SPIRITUAL UNITY
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From: Bruce S.
Date: Thursday, March 6, 2008, 10:34 AM
Subject: Spiritual Unity
ID: 259975

Good morning, everybody --

Just a little hello -- and a small thought...

One of the things that is going on here in other parts of this network -- is that we are exploring ways to make our "quotes on spirituality" more useful. We're looking into the possibility of "asking questions about spiritual issues" -- and "answering those questions" -- at least in part by citing these quotes...

We are thinking -- that it might make a lot of sense -- if people could come into a space we create (maybe call it a "garden"???) -- and get advice or -- suggestions, or wise information -- on these subjects...

If something like that were possible -- how would that work? Well -- maybe those questions could be answered by the quotes -- what have the saints and prophets and psychologists told us on this point?

Or -- here is another possibility -- one of the "wise people" or "teachers" or "counselors" in our network -- could answer the question. For example -- if the question was about meditation -- Ram -- or Starr* -- or Jonathan -- might write an answer...

And -- here's one other possibility --

Maybe the answer could come from "scripture" -- or be supported and illustrated by it.

I mention this -- because we have a big project out there on scripture -- a project called "World Scripture". I put this together back in the 1990's -- it's 4,000 scriptural passages, organized on the basis of "what the world religions have in common". It's kind an amazing system -- that we have not been doing much with lately.

I was thinking maybe people here could take a quick look at this. This is not a "database" system -- these are just html files. I think all this content should be in our database system. Take a look at this if you have a minute. This might be the best overview of interfaith philosophy available:

http://origin.org/ucs/ws/ws.cfm

This is all taken from a 914-page book, edited by Dr. Andrew Wilson (he sent me the book on two floppy disks, and I translated it into internet files).

Dr. Wilson writes:

Granting the integrity of each religion, it is significant for the believer of one faith to find in other faiths common teachings and common attitudes towards life, death, and ultimate ends.

First, there is the discovery that the transcendent Reality that is the ground of life in one's own faith is also grounding the spiritual life of people whose faith stems from different revelations, different revealers. This confirms and testifies to the oneness of God, the Ultimate Reality, who appears in different guises from age to age and culture to culture.

Second, the discovery that people of other faiths are leading spiritual lives similar to one's own can promote tolerance of, and respect for, other faiths. By understanding one another's religions in depth and with empathy, people can find peaceful solutions to disputes which might otherwise degenerate into dangerous conflict.

Third, the teachings of another tradition may spark new insights into similar issues in one's own life of faith. Indeed, if each religion is but a witness to the Truth that transcends its particular expression, then all of them should contribute valuable insights to our understanding of any question.

Fourth, humankind needs to rediscover the spiritual foundations of values in order to overcome the sterile, materialist outlooks and philosophies of our day. Despite both the common moral values and the traditional spiritual wisdom found in all religions, persistent squabbles among religions have served to discredit them, making universal values appear to be relative and sectarian.

The foundation of a pluralistic society -- its cultural expressions, legal system, and public schools -- requires values that are grounded in the universal experience of humankind, not just in the doctrines of one faith. Necessary to this foundation is testimony to the universality of religious values such as found herein. Finally, a World Scripture can support a world theology and guide us toward a unity of the world's peoples that is grounded in God.

http://origin.org/ucs/ws/wsintr2.cfm