Via Lactea Sanctuary is an emergent animist agrarian community, spiritual and religious education center, and immersive retreat space organized as a 508 (c)(1)(a) non-profit, tax exempt faith-based organization and Member Association. We are currently recruiting highly skilled faculty and potential clergy who can develop, model and teach religious curriculum (both hard and soft skills) around agrarian animism and Earth-centered spirituality. Applicants possessing a mix of hard skills such as off-grid homesteading, subsistence agriculture, permaculture, ecosystem-based forestry management, natural building, organic farming, diesel mechanics, heavy equipment operation, livestock (poultry, dairy, fiber) management, beekeeping, herbalism, cheesemaking, breadbaking and soft skills such as Non-violent communication, conflict transformation facilitation, Internal Family Systems therapy, anti-racist education and, ritual/ceremonial design and gift economy are encouraged to contact us to apply for membership and a position at the Sanctuary. Current positions include: Caretaker, Forester/Green Man, Farm Manager, Cheesemaker, Natural Building Instructor and Permaculture Design instructor.
Current members (3 permanent full-time adults, and two part-time) live and homestead on and off-the-grid surrounded by beautiful NY State Forest. We live simply and work in close connection to our waters, soils, forests, plant, animal and beyond-human-allies, while providing Wheel of the Year Earth-centered religious programming to the local community and developing our immersive curriculum.
We are especially interested in providing young or potential families with a place to produce nutrient-dense food, to homeschool their children, and to teach simple, Earth-centered living, all of which our founding family has done for 18 years and would like to share with interested and capable potential members and students.
Student, faculty and clergy housing currently includes small, private rustic yurt and grid-tied large old farm-house for two small families or up to six individuals (including possible partners), with additional cabins planned and already financed. Our 62 acres of mixed soft and hardwoods, and agricultural land are surrounded by New York State Forest and contain a primeval valley with wild water creek for dipping in the summer. Pond development is planned.
Shared values connect us. We hold the Earth as sacred, and we hold our work on/with the land and each other as a form of worship, prayer and/or meditation. We encourage Earth-centered spiritual practices such as ancestral connection, recovery of individual and cultural lineage-derived spiritual technologies, and Earth-based healing practices.
Core self-organizing agreements: 1) we use ADVICE PROCESS to consult with those who will be impacted by a decision; 2) we commit to an established CONFLICT RESOLUTION process; and 3) we seek regular practice in providing and receiving FEEDBACK. With time, we are working toward integrating INTERNAL FAMILY SYSTEMS-based Self-leadership into our community practice toolkit.
We center consent and bodily sovereignty. We hold war as a fundamental tool of oppression, identify as an anti-militarism member organization, and work for peace on all levels of society—not just the absence of war.
People of color and all gender/sexual orientations are welcome here and we commit to being in a continual process of examining and dismantling our racism, privilege and cultural biases, while working in solidarity with liberatory, land-based, BIPOC-led projects.
Calling People of the Cow!
We are Via Lactea Sanctuary, settled on traditional Gayogohono (Cayuga) homelands and striving to live in peace with All.
Our mission is to create a sanctuary where ancestral wisdom, regenerative agriculture, personal and societal healing and land-based liberatory practices are integrated through collective subsistence farming. We have found that community-supported dairy cow husbandry provides a) an abundant and regenerative way of life, b) a pathway toward recovery of ancestral spiritual and agricultural practices, and c) a viable foundation for resistance to the dominance of Empire.
Membership process begins with prospective members (who may be local to Ithaca/Cortland NY) contacting us with interest, then attending community meals, celebrations, and/or work parties. Those who live further away may schedule up to a one week-long working visit. After participation in work on the land on three or more occasions, or a week-long working visit , prospective members may apply to reside in the community for an initial intake period, whose length will be determined by everyone’s circumstances at that time. One would be an “intern,” “apprentice” or ‘guest resident’ during this intake period. Depending upon qualifications, one would proceed to become an Apprentice, Faculty or Clergy of the Sanctuary.
Email us with interest, qualifications and desired length of visit. We currently have no long-term “visiting members” but have had them in the past.
A few people (not elected by the broader community) make the major decisions.
Little to no formal governance structure.
We use “modified consensus” and “anarchy” in that the residential community members make either consensus decisions (when required) or emergent decisions (using the 3-step Advice/Feedback/Conflict Resolution process outlined above) relating to land use and community, while the Via Lactea Board makes consensus decisions regarding governance of the Faith Based Organization.
Members contribute a percentage of income to community funds.
Regular fees: Yes
Labor: Yes (4 hrs/week)
Community labor is determined by the skills, abilities, capacities, interests and needs of members combined with seasonal changes and fluctuating community needs. We typically work 20 hours per week in the summer or during calving/milking peaks, and perhaps 6 in the winter, though administrative work is more evenly distributed.
Common House, Garden(s), Library, Workshop, Outbuilding(s), Swimming pond or pool, Outdoor Kitchen, Large Scale Kitchen, Tractor & Farm Equipment, Fire pit, Waterfront access, Internet
Countryside locations with significant distance from urban centers.
Shared living spaces with private bedrooms/bathrooms and communal
kitchens, dining, and social areas.
Communal living with shared resources, property, and often income or work responsibilities
Residential communities focused on providing space for meditation, spiritual practice, and personal growth retreats.
A residential project: people live here as their primary home.
An institution, business, network, or project that isn’t a residence (e.g. a learning center, farm, or network with no one living there full-time).
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