Terms of Service

Effective date: October 30, 2026

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) are an agreement between you and the Ascension Institute (“Ascension Institute,” “we,” “us” or “our”). They govern your use of ascendinginstitute.org, our membership plans, online community, events, sessions, content and related services (together, the “Services”). By creating an account, purchasing a membership or otherwise using the Services, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Services.

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old, or the age of majority where you live, to create an account or purchase a membership. By using the Services, you confirm that you meet this requirement and that the information you give us is accurate and up to date.

2. Your Account

• You are responsible for keeping your login details secure and for all activity under your account.
• Accounts are personal. Do not share your account or let others use your membership.
• If you sign in with Google, Facebook or X, you are also subject to that service’s terms.
• Tell us right away at info@ascendinginstitute.org if you believe your account has been accessed without your permission.

3. Memberships, Billing and Cancellation

Plans and payment

We offer paid membership plans, currently The Seeker and The Illuminated, billed monthly or annually. Prices and the benefits included in each plan are shown on our Join page at the time of purchase. Payments are processed securely by Stripe. By purchasing, you authorize us and Stripe to charge your chosen payment method.

Automatic renewal

Memberships renew automatically at the end of each billing period (monthly or yearly) at the then-current price, unless you cancel before the renewal date. If a payment fails, we may pause or end your access to member features until payment is updated.

Cancellation

You can cancel at any time from your account settings or by contacting us. When you cancel, your membership stays active until the end of the period you have already paid for, and it will not renew after that.

Refunds

All payments are final and non-refundable. We do not provide refunds or credits for any reason, including partial billing periods, unused time or unused features, except where a refund is required by law. When you cancel, you keep access until the end of the period you have already paid for.

Discount codes

Discount codes are subject to the terms shown when they are offered, including the plans they apply to, how long the discounted price lasts and the number of times a code may be used. Codes have no cash value, cannot be combined with other offers unless stated, and may be changed or withdrawn at any time, though changes will not affect a discounted price already applied to an active membership unless you are told otherwise.

Price changes

We may change membership prices or benefits from time to time. We will give active members reasonable advance notice of any price increase, which will apply from your next renewal. You can cancel before the new price takes effect.

4. Community Guidelines

Our community exists to support curiosity, growth and connection. To keep it safe and welcoming, you agree not to:

• Harass, bully, threaten, intimidate or discriminate against anyone.
• Post hateful, sexually explicit, violent or otherwise offensive content.
• Share other members’ private information or anything shared in private Spaces or messages without their permission.
• Post spam, unsolicited advertising, pyramid schemes or repeated self-promotion outside the places set aside for it.
• Impersonate any person or organization, or misrepresent who you are.
• Post content that is illegal, or that infringes anyone’s copyright, trademark, privacy or other rights.
• Upload viruses or malicious code, scrape the site, or try to access accounts, data or areas of the Services you are not authorized to use.
• Use the Services to collect members’ contact details for marketing.

Admins and moderators may review, edit, hide or remove content, and may warn, suspend or remove members who break these guidelines, at our discretion. Please report content or behavior that concerns you to a moderator or to info@ascendinginstitute.org.

5. Your Content

You keep ownership of the posts, comments, photos, videos, audio and other content you share (“Your Content”). By sharing Your Content in the Services, you give the Ascension Institute a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, display, reproduce and share it within the Services, and to make the technical changes needed to do so (such as resizing images). This license ends when you delete Your Content or your account, except for copies that other members have already shared or that are kept in backups for a limited time.

We will ask for your permission before using Your Content outside the community, such as in promotional materials. You are responsible for Your Content and confirm that you have the rights needed to share it.

6. Our Content

The Services, including our name, logo, design, text, graphics, courses, recordings, Library materials, events and publications, are owned by the Ascension Institute or our licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark and other laws. Your membership gives you a personal, non-transferable, revocable right to access and use this content for your own non-commercial use while your membership is active. You may not copy, record, download (except where a download option is provided), sell, redistribute or publicly share our content without our written permission.

7. Events, Live Streams and Sessions

Events, live streams and one-on-one sessions may be recorded and shared with members in the Library. By joining a live event that is being recorded, you agree that your name, image, voice and comments may appear in the recording. Event dates, speakers and formats may change. Separate terms may apply to paid tickets and booked sessions, and will be shown at the time of booking.

8. AI Features

Some features, such as the AI Community Guide, use artificial intelligence. AI features are always clearly labeled as AI. AI-generated responses may be incomplete or inaccurate and are provided for general community support only. Please do not rely on them for important decisions.

9. Not Professional Advice

The Services offer education, discussion and community. Nothing shared by the Ascension Institute, its speakers, authors, members or AI features is medical, psychological, legal, financial or other professional advice, and it is not a substitute for advice from a qualified professional. Spiritual, wellness and research topics are shared for exploration and personal reflection. Always use your own judgment and consult a qualified professional about your specific situation. If you are in crisis or need urgent help, contact local emergency services.

10. Third-Party Services and Links

The Services may link to or include content from third parties, such as Amazon, AbeBooks, eBay, YouTube and social networks. We are not responsible for third-party websites, products or services, and your use of them is governed by their own terms.

11. Ending Your Use of the Services

You can stop using the Services and delete your account at any time by contacting us. We may suspend or end your access if you break these Terms, if your payment fails, or if we need to in order to protect the community or comply with the law. If we end a paid membership without cause, your access will continue until the end of your current billing period and you will not be charged again. Sections that by their nature should continue after your account ends, such as ownership, disclaimers and limits of liability, will continue to apply.

12. Disclaimers

The Services are provided “as is” and “as available.” To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Ascension Institute makes no warranties of any kind, express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. We do not guarantee that the Services will be uninterrupted, error-free or secure, or that any content is accurate or complete.

13. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Ascension Institute and its directors, staff, volunteers, speakers and partners will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for any loss of data, profits or goodwill, arising from your use of the Services. Our total liability for any claim relating to the Services will not exceed the amount you paid us in the twelve (12) months before the claim arose, or one hundred U.S. dollars (US $100), whichever is greater.

Some places do not allow certain disclaimers or limits on liability, so some of the above may not apply to you.

14. Indemnification

You agree to defend and hold harmless the Ascension Institute from any claims, damages or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) that arise from Your Content, your use of the Services or your breach of these Terms.

15. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the United States and the State of Illinois, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Before filing any claim, you agree to contact us first so we can try to resolve the issue informally. If we cannot resolve it within 30 days, either party may bring the claim in the state or federal courts located in Illinois, and both parties consent to the jurisdiction of those courts.

16. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will change the effective date at the top of this page, and if the changes are significant, we will notify members by email or with a notice in the community. Continuing to use the Services after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms.

17. General

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and any terms shown at the time of a purchase, are the entire agreement between you and the Ascension Institute about the Services. If any part of these Terms is found unenforceable, the rest will remain in effect. If we do not enforce a right immediately, we have not waived it. You may not transfer your rights under these Terms; we may transfer ours as part of a merger, acquisition or sale of assets.

18. Contact Us

Questions about these Terms? Please contact us:

Ascension Institute
Email: info@ascendinginstitute.org
Website: ascendinginstitute.org