Author: Michael Tino

“The principle of compassion lies at the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves. Compassion impels us to work tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of our fellow creatures, to dethrone ourselves from the centre of our world and put another there, and to honour the inviolable sanctity of every single human being, treating everybody, without exception, with absolute justice, equity and respect.” -The Charter for Compassion

How have you practiced centering others?

“We, the member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association covenant to affirm and promote…justice, equity, and compassion in human relationships.”

What does it mean to promote compassion in human relationships? How have you witnessed this happening?

 

“Lift the veil of indifference, learn to understand one another’s plight, and share in the beauty, wonder, joy and awe of life. Love mercy and kindness, and walk humbly with one another, and with all creation. Love your neighbors as you love yourself. Give to others the full measure of your goodness, so they will give unto you the same. As you honor the covenant of your traditions, may you also covenant with all people of good will: a covenant of love, compassion, humility, generosity, gratitude and celebration.” -From “Ibrahim’s Prayer,” by Jan Taddeo

How can you lift the veil of indifference to others today?

“We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world. Rooted in a principled determination to transcend selfishness, compassion can break down political, dogmatic, ideological and religious boundaries. Born of our deep interdependence, compassion is essential to human relationships and to a fulfilled humanity. It is the path to enlightenment, and indispensable to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community.” -The Charter for Compassion

How has compassion changed your relationships?

Compassion comes from roots that mean “to suffer with.” How do we develop a capacity to recognize another person’s pain and have it change the way we act and react?

What are ways you practice compassion?

Over the course of July, Daily Compass will loosely use Karen Armstrong’s framework in her book Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life and the Charter for Compassion, to explore compassion.