By Leo D. Lefebure

Board Trustee, Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions

In 2007, a group of 138 Islamic scholars from a wide range of traditions issued “A Common Word between Us and You,”  a public letter addressed to the leaders of the Christian world, including Pope Benedict XVI and a long list of others.  The letter proposed the biblical teaching of love of God and neighbor as a common heritage uniting Jews, Christians, and Muslims, and invited…

Here is a sequence of 12 points which  1)  advocates for interfaith ashrams as an essential part of a holistic and collaborative problem solving approach to the challenges of our times, and  2)  suggests initiatives which could assist with establishing community supported interfaith ashrams.

1)  The beliefs that there is a critical need for an exponential increase in compassion for our fellow human beings—and that at no other time in history has there been more potential for…

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Spiritual Reflection For Tuesday 7^th May 2013

Our time on earth only has meaning if everything we do is subject to the world of spirit and its laws. To become imbued with the laws of the spiritual world, it is necessary to devote a certain amount of time each day to recollection, meditation or…

The Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions is pleased to welcome all to a kickoff Interfaith celebration of our 20th anniversary! Partake in spiritual music, prayer, and conversation to look back on the 1993 Parliament of World Religions and move forward to a harmonious interfaith future! Attendees are welcomed to share in Langar (a meal) directly following the celebration.

When: Saturday, May 11 | 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. (Meal to follow)

Where: Sikh Religious Society |…

The Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions is pleased to welcome all to a kickoff Interfaith celebration of our 20th anniversary! Partake in spiritual music, prayer, and conversation to look back on the 1993 Parliament of World Religions and move forward to a harmonious interfaith future! Attendees are welcomed to share in Langar (a meal) directly following the celebration.

When: Saturday, May 11 | 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. (Meal to follow)

Where: Sikh Religious Society |…

Art History is rich and abundant with beautiful images that reflect humankind's desire to portray the divine spirit that courses through the physical world. From the small molecule that previous cultures could not even imagine, to the movements of the stars and planetary bodies yet unseen, there is something which connects it all and keeps it in balance. Artists are the designated visual voice working to create evidence of mankind's dedication, devotion and curiosity about the realm…

It is not by creating a more educated, more powerful self that we will save our planet. It will be recognizing we do not stand alone; we share every breath with all of creation. We are all intimately connected with creation and that some great source breathes through it. Harmony might reign when we “know” ourselves to be part of the planet, with no ownership, only visitor’s rights.

 Can we dialogue with the earth and transcend a history of violence by gathering and accommodating…

Lord Mahavir's preaching was orally complied by his disciples into many texts. This knowledge was orally transferred from acharyas (gurus) to the disciples over the course of about one thousand years. In olden times, monks strictly followed the five great vows of Jainism. Even religious scriptures were considered possessions and therefore knowledge of the religion was never documented. Also, during the course of time many learned acharyas (elder monks) complied commentaries on the various…

“There never was my religion or yours, my national religion or your national religion; there never existed many religions, there is only the one. One Infinite Religion existed all through eternity and will ever exist, and this Religion is expressing itself in various countries, in various ways.” – By Swami Vivekananda

“Religion is a great force – the only real motive force in the world”. There is a common misconception that religion means ritualistic religion and nothing else. The…

Spiritual Reflection For Sunday 5 May 2013

Do no more than draw lessons from the past; it is pointless to dwell on it – you have to think of the future. Those who are attached to the past do not progress; they seize up. The elderly keep coming back to what they did when they were young; it is now impossible…

Quiet contemplation seems to work; for others, meditation, chanting, yoga or other techniques cultivate a peaceful state.All ways are valid and bring  greater awareness. For me, it lies in painting these beautiful religious icons using this simple organic method of painting which has endured 2,000 years. We each develop and fine tune a way to embrace the vast peace life is offering.

peacebestill.net

The Key Lies in Beauty

Whatever method you choose to achieve a peaceful…

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From my own personal point of view, I see myself as a facilitator of workshops at Community Teaching and Learning Centers, of the kind which are created to be support centers for Community Visioning Initiatives.  I see myself as a facilitator for workshops introducing The Eight IPCR Concepts , Community Visioning Initiatives (CVIs), and Community Teaching and Learning Centers (CTLCs)(all mentioned in the second document refererenced below); I see myself as a Resource Coordinator for a…

Spiritual Reflection For Friday 3^rd May 2013

Creation is so vast and so populated! Why not consider establishing relations with its inhabitants? We can address all living beings anywhere and at any time. And it doesn’t matter what language we use, for thought – and, even more so, speech – produces…

These issues of the relationships between the providence supplied via money, and our concerns with respect of sustaining conscious thought in regard for real immortality, are a kurnel of real faith, that is very often that most difficult to teach. Christianity is not a form of idolatry, and neither did George Ivanovitch Gurdjieff, (whose allegorical writing is what gave my body the shock it intends, for my Spiritual Awakening to proceed), intend to be establishing any kind of…

Spiritual Reflection For Thursday 2^nd May 2013

People usually seek to have friends who are pleasant and who pander to their tastes and instincts. But those who tell them how to make progress, how to surpass themselves – oh my goodness, they are to be avoided! And yet, there is no greater friend than…

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