Best wishes from Sweden.
Margareth, artist, humanist

Yes, we need to include religion in our deliberations on peace. The two are virtually compatible.

Ignorance is poison! Religion is a personal choice, we should all choose to embrace one another in love and acceptance NO matter what.

I agree with Anjee. All you need is love! ;)

There is One center.
It matters little how I enter.
I choose the path that calls to me.
I pause and breath in eternity.
I notice that across the field, you are dressed in rainbows.
I look down and notice that I am here, dressed in very plain clothes.
Closing my eyes I look within, Now I feel a shift.
Suddenly I am dressed in light and my mind is moving swift.
I meet you Now without a wall to separate our being.
We both give thanks without a word, forgiveness is so freeing.
There is One center.
In faith we enter.
In grace we rest our bones.
The essence of this Sacred place where I know I am not alone...

Religion is not a cure-all for peace, but rather a necessary component. If academics develop a process to promote peace but choose to ignore religion (out of fear of criticism by colleagues), then the process is doomed. It is not any particular religion's dogma which matters; it is the humble submission to a higher power with dominion over everyone. As such, religion introduces hope, even in the midst of grave suffering. And, without hope, we cannot achieve peace.
-Caruso in "A Moment of Peace".

Understanding is the key to survival & inner peace. Quiet the mind and you quiet the soul.

Thank you for joining everyone!

I agree with Bruce, religion is not the cure-all for peace. However since it is a key component of conflicts and war, it is likewise a necessary component of resolution. It's like putting a band-aid on versus curing a disease. We can try all the band aids in the world, but until we address the disease (religious intolerance) we'll remain sick. I find hope in the fact that the major religions actually share so many teachings, and when we look at them objectively we can see a lot of common ground. So I believe the potential is there to cure the disease, just by focusing more on these common teachings and realizing we area all One, any way you look at it.

Here are some quotations on religious unity I have collected.

"Muslim, Christian, or Jew, all turn their eyes to the Eternal One."
-Sufi writing

"There are as many ways to God as souls; as many as the breaths of Adam's sons."
-Mohammed

"God made the truth with many doors."
-Kahil Gibran

"I feel that this world has to drop the idea that one religion is true and the others are not true."
-Kathleen Raine, Poet

"Who worship other gods with heart of faith, They too adore but Me behind those forms, unknowing of the one direct way."
-The Bhagavad-Gita

"Scripture itself testifies that God does not take into account our petty categories of race or religion or denomination when He has a message for mankind. Each of us, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Atheist, Jew, Native American, Feminist, can be a vehicle for the word of God."
-Rabbi Steve Fornstein

"I am a Christian and a Hindu and a Muslim and a Jew."
-Mahatma Gandhi

"May He who is the Brahman of the Hindus, the Ahura Mazda of the Zoroastrians, the Buddha of the Buddhists, Adonai of the Jews, and the Father in Heaven of the Christians, give strength to you ..."
-Swami Vivekananda (Hindu sage)

"Anyone can choose to be righteous. Of their own accord, Jew or Gentile, can choose to be righteous and give themselves to God in love. Therefore, the Holy One loves them."
-Midrash (Jewish holy book)

"Truth is one; sages call it by various names. So many faiths are but different paths leading to the one reality, God."
-Sri Ramakrishna

"In effect, the basic teachings of Christ, Buddha, and the Vedas are the same."
-Richard Bock

"(this) teaching appears in the Zend Avesta of Zoroaster ... It contains the fundamental concepts of (Hinduism), the Vedas and the Upanishads; and the Yoga systems of India sprang from the same source. Buddha later gave forth essentially the same basic ideas and his sacred Bodhi tree is correlated with the Essene Tree of Life. In Tibet the teaching once more found expression in the Tibetan Wheel of Life."
-Edmond Bordeaux Szekely, historian

"All must abandon prejudices and must even go to each other's churches and mosques, for in all of these worshipping places, the Name of God is mentioned. Since all gather to worship God, what difference is there? They hold aloof from each other merely because of unfounded prejudices and dogmas. In America, I went to Jewish Synagogues, which are similar to Christian Churches, and I saw them worshipping God everywhere."
-Abdu'l-Baha, disciple of Baha'u'llah,
founder of the Bahai faith

"Veda, Avesta, Bible, Al-Quran, Temple, Pagoda, Church, and Kaba-Stone, all these and more my heart doth close embrace, since my Religion now is Love alone."
-Sufi writing
---------------------------
Too many wars are fought over religious intolerance. The human race must abandon the notion that one religion is right and the others are wrong. The truth resides in just looking objectively at the religions and seeing how much they share. Then we can all see that all religions have something to offer and they are not mutually exclusive. And then many wars over "My God is the true God" will have no use. Peace will not come to the earth until people realize it's all the same God. Namaste.

