Karen Armstrong Wants YOU to Teach Compassion
by: Tikkun Intern -- Erin Shitama on November 10th, 2009 | 8 Comments »
We may look different, sound different, follow differing doctrines and dogmas, or none at all, but compassion is at the core of the major faiths and ethic systems of our world. The Golden Rule, or some form of it, is found in every major religion and in almost all if not every country on our planet. Karen Armstrong is counting on this unifying ideology to bring together individuals and communities this Friday for the launch of the Charter for Compassion. Here’s a short video about her campaign:
Last year Armstrong was awarded the TED Prize, which is awarded to three individuals annually — each of whom is chosen for being “a leader in his/her chosen field of work, with an unconventional viewpoint and a vision to transform the world.” Karen Armstrong is considered an authority on comparative religion, focusing on the monotheistic religions, and considers herself a freelance monotheist.
As well as receiving $100,000, each winner gets to make one wish for a better world, which is supported by TED. Armstrong’s wish was to create a Charter for Compassion “which would be composed by leading thinkers in many traditions and would restore compassion to the centrality of religious and moral life.” It is Armstrong’s belief that the doctrine of compassion should compel the religious to work together for a better world, but too often these are the very people who create the deepest schisms in society.
On the day of the launch Armstrong will announce that thousands of sermons will be preached the following weekend, with compassion as the central theme. She requests that all rabbis, imams, and priests take the time on the 13, 14, or 15 to remind their congregations of the duty that the religious have to act compassionately, and we at Tikkun are asking you to do the same.
But I would not limit this request to the religious. Community leaders, teachers, professors, or any one who has friends at all should take the opportunity to remind those around you of the power of compassion and to think of ways to use compassion to transform and heal the world.
Here in Toronto, our Tikkun Toronto group is meeting at noon Thursday in the heart of High park, the city’s largest park, in a labyrinth shadowed by a grove of oak trees. There we’ll read the charter, walk the labyrinth in collective meditative silence focussed on how we can nurture our own compassionate nature. As we emerge from the Labyrinth we will formalize our own personal commitment.
It’s a wonderful project that Armstrong has taken on, and we’re happy to share in it. Details here
In my freshman year in college I had two senior mentors who helped me. Terry G. helped me with two semesters of college writing. Rex D. and I had conversations that kept me from dropping out of college. There was one area that was different. He said to me that Love is wanting and wishing the best for another person or persons.
Love does not have to be centered on romance or sex. We can Love all of God’s children by striving to help every one share in God’s gifts on earth.
The Charter was released today. Here it is:
The Charter For Compassion
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 indispensable to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community.
Excellent idea ! I think this will truly set off a ripple effect around the globe! Ameen.
I encourage you to affirm and share this Charter for Compassion far and wide. Share it by inviting others to join you. Share it by exemplifying compassion … by being compassionate … through your thoughts, feelings and actions.
http://charterforcompassion.org/
Almost up to twelve thousand affirmations as of this posting.
This is an urgent need–people do not appear to have concern for others. II would love to see it and do everything I can to make it happen. Here in the United States we gain mileage from excluding others.
To Susan Anderson-
That is not just in the US. It is worldwide, though the form it takes may vary slightly from nation to nation.
The reason for this is all too often swept under the rug, even by supporters of the idea of Armstrong’s Charter: it is because true compassion requires that the compassionate be deeply selfless. In all my life, I have met only one or two people capable of such selflessness.
The rest of us must struggle hard to approach that state. Unfortunately. most people simply do not have the stomach for such intense spiritual struggle.
As I was preparing to go to Afghanistan in June 2002, I read one of Karen Armstrong’s books about religion. It was in that book where I read about Muslims considering Jews and Christians to be “people of the book.” It meant that we shared a common set of teachings, the Torah, the Psalms, the Gospel, and the Koran. My family was furious with me that I was going to Afghanistan, and it was the first time that I truly understood the passage in the Gospels about Jesus in the temple, refusing to go outside where his mother and family were waiting, hoping he would give up this foolishness and come home. It was the first time in my life that I truly defied by parents, and went to Afghanistan against their wishes.
There, I was very afraid of what the Afghans would say or do when they learned I was a Jew. On the very first day, one of the Muslims in our delegation dragged me over to a group of Afghan men and said “I want you to meet my friend, Craig, he’s a Jew!” The men touched their hearts and said “Ah, a person of the book.”
Everywhere we went, every time Iftekhar introduced me and the Christians in our group, Afghans would touch their hearts and say “people of the book.”
We went to a mosque that had been bombed by the U.S. with holes in its walls and rubble all around. Inside, children were studying the Koran, boys rocking back and forth as they chanted. I sat down with them, recalling the rocking I had learned about in Hebrew school…. “sometimes when you are praying the spirit is so strong that you can’t sit still….” After a few moments sitting with the children, the Imam came over and said the Afghan version of “Pop Quiz!” The children stopped and looked up. “What are the books that we hold sacred?” he asked. “The Torah!” one child answered. “The Psalms.” another added. “The gospels and the Koran!” the last child chimed in (perhaps hoping for extra credit).
“This man is a Jew!” the Imam then said. “And what are Jews?” he asked. “People of the book.” was the answer.
We met hundreds of Afghans during that time, many who had lost loved ones or suffered grave injuries launched from the bellies of U.S. warplanes. We never heard the word “infidel” and were graciously welcomed wherever we went. Yes, one little girl who had lost almost her entire family was brave enough to look us in the face and say “I hate you!” as well she should have.
If we had a charter of compassion, and we really lived by it, if we all lived by the Golden Rule, we wouldn’t have done to her family what we did. We need the charter…… we need the Global Marshall Plan.
Thank you Karen Armstrong!