the race towards compassion

Spiritual resource to share: educational channels that inspire, transform, predict and feed the demand for spirituality

Karen Armstrong explains the Charter of Compassion

For years, even decades (!) I have been keen on tracking the movement of thought - past, present and future. One similar thread I have seen is the broadening of the demand for spiritual answers and for spiritual responses to current challenges.

There are three new channels I would love to share with you. Each brings out the demand for compassion and spirituality, the expression of spiritual ideals and the unifying possibilities of spirituality and religion.

The demand for spirituality

I'm reading an horizon-opening book called The Way We'll Be: The Zogby Report on the Transformation of the American Dream” by John Zogby Here's an excerpt from a review:

Book in a nutshell: Americans will face the challenges of the 21st century with creative approaches to consumerism, a cooperative worldview and an inclusive view of spirituality.

That's according to Zogby, president and CEO of Zogby International, a polling company that canvasses about half a million people every year to gauge public opinion ....

In survey after survey, he finds respondents more apt to be satisfied with less material wealth and more spiritual satisfaction.

Mr. Zogby also identifies four meta-movements that are redefining the American dream: living with limits, embracing diversity, looking inward, and demanding authenticity.

The expression and mainstreaming of spiritual ideals

What I am intrigued by is how well Zogby's identified movements coincide with a growing interest in becoming more accepting of diversity. One such example is with international youth exchanges. In the secular Rotary International Youth Exchange program that my family has been involved with, we have gotten an incredible education of what it means to be multi -cultural. This is a summary of a paragraph from a newsletter for students and families that are involved in the program.

"Successful culture-crossers who are able to build strong intercultural relationships tend to share the following traits: open-minded and accepting; tolerant; calm in ambiguous situations; empathetic; adaptable; perceptive of others and their environment; and they take time to reflect on their experiences and learn from them."

Tolerance, openness, empathy... wonderful qualities rooted in the spirit of good!

And these qualities are also front and center with another growing movement that is setting the groundwork for unifying diverse groups through the Golden Rule:

the unifying possibilities of spirituality and religion

In February 2008, Karen Armstrong, author, religious thinker and former nun "called for a council of Christian, Muslim and Jewish leaders to draw up a “Charter of Compassion,” which would apply shared moral priorities to foster greater global understanding. Her interfaith initiative was awarded the $100,000 TED Prize." This effort recognizes the Golden Rule as the fundamental link to all world religions.

These are such encouraging signs of the blossoming of spiritual ideals!

Can you add to this list? What are you seeing in your life that gives evidence of the demand for spiritual answers and responses to current challenges?

To share your thoughts on this or to explore this idea further, please feel free to be in contact with me, add your own comments below, email this article to a friend, or add to the healing finds and sites on the web to the right.