratory gathering for a little more than 10 minutes.

 Shortly after sunrise, a sunbow began to take shape and within a half hour a double bow fully encircled the sun. Everyone at Lake Biwa saw this spectacular display unfold. Soon after, countless people across the entire country began to notice, photograph, and share this wondrous event. Photophones clicked, and clicked, and shared, and clicked. Thousands of people tipped their gaze to look skyward. This continued through the entire day.  Everyone was noticing. It was as if the sun was casting a rainbow of kisses over the land.  But before the sun would set for the day, one more and probably the most interesting thing took place: On that day across Japan many people saw and many people reported that Lake Biwa appeared within the face of the solar orb. And it was not just the outline or the shape of the lake, but Lake Biwa was superimposed on the sun.

“The hawks were spectacular. They were amazing. They took more than ten minutes from their morning to circle and prance above us all as we celebrated and greeted the morning sun.

“A bit later, these flying creatures began doing this really incredible thing. They would scout the shoreline and select a particular type of discarded tree branch. These special branches were noted by little pieces of bark hanging loosely from the wood. So the hawks would gather these branch pieces, fly over the lake, and drop them onto the water, where the branch would float, with the dangling bark below the surface. Not long after, fish would surface to nibble on the bark phalanges. These hawks would then skillfully swoop down and lift the unsuspecting fish from the water; all as a result of their cleverly devised  ‘lures’. “— Amanda Buchanan

report by Michael McIntyre

SONATHERAPY trademark certificate

The term SONATHERAPY ® has now been officially recognized by the United States Patent and Trademark Office as a registered trademark as of July 7, 2015. Every use of the word should now be followed by ® rather than “TM.”

< Download a copy of the U.S. Patent Office certificate. >

The process to register the word as a trademark was undertaken three years ago. Only now has the attempt brought results, and not without some struggle. Corporate lawyers were called in to advocate on behalf of the Church and the developer of SONATHERAPY ®, the Rev. Dr. Gary Buchanan, in order to prove that although the term has gained popularity around the world for various uses over the past several years, Dr. Buchanan was the creator of the term.

Sonatherapy is a vibrational healing therapy developed over the past fifteen years by Dr. Gary Robert Buchanan and practiced at Steamboat Boat Healing Center in Nevada. Sonatherapy combines light, color, sound, water & subtle energies in the promotion of self-healing. A practicing Sonatherapist, Dr. Buchanan regularly meets with clients from around the world each month offering “self-healing” via light, color, sound, water, and subtle energy therapeutics.

The SONATHERAPY ® web site links to several Sonatherapy videos and provides a general description of the therapy and its practice. There are also pages on Dr. Buchanan himself and links to order his newest book, Sonatherapy: Healing with Light, Color, Sound, Water & Subtle Energies.

< Visit the Sonatherapy web site at http://www.sonatherapy.com/ >

Michael Spohn officiating Chapel Service November 22, 2014 PHOTO: Stephan Fuelling

A eulogy for the Rev. Mike Spohn, delivered by the Rev. Michael McIntyre, June 20, 2015 (with additional comments by others)

Good morning. Thank You for being here.

SECTION A:

Mike was born on August 17, 1955, in Tacoma,  Washington. He had two children: Becca, who lives in Colorado, and Mark, he’s in Germany.

Mike received his Third-Level Ordination in the ICC on October 14, 2007. Some of his accomplishments while here in Reno include the following:

• Regularly performed Services in this Chapel and the Sanctuary Churches
• Helped with mailings
• Performed in the Bell Choir for 20 years
• Red Rock resident for several years and had a hand in building pretty much everything you see out there
• Helped maintain the Chapel/Chancellery grounds

SECTION B:  

Mike joined the Community in January of 1977 – Gosh, that’s almost  4 decades! He moved to Reno in 1981. Wasn’t long after being here he ran into a hurdle: He had a lot of trouble finding an apartment that would accept his oversized german shepherd.  His choices left him to sleep in his Ford Galaxy 500 with his shepherd for 6 months.

He finally settled in just up the road from here, across from a park that is canopied with 30- and 40-foot trees and very busy with bird life. It wasn’t unusual for a curious crow to survey and follow him as he walked through the neighborhood from his home to mine.

