Happy is he who finds wisdom, the one who attains understanding. -Proverbs 3:13
Praise be to the Lord of the
Universe who has created us and
Made us into tribes and nations,
That we may know each other, not that
We may despise each other.
And trust God, for the Lord is the one that
Heareth and knoweth all things.
And the servant of God,
Most gracious are those who walk on
The Earth in humility, and when we
Address them, we say "peace." (Excerpt From A Muslim Prayer for Peace)
Humanity is Indivisible When he heard he would be awarded the Peace Prize of the Association of German Publishers, former Jerusalem Mayor Teddy Kollek chose Manford Rommel to present the prize. Rommel is the Mayor of Stuttgart and is the son of General Erwin Rommel. Upon accepting the prize, Kollek said the following: "Who would have imagined that the Field Marshall's son and I would meet in the peaceful profession of being Mayors? Isn't that a symbol of peace, which is our theme here tonight?" In the face of fanaticism and intolerance there is a need for a deep belief in humanistic Jewishness…treating all people with the same respect and in the same manner. That isn't always recognized, especially among groups which only think of themselves and overlook the interests of others…According to Jewish belief, however, humanity is indivisible." (From Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkin's Forty Days of Transformation)
What actions
are most excellent?
To gladden the heart of a human being.
To feed the hungry.
To help the afflicted.
To lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful.
To remove the wrongs of the injured.
That person is the most beloved of God
who does most good to God's creatures. (From The Prophet Muhammed)
A Reading by The Terma Collective May our eyes remain open even in the face of tragedy.
May we not become disheartened.
May we find in the dissolution of our apathy and denial, | | | the cup of the broken heart. | | May we discover the gift of the fire burning | | | in the inner chamber of our being -
burning great and bright enough
to transform any poison. | | May we offer the power of our sorrow to the service | | | of something greater than ourselves. | | May our guilt not rise up to form | | | yet another defensive wall. | May the suffering purify and not paralyze us.
May we endure; may sorrow bond us and not separate us. | May we realize the greatness of our sorrow | | | and not run from its touch or its flame | May clarity be our ally and wisdom our support.
May our wrath be cleansing, cutting through | | | the confusion of denial and greed. | May we not be afraid to see or speak our truth.
May the bleakness of the wasteland be dispelled.
May the soul's journey be revealed | | | and the true hunger fed. | | May we be forgiven for what we have forgotten | | | and be blessed with the remembrance
of who we really are. |
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