The Academy of Sage Heroes is a faith-based non-profit fraternal organization. We are based out of Fargo, ND, and have chapters beginning to grow across the States. We are in the process of incorporating as a 501(c)10, and are not (yet) tax-exempt. You can help fund this here!

We are in the process of incorporating and applying as a 501(c)10, a fraternal organization. This has similar benefits as a 501(c)3, but with a more specific focus and structure ideal for our purposes. Help us raise money to incorporate here!

We Create and Connect Champions of Goodness, Truth, and Beauty.

We believe heroes only develop within and for local community, so we connect exemplary individuals together within a high-intention culture of honor.

We believe education is about experience more than information, and so we catalyze doing in service of becoming. We are thus an accelerator for meaningful action.

We believe wisdom comes from honorable choices under pressure, so we develop sagehood by facilitating growth through challenges.

We do this because the world needs communities that are being impacted by just such men and women, and we can change the world by empowering these agents of change and healing.

We use various experiences for these purposes, but the primary three are Dining, Dancing, and Dueling.

No, we are not a secret society; we are a society of honor and mystery. We have no vows or oaths of secrecy, and do not encourage anyone to enter anything that would impede their partaking of the sacrament of confession. We do have certain exercises that are best entered without knowing what they are ahead of time, to avoid spoiling the effect. Therefore we try to keep their contents private as much as possible, but not secret.

Thank you for asking! We really do appreciate the skepticism and caution, as it helps prevent us from becoming a cult. Here are some of the things we bear in mind to help us stay wary of this very real danger.

First, we realize that there a lot of different usages for the term, all equally valid.

• Theological cults: religious groups similar enough to Christianity to not be pagan, but not Christian enough to be a denomination. We can leave this variety to the apologists to sort out.
• Ritual cults: the most basic definition of cult is simply a group that venerates, such as a cult of honor - a group that reveres and values honor as an essential priority. This anthropological term is morally neutral, and in this sense we are definitely a cult. Every community is bound together by a common purpose, an aspiration the members are unified around. In this sense, every community is a cult.
• Structural cults: you can also distinguish between cult and culture as distinct terms. In this sense, a cult is when the values of a community are derived from a singular person or a fixed set of people, rather than being a set of behaviors enshrined in a living tradition handed down from generation to generation. An early stage startup is very often a cult of this sort with the founder defining them, as are many religious congregations with their pastor. This can be helpful and even necessary in some circumstances, but is volatile and unsustainable. If a group collapses because their leader collapsed, you can know they failed to transition from a cult to a culture. In a culture, an exemplar may take up the mantle and continue the heritage, and the community will grow stronger because of it.
• Toxic cults: using the tools of robust community to coerce. This is the dangerous kind, when a community is twisted into an addictive, all-consuming master. It is also the hardest to recognize. The challenge is because the difference between influence and manipulation is actually quite subtle. You may say the difference is intent, but even a drug-dealer may have the best and sincerest of intentions. And it is unfortunately impossible to reliably read intent. It may seem cryptic, but the best way to judge if a community is becoming dangerous if it becomes an idol instead of an icon. Maintain Christ alone as Emperor, none other before Him.

Second, we recognize that a group does not have to set out to become a cult on purpose in order to create one. It is unfortunately far too common for well-intentioned communities to develop toxic cult-like traits organically. The danger of a cult is that it is addictive. This is why we are explicitly intentional about our efforts to actively not become a cult. It takes real effort and caution, and we are transparent about these efforts. This is why, although it would be fun to be a secret society, we are not. Transparency is essential.

Because it is. There are shortcuts for those who find them, but the tradition of a Labyrinth is an old, enduring one.

No, not in the least. The leadership includes Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant members, and much of the symbolism of the experiences is designed with that background and context in mind. Attendees who are able to affirm at least a belief in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit will therefore be better able to enter into many of our experiences. That said, everyone is welcome to attend if they are comfortable with the event being faith-based, even if they themselves are not professing Christians. We do not proselytize at our events.

While we may enjoy similar activities (sword-fighting, dancing, feasting, etc.), there is a fundamental divide in the purpose of what we do vs. re-enactment hobbies. When LARPing or performing medieval recreation, the focus is on putting on a persona distinct from oneself. It is a performance. And while this can be transformative, this is incidental and rarely by design.

We, on the other hand, are not pretending. We are dealing with the reality of ourselves and our society. Our explicit goal is to shape our own character and identity directly. We are not attempting to roll back progress and abandon our current challenges for an idealized vision of the past. We are taking full responsibility for the present moment which we are entrusted with, and we are shaping it with intention and honor. We look to the past because those who ignore the past repeat its worst mistakes.

We have opted to not use social media platforms to promote most of our activities. We prefer to rely on direct, personal, invite-only, word of mouth. The best way to receive an invite if you don’t know any Academians personally is to email your local chapter captain, who can also direct you to any event page their chapter has chosen to publish.

We would love to bring the Academy experience to you (a Soirée makes an excellent team-building event). For inquiries, email your local chapter captain.

Most events are free to attend, with a suggested donation to cover costs. Paid memberships are available by invitation, and may vary in investment.

There are many people across the country who are working to build small teams and create communities capable of launching new Academy chapters. The journey to join them begins here.

Donations are welcome, as well as spreading the word! Attend an event to learn more.