Animals  seemed to have a soft spot for Mike, especially cats. I can’t count the occasions when unacquainted strays would spot him and freeze, become catatonic—then suddenly  burst  into a gallop  to greet him with head-butts or figure-eight sharking and spend the next 15 minutes doing all sorts of pleads for adoption.  It was like he had splashed on cat cologne. He just understood their  language. He had this gift for languages.

SECTION  C:

Mike liked languages. He was fluent in German and knew a little French.

One fall evening, he’s on his way into the grocery market. I’m next to him. I ask him a question. He goes like this (puts index finger to his lips).

Ten minutes later we’re coming out of the market. I begin to chatter, and he does the same thing. We make it to the car, and we’re sitting down. I look over at him and say,

“It happened to you, didn’t  it?”

“Yeah.”

“First time?”

“Yeah. It’s been going on for the last 15 minutes; the whole time we’ve been here.”

“Wow.  Well , can you compare it, Mike?” (pause: he starts to choke up a little bit.)

“I’ve never heard music like this before. The calls. The landscapes. Indescribable.”

“Is it still going on?” He just glared at me!

“It’s so beautiful!  It’s so beautiful!”

So, another time, there are three of us. You know the stones that border on the Chapel lawn, out there in front? We’re putting in those stones. Mike is watching two of us do this. We’re both haphazard, so he goes:

“Here. Let me show you something. See this flat face. This side wants to be out. Facing out.”

He rolls over another one, spins it slowly like a top, looking at each side.                                        Release and—boom!—it falls in place. He says,

“See?  It’s that side. That face. Looks right, doesn’t  it?”

So we take his little lesson, and we’re doing pretty good. Then I get stuck. This one stone is being misfitted. He notices, comes over, kneels next me:

“You’re not listening.”

“Nope. I heard everything you said, Mike. This rock just seems really stubborn.”

“You misunderstood. You’re not listening to the rock. Each one has a voice. They talk. You have to be carefully silent to hear it. Watch.”

Boom! The stone falls into place.

Mike had this ability to recognize the hidden intelligence in things, make a bond, then operate through that.

SECTION D:

One of things Mike had was—how do you say this?—he had this incredible intuition for finding the bottom of an ice cream carton. He would stage his tactics like a professional boxer: (In an announcer’s voice): “In this corner, the challenger, weighing in at one-half gallon, in the chocolate-marshmallow trunks,  ROCKY ROAD!

“And  your  undisputed, undefeated, lifetime world champion, MICHAEL SUGAR-SPOON SPOHN!”

It was always a knockout. Three rounds or less.

A&W root beer was another of his favorite “adversaries.”

And you could call him on the phone; say, “pizza”; and hang up. Ten minutes later, he was there.

He was a “self-spoiler.” Anybody know what that is? It’s this terrible condition where . . .  Let’s say you have a glass of wine from a $10 bottle.  A few days later you have a glass from a $20 bottle. And what you find is you can’t go back, no matter how hard you try, you can’t  go back to the $10 bottle. So what happens , over time,  is that this escalates. As your love for these refinements  grows stronger and bigger, availability gets smaller and smaller. You paint yourself into a corner.  Doesn’t happen to everybody, but, uh . . . Any of you have that? Mike was the classic example.

SECTION E:

He was pretty rich with peculiarities, but nothing was more peculiar than his sense of  humor. One of the things he would often do—and he would come up with one every week—he would characterize everyday people we know in the light of a celebrity. Here’s an easy one, just to get you warmed up:

“Ever notice how Roger looks like Clint Eastwood? And not just his appearance, but the slow, precise, closed lip delivery when he talks? All the guy needs is a poncho, stick of dynamite, and measly mule that he can trade for good horse.”

The Gladiator.  It’s the closing scene—are you all familiar with this film? Mike and I are watching this together. The notorious Emperor Commodus is fighting Russell Crow in the Coliseum, and Mike jumps up and points to Commodus [played by Joaquin Phoenix]:

“Look! Look at that guy. It’s . . . ( any guesses ?) It’s Geno! He looks just like Geno. Tell me it’s not true! And he’s [Geno’s] got a little bit of that emperor thing going, too.”

