Brian Mueller: Welcome to Follow Me to the MROP, a podcast dedicated to the journey of the masculine soul and the transformative power of initiation.
Brian Mueller: My name is Brian Mueller.
Brian Mueller: I live in suburban Dayton, Ohio, and I made my rites at Pilgrim Park in Illinois in twenty fourteen.
Brian Mueller: I'm your host, and in each episode of our show I'll sit down with one man who has made his rites, and I'll invite him to tell his story.
Brian Mueller: This won't be an abstract explanation or a theological lecture, just a real conversation about what it was like to cross that threshold at the rites and what changed afterwards.
Brian Mueller: This podcast is truly a labor of love, inspired by my own transformative experience at the men's rites of passage and my ongoing commitment to the Illuman Community.
Brian Mueller: If this show resonates with you, please take a moment to rate, review, and share it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Brian Mueller: You can find all of those links at m-r-o-p talk dot
Brian Mueller: com.
Brian Mueller: To support my work
Brian Mueller: You can explore my published poetry volumes at Brian Mueller dot
Brian Mueller: com.
Brian Mueller: I also work closely with men and Illuman to share and teach the practice of presence.
Brian Mueller: You can learn more about that at choosing presence dot
Brian Mueller: org.
Brian Mueller: Now the Men's Rites of Passage, or MROP, is an experience designed to help men move from the first half of life into the second, shifting from a focus on ego and achievement to a life of meaning and soul.
Brian Mueller: On this show we just don't talk about the rites in theory.
Brian Mueller: We talk to the men who have walked the path.
Brian Mueller: Today I'm joined by a man who has made his rites, and we're going to hear
Brian Mueller: Exactly what that journey looked like for him.
Brian Mueller: My guest today is Steve Duncan.
Brian Mueller: Brother, I'm really glad you're here.
Brian Mueller: Thanks for making the time and for being willing to share your story.
Brian Mueller: It's really special to be with you today, Brian.
Steve Duncan: Thank you.
Brian Mueller: Steve, tell us where you're from and how you spend your time these days.
Steve Duncan: Well, right now I'm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, but I was born and raised and spent most of my adult life in
Steve Duncan: Southern California and Eastern LA County.
Steve Duncan: Moved east in 2020 to follow our family and our grandchildren.
Steve Duncan: And so we've been in Gettysburg for about three years now.
Steve Duncan: and spend time doing a variety of family things and helping with grandchild pickup at school and all those sorts of things, and then getting more and more active in the Gettysburg Community, which has been really wonderful.
Brian Mueller: Thank you.
Brian Mueller: Now let's dive in and talk about the men's rites of passage.
Brian Mueller: The MROP is a unique experience.
Brian Mueller: It's not a retreat or a workshop.
Brian Mueller: It's an initiation.
Brian Mueller: Many men arrive at the rites at a crossroads in their lives, looking for something they can't quite name.
Brian Mueller: Before we dive into the wine and how, let's start at the very beginning.
Brian Mueller: When and where did you make your right, Steve?
Steve Duncan: I did it in August of 2015 in Northern California at Camp Tamarack.
Brian Mueller: And do you recall who the Weber was and about how many men were present?
Brian Mueller: Yeah, it was Jim Taylor, and there were about 32, I think.
Brian Mueller: Now, when you think back to that weekend, what's the first image or feeling that comes forth for you?
Brian Mueller: Probably one of the larger leaps of faith that I had taken.
Steve Duncan: I really knew.
Steve Duncan: I knew nothing about the men's work.
Steve Duncan: I knew nothing about Illuman.
Steve Duncan: I was familiar with Richard Rohr and had been to a number of his presentations and conferences and so forth.
Steve Duncan: I went really in cold to the extent to where I I actually uh intentionally chose not to drive myself.
Steve Duncan: I did a carpool with another man I didn't know, but that also meant that he was in control of the driving.
Steve Duncan: And so I showed up just being kind of totally open.
Steve Duncan: How would you summarize the entire weekend for you, that experience?
Steve Duncan: One of the reasons that I went was that I realized shortly after I retired that I really did not have any in-depth male relationships.
Steve Duncan: And I really missed that.
Steve Duncan: I missed that energy.
Steve Duncan: And starting with the very first evening, and I was just humbled by the men I was with and the
Steve Duncan: The gift that it was to be able to be with them in that kind of in that kind of setting.
Steve Duncan: And then kind of that rolled on through the weekend.
