Holiday Greetings 2009
It’s been a while since I’ve been here. I’ve taken time to shop, spend time with friends and family, and to celebrate the holiday season. For me, it was a good holiday season. I was able to give some gifts that were really appreciated, and spend time thinking about what this season is really about. Love, Family, Service, Spirit – not necessarily in that order.
I’ve also gotten to spend some time researching and thinking about life purpose. I found a few good books along the way, as well as a couple of good websites that I will introduce you to.
I was inspired by another TED Video. This time, the video is by a Pakistani man speaking at TED India. With him, he had brought pictures and greetings from ordinary Pakistani citizens. He read about each of their lives, their life aspirations for their children, and brought a greeting of peace from each of them. He was successful at separating the politics of the nations from the daily dreams and aspirations of everyday people. It occurs to me that these dreams and aspirations are universal, regardless of the nation, religion, or ethnic background we happen to be born into.
We all want to make a difference. We want adequate food, health, and shelter. We want to be known. We want to prepare a better life for those who are to follow us. We want to be able to follow our dreams. We want our rights to be respected. We want a government that allows us to achieve these goals. I believe that these dreams and aspirations are universal, regardless of the country, religion, or ethnicity you happen to have been born into.
For this holiday season, I wish for each of you to have the opportunity to experience your life dreams. I believe it is our common birthright, regardless of our country or religion of origin. I wish this for every citizen of the United States, Canada, Britain, Iran, Japan, China, Taiwan, and the citizens of every other world country. I wish this for every Christian, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist, and the participants of every other religion. My prayer is that we learn to embrace our commonality of desire, not our differences.
Blessings for a bright, safe, and healthy Holiday Season.
Something to think about…..
RS5M467ZN7DJ
Understanding and Honoring Cultural Differences
As the United States deals with other countries in matters of trade, peace-conflict, environment, and/or any of the other hundreds of issues we may have to discuss, I believe that it’s important for us to take a learned look at the culture, customs, values, and potential mindsets of each of the other countries we’re dealing with. Without that learned approach, we can unintentionally sabotage our opportunities for success in whatever issue we’re currently dealing with.
I thought about this recently when people reacted negatively to President Obama bowing in greeting to Emperor Akihito from Japan. I believe that the negative reaction President Obama received was from Americans who understood what the action meant in their culture, based on their upbringing. In the Japanese culture, however, the bow (or lack thereof) may mean something far different. I am reluctant to pass any judgement on that bow, since I understand that I am not well versed in Japanese customs or culture, nor am I well versed in diplomatic protocols. I do, however, understand that the bow may have been a component of achieving a mutually satisfying exchange of ideas, informal agreements, etc.
From my perspective, a bow may simply have been a respectful greeting, honoring the humanity of the person being greeted in a manner most appealing to the person being greeted. From my perspective, it did not signify American subservience to Japan, nor did it signify any weakness of America. I don’t believe the bow in any way weakened our position to negotiate or discuss our relative positions. In fact, I think President Obama may have strengthened our negotiating hand by greeting the Emperor in a manner meaningful to his traditions.
This is similar to how I hope to greet you, should I ever have that opportunity. I hope that I have the knowledge and grace to greet you in a manner that is pleasing to you. With that greeting, I intend to honor your humanity. After the greeting, we can go to work to discuss anything that is of importance – including those areas where we may strongly disagree.
In a recent TED presentation, Devdutt Pattanaik presented a far clearer picture of how this works than I can do here. His 19 minute presentation discussed the difference between the Western and Eastern culture, religions, traditions, and resulting mindsets. In a world hungry for conflict resolution, I think it is a video worth watching. Just click on the link that follows.
Something to think about…..
Spiritual Leadership in Government
I finished watching “This Week with George Stephanopoulis” and “Meet the Press” on this week’s DVR program list. Not watching, actually, but listening while I sat here with the computer, wondering what I’m going to write next.
While I was half watching, the thought came. These are the people who are leading our country? People who engage in personal attack, disrespectful behavior, and congressmen who insult others to their face? Politicians who work to instill fear of the future into the hearts and minds of it’s citizens, as they search for a political advantage? Speaking for myself, this behavior is far more discouraging than the individual policies they may represent.
Our problems are too big, and too complex to be playing a game of political football. Read more »
Churches
I recently read the article about Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk banning a nun from teaching in the Catholic Church because she believed that women should be allowed to be priests (Newspaper Article). She was told to publicly renounce her belief, and she refused. It reminded me of when a Pope from long ago made that same demand of Galileo – to renounce his belief that the Earth was not the center of the Universe. The remainder of Galileo’s life was marked by the struggle between his knowledge and the official position of the Church. In 1992, 360 years after the church’s official condemnation, the Catholic Church finally exonerated Galileo for his stance. Can any of us honestly publicly renounce something that we’ve thoughtfully come to believe true? Read more »
About
I decided to put this page together at the urging of friends. Several of them were encouraging me to do this, as they were sure that my words were needed to help counteract all of the negativity out there. I’m not a pollyanna. I understand the problems of the world. I also understand that most of our problems are of our own making, and that the only way for any of us to solve our problems is to start exactly where we are, and solve what we can. We made the problems. We can solve them.
I know we cannot improve our lives by being negative. I know we cannot create what we want by fighting what we don’t want. It just doesn’t work that way, though the nightly news is full of people who are determined to do so using just that method. The only way out is to find a path of cooperation, Love, and compassion. This Blog is written so we can find a way to do just that. I hope you join me.
Mark
Share This Blog
RSS Subscription (Paste Link into your RSS Reader)
-