At one point Mike went on this long run comparing everyone he knew to the characters in the long-running animation The Simpsons. Mike would do this thing. He would “test” you; have you guess at his insights.

“Ok, Some girl we all know [named Marie], she’s Lisa Simpson. Who do think Bart is?” Or, “Ok, who is Principal Skinner? [as he looked right at Petro and said,] “Bob!”

This went on for weeks. One day—there’s this [Simpsons] character, Ned Flanders, a goody two-shoes, mild-spoken, humbly righteous type of fellow—one day, Mike comes up  to me:

“I figured out who Ned Flanders is.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah—it’s you!”

I’m like, “What! That’s not even close. I’m more like Crusty the Clown.”

“Nope, Shane gets to be Crusty.”

He used to do this a lot. He told me that he once introduced Nelson as Jerry Garcia to a stranger. Just off the cuff. Out of the blue:

“Hey, buddy, know who this is? Huh? This is Jerry Garcia.”

Nelson and Mike didn’t even know this stranger. The fellow actually asked for an autograph!

Little did Mike know that others also characterized him!

SECTION F:

One day, the two of us are listening to this Bruckner symphony, which is rich with this emotional struggling. It sort of weaves these layers of waves that surface and drown, in an effort to glimpse elation. After about 15 minutes, Mike is making these little choking sounds, and he’s shivering. He wipes his eyes and looks at me with this intense, sympathetic glare. He gently shakes his head in utter disbelief. Then he went around humming the main theme for the next two weeks.

Certain musical expressions would leave him emotionally helpless.                                                               This was normal. I saw this happen to him dozens of times.                 Often it was joy, enthrallment. He recognized passion immediately.  Instantly. It came on very quick.

What’s interesting is that Mike was also a great musician, a guitar player. Very expressive. He and I played together. A lot. He’s over one afternoon and saddles up his Instrument.  I ask him:

“Need a pick, Mike?”

“Nah. It’s ok.”

“Sure?”

“It doesn’t matter. Anything will do. Or not.”

So, he pulls a coin from his pocket: [McIntyre makes a guitar-picking sound] dudla dudla dudla; then a cigarette lighter: dudla dudla dudla; then his car keys: dudla dudla dudla. He looks at me and says, “Got a teddy bear?”

Somebody lent me this story a week ago. This was before Mike and I met: He’s at this bar. The band is onstage but taking a break. Mike goes over and has a chat with one of the band members. A bit later Mike’s onstage, strapped in. The band starts up. And he does what he does best—for almost 10 minutes. People’s jaws drop.

Two or three times a week Mike was over at my place, instrument in hand. Soaring all over the place. My son’s friends would stop in—usually dead in their tracks—and stare, heads  pitched forward, mouths  wide open, with these uncontrollable bad etiquette displays.

After these little episodes, Matt, my son, would come with a smile or chuckle, recounting his friends’ reactions: They were like, “Whoa! Who is that guy? He have any CDs?” Or, “Never heard anything, anything  like that before! Unbelievable!”

Most people were stunned seeing him play the first time. He did it so effortlessly. He would wrap his paws  around the thing and the notes would just  fall out—like a ballet company exiting a burning building.

And that’s when he’d really shine. He’d light up just like a Christmas tree, with this big smile on his face.

SECTION G

Bell Toll

So, here’s another thing Mike would do. Let me see if I can do this for you. [picks up large handbells]. A lot of you may recognize this. First [enlists Stephan Fuelling’s help] I would like to show you a few things They are a bit heavy, as you might guess. Let’s see if we can replicate some of the nuances he would use. [tolls the handbells]. Ok, let’s see if we can do the toll, Stephan. [They toll the bells as Spohn did at Sunrise Service while waiting for the sun to appear: C, E, C, E…]. Thanks, Stephan.

Those two bells are the bells that Mike played virtually every Sunday—early dawn for a good 20 years. So, those sounds, that toll, that was Mike singing—singing to the Sun. For all of us it’s an irreplaceable loss.

Retiring the Vestment:

[Asks Rev. Gary Buchanan at the organ to play a slow toll, like a bell, in A]

These are the acolytes bringing up Mike’s bell choir vestment for retirement.

