In my attempting to explain what the Landmark Forum actually is by quoting a lot of different people, I sometimes run into a hurdle: everyone has a different idea of what the Landmark Forum actually is. In fact, people seem to report a huge range of what they actually get out of the courses, and you’ll see a wide range of different types of people that actually take the courses. I know lots of liberals, environmentalists and activists who swear by the programmes. At the same time I know religious conservatives have also gotten great value.
I read a blog post earlier today from a very religious woman from California in the United States, and she was writing at length at the difference the Landmark Forum made in her life and reinivigorating her faith. She sees the Landmark Forum as perfectly in line with her faith and what it espouses – “If you’re listening with your spiritual ear, you’ll hear the Word of God all up and through.”
At the same time, she is savvy enough to realize that the Landmark Forum itself isn’t religious at all:
“The Landmark Forum is not a religion nor is it a cult. It is not a forum by which to brainwash you, nor is it designed to diminish or erase your faith or belief system; but it will definitely serve to enhance it. It is an amazing program with a curriculum that requires you to look at your life—and the stories you’ve created that have kept you from living forward.
She adds a useful caveat:
“It’s intense and by no account will it be easy. You will be forced to look you in the past to uncover those ‘stories’ that have been keeping you from living life full out.”
I definitely recommend visiting her Livin’ Outloud blog to read the whole thing.
Coming back to my original question: why is it that people have a very diverse range of opinion as to what Landmark and its programmes are and what they provide? I think it’s simply because the point of the programmes is to focus on what’s important to you in your life. If you’re religious, it will be about one’s faith, if one is an environmentalist, it will be about how one can make a greater difference protecting the environment, etc. A common theme among a lot of people in taking the Landmark Forum is becoming closer to parents and families, probably because these are issues of importance to just about everyone. Until next time…
