Have you read the book, “The Tao of Inner Peace” by Diane Dreher?  This book has had a special place in my personal library for many years and today I would invite you to consider some of Dianne’s reflections on the pursuit of the inner way and meaningful conversations.

     Returning to center requires discipline, she says.  To simplify conversations this week, consider:

• Am I communicating honestly?  Do I mean what I say?
• Do I listen to others aware of their body language as well as their words?
• Can I be present with someone without talking constantly?
• Do I respect the importance of silence in my life and in interactions with others?

     And from my experience, I would like to add:

• Do I look directly into the eyes of those I talk with?
• Am I receptive to the points of view of others even when they differ from mine?
• Do I make an effort to enter into their own perspective?
• Can I enter the experience with the whole of myself, with full concentration?

     I would enjoy knowing your reflections on this topic!

     During one of my recent trips, my husband and I spontaneously decided to attend a talk by Karen Armstrong at the Hall of Philosophy, erected in 1900, located on the grounds of the Chautauqua Institution in the southwest corner of New York State, USA.

     Karen Armstrong is an original thinker on the role of religion in the modern world.  She is a former Roman Catholic nun who left a British convent to pursue a degree in modern literature at Oxford.  She has written more than 20 books about the common threads in Islam, Judaism and Christianity and shares her perspective about their effect on world events.  Karen founded the Charter for Compassion, a cooperative effort to restore compassionate thinking and compassionate action to the center of religious, moral and political life.

     The Charter for Compassion includes: “The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves.  Compassion impels us to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the centre of our world and put another there, and to honor the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.”

     Karen Armstrong’s talk at the Chautauqua Institution was: “Empowering the Future: An exploration of the World’s Religions – The Mystery of Compassion” and I was deeply touched by the intensity of her belief system:

• “Make a place for the other in your mind and your heart.”
• “You must accept death as part of life.”
• “Build a world society that embraces all religions, living in peace and harmony.”
• “Feel compassion for yourself – love your neighbor as yourself.  Then understand everyone feels the same compassion for themselves.  As you do so, you become concerned for everyone, embracing everyone.”
• “Reach out to each other to learn to live with each other!”

     Karen closed her presentation by saying, “Shalom!” – which for the Jews means Peace, Wholeness and Completion.

Is it possible to experience a sense of oneness while at the same time appreciating the uniqueness of each individual?  My brief blog today focuses on one of the many thoughts of a most admired person concerning this awakening to wholeness in living.

“In spiritual fellowship men are one in the divine,

and this shared oneness embraces the absolute uniqueness

of all individual differences.”

Marc Edmund Jones

I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts concerning this idea.

I invite you to see through the eyes of your soul a glorious place in the midst of Glastonbury in the United Kingdom.  Entering the Chalice Well Gardens can be a powerful experience in its manifestation of profound inner harmony.  It is a timeless and sacred place full of legend, symbolism and an atmosphere of unity.  The spring at the Chalice Well is considered a symbol of the continuous and unbounded nature of the life force.  Here, many are touched by the inner peace and joy of the Spirit — a celebration of universal peace.

The Earth energies around Glastonbury are experienced by many people to be very powerful.  In the gardens it is possible to feel these earth energies from the moment of entering the cobblestone path under the archway of plants.  In this extraordinary place it is possible to “appreciate the interconnected and vibrant forces that sustain life upon our Planet.”

Now and then it is my joy to share with you one of the poems of a dear friend and colleague in my philosophical study group who made his transition to spirit a few years ago.  His poems are a source of inspiration to me.  Hope you enjoy this one too.  I would love to see your own poems about peace!

Peace, Brother

Solitary Sunday.

Mist on muddy canal

Dances ever so slightly.

Crow caws,

A fish rises.

The splash widens in circularity,

Defining a serenity

To be absorbed and cherished.

Jonas Mather

When I first encountered the Peace Pilgrim book many years ago I became inspired to share her teachings in Spanish and translated her book to my first-language — that became the beginning of my work for peace.  This day I would like to invite you to visit the Friends of Peace Pilgrim website, and explore at your own pace her teachings and expanded contribution to society.