[returns to podium as acolytes exit]

Closing Remark

So I have a little closing message. Let me read this and make sure it’s right. This is for all of you:

“My life is little more than these reflections  . . . reflections of the kindness   and love each of you has given me.” He wanted you to know that.

A moment for you, now, to reflect your wishes.

Below are a few thoughts from Community members. We ask that you add your own in the comment section that accompany this article:

“He was a dear man, and through his struggles he emerged a sensitive and wise Man of Light.” —Sean Savoy

“Few people knew he was a gummy bear connoisseur. He would only have the ones imported from this one particular country.” —Ted Staver

“He was like the Uncle I never had.” —Matt Madonna

“I’ll miss seeing and talking with him.” —Bob Anderson

The Governor of the State of Nevada, Brian Sandoval, on May 25, 2015 signed into law legislation revising the religious property tax exemption statute in the state of Nevada. This important amendment to the law effectively treats all religious organizations in the state equally, irrespective of how they worship, for the purposes of receiving property tax exemption. Therefore, as of July 1, 2015, the Red Rock Consecrated Sanctuary will be 100{1fa2ef75e2e78439128d99df03acfe1d8ee3047374abe3d4676fe3470ff8b909} tax exempt after a long and arduous chapter in the life of The Community spanning some thirty-five years since 1980.

The bi-partisan bill, crafted by Bishop Gene Savoy Jr. with legal advice, was passed unanimously in the State Assembly and the State Senate. Both Democrats and Republicans supported the revised language to the law. The elected officials of Washoe County, and their staffs as well, supported Bishop Savoy’s two-and-a-half year campaign, thus putting behind a long history of misunderstanding between the Washoe County Tax Assessor’s office and the International Community of Christ. Washoe County Assessor Michael Clark, who was newly elected in November 2014, attended the first Nevada Assembly meeting on the bill as an interested party. When he left that first meeting, he said he reviewed the Church’s files on the case and found that mistakes had been made in the past. Since that time Mr. Clark said he was behind the bill one-hundred percent; he even spoke on behalf of the bill as it was going through the Senate Tax Committee.

Many within the interfaith and interreligious community in Northern Nevada also offered their support once the bill came to committee in the Nevada Assembly — delegations from the Catholic, Episcopalian, Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, and other churches, the Jewish, Muslim and Hindu communities, as well as professionals and private citizens all over Nevada.

However, this accomplishment could not have been realized without the dedication, commitment and expertise of Frank and Michael Hillerby of the firm Kaempfer Crowell, the lobbyists hired by Bishop Savoy, who worked with him over a period of two-and-one-half years and who fully supported the cause from the outset. Without them, the Community’s effort to modify existing legislation may not have succeeded.

The Community’s struggle for property tax exemption at the Red Rock Consecrated Sanctuary began in the early 1980’s. When the Sanctuary was purchased, Washoe County initially granted property tax exemption . Unfortunately, that was later revoked, and the Community sued Washoe County in district court. The suit was successful. However, the Community’s court case with Washoe County from 1980 to 1990 cost the Community well over $100,000 in legal fees and one decade in precious time.

Then in 1990 the County appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court and the decision was reversed in 1990, and the ill-fated Supreme Court decision cost the Community over $400,000 in back and forward taxes and assessments over the past 35 years.

When lobbyists Frank and Michael Hillerby of the law firm Kaempfer Crowell took an interest in the case two-and-one-half years ago, they believed they could propose an amendment to the law that would grant the Community property tax exemption on the Sanctuary specifically without involving a lawsuit or the courts. Ultimately, Bishop Savoy chose not to seek specific tax exemption for the Red Rock Sanctuary only but to seek a modification of existing law that would provide tax exemption of all lands used exclusively for religious purposes by any and all recognized religious organizations.

In May 2014 this firm spoke on the Community’s behalf with representatives of Washoe County, advising them of our intent to seek an amendment to the law that would grant our Sanctuary a tax exemption. The representatives of the county were supportive and said they would not oppose us making a change to the law. This was a major step forward.