Steve Duncan: I never participated in anything remotely close to that kind of event.
Steve Duncan: And I think that energy continued over the course of the event.
Brian Mueller: Now without sharing anything that you consider too personal or would be confidential, was there a particular event ritual that happened that weekend?
Brian Mueller: Or was there an encounter you had with another man that really fans?
Steve Duncan: Yeah.
Steve Duncan: Yeah, there are a couple.
Steve Duncan: I mean, that first night, just the vulnerability of the men and their sharing, I ended up that first night getting off into some stuff that
Steve Duncan: That quite frankly, I'd never shared, but needed to be shared.
Steve Duncan: I needed to share.
Steve Duncan: There was one ritual where I had some physical, personal physical challenges, not the ritual itself was necessarily all that physical demanding.
Steve Duncan: And I was feeling kind of self-conscious and at ease.
Steve Duncan: And one of the team came up behind me and just gently kind of put his hands under my shoulders and kind of supported me.
Steve Duncan: Through that.
Steve Duncan: And I kind of well up a little bit to this day, you know, 11 years later, thinking about that moment.
Steve Duncan: And I've carried that with me.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, that's really beautiful.
Brian Mueller: Now you alluded to this before, in terms of the circumstances in your life.
Brian Mueller: You had just retired.
Brian Mueller: You were familiar with Richard Rohr, and that kind of led you closer to this experience.
Brian Mueller: But more specifically, what were the circumstances in your life
Brian Mueller: That led you at that particular time to go to a men's rites of passage.
Steve Duncan: So we had just been fully immersed in our daughter getting married.
Steve Duncan: To a wonderful man on the other end of the country and who grew up in the environment that we're living in now.
Steve Duncan: And I really was looking to have a really close relationship with him.
Steve Duncan: But I suddenly realized that I'd been very accustomed to having work relationships, professional relationships with folks.
Steve Duncan: And I really didn't feel like I had the tools really to kind of
Steve Duncan: build a relationship I really wanted to have with them at that point.
Steve Duncan: And that was one factor.
Steve Duncan: And so I'd asked a friend who a long time friend who I'd known forever who and I just kind of said, you know
Steve Duncan: Do you have any thoughts, any ideas on this?
Steve Duncan: Because he had three grown sons, and I figured he'd have some good insights.
Steve Duncan: And so he had gone to the rites five years before that.
Steve Duncan: And so he recommended that.
Steve Duncan: And in your introduction, Brian, you mentioned the thing that I think Richard Rohr talks about, that for men, we have this thing kind of going on inside of us.
Steve Duncan: It's a nagging, it's an urge.
Steve Duncan: It's a feeling we can't name it.
Steve Duncan: We can't really describe it, but it's something that we know needs to be addressed.
Steve Duncan: And I guess that's what I was kind of feeling.
Brian Mueller: So you made the decision to attend the rites of passage.
Brian Mueller: And I know you, as a dedicated family man, you were very involved with your daughter and her life and your
Brian Mueller: Grandkids.
Brian Mueller: And so I imagine you told them that you were going to, you know, your wife and your daughter, and perhaps even a spiritual director advisor that you were going to the rites.
Brian Mueller: What was their reaction?
Steve Duncan: Well, at that point, our I have to admit, our daughter was living cross country and I well, I told her about it, we didn't really get into it in detail.
Steve Duncan: But my wife has probably been my biggest cheerleader in terms of doing this.
Steve Duncan: I mean, she was all in before I was all in, quite frankly.
Steve Duncan: And, you know, we're coming up on our 53rd wedding anniversary this next month.
Steve Duncan: So, you know, she knew what my journey was.
Steve Duncan: And to the extent to where I mean, she drove me to Los Angeles to drop me off for my ride to the rites.
Steve Duncan: So she was she was happy to be a part of that.
Steve Duncan: So yeah, she's been an enthusiastic supporter of my participation in Illuman ever since.
Brian Mueller: So I've never been to Camp Tamarack.
Brian Mueller: I can imagine, you know, having been to some of these rites and these experiences, you're going into a more wilderness setting or natural setting for this event.
Brian Mueller: I'm curious to know how you felt as you pulled up to Camp Tamarack.
Steve Duncan: So turns out we were the first car to arrive.
Steve Duncan: I think we were actually a little early, but it was.
Steve Duncan: It was up in the High Sierras, beautiful, just amazing, amazing area.
Steve Duncan: But yeah, it was it was it was rustic.
