photo by: Racey Tay

Changing the Religious Dialog

In follow-up to my Gateways Action post on September 25th, Scholar Karen Armstrong is leading the call for a “Charter for Compassion” to be created by people all over the world. As every religion has a history of intolerance, so each religion has principles for overcoming intolerance. The Charter aims to shift religious conceptions and relieve polarization. This new collaboration between the world’s religions is being conducted in partnership with the UN Alliance of Civilizations, and other multi-faith initiatives. The project begins with a focus on the Abrahamic faiths, since they account for much of the world’s inter-religious conflict. If they can reach common ground, it would be a huge step. As I understand it, the final Charter would appeal more broadly to include members of any world tradition, plus all people choosing to remain outside the structures of religion. The multimedia links above will take you to Karen Armstrong’s TED wish, and a 3-minute film articulating the aspirations of her Charter for Compassion project.

Pulling at the Roots of Extremism:
Scholar Karen Armstrong articulates an elegant core message of unity among all religions. Having veered sharply away from religion and its dogmatic pitfalls, Ms. Armstrong in later life turned toward literary studies and writing. Along the way, she developed a compelling vision for how the world may join to rescue religion from abusive justification for violent means in the midst of political struggles. She delivers a powerful call, not only to religious leaders, but to media professionals and all of us, to support her vision: Watch here or through Multimedia Content above.

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PLEASE COMMENT:
Do you think religions have a common core that allows for compassion between differing traditions? What helps you in the practice of compassion?

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