The Community’s lobbyists visited the Sanctuary for the first time shortly thereafter and were extremely impressed. They followed up by making appointments to speak with legislators and the Governor’s office for the change to the law, which was presented in the state legislature early in 2015.

The signing ceremony with Governor Brian Sandoval is expected to take place sometime in July shortly after Independence Day.

Michael Hillerby, Rebecca Wilis, Pat Hickey, and Gene Savoy Jr. In front of the Nevada Legislature building after the Nevada Assembly Taxation Committee hearing. PHOTO: Ted Staver

Read the rest of the history of the Sanctuary’s tax exemption case in the Community Communique:

April 23, 2015: “Sanctuary Tax Exemption Bill Makes Its Way to Nevada Senate”

April 20, 2015: “Sanctuary Tax Exemption Bill Starts Its Way Through Nevada Legislature”

FALL 1991:      “Church Seeks Tax Refund from County
                            Opposition Causes Church to Withdraw”
< To read the, download a copy of the FALL 1991 Community Communique here. >

SUMMER 1991:      “Church and County Reach Agreement
                                      Ten-year Sanctuary Tax Dispute Settled”

< To read the article, download a copy of the SUMMER 1991 Community Communique here. >
SPRING 1991:       “WILL CHURCH LOSE ITS SACRED SANCTUARIES?
                                   Payments of Back Taxes Only Way to Save Land”

< To read the article, download a copy of the SPRING 1991 Community Communique here. >

WINTER 1990-1991:       “Church Not to Pursue Federal Appeal
                                                Alternative Legal Options Explored in Full”

< To read the article, download a copy of the WINTER 1990-1991 Community Communique here. >

FALL 1990:       “Nevada Supreme Court Reverses Schouweiler Decision
                              Justices Mandate Sanctuary Taxation”

< To read the article, download a copy of the FALL 1990 Community Communique here. >

SUMMER 1990:       “SERMONS
                                       On the Nature of the Sanctuary of God and ‘The Way’
                                       delivered by The Head Bishop of The Church
                                       The Most Right Reverend Gene Savoy”

< To read the article, download a copy of the SUMMER 1990 Community Communique here. >

WINTER 1989-1990:       “Nevada Supreme Court Hears Church’s Tax Case
                                                Church in Court Again After Washoe County Appeal”

< To read the article, download a copy of the WINTER 1989-1990 Community Communique here. >

SUMMER 1988:      “Schouweiler Grants Red Rock Sanctuaries Tax Exemption
                                      Exemption Status Denied to the Sanctuary of New Mt. Zion”
< To read the article, download a copy of the SUMMER 1988 Community Communique here. >

SPRING 1988:       “Struggle to Secure Tax Exemption on Sanctuaries Continues
                                    Case Goes to Trial before District Court Judge Robert Schouweiler”

< To read the article, download a copy of the SPRING 1988 Community Communique here. >

WINTER 1988:       “Church Makes Deposition to Washoe County Court
                                     District Attorney’s Office Seeks to Impose Taxes on Sanctuaries”

< To read the article, download a copy of the WINTER 1988 Community Communique here. >

WINTER 1986:       “Church transfers civil rights suit to Washoe District Court
                                     State Court to test validity of DA’s interpretation of law”

< To read the article, download a copy of the WINTER 1986 Community Communique here. >

WINTER 1985:       “Judge criticizes Washoe County’s decision
                                     Commissioners did not act rationally, says magistrate”

< To read the article, download a copy of the WINTER 1985 Community Communique here. >

FALL 1984:        “County attorney vows to fight Church:
                               Court orders Commissioners to defend position”

< To read the article, download a copy of the FALL 1984 Community Communique here. >

SPRING 1984:       “Federal suit filed
                                 County reverses land tax-exemption”

                                “Court Order: Land remains with Church”

< To read the articles, download a copy of the SPRING 1984 Community Communique here. >

DECEMBER 22, 1981:
                “Church develops desert sanctuary as base for Second Advent Ministry”

< To read the article, download a copy of the DECEMBER 22, 1981 Community Communique here. >

December 1, 1980:       “FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS AT RED ROCK”

To read the article, download a copy of the DECEMBER 1, 1980 Community Communique here.