Steve Duncan: And I guess in a way the fact of landing in a place like that, and in a way, kind of just being in nature like that, kind of relaxed me a bit.
Steve Duncan: Because the team was working hard and the welcome was very gracious and generous.
Steve Duncan: And so I think in many ways that really put me at ease in terms of just settling in and very honestly just letting it happen.
Brian Mueller: Did you have any expectations going into the riots or something you wanted to be initiated into?
Steve Duncan: Wow.
Steve Duncan: You know, I think really it was a matter of really being present to
Steve Duncan: my relationships with men throughout my life, both family, neighborhood, friends, church, all of that.
Steve Duncan: And looking forward to using that as a way to really challenge me.
Steve Duncan: on what my part in that would be.
Steve Duncan: And I figured this would be an experience where there'd be a lot of interaction with men that would help me define that for myself a bit.
Steve Duncan: And probably I figured, given that I'd spent a lot of years trying to be in control of things, it was good for me to not be in control and to not try and
Steve Duncan: predict or judge or or control the expected outcome of something.
Steve Duncan: And I think that part of it was really good.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, that element of control, I can that resonates for me.
Brian Mueller: But so I was going to ask you, is there anything that you were fearing heading into the rites?
Steve Duncan: Oh, I think probably you know, the you know, again, particularly you know, I had no idea what the age range of people would be and and as a kind of new elder, if you will, you know, that old thing of being embarrassed among the younger, fitter guys.
Steve Duncan: And so forth.
Steve Duncan: So a little bit of that.
Steve Duncan: I wasn't sure whether I was spiritually equipped or adept
Steve Duncan: for the group that was there, I just really didn't know.
Steve Duncan: And so I think probably a little bit of that was there.
Steve Duncan: But I think, quite frankly, the three of us, because we picked up another fellow on the way up.
Steve Duncan: And we had really a great time in the car.
Steve Duncan: To some extent, it was a it was a small car, so we had all our gear in there and I think it was kind of like the the proverbial clown car as we kind of made our way up the mountain.
Steve Duncan: And but we had a good time.
Steve Duncan: But I think that really kind of helped in many ways.
Steve Duncan: I'm really glad I look back on that and I think that was a great way to start the event for I actually recommend to people, you know, try and try and find somebody to buddy up with on your journey to the rites.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, so I don't like to just glaze over the entire event, but so it's a four night, you know, five day parts of five days event.
Brian Mueller: You know, it's a big experience, but at some point it does come to an end and it's time for you now to head out.
Brian Mueller: And like you said, you carpooled with some guys up to Cap Tamarack, so you were leaving with other men.
Brian Mueller: But I'm curious to know how you
Brian Mueller: Felt immediately after the rites, if not just a few hours, maybe the day or two after that.
Steve Duncan: The term that just comes to mind is: I was really jazzed.
Steve Duncan: I was less tired than I thought I would be, even though sleep was certainly not a big part of the time.
Steve Duncan: I was excited about continuing the work, continuing the relationships, following up with the men who were there.
Steve Duncan: As I could, and there are a number of them that I have been able to stay in touch with 11 years later
Steve Duncan: So yeah, I was excited.
Steve Duncan: And the good thing was that I was able to connect right away with a local chapter and continue that shortly after we got back.
Brian Mueller: So what has changed in your life practically, relationally, spiritually, since Making Your rites?
Steve Duncan: Well, I think one thing that was I haven't touched upon that was a completely new experience for me was really contemplation.
Steve Duncan: that first contemplative set we had, the first mooring, it was when they could still have a fire in that area, which sadly is not so much the case anymore.
Steve Duncan: there in California.
Steve Duncan: But to this day, when I have a set, I will sensorily remember the smell of that fire as I do a set.
Steve Duncan: And that really opened the door for me in terms of a more full and rich contemplative practice as part of my life.
Steve Duncan: That was really the opening for me at that point.
Steve Duncan: And to do it with a group of men altogether
Steve Duncan: like that was really special for me.
Steve Duncan: And even though I do individual work, I mean, I really find the group practice to be particularly
Steve Duncan: powerful for me.
Steve Duncan: And I think the other would be really looking at, I think, broader relationships with men that wouldn't normally be part of my
Steve Duncan: community or circle, if you will.
Steve Duncan: I've that's been something that I've really appreciated coming out of it.
Steve Duncan: And it really kind of opened the door for that.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, you mentioned several times the significance of developing relationships, especially with men.
