The Hearth Pilot

Hearth is a small fellowship for integration, the formation of character and the practice of a more deliberate life. Every week, the Hearth meets and lights a fire together. They then discuss their own opportunities for integration, the practices they’ve undertaken to affect change in their life, and the truth about their results. The Hearth offers each member attention, counsel, reflection, challenge and wise, compassionate accountability.

The Pilot

The Hearth pilot program begins Saturday, August 8th, and continues through the first Hearth Gathering in late September, when we will review the program and decide on changes moving forward. Meetings will be held at Nameless Mountain on Saturdays at 9:00 a.m. Please show up prepared and ready to participate, every Saturday, through the end of the pilot. Please arrive by 8:45. Coffee, tea and pastries will be available before the meeting, and we will have an optional brunch afterward.

The pilot will remain open to newcomers through August 22. If you’d like to invite friends, they are welcome to join one of the existing Hearths with its agreement, or help form another viable Hearth. The minimum Hearth size is three, and the maximum is six.

Hearth welcomes religious believers, spiritual practitioners, agnostics, and atheists. You do not need to share anyone else’s beliefs. Some participants may understand this as spiritual formation; others may understand it in secular terms. We have no creed.

Before you come

Please set aside at least fifteen minutes to think about a quality of character you would like to cultivate during the pilot. Examples might include courage, patience, honesty, discipline, compassion or restraint. Once you have the word, you have a starting point. But “I want more courage” doesn’t yet tell us what, exactly, you’re trying to change. You still need to connect the quality to something that actually happens in your life.

So please come prepared to discuss:

  1. What quality do I want to cultivate in myself?

  2. What are the concrete habits, situations, memories, or relationships that make think this quality needs my attention?

  3. How is this quality already present in me?

  4. What might too little, too much, or a distorted form of this quality look like?

  5. Are there any recurring situations or relationships that give me an opportunity to practice?

An example story you might tell yourself:

“I avoid difficult conversations until I become resentful. This is especially true in my relationship with my girlfriend and my father. I am already courageous when someone else needs protection, but I struggle to stand up for what I believe when I am afraid I’ll be disliked. My courage can make me reckless and blunt when I’m also angry. The moment I need to practice is when I first notice myself drafting a vague excuse instead of asking for a direct conversation.”

It’s important not to use your aspirational quality as an accusation against yourself. “I am weak,” “I am selfish,” or “I am broken” are not qualities, and they’re not workable patterns. Ask what you actually do, or do not do, and how that affects you and others around you.

It’s okay if your choice is provisional when you show up. You don’t need to get it perfect before you come. We’ll help each other make the work real in the world.

What you are committing to

Joining the pilot means a sincere intention to:

  • Attend every weekly meeting through the September Gathering.

  • Arrive prepared and on time.

  • Remain with your Hearth through ordinary difficulty and disagreement when it is reasonable to do so.

  • Listen carefully and speak truthfully.

  • Return honestly to the commitments you make.

  • Protect the privacy of other members.

  • Offer counsel with courage and care.

  • Help with the practical work of the gathering as you are able.

  • Remain willing to learn when reality does not match your expectations.

You are free to leave or withdraw from the program at any time, but we ask you to make a good faith effort to stay with it. Both integration work and community can be demanding and challenging. Showing up - for yourself and others - is the best way through it.

What will happen on August 8th

We will begin with a brief orientation and time for questions. After orientation, everyone will have an opportunity to decide whether they wish to continue. Participants will then organize themselves into viable Hearths of three to six people.

We will hold an abbreviated Hearth Meeting so that everyone can experience the form. It will include the opening and closing silences, arrival, brief returns, response permissions, and preparation for the coming week. It will not include the longer-turn portion of an ordinary meeting.

The complete program will last no more than two hours. Coffee, tea, and light snacks will be available before we begin. Brunch and ordinary fellowship will follow.

The Participant Guide

The Participant Guide explains the complete weekly meeting, how to prepare, how commitments are made, how members respond to one another, the Hearth Journal, privacy, attendance, concerns, and repair.

If you can, read it before our first meeting on August 8th. If you can’t, don’t worry: The orientation will give you the minimum you need to participate. After that, please read the guide before the next meeting.

[Read the Hearth Participant Guide]

Program documents

The Common Rule is the shared constitution of the Hearth program. The Ladder of Concern explains what to do when something (or someone) is troubling you. The Repair Process explains how we respond when something has gone wrong between people and repair is appropriate.

You don’t need to study these documents before the first meeting, but you should know where to find them:

  • [Read the Common Rule]

  • [Read the Ladder of Concern]

  • [Read the Repair Process]

Questions

For questions about the pilot, attendance, accessibility, or practical arrangements, contact:

Gabe Broussard
Nameless Mountain
gabe@namelessmountain.org