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Imagine a country whose citizens—maybe even its leaders—are brave, calm, and open towards each other; a country whose people realize that all human beings belong together as one family and must act accordingly; a country guided by Common Sense.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Excerpted from an essay contributed to the 2006 Vision Project, Br. David’s words and wisdom remain profoundly resonant and relevant “in this given moment of history.” At age 94, Br. David is currently living with dear friends in Argentina where he continues to focus on his writing. To read the complete essay see A Vision for the World.
Imagine a country whose citizens—maybe even its leaders—are brave, calm, and open towards each other; a country whose people realize that all human beings belong together as one family and must act accordingly; a country guided by Common Sense.
This may seem more than doubtful when we look around us and see what we have made of the world: “Things fall apart,” says the poet W. B. Yeats succinctly. A “blood-dimmed tide is loosed” upon the world, and in the face of this tide of violence “the best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.” Gratitude? The very word seems utterly out of place, even offensive, under the given circumstances. And yet, we speak of “given” circumstances. This is significant. Whatever is given is gift; and the appropriate response to any gift is gratitude.
But what could be the gift in this given moment of history? The gift hidden in our unprecedented world crisis is an equally unprecedented opportunity. The gift within every gift is opportunity. For us, these days, it is the opportunity to wake up—wake up to the madness of violence and counter-violence. For far too long we were able to ignore the vicious circle of violence against violence—international or domestic, our own or that of others. Let us face it: the supreme danger is violence—regardless who commits it, terrorists or legitimate governments. No rhetoric, no posturing can any longer obscure the fact that violence breeds violence. We must break that cycle of madness.
Violence has roots in every heart. It is within my own heart that I must recognize fear, agitation, coldness, alienation, blind anger and the impulse to retaliation. Here in my heart I can turn fear into courageous trust, agitation into stillness, confusion into clarity, isolation into a sense of belonging, alienation into love, and irrational reaction into Common Sense. The creative intelligence of gratefulness will suggest to each one of us how to go about this task. As examples I will list here five small gestures of gratitude that I have personally tested. They create a ripple effect to counteract violence.
Five Small Gestures of Gratitude to Counteract Fear
1. Say one word today that will give a fearful person courage
All gratitude expresses trust. Suspicion will not even recognize a gift as gift: who can prove that it isn’t a lure, a bribe, a trap? Gratefulness has the courage to trust and so overcomes fear. The very air has been electrified by fearfulness these days, a fearfulness fostered and manipulated by politicians and the media. There lies our greatest danger: fear perpetuates violence. Mobilize the courage of your heart. Say one word today that will give a fearful person courage.
2. Make a firm resolution never to repeat stories and rumors that spread fear
Because gratitude expresses courage, it spreads calm. Calm of this kind is quite compatible with deep emotions. In fact, mass hysteria fostered by the media betrays a morbid curiosity rather than deep feeling—superficial agitation rather than a deep current of compassion. The truly compassionate ones are calm and strong. Make a firm resolution never to repeat stories and rumors that spread fear. From the stillness of your heart’s core reach out. Be calm and spread calm.
3. Make contact with people whom you normally ignore
When you are grateful, your heart is open—open towards others, open for surprise. When disasters hit we often see remarkable examples of this openness: strangers helping strangers sometimes in heroic ways. Others turn away, isolate themselves, dare even less than at other times to look at each other. Violence begins with isolation. Break this pattern. Make contact with people whom you normally ignore—eye-contact at least—with the cashier at the supermarket, someone on the elevator, a beggar. Look a stranger in the eyes today and realize that there are no strangers.
4. Give someone an unexpected smile today
You can feel either grateful or alienated, but never both at the same time. Gratefulness drives out alienation; there is not room for both in the same heart. When you are grateful you know that you belong to a network of give-and-take and you say “yes” to that belonging. This “yes” is the essence of love. You need no words to express it; a smile will do to put your “yes” into action. Don’t let it matter to you whether or not the other one smiles back. Give someone an unexpected smile today and so contribute your share to peace on earth.
5. Listen to the news today and put at least one item to the test of Common Sense
What your gratefulness does for yourself is as important as what it does for others. Gratefulness boosts your sense of belonging; your sense of belonging in turn boosts your Common Sense—not the conventional mind set which we often confuse with it. The common sense that springs from gratefulness is incompatible with a set mind. It is just another name for thinking wedded to cosmic intelligence. Your “yes” to belonging attunes you to the common concerns shared by all human beings—all beings for that matter. In a world we hold in common, nothing else makes sense but Common Sense. We have only one enemy: Our common enemy is violence. Common Sense tells us: we can stop violence only by stopping to act violently; war is no way to peace. Listen to the news today and put at least one item to the test of Common Sense.
The five steps I am suggesting here are small, but they work. It helps that they are small: anyone can take them. Imagine a country whose citizens—maybe even its leaders—are brave, calm, and open towards each other; a country whose people realize that all human beings belong together as one family and must act accordingly; a country guided by Common Sense. To the extent to which we show ourselves not hateful but grateful this becomes reality.
