One of the biggest problems we in the west have is a profound lack of altruism, and our spiritual communities and traditions are no exception. I laughed a few weeks ago when I received an email from a nationally known group that holds initiation rituals for men. Citing the truth that we have lost much needed authentic initiation rituals in our culture, the email then went on to offer a program that was priced out of reach of the vast majority of young people!

While there are notable exceptions to this rule, they are few and far between. I do believe people need to earn a living, but it seems that many of these programs are created to build financial wealth for the leaders rather than to serve people. If my primary motivation is to turn a buck, that fact won’t be lost on the participants – and it will show in my results.