Spiritually Speaking – April 2019
“We’re All in This Together: “All of our humanity is dependent upon recognizing the humanity in others.” – Archbishop Desmond Tutu
The news of the day is rarely simple and/or great, no matter how much we wish it to be. I find that people want it to be black versus white, right versus wrong. But it rarely is. Your take on the news depends so much on what you’ve experienced in life. You and I can look at the same picture, read the same story, or listen to the same speech. Yet we have completely different takes on what is being said and what it means.
I am connected to you; and, yes, you are connected to me. We share the same planet. We breathe the same air. How I treat me is how I should try to treat you. What I want for my family is what I should strive to want for your family…regardless of your religion, the color of your skin, your gender, your sexual orientation, or your political affiliation. I long to drop the labels we use to identify ourselves – and that we so often hide behind; since they always seem to take us further from one another, instead of closer together.
So, as we heatedly debate the news of the day – as we’re flooded with images of people crying for help, may we stop and remember that we’re all together in this great big family called the human race.
Our future depends on seeing our common humanity and finding ways to move it forward toward a better place than where it is today. We’re not here to destroy one another. We’re here to connect with one another and to help one another. Our very survival depends on one another.
This week, I’ve been thinking about the power of prayer. I’m a big believer in the power of prayer, because I’ve seen it work firsthand. In fact, right now I’m a part of a prayer circle for a friend battling cancer. I know it’s effective, because she’s still out there running around, working, and being a warrior for social justice.
I pray every morning and every evening to guide myself, to focus myself, to express gratitude, and to be in conversation with God. I pray for myself, for my children, and for my friends. I also pray for those that I seek to better understand – including those I don’t understand…because they see things differently from the way I see them.
I’m going to keep praying for all of us and for our shared humanity. It’s there for us to see. All we need to do is open our eyes, our minds, and our hearts and let it in.
From I’ve Been Thinking by Maria Shriver
