Power of silence.At the heart of MRA's annual conferences in Caux, Switzerland Caux is a small village in the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. Looking out over Lake Geneva from an altitude of 1000 meters, the Caux conference centre of Initiatives of Change[1] can accommodate up to 450 people. , which have been running through July and August, is a belief that each person can make a difference to the world, through a transforming experience of liberation in their lives and through their interaction with others. The human spirit longs for liberation, not just economic and political liberation, important as these are, but also inner liberation from the down-drag of base instincts: hate, bitterness, greed and lust which all too easily enslave en·slave tr.v. en·slaved, en·slav·ing, en·slaves To make into or as if into a slave. en·slave  ment n. us. People long to `be themselves'--to have a sense of worth and purpose in life; to be able to contribute of their time and talents; to know that they are needed and loved. But `being ourselves' requires a recognition that we are first and foremost spiritual, not just economic or material, beings. In an age of information (and often information overload A symptom of the high-tech age, which is too much information for one human being to absorb in an expanding world of people and technology. It comes from all sources including TV, newspapers, magazines as well as wanted and unwanted regular mail, e-mail and faxes. ) there is a primary source of `information'--that of the still, small voice within, that Christians would call the Holy Spirit, which comes from God and empowers us. To receive this `information' requires time, space and silence, free from the tyranny of deadlines or `the next thing to do'. Not the `festering fes·ter v. fes·tered, fes·ter·ing, fes·ters v.intr. 1. To generate pus; suppurate. 2. To form an ulcer. 3. To undergo decay; rot. 4. a. silence' of fear and resentment to which Irish President McAleese refers (see page 12). Rather, the silence to ponder and reflect, which she welcomes and advocates, and which draws on the wellsprings of wisdom, insight and love for others. Of course it is possible to fool ourselves--to hear voices of delusion delusion, false belief based upon a misinterpretation of reality. It is not, like a hallucination, a false sensory perception, or like an illusion, a distorted perception. and self-interest, to succumb to peer pressure and the spirit of the age. For wisdom to be authentic, there have to be checks and balances--moral standards of honesty, purity, selflessness self·less adj. Having, exhibiting, or motivated by no concern for oneself; unselfish: "Volunteers need both selfish and selfless motives to sustain their interest" Natalie de Combray. and love for others--which guide our motives. We need the wisdom of the scriptures and the advice of trustworthy friends and clerics. But first and foremost it is in silence, and in prayer, that we grow as individuals, and become empowered to change the world. As St James put it: `Those who look closely into the perfect law that sets people free, who keep on paying attention Noun 1. paying attention - paying particular notice (as to children or helpless people); "his attentiveness to her wishes"; "he spends without heed to the consequences" attentiveness, heed, regard to it and do not simply listen then forget it, but put it into practice--they will be blessed by God in what they do.' |
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