From 1953 to 1981 Peace Pilgrim walked more than 25,000 miles on a personal pilgrimage for peace.  She vowed to “remain a wanderer until mankind has learned the way of peace, walking until given shelter and fasting until given food.”  In the course of her 28-year pilgrimage she touched the hearts, minds, and lives of thousands of individuals all across North America.  Her message continues to inspire people all over the world: www.peacepilgrim.org

May you have an opportunity to do so, come to the home town where Peace Pilgrim was born, Egg Harbor City, New Jersey on the weekend of July 16-18 for our  annual Peace Pilgrim birthday celebration.  For more details please see: http://www.peacepilgrim100.org/index.htm

From Peace Pilgrim:

The power of thought. “Do you know that every moment of your life you’re creating through thought?”

Bringing our lives into harmony with the laws that govern the universe. As Peace said, to attain inner peace we need to align the way we live with our beliefs.

Finding our place in the life pattern. We are all cells in the body of humanity — all of us, all over the world.  Each one has a special contribution to make, and the guidance to find our mission in life comes from within.

I feel constantly grateful for the abundance in living, discovered with each step on the way and rejoice at every kind of human endeavor.

These are my commitments to embrace abundance in living. This day I offer a prayer of thankfulness to God for life, for love, for all people in the world and for the ever-growing abundance manifested each moment. Choosing to perceive us all as one, I serve my fellow human beings while fulfilling my unique purpose through the expression of my personality and talents. Today, a complete rebirth from new realization in situations, circumstances and events brightens my path. I rejoice in deeper inner communion with God. In the presence of divine bounty, I communicate to everyone my appreciation for the abundant gifts in our hands.

Would you like to share your own commitments with me?

My friend Janine Fafard, who lives in Costa Rica, has shared with me a lovely thought known to come from the Buddha as a prayer of loving kindness, and I wish to share it with you today as we continue exploring inner peace.

“May I be in peace.

May my heart remain open.

May I awaken to the light which is my true nature.

May I be healed.

May I be a source of healing for all beings.”

Charito Calvachi-Mateyko, as we join our efforts in exploring inner peace, asked me in a radio interview transmitted on ‘Radio Centro’; WLCH, 91.3 FM in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States, why is it important to give love to the world?

I would love to share with you some of my comments and would love to hear yours.

Peace Pilgrim, who walked more than 25,000 miles for peace, sharing her core values for an expansion of consciousness, said, “Love is the greatest force on earth. Love conquers all.” She was referring to the great potential each of us has to manage conflictive situations with love. Using the transformative power that love offers. (more…)

Elizabeth McAlister, professor of religion at Wesleyan University, recently wrote an article for CNN talking about the pain people are experiencing in Haiti. She pointed out that how we make meaning of this suffering will be crucial to how we respond, in the long term, as a global community.

To see her blog, Why does Haiti suffer so much please click here.

I could feel her pain and compassion as she expressed her ideas and appreciated her efforts to express a wide variety of potential explanations as to what truly is a very complex situation. The suffering Haitians are enduring is in my heart and soul as well. In light of such devastation I would like to offer some thoughts about the meaning of pain and suffering in managing life challenges. From my perspective, the goal that is sought and achieved through pain is a transcendence of baffling difficulties by the free and somewhat paradoxical choice or acceptance of greater difficulties. How does this work? (1) Pain gives way to the finer intensity of faith and aspiration; (2) Human dissatisfaction may result in restlessness that transforms into creativity and constructive acts for the well-being of our fellows, one of the areas where we see this now is in the creative ways around the world that are being developed to speed up the adoption of orphans; (3) Suffering of soul brings the opportunity for sacrificial dedication in ameliorating the lot of humankind, so clearly seen in the efforts to rescue survivors and to provide medical care even with very scarce resources.

In Haiti we are now witnessing the manifestation of all three scenarios with the participation of people from all over the world which offers us all the opportunity to experience the functioning of the global community in co-operation for the good of all. My prayers and love are with all Haitians.