A Heart and Mind Community traverses the inner landscape of transformation using The Four-Gospel Journey, an inclusive and non-dualistic worldview.

A Heart and Mind Community:

• Is a small circle of usually two to eight people, plus a convener.
• Is an in-depth, sequenced, process of individual and communal growth and spiritual formation.
• Is built upon two core practices that support equality and mutual respect while protecting and honoring a vital diversity; they are In Freedom & Safety and Welcome of The Other.
• Uses The Four-Gospel Journey to support one’s passage from outer/external authorities to one’s own inner/authentic authority.

As each person in a Heart and Mind Community is undertaking a personal journey of transformation, participants are usually named pilgrims.

The intent of a Heart and Mind Community is to provide both individual and small community growth and transformation, based on a ‘here and now’ experience of Jesus the Christ, in a free, safe, contemplative, and prayerful environment. This process requires un-learning, re-learning, and depth formation in living the four paths. As a result, while this experience has an element of education and scripture study, these are not its primary focus.

There are a growing number of online communities across the world, some are comprised of people who live near each other or who live in similar time zones, while others have members spread across the world. One community has pilgrims from the UK and various U.S. States, all the way to Hawaii. Another community has members in Australia and China.

Whether online or together in person, a Community is (convened/facilitated) by a pilgrim (participant) who wishes to take on this role. Whilst a convener has additional responsibilities, the expectation is that she/he/they will fully participate in the community.

The usual process for an online Heart and Mind Community is that Annie serves as the Convener for Guide One. During that time she is mentoring someone in the community to take on the role at some point during Guide Two. Additionally, Conveners gather online once a month with Annie for their own continuing formation and support in their role.

The Heart and Mind Community: Convener Text contains the script for the entire process. The Text (292 pages with supplemental materials) provides both structure and directions, so that with desire and some preparation, a person may be at ease in the role of convener.

To inquire about convening a community and/or purchasing the Convener Text, contact Annie.

To help Conveners prepare, we offer a series of free training videos, online mentoring with Annie and a monthly (online) support gathering. These are offered at no additional cost.

A Heart and Mind Community requires that every pilgrim commit to the core foundational practices of In Freedom and Safety and Welcome of The Other.

Equally, Heart and Mind Community asks that each pilgrim:

• Be present during the weekly or bi-weekly gatherings.
 
• Prepare for each gathering by reading the requested section of the book. We highly recommend the hardcover Radical Transformation: The Four Gospel Journey of Heart and Mind* for its easy-to-read layout and durability. Alternatively the paperback Heart and Mind: The Four-Gospel Journey of Radical Transformation (3rd Edition) may be used.
 
• Make a financial contribution to Quadratos LLC through Patreon for $33 per month for the length of your participation in a Heart and Mind Community or a one time contribution of $475 by PayPal, credit card or personal check on a U.S. bank, made before you begin your journey. Once we have received your initial financial contribution, a hardback copy of Radical Transformation* will be sent to you.

* Sadly, if you live outside continental U.S., a payment is required for shipping. Or if you wish, you may receive a paperback copy of Heart and Mind at no additional cost.

A commonly expressed concern when considering becoming a member of a community is “Do I have what it takes to be a part of this community?”

This anxiety is natural and suggests that the journey being embarked upon is that of a true pilgrim; A pilgrim is an individual who walks an outer or inner sacred path with the purpose of finding more vitality in one’s interior life and ability to respond to one’s outer circumstances.

Moment by moment in each Gathering, it is for you to discern how much and what to share, or even whether to share at all while practicing In Freedom and Safety and Welcome of The Other. The Convener will ensure that sharing does not veer from everyone’s stated intent to practice the holding of a safe and free space for self and others.

At the outset of a new community, you naturally may be concerned that you may not get along with the others, particularly if you have not met previously.

Heart and Mind Communities recognize that to create a community built on individual authenticity and shared harmony is a new frontier in human history.

The practices of In Freedom and Safety and Welcome of The Other provide a foundation for respectful, non-judgmental relationships to develop.  Each pilgrim undertakes their own journey of spiritual formation, witnessed, and held by others who are also undergoing their own journey. There is no intellectual argument during the Gatherings, but rather deep listening to and welcome of self and others.

In all areas of life, trust needs to be earned. A Heart and Mind Community is no exception. During every Gathering, you are responsible for discerning whether to respond to a question and which thoughts, feelings, or sensations to share.  If a feeling of discomfort or excessive vulnerability develops, you are encouraged to pull-back and share less. As a sense of trust develops, you are encouraged to deepen your sharing and express your own authentic voice more fully.

Communities have said that they are both amazed and comforted by the speed at which trust develops and the freedom each feels to “be themselves” in the Gatherings.

The Gatherings have been carefully crafted by Alexander John Shaia and an international team of ministers and spiritual directors. The sequence is designed to provide a gradual and step by step process to ensure growth and transformation. Using the Four-Gospel Journey, the process steadily encourages you to move from listening primarily to external authorities, to discover and live from your own authentic internal authority.

Imagine ice-skating competition built on two differing performances. The skater must first demonstrate technical proficiency, known as one’s compulsory performance. Then that technical ability is woven into each skater’s creative expression known as ‘free-form.’  The skater’s technical ability evidenced in learning structure and discipline enables the skater to then perform in an original, creative, and authentic way.

The final Gathering within each of the six Guides offers time for journaling, painting, drawing, collage, music, poetry – as a way to grasp and integrate the meaning/learnings for each pilgrim in a non-judgemental and creative way.

Every Gathering includes several ritual elements or symbols which may initially be unfamiliar. Each symbol is intended to offer an opening for deeper awareness of self, others and the Divine.

You are invited to “give it a try” over the Gatherings in Guide One. See how these elements feel to you, and what they may or may not mean to you.  As Guide One ends, then is the time to discern if you wish to continue to use these elements.

1. Join Annie from Team Quadratos and a small group of interested individuals by reserving your place in an online Heart and Mind Community Information Session. Reserve Your Place »
 
2. During the Information Session, Annie or another member of Team Quadratos will discuss the process of a Heart and Mind Community, its two foundational practices – “In Freedom and Safety” & “Welcome The Other” – and will review the participant agreement (called a Pilgrim Agreement).
 
3. Shortly after the Information Session, you will receive an email containing a link, so that you may download the Pilgrim Agreement and Annie’s email address, so that you may contact her with any queries.

1. State your desire to participate in a Heart and Mind Community during the Information Session or by emailing Annie after the session. You will be connected with a Community and provided with details of the Community’s initial gathering, or your name will be placed on a short waitlist.
 
2. Once connected to a specific Community, please sign the Pilgrim Agreement in duplicate. Next, scan or email a copy to your Community’s Convener and keep a copy for yourself. A signed agreement is a requirement for community participation.
 
3. Make your initial financial contribution, in one of two ways. (See the above section: “What Does the Community Ask of Me?”)
 
4. Once your signed Pilgrim Agreement and initial financial contribution are received we will send you a hardback copy of Radical Transformation, a Quadratos Journal and a set of Quadratos bookmarks, to support you on the journey.

No. A Heart and Mind Community allows for a gradual progressive reading and internalizing of one’s own journey over the four paths.