This is an excerpt from an essay originally written for the 2006 Vision Project.
To read a German translation of the complete article, see Eine Vision für die Welt.
Br. David Steindl-Rast
Today I came across your article David, thank you.. For now I have read it, written down my own words from it and will let it digest in my heart and soul and see what emerges. While reading it I felt many emotions and thoughts came and went . My heart and soul was steadyfast and both of these I trust wholeheartedly..
“If you are not prepared to use force to defend civilization, then be prepared to accept barbarism.”
― Thomas Sowell, Knowledge And Decisions
I must respond to your quote by saying that our stand is one of non-violence, not force. The values of Grateful Living commit us to pursuing all avenues that point us toward greater understanding, respect, compassion, interconnectedness, and unity. We believe that Love has the power to transform civilization. This is the sustainable path from conflict to peace that will leave us with hearts and eyes wide open, not blinded by “an eye for an eye” actions.
This is brilliant. Common Sense. Eugene Gendlin, of the Focusing Institute, would call this the Larger System. I practice a kind of listening inside for how I experience myself connected to what I will now call Common Sense. For me it is a physical sense. There are ways that I hear the news and am moved to act. Usually I can’t do all the actions I would like (I would probably burn out!). But I could take something, one piece – as Br. David suggests – and bring that one piece to my loving caring attention, and listen to what comes inside to see if there is some more Common Sense that I am either to bring or to sense. If I listen like that, maybe I will even sense the smallest bit of change in a direction that brings more life. I will try this! I do know that when I listen to the news, and I feel the tears run down the inside of my body, that I am hearing and feeling compassion, and that it makes complete Common Sense to feel that. I hope that somewhere a soul might find the world to be a slightly softer place because I’ve softened it with my tears. That is something I just have to trust.
Brother David, it is very difficult to listen to the news right now. I can follow all the rest of your suggestions no problem. My heart is heavy as is the heart of my brothers and sisters here and the United States and abroad. I do have this vision that Miracles can happen and must happen. I am praying for that and ask that you join with me. Thank you for your heart of gratitude. it helps me especially in these times. With love and gratitude Anita
Sometimes I find it very difficult to listen to the news, and sometimes I can’t. If someone is yelling or having a tantrum, then I leave that stuff to the professional reporters in Canada to translate for me (They actually considered ignoring that stuff, as did the British parliament vote on whether to ignore certain forms of speech (that borders on hate) coming from U.S. political contender–in both cases, they decided that the action would impair the service that they give to the public, i.e. that of reporting). Sometimes the news makes my heart grieve and I feel painful (like when men in Pakistan were attacked in a hospital during their process of identifying bodies). I spend time in the U.S. (months at a time). When there, I get hardly any news of the world, and actually listen to a Canadian station so that I get it. I believe it is important that we take care of our hearts so that we can grow in awareness and ability to listen. We who lives outside of the U.S., who are impacted even more than you by your leaders, we need you ordinary Americans to listen to Common Sense. It behooves all of us to do the best we can with that, and to seek the help we can. I will follow Br. David’s suggestions in this post so that I can do that better. I will pray for your miracle, Anita. Blessing you, Mary Anne
Mary Anne, it seems we have even more in common that you realize. I was born and raised in Canada. Vancouver Island. I met and fell in love with a Texan, yep, a Texan. I know Jesus teaches us to love our neighbors but He didn’t say anything about marrying a neighbor but I did anyways. And I am still happily married to this Texan, who is as crazy as I am. I feel like I live in twilight zone at times, as I am not very patriotic towards any country. But I do have somewhat of a perspective of both borders of the USA. And my concern is world peace and that, throughout the world, all leaders and all people – world peace should be our concern. How do we make this a safe place, safe from corruption and crime, for all people throughout the world? There are easy answers, we just put down our weapons and stop attacking each other – verbally and physically. But easier said than done. The thought that came to my mind is not just to light a candle in my own retreat corner of my house, but to light a candle for others, in other lands and places.
