For a long time, I didn’t consider myself a “leader with a capital L.” You won’t typically find me taking charge in meetings, putting myself out there during events, or being credited as someone who built something from the ground up. My leadership philosophy is quite different: I lead from the middle. In other words, […]
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From the Religica Community: Sharing Gratitude The holiday season is upon us. Traditionally, this is a time full of family and friends, a time full of joy, gratitude, and love. These aspects of the holidays are not gone. There still is much to be thankful for and ways to experience the season’s cheer, but for […]
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When we say we are spiritually isolated, different meanings emerge such as being unable to worship and pray together, or not having a spiritual relationship with the sacred presence, or fearing death, or ritual isolation. There are two books I have found helpful in understanding this: The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying and The […]
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This blog was originally published in November 2020. It's November 11th on Veterans Day in the U.S. and the usual “Thank you for your service” messages of love come to me via text and tags on social media. It happens every year, and every year I don’t know what to say. During most interactions, both [...] Read More
Do you hear a protracted public sigh after this U.S. presidential election? When I informally query colleagues, friends, neighbors and students this week, about how they feel in the post-election gloaming, each response is preceded by a noticeable exhale. Their responses to me reveal how cleaved we feel right now – “weary perseverance”, “anxious hopefulness”, “frayed determination”, and more. The sinews of our [...] Read More
Music inspires and transcends boundaries and Barry Manilow, through the song ‘One Voice,’ shows leadership comes from anywhere. Music has been a big part of my life. I have led people of all faiths in song and spiritual practice with sound to help heal. Now, as a retired business leader, I teach about the ‘presence’ [...] Read More
Precious little history of the interfaith movement is available, save for several books by Marcus Braybrooke. As the globe shrinks with digital tools, and as interfaith relations develop and increasingly command public attention, this arena deserves more attention. Its history is threaded with interesting, useful stories, information, and wisdom. One important but mostly unnoticed element [...] Read More
Almost ten months into 2020, it’s a daily challenge to not be consumed by despair and sadness. What lessons can we learn from those we’ve lost? And what call remains for each of us to hear? It’s hard to look back at what 2020 has been and not feel disheartened. As a global community, we [...] Read More
In August of 1963, in Zimbabwe, as I held tightly onto my mother’s hand, we walked down the street of a small African farming town, whilst our cursing white neighbors spat on her if they could not avoid her by walking on the other side of the street. Why were they doing this? My mother [...] Read More
Six months into this pandemic, without an end in sight, the idea of time spent at home may hold less appeal than it once did. Home is a construct that is as concrete as the spaces we inhabit daily and as ephemeral as an idea that lives only in our imaginations. Sue Monk Kidd writes [...] Read More