Theos-Talk Archives (January 1997 Message tl00556)

<<<At 11:32 PM 1/16/97 -0500, Tom wrote:
<<<>On Wed, 15 Jan 97, Titus Roth  wrote:

>being a cult in order to have the optimal amount.  I wonder how many fewer
>members the Catholic Church would have if it emulated the lack of central
>leadership that the TS has.  I do not consider it to be a coincidence that
>the peak membership of the TS was immediately before Annie Besant's death.
>We need strong leaders like her.   

        Towards the end of Annie Besant's Presidency, one of the main
reasons for the drop in the membership was due to Krishnaji dismantling the
Order of the Star of the East after his famous "Truth is a Pathless Land"
declaration. After that TS never recovered as far the world wide membership
is concerned.

        One of the primary reasons for Annie Besant's dynamism was due to
the fact that she was very much involved in many activities outside of
Theosophical Society and in her individual capacity. She was active in the
Indian Independence Movement and was the only non-Indian woman to be elected
as the President of Indian National Congress -- the leading political party
fighting for Indian Independence. She was also active in building a chain of
educational institutions all over India -- both at the
elementary/middle/high school and also set up a University in Benares. She
was also very much involved in improving the conditions of women in India --
especially encouraging the parents to educate them and not marry them off
before they graduated. I believe, her valiant efforts in improving the
conditions of men and women in India -- a practical application of the First
Object of the Society seems to have much to do with her being able to
attract membership all over the world. Of course she was an outstanding
orator and TS has never seen any one of her caliber.

        I thought I should add my 2 cents worth of historical information
for those who may not be much aware of AB's work.


MKR