Brian Mueller: So I'm curious to know how have your conversations with men and how have your relationships with men gone since it's the rites?
Steve Duncan: So I'm an introvert by nature, and so I'm not out there kind of beating the bushes so much, and I'm not a joiner necessarily.
Steve Duncan: So I think it's still a continuing work in progress for me in terms of how best to navigate
Steve Duncan: that relationship territory.
Steve Duncan: One of the things it has done is it's challenged me to take the initiative more in reaching out and connecting
Steve Duncan: not waiting for the invitation per se.
Steve Duncan: One of the things it's done, it's allowed me to feel more comfortable just showing up places sometimes where I don't necessarily know anything.
Steve Duncan: And I think that's how you and I met.
Steve Duncan: quite frankly, where I just showed up.
Steve Duncan: And so I really value that.
Brian Mueller: So how long did it take you or when did you begin to realize the impact of the rites on your life and on your spiritual journey?
Steve Duncan: you know, it's different aspects of it have have emerged or blossomed at different times, quite frankly.
Steve Duncan: I think probably the
Steve Duncan: Contemplative practice was probably one of the most immediate.
Steve Duncan: The other thing that came out over the course of that work was
Steve Duncan: the absence of grief work in my life.
Steve Duncan: I realized profoundly that I had a lot of that work still to do.
Steve Duncan: And I did kind of get engaged with that in some different ways almost immediately after
Steve Duncan: after the rites.
Steve Duncan: That was probably the more most powerful one initially.
Brian Mueller: Have the rites changed your understanding of masculinity, initiation, even the male journey through life?
Steve Duncan: I don't know if it's changed a Brian as much as expanded it and and affirmed in some respects.
Steve Duncan: You know, I in my working life, I was exposed in many different ways to the consequences of toxic
Steve Duncan: masculinity and its impacts on people and workplaces and communities.
Steve Duncan: And so I've always had a concern for that.
Steve Duncan: And I think maybe the rites gave me more
Steve Duncan: Language on how to describe that and how to engage it when I do engage it, if that makes sense.
Steve Duncan: But that's
Steve Duncan: Yeah, that would be one thing.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, you know, we came to know each other because you showed up at a writing retreat that we did in Ohio a few years ago
Brian Mueller: And I know you as a man who's been active in the Illuman community.
Brian Mueller: We were talking about how you had participated as an initiator in the rites where Mike Clawson, one of our previous guests, had made his rites.
Brian Mueller: And I know you've been involved in so many different things.
Brian Mueller: Have you also been involved in the elder rites of passage?
Brian Mueller: Yes.
Brian Mueller: When did you do that?
Brian Mueller: Let's see, that was 2023.
Brian Mueller: And can I ask you to kind of just tell us why you went on to do the EROP and then maybe just give give men an understanding of what's the difference between the elder rites and the men's rites and why you took that step?
Steve Duncan: Well, I think I'd actually been considering for some time.
Steve Duncan: I was aw when we were still living in Southern California, I became aware of the fact that it was being developed and was being offered.
Steve Duncan: And I was interested at that point, but then our move occurred and the pandemic occurred and all that sort of stuff.
Steve Duncan: I think what I'd understood it to be before I went was really not a
Steve Duncan: Not a repeat of the MROP or even necessarily a building on the MROP, but taking a lot of the same ritual and elements of the format of the MROP, but putting it in the context of
Steve Duncan: Of work that was specifically for us to do as elders, and not necessarily even by virtue of age
Steve Duncan: And again, I also learned from other men that I talked to that there was some not more, but different kinds of attention to grief work there, which I think was profound for me.
Steve Duncan: also found that it built upon some of the work that I did do at the MROP, but I think that was on an individual more my own individual basis.
Steve Duncan: Again, I found the rituals there to be particularly meaningful and powerful for me at that stage for me in elderhood.
Steve Duncan: I think the thing that's kind of interesting, Brian, is that for that age group, your needs and the points of intersection of the rites with your life
Steve Duncan: Do change based on how you're moving through that elder journey by virtue of whether you're still working, what your family relationships are, your marital or significant other relationships are, what your health.
Steve Duncan: is like, because I think part of what you're now dealing with is some of those issues of mortality that we all have to wrestle with.
Steve Duncan: So I found that to be profound there.
Steve Duncan: And so I was at a different stage with that
Steve Duncan: when I did the elder rites than I was when when I went to the MROP.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, I found it interesting that in recent years they've developed what they call the Elder's Weave to allow men and women to both participate in that.
