Let's Have a Global Read

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Are You a Reader? If so, read on...

As many of you are aware, the Charter for Compassion has an established Compassion Book Club inspired by and built around Karen Armstrong’s Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life. Many of our members have formed book clubs and discussion groups surrounding this important work. Now, we are hoping to energize and broaden our Compassionate Book Club by inviting members to join in an All-Charter-Book-Read.

How will this work?

We have selected five books. Members can read these books individually, host book clubs, form discussion groups, etc. in our various and wide-spread places of residence. We will allocate several months for the reading of each book and then have the authors of the book lead an on-line discussion of their work generated by your questions.

Charter Books

We will read the following books: The Compassionate Life: Walking the Path of Kindness by Marc Ian Barasch, The Reunited States of America: How We Can Bridge the Partisan Divide by Mark Gerzon [a special book club offering to prominent discussion prior to the November political election in the U.S.], Great Tide Rising by Kathleen Dean Moore, Turning Compassion into Action by Olivia McIvor, and If Mayors Ruled the World by Benjamin Barber.

Schedule

The dates for the book club conversations are listed below. To participate in these conversations you'll need to register for the conference call. Also all books are available through Amazon. If you go to Amazon, please put: www.smile.amazon.com and register the Charter for Compassion as your charity. If you do this each time you shop with Amazon the Charter will receive .05% of your purchase. It all adds up. Here is the book club line-up:

June 18, 2016 at 9 a.m. PDT: The Compassionate Life: Walking the Path of Kindness by Marc Ian Barasch.  Read the report.

September 17, 2016 at 9 a.m. PDT: The Reunited States of America: How We Can Bridge the Partisan Divide by Mark Gerzon. Read the report.

October 22, 2016 at 9 a.m. PDT: Great Tide Rising by Kathleen Dean Moore.  Read the report. 

We'll be sending out discussion questions and materials several weeks before the call.

We’ll kick off 2017 with Olivia McIvor’s Turning Compassion into Action and Benjamin Barber’s If Mayors Ruled the World (specific dates to follow!)

We are excited to be pioneering this compassionate literary venture, and we look forward to all of your participation! Tell you friends. Bring them along for the discussion. Let’s read!

R E P O R T S    R E S O U R C E S   

A N N O U N C E M E N T S

Charter Cities Movement. Report from the March Compassion Cities and Communities Conference Call is now available on-line.  Register now for the next Communities Call on May 3, 9 am PDT.  Interested in starting a city or community initiative?  Join in on the call to learn more about how initiatives are working in other cities and countries around the world.

Education Institute: Learn more about the Charter's first spring course to be offered, Emotional Intelligence and Compassion. Registration is happening now. Limited scholarships are still available.

Compassionate California.  A all state call for Charter cities, partners and members has been planned for April 20, 9 am PDT. Register here.

Scarboro Mission. Recently Scarboro Mission has re-designed and re-organized the Interfaith Curriculum Resources on their website. The new design is very user-friendly. You can explore this rich collection in nine theme areas: schools & youth groups, peace–building, ecology & social justice, prayer & meditation, colleges & universities, interfaith toolkits, young adults, Golden Rule and bi-lateral dialogues. Extra added bonus: most of these resources can be downloaded free of charge.

Featuring resources from around the world, this compilation is one of the most comprehensive collections of interfaith curricula on the Internet. Here is the link: https://www.scarboromissions.ca/Interfaith_dialogue/student_resources.php.

Cloverleaf. A journal of Spiritual Heritage Education Network Inc., invites submissions of articles, reviews and essays for its first issue. The deadline is June 15, 2016. Information for authors is available at this webpage: http://spiritualeducation.org/cloverleaf.

The Forgiveness Project. The Forgiveness Project challenges audiences around the world to explore the transformative power of forgiveness. The organization’s first-ever Forgiveness Conversation in America, celebrates the US paperback publication of The Forgiveness Project: Stories for a Vengeful Age – a book of personal narratives and insight by The Forgiveness Project’s founder, Marina Cantacuzino. The conversation will include four people who will discuss their own personal, extraordinary journeys of transformation, highlighting the work and ethos of the charity. For free tickets to this NYC event, April 26, 6:30, click here.

The event is being held in collaboration with Peaceful Tomorrows and Barnes & Noble.

Compassion Anthology and Fundraising Benefit: Calling All Artists. The Compassion Anthology is sponsoring an event to benefit Amirah, a refuge for exploited women. Types of submissions include artwork, poetry, short essays, and short fiction. Submission period: up to July 15, 2016. Exhibit Dates, Place: August 4 to September 2, 2016 at Porter Mill Art Gallery, Beverly, Massachusetts, 01915.  Learn more about how you can participate: www.compassionanthology.com/submission-guidelines.html for details. Monies (submission fees and 40% of sales) go directly to Amirah, a refuge for women who want to break free from exploitation. Artists receive 60% of sales.

Non-violent Communications.BayNVC is home to a number of projects and groups working under the same umbrella to apply and promote the principles and practices of Nonviolent Communication. Most of these are operated and run by BayNVC staff and trainers and include private sessions, classes, organizational services, retreats, and a variety of projects designed for social transformation. Learn more: http://baynvc.org. (Submitted by Dana Davis)

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