Friday, January 22, 2010

QUEST FOR THE HIGHEST

"The society which scorns excellence in plumbing because plumbing is a humble activity, and tolerates shoddiness in philosophy because philosophy is an exalted activity, will have neither good plumbing nor good philosophy. Neither its pipes nor its theories will hold water." - John W. Gardner

Thursday, January 21, 2010

ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE

"Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love." - Martin Luther King Jr.

Another World is Possible from LOVE146 on Vimeo.


Anti-slavery activist Rob Morris Speaks on MLK and his dream of the impossible world. Music from Aaron Strumple. Courtesy of Social Media Today.

"I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered [people] have torn down [people] other-centered can build up. I still believe that one day [humanity] will bow before the altars of God and be crowned triumphant over war and bloodshed, and nonviolent redemptive goodwill will proclaim the rule of the land." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech, December 10, 1964

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

RECONSIDERING THE SECULAR

This is an ongoing research, reporting and action project from Ekklesia, with a number of overlapping elements, including cooperation with academic and civic bodies. The aim is to work in conversation with others towards the development of an inclusive vision of secularity in the public square - one based on dialogue and free expression; a proper distinction between religious and public authorities; and maintaining a fair civic arena for the widest range of public actors, both religious and non-religious. This brief was first published in 2007 and revised in January 2010.

It is our conviction that conscious attempts are needed to engage thinking people of both non-religious and varying religious persuasions in considering models of secular/religious life which may be received as an invitation rather than a threat, as plural rather than monolithic, as inclusive rather than exclusive, and which move from 'thin' to 'thick' descriptions of "the good" as part of a rigorous but respectful conversation between different traditions of reasoning.

More here.
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Thursday, January 14, 2010

AFTER THE DECORATIONS GO

"When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flock, the work of Christmas begins: to find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner, to rebuild the nations, to bring peace ... to make music in the heart." - Howard Thurman, American author, civil rights leader, and theologian (1899-1981)