Brian Mueller: You know, my understanding is that the journey for men and women kind of converges as they get into those later years.
Brian Mueller: Is that your experience as well?
Steve Duncan: I have not participated in the weave.
Steve Duncan: Mine was exclusively men, so I don't know that I can speak to that.
Steve Duncan: I have a spouse who's extraordinarily active in her spiritual life.
Steve Duncan: She's a spiritual director herself.
Steve Duncan: And so we've had a chance to very actively partner in a lot of this work together.
Steve Duncan: So I definitely would agree with you that I think those things do definitely come together.
Steve Duncan: And I presume that
Steve Duncan: that since I've understood a lot of men have done the elder weave with their spouse, with their partner, that that's been a very powerful process for them
Brian Mueller: You touched on something there that I think must be awful helpful, is the fact that your spouse is very engaged in her spiritual journey as well.
Brian Mueller: I imagine that that makes it a little bit easier for you as well.
Steve Duncan: Easier and it holds you a little bit more accountable as well.
Brian Mueller: Yeah.
Brian Mueller: So, you know, one of the aspects of the rites of passage that I think is so important is that it usually clears some space for
Brian Mueller: a man to get more in touch with his gifts and who he is authentically.
Brian Mueller: And I'm wondering, you know, after you've gotten involved in this and you've been around for about a decade, has it awakened some passions in you or have you found some gifts that you didn't know you had?
Steve Duncan: Yeah, I think, or some gifts that I found I could express in different ways.
Steve Duncan: I think I spent a lot of my
Steve Duncan: my working life kind of being in the background or being somewhat invisible in some ways and not really putting myself in a position of people knowing much about me.
Steve Duncan: Quite frankly, that was kind of the nature of my work.
Steve Duncan: So I think being a little bit more vulnerable about that and being more comfortable stepping out because the role of being a
Steve Duncan: a stoker, for example, helping to guide councils and so forth in the MRP.
Steve Duncan: And I think I did that for you at the Writing Retreat.
Steve Duncan: that that's something that I both enjoy doing, but I also feel like it's something that I bring some gifts to.
Steve Duncan: And so I've been trying to step into that more.
Steve Duncan: And that's been great.
Brian Mueller: That's been a wonderful gift for me.
Brian Mueller: Absolutely.
Brian Mueller: Council is such an important part of this work.
Brian Mueller: And I think that's why Illuman has done more work around council training.
Brian Mueller: So being a gifted stoker for council is wonderful.
Brian Mueller: Yes, thank you for that.
Brian Mueller: I do want to ask you also, since you've had both the elder rites experience and the men's rites of passage experience, for the man listening and he's considering whether or not to participate in rites, can you
Brian Mueller: Give him some advice about participating in either rites of passage and how to make that choice.
Steve Duncan: I've known men who've done both in a short period of time.
Steve Duncan: And that's worked for them.
Steve Duncan: I mean, one thing that comes immediately to mind for me, Brian, is that since I was already kind of an elder by virtue of age and life position when I went to the MRO P.
Steve Duncan: One of the other things I should mention that I forgot to, that I was also looking to make sure I was having relationships with men of a variety of ages and situations in their life.
Steve Duncan: That I wasn't just with men of my own age or my own position, if you will.
Steve Duncan: So that was one of the things I really got out of the MROP: being able to be with men who were on their journey at all ages.
Steve Duncan: And so that was one aspect of the MROP.
Steve Duncan: that I really valued and really got.
Steve Duncan: The EROP was obviously brought together men of more of a similar generation.
Steve Duncan: And so being able to hear their stories and
Steve Duncan: how they were approaching that stage of life was really valuable as well.
Steve Duncan: So I think it may be a matter of looking at your life now, which area seems to need tending.
Steve Duncan: So I want to ask you, what keeps you coming back to the rites?
Brian Mueller: What keeps you coming back?
Steve Duncan: I learned something new about myself, my journey.
Steve Duncan: I find there are things that get awakened to me that I wasn't even aware of.
Steve Duncan: by virtue of participating again.
Steve Duncan: I think the rites are so rich that you don't fully get it all at one time.
Steve Duncan: There will be some aspects of it that
Steve Duncan: really hit home the first time, but don't come back until later.
Steve Duncan: And so and then I guess the other is every time it's a different group of men.