AUGUST 15, 1980:       “COMMUNITY ACQUIRES LAND AND BUILDINGS”

To read the article, download a copy of the AUGUST 15, 1980 Community Communique here.

* * *

The text of the new law signed into effect on May 25, 2015 appears below. Note that italics indicate newly added words or phrases:

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. NRS 361.125 is hereby amended to read as follows:
361.125 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2:

(a) Churches, chapels, other than marriage chapels, and other
buildings used for religious worship, with their furniture and
equipment, and the lots of ground on which they stand, used
therewith and necessary thereto; and
(b) Parcels of land used exclusively for worship, including,
without limitation, both developed and undeveloped portions of a
parcel, owned by some recognized religious society or corporation, and
parsonages so owned, are exempt from taxation.
2. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 361.157, when any
such property is used exclusively or in part for any other than
church purposes, and a rent or other valuable consideration is
received for its use, the property must be taxed.
3. The exemption provided by this section must be prorated for
the portion of a fiscal year during which the religious society or
corporation owns the real property. For the purposes of this
subsection, ownership of property purchased begins on the date of
recording of the deed to the purchaser.
Sec. 2. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2015.

Douglas Eugene “Gene” Savoy (1927-2007) was an American explorer, author, religious leader, and theologian. He undertook a series of daring expeditions to the Andes and the Amazon jungle in search of the ancient mysteries of the Incas, Aztecs and Mayans. He is perhaps best known for bringing to light a number of Peru’s most important archaeological sites, including Vilcabamba, the last refuge of the Incas during the Spanish Conquest.

Today Gene Savoy’s work is continued by the religious community and the educational institution he founded. New Dawn recently spoke to Gene Savoy’s son Sean about his father’s remarkable discoveries and insights based on the lore of lost civilizations.

< Download a PDF of an abridged version of the New Dawn interview HERE. >

Record of the introduction of Assembly Bill 391 through the Nevada Assembly from the Nevada Legislature’s web site PHOTO: www.leg.state.nv.us

Tracking of Assembly Bill 391 through the Nevada Assembly from the Nevada Legislature’s web site PHOTO: www.leg.state.nv.us

Nevada Assembly Bill AB391, which revises provisions governing the exemption from property taxes of certain property used for religious worship, has now made it through the Nevada Assembly and is on its way to the Senate to be reviewed and voted on.

Currently, if any religious organization in Nevada purchases a piece of property to build on, it would be taxed until fully developed. Under the proposed amendment to NRS 361.125, property purchased for religious purposes would be exempt from the time it was acquired.

AB391, an important piece of legislation that expands the scope of religious property tax exemption in Nevada and will benefit all religions in the state of Nevada, was introduced in the Assembly on March 17, 2015 by Michael Hillerby of the firm Kaempfer Crowell. On April 8th, the bill was printed and referred to the Assembly Committee on Taxation, where it was discussed and finally voted upon. The bill passed unanimously in committee 12-0.

On April 16th, the bill was read and passed unanimously by Assembly vote: 40-0, with two assembly members absent.

Following that vote, the bill was read for the first time in the Senate on April 17th and referred to the Senate Committee on Revenue and Economic Development, where it will be discussed and voted on in coming days.

Once the bill was passed, several other important people and organizations came on board to give their full support: The Washoe County Assessor; The Carson City Assessor; the Religious Alliance in Nevada (RAIN); the Lutheran and Episcopalian Alliance in Nevada (LEAN); and the Nevada Catholic Conference.

Bishop Gene Savoy Jr., Head Bishop of the International Community of Christ and President of the Nevada Clergy Association, has been working diligently for the past several months to prepare this piece of legislation, which would not only provide full tax exemption for Red Rock Consecrated Sanctuary, an event that Church members have been awaiting for over three decades, but also provide protection to all properties devoted to religious purposes.

Bishop Gene Savoy Jr. and Michael Hillerby’s father, Fred Hillerby, now retired, have been working on presenting the bill for nearly two-and-one-half years. The 2013 Nevada legislature was already in session when the two began their collaboration. And since the Nevada legislature meets for 120 days every two years, 2015 was the earliest the bill could be introduced.

