From religious contemplation to activism

Posted at 02:31 PM ET, 04/04/2012
By Karen Armstrong

When I heard that I won the TED prize, which gives you a wish for a better world, I knew almost immediately what I wanted. I knew immediately because as a historian of religion it has long been a frustration to me that the major religions have all got this central ethic of concern for everybody – this Golden Rule— and all say it’s the heart of their faith.

Yet when it comes to participating with one of the chief tasks of our time – building a global community where people of all persuasions can live together in respect – these faiths were looked on as more of a problem than a solution.

So I asked TED to help me create, propagate and sustain a Charter for Compassion. The charter was written by leading thinkers of six of the major religions demonstrating that, despite our manifest divisions, this was one policy that we could all agree upon.

When the Charter for Compassion was unveiled in November 2009, I knew that if we wanted to make compassion a positive force in our tragically polarized world, somehow we had to translate the charter, which is primarily a call to action, into practical, sustainable, creative, and realistic endeavors.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/guest-voices/post/from-religious-contemplation-to-activism/2012/04/04/gIQAvN6avS_blog.html

This is the Carter:

Charter for Compassion

The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves. Compassion impels us to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the centre of our world and put another there, and to honour the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.

It is also necessary in both public and private life to refrain consistently and empathically from inflicting pain. To act or speak violently out of spite, chauvinism, or self-interest, to impoverish, exploit or deny basic rights to anybody, and to incite hatred by denigrating others—even our enemies—is a denial of our common humanity. We acknowledge that we have failed to live compassionately and that some have even increased the sum of human misery in the name of religion.

We therefore call upon all men and women ~ to restore compassion to the centre of morality and religion ~ to return to the ancient principle that any interpretation of scripture that breeds violence, hatred or disdain is illegitimate ~ to ensure that youth are given accurate and respectful information about other traditions, religions and cultures ~ to encourage a positive appreciation of cultural and religious diversity ~ to cultivate an informed empathy with the suffering of all human beings—even those regarded as enemies.

We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world. Rooted in a principled determination to transcend selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological and religious boundaries. Born of our deep interdependence, compassion is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity. It is the path to enlightenment, and indispensable to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community.

http://charterforcompassion.org/the-charter/#charter-for-compassion