Steve Duncan: And I find that just awesome to be able to engage with another group of men and just realize how quickly we do engage with each other
Steve Duncan: by virtue of the way the way the rites work and touch us.
Steve Duncan: So so yeah, it's a gift every time.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, I'm hoping I can ask you a personal question now.
Brian Mueller: How is your
Brian Mueller: Your relationship with your son-in-law?
Steve Duncan: Ah, great question, Brian.
Steve Duncan: Actually, it's really good.
Steve Duncan: It's really good.
Steve Duncan: I mean, we still have very different backgrounds and lifestyles and
Steve Duncan: and comforts.
Steve Duncan: But I think we just actually got back from a family vacation with all of all of the family and grandparents and multi-generational, and we had a great time together.
Steve Duncan: And I think we have a good deal of mutual respect for each other.
Steve Duncan: And so, yeah, it's good.
Steve Duncan: I feel very comfortable.
Steve Duncan: I am very thankful that he's the man in our daughter's life.
Steve Duncan: That's something that I do not take for granted at all.
Steve Duncan: I'm quite thankful for.
Brian Mueller: Yeah, that's wonderful.
Brian Mueller: So I'm going to close this off here.
Brian Mueller: I'm going to read a poem.
Brian Mueller: I've only done this once before, and I'd just like you to after I read it, to comment on it.
Brian Mueller: I'm going to read it twice.
Brian Mueller: You'll know the poem.
Brian Mueller: But since you came to our writing retreat and I know you as a writer and a lover of poetry, I thought this would be an appropriate way to end our conversation.
Brian Mueller: It's called The Way It Is by William Stafford.
Brian Mueller: There's a thread you follow.
Brian Mueller: It goes among things that change, but it doesn't change.
Brian Mueller: People wonder about what you are pursuing.
Brian Mueller: You have to explain about the thread.
Brian Mueller: But it is hard for others to see.
Brian Mueller: While you hold it, you can't get lost.
Brian Mueller: Tragedies happen
Brian Mueller: People get hurt or die, and you suffer and get old.
Brian Mueller: Nothing you can do can stop time's unfolding.
Brian Mueller: You don't ever let go of the thread.
Brian Mueller: Hmph.
Brian Mueller: Say a few words about that.
Steve Duncan: for me, the thread that is so present for me is the relationship with my wife, with Amy.
Steve Duncan: There are times I look back and wonder, why the heck is she still choosing to be with me?
Steve Duncan: And I am so thankful for that choice that she's made.
Steve Duncan: She's been with me through the entire journey, the ups, the downs.
Steve Duncan: challenges with addiction and so forth and and the fact of being able to be be spouses, be partners, to have been parents together, to now be grandparents together.
Steve Duncan: That that's the thread that
Brian Mueller: Is ever present for me.
Brian Mueller: Thank you.
Brian Mueller: That's so beautiful.
Brian Mueller: 53 years.
Brian Mueller: Congratulations.
Brian Mueller: You know, brother, I want to thank you deeply for your honesty.
Brian Mueller: your courage and vulnerability and you've given us a window on your experience at the MROP and really just more broadly on your life journey.
Brian Mueller: So I love you, brother, and I look forward to seeing you.
Brian Mueller: I love you too.
Brian Mueller: Thank you so much, Brian.
Brian Mueller: Appreciate it.
Brian Mueller: For those listening who are now feeling a tug in their own soul and are curious to learn more, allow me to share a bit about the history of these rites.
Brian Mueller: The Men's Rites of Passage was originally developed by Father Richard Rohr, and was first offered at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico, in nineteen ninety six.
Brian Mueller: While it was supported for many years by the Center for Action and Contemplation, since twenty twelve Illuman has been the steward of this work, preserving and adapting the rites for men all over the world.
Brian Mueller: To learn more about the history and the theology behind this work, I highly recommend reading Adam's Return by Richard Rohr.
Brian Mueller: If you are ready to make your rites, you can find details and registration information at Illuman dot
Brian Mueller: org
Brian Mueller: Slash MROP or Illuman dot
Brian Mueller: org slash events.
Brian Mueller: Finally, if you enjoyed this podcast, don't forget to share it with a friend.
Brian Mueller: You can find all our episodes and subscribe in your favorite podcast app at m-r-o-p talk dot com, and you can visit me at Brian's Poems dot com or Brian Mueller dot com.
Brian Mueller: Thank you for listening to follow me to the MROP.
Brian Mueller: Until next time, brothers, stay present.