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PANTHEIST INTERNET COMMUNITIES - @ USER'S GUIDE
   The World Pantheist Movement has many different fora to which you can belong. We have two very general lists for members, one for discussion of ideas, the other for experiential and unitive postings, and two general lists for non-members, Pantheism_Intro for queries about the WPM and its approach to pantheism, the other, Pantheist_Spirituality, for all types of pantheism.
    In addition there are more than 50 other lists. 21 of these are local lists for countries or US states. Some are for off-topic subjects such as politics or personal matters. Some are for divisive topics that tend to come up over and over again, such as what pantheists mean by "God." Some are for intensive development of specific issues such as celebrants or children. And some are deliberative, such as the full members' list, or the members advisory council.
   Which ones will suit you will depend on your interests and time available. We do recommend that everyone who wants a chance to meet other pantheists join a local list as well as Pantheist Meetup.
     These fora are excellent ways of finding mutual support for your own beliefs, exploring ideas with others of similar beliefs,  and getting to know people of similar beliefs and values either in your own area or further afield.
PLEASE NOTE:
The mailing lists are only one aspect of the WPM's activity. They are a facility for communication among members, and do not necessarily represent WPM official standpoints. They are almost all unmoderated, so that the tone and content depends heavily on the whim of those choosing to post or not to post at any given time. The volume, tone, subjects and viewpoints vary, and a month or two is needed to get a representative view.
ACCESS TO LISTS
You may join free our generic pantheist list, our environmental action list, our list for news about the WPM, and our Web-based bulletin board.
Membership of our Ideas List and Community List is limited to members of the WPM, except for people from developing countries (Africa, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Asia excepting Israel, Japan, Singapore and South Korea).

General lists
Special Topics
Local Lists
World Pantheist Movement related lists
Generic pantheist forums on the Net
 

General mailing lists
Pantheism_Intro
This group is for non-members who want to ask FAQ-type questions about the WPM and its approach to pantheism. You can subscribe yourself.

Community List
    This list is for sharing experiences and feelings about nature, discussing everday problems of pantheist living, suggesting ways of celebrating life's stages and the seasons, and developing the World Pantheist Movement and its local groups.
Discussion of more philosophical or controversial ideas is better pursued on the debate list or on one of the more specialized lists.
     The atmosphere here is encouraged to be friendly, cooperative and constructive. 

To join this list you need first to join the WPM.
If you *are* a WPM member and wish to join, please log in to the Members' Center, and click on 'Update your personal information.' At the bottom of the screen, mark the checkboxes next to the lists you would like to join and chose 'Submit Updates.'

 Ideas list
     This list is mainly for discussing pantheist and related ideas and beliefs, and also discusses science, ethics and philosophy related to a reverent naturalistic life-view.
      The atmosphere here too is encouraged to be friendly, cooperative and constructive.
For this reason it is a list primarily for people in sympathy with the belief statement:  people who feel a deep religious reverence for the universe and nature, who generally do not believe that mind and matter are two separate substances, or that supernatural entities exist.
     Since ideas can only be developed if debated, be prepared, if you raise a pet idea, for someone else to offer a critique of it. It's not usually a sign of hostility. Our usual rules of mutual respect and avoiding personal attacks apply.

To join this list you first need to join the WPM
If you *are* a WPM member and wish to join, please log in to the Members' Center, and click on 'Update your personal information.' At the bottom of the screen, mark the checkboxes next to the lists you would like to join and chose 'Submit Updates.'
WPM Bulletin Board
This is a free Web-based bulletin board with many different subject forums and sub-topics. Most areas are open to all, but some areas related to the development of the World Pantheist Movement are limited to full members of the WPM.
     Ezboard is open to members and non-members.
     You can check this out and register at:
EzBoard

addReply.gif (1475 bytes)		 Pantheist News
    This is a free low-volume (one or two messages per week) announcement-only list/Web board for news about the World Pantheist Movement and its mailing lists.
    When you join the WPM you will be automatically added to the News list. [The welcome message provides instructions on how to unsubscribe, but remember that you may then miss important news. If you prefer you can set yourself to read this on the Web only.]
    You can also subscribe yourself.

