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I Believe

I believe it takes just a little light to drive out any darkness.  Despite growing up in a racially segregated ghetto in St. Louis, Missouri, my mother was my first role model in shining her light.  As a hardworking single mother raising six children on her own, she was undaunted in her hopes and dreams for us.  She told us we could be anything we wanted to be even though we were surrounded by so many limitations. My family also had a strong connection to church, both Baptist and Pentecostal traditions.  In this environment, I experienced affirming, loving support from the elders who first encouraged me to consider a life of ministry which would be inclusive of all races and cultures.

The Twenty First Century Is The Century Of Light

My dream of such a ministry has been with me for over five decades since I first began my spiritual journey and it is even stronger now.  I believe the 21st Century is the Century of Light.  Light comes from every spiritual tradition, from every culture and from every person.  We are all spiritual beings on a human journey.

People throughout history have used their spiritual belief systems to empower themselves.  Our acts of compassion, rooted and grounded in our spiritual belief systems, form the common ground for the 21st Century to come alive as the Century of Light. 

Buddhism: "Hurt no others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful."  (Udana-Varga, 5, 18).
Christianity:  "Treat others the way you want them to treat you.  This is the Law and Prophets."  (Matthew 7:12)
Hinduism:  "Whatever you consider injurious to yourself, never do to the other.  This is the essence of dharma."  (Mahabharata, Udyoga Parvan 39, 71).
Islam:  "No one is a believer until he desires for his brothers and sisters that which he desires for himself."  (Hadith of Muhammad).
Judaism:  "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow men and women.  That is the entire Law; all the rest is commentary."  (The Talmud, Shabbat 3id).
Native American:  "He is the God of all people and his compassion is equal for all."  (Chief Seattle of the Squaish, circa 1855).

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