< To read the text of Assembly Bill 391 as it was introduced, CLICK HERE. >

Gary Huss Sr at the Sanctuary in the 1980s PHOTO: Ted Staver

A Eulogy of Victory delivered by Rev. Canon Ted Staver

A Memorial Service was held for the Reverend Gary Huss Sr. (June 28, 1954 – March 31, 2015) on April 11, 2015, at the Chapel of the Holy Child. In attendance were Community members, among them his son, Gary Jr., and his wife, Diane. During the Memorial Service, the following Eulogy of Victory was delivered by Rev. Canon Ted Staver:

GARY HUSS Sr. was born on June 28, 1954, in DeRuyter, New York, a tiny town in the center of the state. He was a twin, but his twin sister, Carrie, died at birth. Gary grew up on a dairy farm but sought wider vistas so he enlisted in the army at age eighteen.

I met Gary in the army in 1975, when we were both stationed in South Korea. He was originally at Camp Casey, about forty miles north of Seoul, but later transferred to the 702nd Maintenance Detachment where I was. We both worked in the same shop. We hit it off immediately. Later on, we took up studying martial arts together. Bruce Lee was our hero of choice, and we spent a lot of time discussing Lee’s philosophy and concepts. From there we branched off into a study of Buddhism and some other Eastern teachings. Gary was always searching for the greater meaning of it all.

He told me that before coming to Korea he was stationed in Okinawa and that one day, for no special reason, he went out to view the sunset over the South China Sea. He told me: “The sun looked huge. Then something happened. In a flash I saw this symbol. I didn’t know what it was or what it meant, but it changed me somehow.” That became his inner driving force. He really began diving deeply into the Eastern mystics, men like Sri Yukteswar Giri, Swami Yogananda, Lahiri Mahasaya, and others. He loved reading about their mystical experiences and talking to me about those things.

One day, Gary found a discarded copy of Fate magazine in the barracks, thumbed through it, and saw the ad for the book Jamil: The Child Christ and recognized the Second Advent cross as being similar to what he had seen in the sun during the Okinawan sunset. He ordered the book immediately. I remember the day he got the package. He grabbed it and was gone. Several hours later he was standing out on the third-floor balcony yelling across the field to me, “Hey, Ted, it’s the sun; that’s the key.” It was about one o’clock in the afternoon, and I looked into the sun and just knew. Shortly after that we joined The Community, and thus our long journey began.

Gary moved to Reno in 1978. I followed a year later. There was a lot going on here in the Eighties; it was the “building phase” of The Church. Gary and I often found ourselves working together on the building projects, whether it was the chapel, the Episcopal See Building, or out at The Sanctuary. His favorite, though, was working with Stan Fortmeyer in the Production Department. He really liked Stan, as they shared so many similar viewpoints and taste in music.

Besides working on Church projects, he and I liked to go out to the Fremont drag races. It was a nice place to let off a little steam. (Nothing like standing next to a 4,000-horsepower dragster belching out clouds of nitro into the air to help you relax!) We’d go down into the pit areas and watch the crews tear apart motors, replace blowers, all kinds of close-up stuff. We even got a chance to shake hands with Don Garlits and Shirley Muldowney, two of the greats in drag racing history. After a day at the drag races we’d come back all charged up and do a little drag racing with our own cars. But probably the best were those Saturday afternoon Community softball games. We all loved those. It was a great way to just let go and have some friendly competition. Afterwards Gary and I would find a cool place and a cold beer, and he would talk about baseball. He was a walking encyclopedia when it came to baseball. His hero was Hall-of-Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan. He had all the books and all the stats on the guy memorized. You always walked away knowing a little bit more about baseball.

That was in the early years—the good years. We were both married at the time. Gary was married to Sun Cha, and in 1982 she became pregnant. When she was in the hospital, going into labor, Gary wanted the nursing staff to play George Harrison’s “Cracker Box Palace” over the loudspeakers; one of the lyrics went: “I welcome you to cracker box palace! We’ve been expecting you.” Of course they wouldn’t do it, but that was Gary. I recall the first day they brought Gary Jr. home. Rev Gene Sr. along with some staff showed up to anoint him and welcome him into the world. I think it was about two years later that Sun Cha left, and Gary became a single dad. So over the next ten years or so, we didn’t see a whole lot of each other; we were both just too busy.

