Blog From A Hermit Dot Com

I am not a religious person, though I often find myself in appreciative awe of the positive emotional energy behind some of my friends’ assorted “holy days.”  It doesn’t surprise me that holidays from different religions often overlap or coincide.

I think the greatest spiritual teachers all emphasize finding our commonalities rather than judging our differences. We find our commonalities by educating ourselves and our children, and by communicating with each other. We do not find commonalities by pointing fingers, arguing over who’s privy to historical truth, and warring over who’s right and who’s wrong.

I’m particularly impressed with The Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS) educational program, Worldview Literacy:  

Worldview literacy helps people to recognize that beliefs are embedded within personal and cultural frames of reference, that other people hold different worldviews, and there are skills and capacities that can be cultivated to deal with the complexities of divergent worldviews. Such skills, including critical thinking, self-reflection, emotional and social intelligence, cultural appreciation, and non-violent communication, offer young people powerful new tools that are good for them and good for the world.

Our worldviews or models of reality are often unconscious. They can be brought to awareness through reading or discussion, but it is more effective to personally encounter situations that highlight those assumptions. Just as travel in exotic lands can open our eyes to new points of view, this project provides worldview scenarios that teach through experience and focused encounters with other kids and their life experiences.

More than ever, we live in a global community - providing children with the power of a global perspective is a huge step toward a community without the horrors of war.