Guest billmc Posted November 13, 2009 Posted November 13, 2009 A call to bring the world together… 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 honour the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect. It is also necessary in both public and private life to refrain consistently and empathically from inflicting pain. To act or speak violently out of spite, chauvinism, or self-interest, to impoverish, exploit or deny basic rights to anybody, and to incite hatred by denigrating others—even our enemies—is a denial of our common humanity. We acknowledge that we have failed to live compassionately and that some have even increased the sum of human misery in the name of religion. We therefore call upon all men and women ~ to restore compassion to the centre of morality and religion ~ to return to the ancient principle that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or disdain is illegitimate ~ to ensure that youth are given accurate and respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures ~ to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity ~ to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings—even those regarded as enemies. We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world. Rooted in a principled determination to transcend selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological and religious boundaries. Born of our deep interdependence, compassion is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity. It is the path to enlightenment, and indispensible to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community. ---------- If interested, you can sign the charter here: http://charterforcompassion.org/
AllInTheNameOfProgress Posted November 16, 2009 Posted November 16, 2009 13622 have affirmed so far. Have you? We had an AWESOME church service celebrating the release today! The videos associated with the charter are inspiring.
ada Posted December 14, 2009 Posted December 14, 2009 I just affirmed. Thank you for posting this Current total when I affirmed: 29,088
rivanna Posted December 16, 2009 Posted December 16, 2009 I signed it too. Janet, nice to see you back! Welcome Ada, like your website.
AllInTheNameOfProgress Posted December 16, 2009 Posted December 16, 2009 Company over Thanksgiving.... Craziness around the commercial side of Christmas AND the religious side.... too much to do lately. I love this message board, but sometimes it doesn't fit in to participate.
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