Anthroposophical Society

Anthroposophical Society
Allgemeine Anthroposophische Gesellschaft
Abbreviation	AS
Formation	1912 / 1923
Founder	Rudolf Steiner
Headquarters	Dornach SO, Switzerland
Membership	46,157 in 35 national societies and 39 groups
Board of directors	Justus Wittich, Joan Sleigh, Constanza Kaliks, Matthias Girke
Website	www.goetheanum.org

The General Anthroposophical Society is an "association of people whose will it is to nurture the life of the soul, both in the individual and in human society, on the basis of a true knowledge of the spiritual world."^[3]^[4]^[5] As an organization, it is dedicated to supporting the community of those interested in the inner path of schooling known as anthroposophy, developed by Rudolf Steiner.

The Anthroposophical Society was founded on December 28, 1912 in Cologne, Germany, with about 3000 members. Central to this founding was Rudolf Steiner, who acted as an advisor and lecturer. The members of its original Executive Council were Marie von Sivers, Michael Bauer, and Carl Unger.^[6] The Society was re-founded as the General Anthroposophical Society in 1923/4 in Dornach, Switzerland. It includes an esoteric School of Spiritual Science.

The Society's headquarters is at the Goetheanum, located in Dornach, Solothurn, Switzerland. The Society has national Societies in many countries, including every English-speaking country.^[7] Its primary activities include organizing members' meetings and conferences, supporting research, and providing communication channels for a variety of purposes. The Society also encourages sustainable initiatives in the many practical fields in which its members are active.

As of 2013, the Society has approximately 52,000 members. Formal branches of the Society have been established in 50 countries, and smaller groups are active in 50 further countries. About 10,000 institutions base their work on anthroposophy,^[8] including schools, farms, medical practices, and communities for the handicapped.

^ Seija Zimmermann (2015), Allgemeine Anthroposophische Gesellschaft (ed.), "Wirken als esoterische Gesellschaft", Nachrichten für Mitglieder - Anthroposophie weltweit (in German), no. 6
^ "Vorstand der Allgemeinen Anthroposophischen Gesellschaft". www.goetheanum.org (in German). Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
^ First principle of the original statutes; see statutes section of this article.
^ Cite error: The named reference Hemleben was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ "Anthroposophical Society". www.goetheanum.org. Archived from the original on 2016-08-06. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
^ "Overview". www.goetheanum.org. Archived from the original on 2015-11-21. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
^ Lía Tummer, Rudolf Steiner and Anthroposophy for Beginners, Writers and Readers Publishing, ISBN 0-86316-286-X, pp. 166.
^ "History of the Anthroposophical Society from 1990 until today". Archived from the original on 2013-07-04. Retrieved 2013-12-06.

[1] Seija Zimmermann (2015), Allgemeine Anthroposophische Gesellschaft (ed.), "Wirken als esoterische Gesellschaft", Nachrichten für Mitglieder - Anthroposophie weltweit (in German), no. 6

[2] "Vorstand der Allgemeinen Anthroposophischen Gesellschaft". www.goetheanum.org (in German). Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2020-02-11.

[3] First principle of the original statutes; see statutes section of this article.

[Hemleben-4] Cite error: The named reference Hemleben was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[5] "Anthroposophical Society". www.goetheanum.org. Archived from the original on 2016-08-06. Retrieved 2015-10-29.

[6] "Overview". www.goetheanum.org. Archived from the original on 2015-11-21. Retrieved 2015-10-30.

[Tummer-7] Lía Tummer, Rudolf Steiner and Anthroposophy for Beginners, Writers and Readers Publishing, ISBN 0-86316-286-X, pp. 166.

[8] "History of the Anthroposophical Society from 1990 until today". Archived from the original on 2013-07-04. Retrieved 2013-12-06.

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