Well hello neighbour, and hello Mary Anne! Your thought to light a candle in your house that is for your house and others is beautiful. When you get to other lands, my thought is that when you look on their candles, you will feel a new variation on your beautiful Common Sense (maybe a sense of peace and compassion and hope) and then you will add another light. By the by, I grew up with Americans, in Tripoli Libya. Every summer I came “home” to Canada. I did not like how ignorant (innocently so) they were about where I lived, and that they had very false ideas about the Arabs (who I respect and in whose country I felt very safe, living side by side). When we finally moved to Canada, I expected to feel patriotism and at home. Canada does not pride itself on patriotism. I felt that I missed that. Today I realize what blessing that is–to not feel patriotic. I belong to the world. I belong to humanity. The world is my home. I believe we are very lucky here, that we downplay nationalism. When all my neighbours are at peace and happy, I am happy. I try to bring peace, joy and happiness through the doorway of my life. May it spread through our Common Sense. Blessing you, Mary Anne
Mary Anne, I too don’t feel patriotic. I belong to the human family. There is no your’s and mine, there is Life. I am proud to echo your sharing. We owe it to the world to regard each as a vital part of it with there own divine right to “be.” Destroy any part of life is to destroy some part of ourselves. I think we are begining to recognize this. At least at a grassroots level. Blessings and thanks for giving me the courage to say the unthinkable (to some Americans). I am a citizen of the world. ? ? ? Charla
Anita, let me see if I can convey what I learned in my morning Prayer time. It started with my experience in the park with the squirrels, ducks, geese overhead, birds singing, and I realized they were unaffected, and uninterested in the events reported to us in the news. Hmmm! I thought there is a lesson here for me. This insight has evolved over a few days. This morning it came to me that we NEVER feel safe. We don’t feel safe with others, guard almost everything we say and do lest we offend someone, the news bombards us with serious reports of man’s inhumanity to man, all kinds of catastrophes , and Now a President that is unable to utter a sane sensible word and is given to tantrums… and then we wonder why we are a reck, emotionally and physically. It came to me that what we all need is a good rest wrapped in the divine Mothers arms; how ever you conceive of that. A place where we are loved, safe, and not required to save the world, which we know very well that we can’t. And where no threat of our well being can come. We are just safe and we know it and rest in it. I, also, don’t listen to the news. I’ve heard enough!!! That is not to say I don’t care about my brother and sisters because I care deeply. This is not to say I never do anything, it is to say First, I need some rest from this turmoil and so does everyone else. If there is something I can do divine wisdom will direct me, but the weight of the world does not rest on my shoulders, I am unable to bear the weight of it. I can do something, in my little corner of the world to bring comfort, and care to another, but I cannot bear the weight of the world, it is not mine to bear. So for now I have adopted the attitude of my precious squirrels, ducks, geese, and little birds in the park. I’m not impressed with all the rhetoric. If a little bird song can turn my day around maybe I can whistle a happy ditty today, take a deep breath and say, “all is well, right here right now,” and thereby lighten up someone’s day in my little “park” in the world. Divine Rest to you all. ☺ ? ? ? Charla
Charla, THANK YOU. I can relate to the birds and ‘All Is well’. I’ve been inviting God to walk, inhabit, speak and act through me. And when I walk with God, I know all is truly well.
The practice for me now is to continue this. The rhetoric is unreal.
May you experience the peace in this moment.
With much gratitude, Anita
Charla! Thank you so much for your reply. I am moved and humbled. You get right to the point. Thank you so very much. I even put your writing on my fb page. Thank you for being a voice for so much beauty, Mary Anne
Genuine Truth!
This is why I don’t watch TV and don’t watch the news on TV. I prefer to read the news online or in print. I just want to know what is the truth, not the opinions or viewpoints of newscasters and their producers. I want to be able to think for myself. And to have the quietness, stillness and peace to think things through. And to be able to listen to and be in the Silence.
I agree with you, Zoe, in preferring old-fashioned reporting, rather than heavily biased commentary, but reporting can still be found in a few places. Sometimes my husband and I turn off the sound and just read the scroll at the bottom of the telly, which is reporting. I have also noticed, gratefully, that many journalists are stepping up the effort to expose misinformation and deliberately faked photos and other news, and are even making an effort to educate the public how to shake down their news streams to see if they are being misled.
But it was maybe eight years ago or so that I started seeing certain words heavily repeated in news having an effect on our views, in particular, the polarization of politics. I challenged a friend one day at the dinner table. He made a comment about “Republican senators,” and my challenge was for him to prove it was ALL Republican senators who voted a certain way, as he believed, because of how it was reported. This may seem to many to be splitting hairs, but I don’t think it is. My point was we use labels to oversimplify facts, and I think we are often using them in a way that solidifies our perception of polarization and an engaged battle. Turns out, it was not ALL Republican Senators, it was most of them in that one instance, but not all. Our choice of words, particularly the ones chosen by journalists, has been erasing the middle ground. Not on purpose, of course, but still. I think that this concept of moderate or accurate word choice is vitally important, and one we need to recapture if we are to bridge a divide and not remain Republicans and Democrats, Liberals and Conservatives, Blacks and Whites, or whatever other divide marks your home, …and just become people again. We can’t make a middle ground, if we don’t recognize, report, discuss, and fortify that common ground.
I like that. I think it’s a good way to be.
Hello! I really like your name and your photo!!! We have some things in common, in addition to Common Sense! I do not own a T.V. However, I do tune in to CBC and I do read reports from credible sources. Truth is a multi-faceted and important and almost elusive goal in the media, but we must keep working at it, since it brings us closer to reality and our very important Common Sense. When I go inward, in my quiet time, I know I connect to Common Sense. For that reason, I think it will be very interesting for me to try Br David’s 5th suggestion above.
These gestures will never become old or outdated …such is the nature of genuine Truth!
Timeless!