Can Compassion Save the Planet?

"When British author Karen Armstrong won the TED prize in 2008, she used the money to convene a group of religious thinkers from a wide range of faiths to craft an updated version of the Golden Rule for the 21st century. What emerged was the Charter for Compassion, which calls on people around the world "to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the center of our world and put another there, and to honor the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.""

"Every one of the major religions has formulated its own version of the Golden Rule. That's the essence of faith and spirituality. And it seemed to me that it wasn't just a nice idea; it was an urgent global imperative. Unless we learn to ensure that all people, no matter where they live, are treated the way we would like to be treated, the world isn't going to be a viable place."

"It should be a city that's uncomfortable about pain and suffering in the world. Especially in the West, we live lives of such privilege that we often block out the awful things that are going on in the world. We shouldn't be able to sleep, for example, when we see all these migrants literally dying to get into Europe."

An updated Golden Rule urges people worldwide to work tirelessly to alleviate suffering, dethrone self-centeredness, and honor the inviolable sanctity of every human being, treating everyone without exception with justice, equity, and respect. A global network of hundreds of organizations and more than seventy-five cities promotes these principles. Compassion requires confronting pain and privilege, making communities uncomfortable about suffering, and refusing to ignore crises such as migrants dying to reach safety. Major religious traditions embody versions of the Golden Rule, and cultivating compassion is presented as essential for creating a viable, sustainable world.

Read at Mindful