Friday, November 14, 2008

Worth hearing: TED & Charter for Compassion

I've had an eye on an amazing organization since last summer: TED. The letters stand for "Technology, Entertainment, Design" and it is founded on the idea that ideas make an enormous difference. TED speakers have included naturalist Jane Goodhall, theologian Peter Gomes, Vice President Al Gore, and a host of lesser known but fascinating thinkers. All of the talks are on-line in video format at the TED website. Leslie Middleton brought this talk to my attention: author Karen Armstrong proposing the creation of a "Charter for Compassion" to turn the world's religions into agents of compassion rather than forces of intolerance. Says Armstrong:

"I say that religion isn't about believing things. It's ethical alchemy. It's about behaving in a way that changes you, that gives you intimations of holiness and sacredness." 

You can hear her full talk in the video below, or by clicking here: Armstrong TED.  And maybe we can talk about how we become part of a Charter of Compassion?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

If you've not seen it, I recommend the TED session by Jill Bolte Taylor on awareness, reality, and brain function. The Centering Prayer group got quite a lot of mileage out of it. Quite a moving testimonial.