There was this window in Gary’s life where things just weren’t working out for him, and he was really struggling. I like to refer to it as “the George Carlin period” because he loved George Carlin. Gary had all Carlin’s skits, all the hand gestures and facial expressions down pat. Carlin became his voice to help him express what he was going through. During this time he could be just a little hard to be around at times, but, hey, we all have our demons.

Then he met Diane, and she became the lifeline that rescued him from a stormy sea. To quote Willie Nelson: “Love’s the greatest healer to be found.” Diane was the love of Gary’s life; the kind of gal that would head off to the drag races with him or pack up and venture off to visit historic places. She said, “He was always happy; sometimes he would be walking down the hallway throwing kicks and punches—I guess he thought he was Bruce Lee! I told him, ‘You’re too old for that stuff; you’re gonna hurt yourself.’” One of Gary’s childhood friends commented: “One of the things I will remember most about Gary is that he would do whatever it took to make us happy. Gary never lost his ability to be child-like. I will miss his sweet hugs.” And don’’t forget Gary’s favorite quote: “Beam me up, Scotty!”

I remember planting trees with Gary down by the pond at the Sanctuary; he was so gentle and careful with the trees, and all the time we worked he talked to me about a Civil War book he was reading. I really learned a lot from that.

Diane was telling me that she and Gary had been together for about ten years when one morning at the breakfast table, Gary got up to pour a cup of coffee, turned around, and said, “You know what? We should get married.” And they did, on May 23, 2010.

One thing I didn’t know about Gary was that he could cook. Apparently, when he was working for McPherson Art Supplies, they would hold these company picnics, and they would have these judging contests of the food people brought in. Gary won a plaque for the best chicken wings.

Gary had a love of American history—especially the Civil War—and like baseball or auto racing, he pursued it with a passion fueled by a child-like curiosity. When he would talk about these subjects he could appeal to your sense of curiosity; he could draw you in to share his passion for the subject. He was really good at that. He was a teacher in his own way. He had that quality in Korea and never lost it. Over the past few years he turned his attention to astronomy. Sometimes he would show up at chapel and in the parking lot would show me all these photos he had downloaded from the Hubble Telescope and others; images of quasars, black holes, distant nebulae, photos of suns a hundred light years away that were so big they’d make our sun look like a golf ball, galaxies colliding and merging with each other. He would begin explaining phenomena like an astrophysicist. That was Gary: all the way or not at all.

I did not know until recently that he was in the beginning stages of writing a book. He has hundreds of notes compiled, and it has something to do with generative existence, but I am not very clear on where he was going with it.

But his greatest love was always the Christian mystics—or any mystic—and their transcendental experiences with the divine. If there was a book written on a mystic, he had it. That’s where his heart was; that’s the Gary I knew. He had a deep love and respect for Rev. Gene Sr., for this Church, the Teachings, and the people in this Community.

Gary left us with an heir, Gary Jr., and now Gary Jr. has a son of his own, so the Huss legacy continues on.

Gary Sr. had been an active member of The Community since April 1976, and part of the Reno community since March 1978. He performed numerous liturgical services at the Chapel of the Holy Child and at the Red Rock Sanctuary. He received third-level ordination in October 2007 and was a member of the crew of the Feathered Serpent II and an active member of the Andean Explorers since 1977. Gary and I grew up together in The Church and in this Teaching. Forty years is a long time: good times, bad times, and everything in between; things that can test a friendship, but in the end it was still there.

I would like to conclude with this prayer taken from the liturgy at Zion that was a favorite of his. I think it reflects his present state of being:

So in that world to which there is no end, ye shall receive great light,
but those who have been saved by their works,
and to whom the law has been now a hope,
and understanding an expectation,
and wisdom a confidence,
shall wonders appear in their time,
for they shall behold the world which is now invisible to them,
and they shall behold the time which is now hidden from them,
and time shall no longer age them,
for in the heights of that world shall they dwell,
and they shall be made like unto the angels,
and be made equal to the stars,
and they shall be changed into every form they desire,
from beauty into loveliness,
and from light into the splendor of glory.