Special Topics
Environmental Action Alerts
This is an announcement-only list for people who wish to receive action alerts from various environmental organizations like the WWF, Sierra Club etc. Please note that as a charity the WPM does not endorse any particular political group, candidate or action. Action alerts are posted by members for consideration by other members.  Subscribe here.

Vegetarianism
This is for vegetarian members of our mailing lists and of the World Pantheist Movement who want to discuss diet, recipes, ethics etc. [NB: the WPM regards the choice between vegetarianism and meat-eating as a personal one.] Subscribe here.

Hot Topics list
This list covers two kinds of topics:
● Those that have come up dozens of times on the Ideas list and that frequently hinge on the definition of terms.
● And for those that generate an unusual amount of heat, such as vegetarianism v meat eating or discussion of specific national or international political issues and political systems. [Please note that as a charity the WPM does not endorse any particular political group, candidate or action.]
This list is reserved for members of our four main lists: Community, Ideas, Spirituality and Intro. If you belong to any of these, you can Subscribe here.

Relationships
This is for mature and tasteful discussion of personal relationships and sexual preferences (hetero, gay, bi, poly) and other sensitive matters unsuited for the very large general lists, which have members ranging from 13 to 87 in age. You must be 18 or over to Subscribe. Please note that the WPM regards private personal behaviour that harms no-one as a matter for private choice.

Friends list
This is a place for people who describe themselves as pantheists to hang out and talk in a friendly atmosphere, to share something of their personal lives, as well as their pantheist beliefs.

Meditation list
For an open-minded non-dogmatic sharing and discussion of meditation techniques suitable for pantheists.

World Pantheist Movement related
World Pantheist Movement E-group
This is a list/Web community for full WPM members, where they can talk about the development of the movement and its services. It has a calendar, chat room, databases, area for uploading files, and facility for holding polls of members. To join this list

WPM Children's facilities
This list/Web community discusses ways in which the WPM can be made child-friendly and parent-friendly. It has the same facilities as the WPM e-group.

WPM Celebrants list
This list is for people who would like to discuss the role and status of celebrants of weddings, funerals etc, or who would like to become celebrants.

Local Groups forum
For people trying to form local groups and to encourage the formation of local groups.

WPM UUs
For WPM members and friends who want to discuss and develop the relationship between Unitarian Universalism and the WPM

Local groups for WPM members and friends

These groups  are for getting to know people in your area and for arranging get-togethers. They are open to all who are interested, and you can subscribe yourself. There are lists covering most US states, the UK, Australia, Canada and others. To check out what local lists we have, what areas they cover, and for links to each one so you can join, visit our Local Groups page.
You do not have to be a WPM subscribing member to belong to a local list or to attend local meetings.

Other general pantheist fora on the Internet
Pantheist_Spirituality 
    This free access forum is not tied to any particular form of pantheism: there are natural/scientific pantheists there along with dualists and so on. You can subscribe yourself here. This forum can sometimes "go quiet" for days or even weeks on end, but generally all you need to do to spark it into action is to ask a question. Don't be shy if you find it strangely silent: everyone is waiting for everyone else to post!

Pantheist Newsgroup
This is the main Usenet newsgroup for pantheism. It is open to all types of pantheist - and anti-pantheist!   Check latest messages.

Beliefnet
A generic forum, not limited to pantheists, but mostly frequented by people sympathetic to or interested in finding more about pantheism.

Pantheist Net Forum
This is the Web-based forum of the Universal Pantheist Society. It is not tied to any particular form of pantheism.  Currently extremely quiet.

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Page updated March 2004.             Contact us: info@pantheism.net