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November/December 2005 Spirituality |
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| Sharif Abdullah |
Sharif Abdullah is an author and catalyst for inclusive social, cultural and spiritual transformation. His work has taken him to over two dozen countries and to every continent. Sharif is recognized nationally and internationally as a voice for a "common society", a visionary movement beyond the extremes of secular globalization and religious fundamentalism.
He founded the Commonway Institute in Portland, Oregon, whose purpose is to teach and practice inclusivity. This is the recognition that my life, my fate, my future are inextricably linked to yours. It is vital to our future to make the change from "I am Separate" to "We are One." It is only through this profound shift in consciousness that a new society will be born.
We are in deep trouble, says Sharif. We live in a world that works for only a few. It doesn’t even work for those it purports to serve. Through the practice of exclusivity, "I am separate", we have created a soul-starved society. The spirit of this work invites us into new ways of working together.
The irony of our times is that things are getting worse and worse, and better and better, faster and faster. However, Sharif presents a unique way out of our world dilemma: By changing our consciousness – how we Think - we can change ourselves, our communities, our nation and our world. Our world is shaped by our beliefs: change the underlying beliefs and the world will be changed. Sharif’s gift is to help us make sense of an increasingly complex and turbulent world, and to show us how to become the leaders we need at this time.
Leadership, Power and Values
The world is an increasingly hostile place, but it's the only world we've got. The answer isn't for us to stick our collective heads into the sand, or to militarize our society. The answer is not for us to continue to place faith in leaders and political parties that constantly fail us. The answer is for us to become the leaders we want.
Right now, with the resources currently available to us, we can create a world that works for all beings. Spiritual City Forum, whose mission is healing the world, one conversation at a time, has become impassioned with Sharif’s work. It is collaborating with Commonway, the Abundant Life Center in Vancouver, New Thought Ministries in Beaverton and the Portland Center for Spiritual Awareness in Portland, to produce Leadership, Power and Values: Pathways Into the Heart of Our Society, a Four-Part Inquiry led by Sharif Abdullah.
This seminar series is designed to inspire and catalyze authentic leadership, an appropriate response to our 21st-century realities. Our goal is to look at the three key energies of modern society, from a radically different point of view. In order to change the direction of our society, we will need new leadership, new aspects of power, and clear and inclusive values. This work is crucial in order to change the direction of our society.
Participants in the first session will explore the subject of leadership, focusing on the ways that human beings govern each other’s behavior for the common good. We need to train the leaders of a new society, and awaken that emerging leadership within each of us.
The second evening will explore power. In the face of military force, financial control and growing apathy and disillusionment, how do we catalyze "people power"? We live in a nation and a world where the dominant value is Money. This has created a distorted and immoral society, so the third session will focus on the human and spiritual values necessary for our survival into the 21st Century. The last session will integrate the lessons learned in the first three, and will set out a practical map of action for participants in the Portland area.
This work is "spiritual" in a very new way: a spirituality that is engaged in and connected to the world; a spirituality that is unencumbered by religious doctrine and dogma. The Commonway work on the value of inclusivity is spiritual, in that it actively works toward the goal that lies at the heart of most religions: the creation of a world that actually works for all beings.
We cannot predict the future but we can invent it. Everything started with a thought. Every social system started out from the desire to make life better. This is the sacred work of spiritual people everywhere.
Rev. Grace Young is the director of the Spiritual City forum. For more information on the Seminar Series go to www.spiritualcityforum.org. The series will be held on Thursday Evenings November 3, 10, 17 from 6pm - 9pm at Unity of Portland, 4525 SE Stark; and on Sunday, December 4th from 2 pm - 5pm at the Convention Center, Portland. Cost: $80 for the series online registration, $100 at the door. Register & Pay online at www.spiritualcityforum.org
Sharif Abdullah’s writings include The Power of One: Authentic Leadership in Turbulent Times and the award-winning Creating a World That Works for All, and Finding Our Way in the Land of the Blind: Essays on Terrorism and Steps for Living in a Violence-Free World. He is founder and president of Commonway Institute, www.commonway.org.