Edward Biagiotti, that was so beautiful! Did you write it? Yes, there is ONE center. Namaste.

very happy to be here in this group.
Very much needed
Peace
Chris

At first I was annoyed by all the notifications to my email, as new members joined up. HOWEVER, They are like chimes from angels. As another soul gets that: " IT'S WHAT'S THE SAME THAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE" ~ (me) Blessings all around!

Beautiful Page and Group here! I hope 2 contribute more soon. I often times feel that we are preaching to the choir manytimes, but we must follow our core to share our love for peace. I do know this, it all starts from within.

we are all one keep up the work i love you Yaron brightness idea may God help us to love each other it does not matter what one believe in we are all one. i am honor to be part this group. thank you

I'm special

I'm special.
In the enire world there is nobody like me.

Since the begining of time,
there has never been another person like me.

Nobody has my smile.

Nobody has my eyes,
my nose, my hair, my hands, my voice.

I'm special.

Nobody anywhere has my taste for food,
or music, or art.

No-one sees things just as I do.
In all of time there has been
no-one who laughs like me,
no-one who cries like me.

And what makes me laugh and cry
will never provoke identical laughter and tears
from anybody else, ever...

I'm begining to see that God made me special
for a special purpose.
He must have a job for me
that no-one else can do as well as I...

Thom Shultz (exerpt)

In Peace Forever

Marek of

Thank you for the invitation to this beautiful place and group you created here.
When we start accepting all walks(sacred) of life..peace occurs quite harmoniously
inside the heart..i know one thing source of peace for me is earth connection.
I am in the nature..it don't judge you can just be and I mean BE with it.
Waves of and ripples of grace light i felt looking at sky sitting by the sea or feel the wind on my skin ..the beauty to watch the birds listen to song of them..

there are days I don't have the camera with me..I is meant I feel the experience..there are days I go around with the camera..and nothing cvoems no connection..there are days..I know I see so much I could capture..and go back to it when it's possible..There are pictures that is meant to be taken tere and then..there are experiences to be shared after considering them first then there (as life) are moments to be shared in awareness and inspite if somebody approves or not..all along the perception and judgments (mostly inside of us..)
is what causes so much conflict..if I am not in balance If I don't feel the connection..I am bound to seek and attract conflict..
I feel it's so important to maintain the connection of love ..

I am pleased and smae time blessed being here amongst so many worthy causes and aware and peaceful beauty souls like you.Thank you fro all you share.
I joined change org.-Thanks to you Yaron for posting the vote link.
Actually this lady in Finland that does(many years back now)non-violent education here..met here true to intruducing High-Touch acuprssure to a group of healers and psycologist and psyciatrics ina private home...
well it's funny she helped me way back to negotiate one deal..concering childcare( my son was treated very bad..in a private nursing home..)
nobody would want to listen to us at all..she helped and actually was my first
situation in action seeing it used in an envrioment and in a situation applied..so it works.at least for us.Bless her for help-she was actually only one to help us back then..New tools here..Now it's more widly used and known..thanks to this lady here doing the work and educating people.

I am pleased to read of so many actions taken so many crative ways to share peace.Thank you all for that.

peace to your souls always.

It's never too late to sit down at this internet "table" dedicated to world peace. Realizing a table exists, may be a journey of a lifetime. We bring two gifts to this table to serve the process of world peace, a gift of a new prayer-chant to help seal our collective intent and a gift of a "new" pathway to knowing.
Thank you.
Peace and Conflict Resolution.Org

“I believe that if we really want human brotherhood to spread and increase until it makes life safe and sane, we must also be certain that there is no one true faith or path by which it may spread.”

~Adlai Stevenson

Thank you to everyone for being here and sharing!

"It's nothing like my globe at home," remarked Zak, "I can't see the borders of the countries. They aren't different colors or anything."
"Borders? Borders?" The Professor looked bewildered. He thought for a minute then pulled the planetary guide from his belt. He turned rapidly through the pages then stopped and said, "Aha. Here we are. 'Borders: Imaginary lines (sometimes following the natural shape of a planet) established by some early warlike Guardian Residents to separate individual groups of their species from each other. An ancient practice thought to be extinct throughout the universe.' Isn't that interesting...hard to imagine."
He scratched his lower right ear and a puzzled look came over his face. "If they separate themselves from each other and divide up the planet, how can they feel whole? How can they share ideas?" He turned to the children. "I'll definitely have to put this in my log. You're sure you have borders?"
The children nodded.
     "Absolutely fascinating!  The other Sharelings of your planet...do they use these borders?"
     "What do you mean?" asked Zak.
     "Do the birds? Can the plant creatures see them? The water doesn't stop at these borders, does it?"
     The children shook their heads.
     "Well! This is certainly one for the books! The Grand Council of Quantia will be amazed! In fact, they'll be astounded!"

"Do you see the divine through somebody else's binoculars, idea, descriptions? I'm not trying to confront you. I want you to think and at the end of that thinking come to the conclusion that you want to KNOW. That's all I do. I'm h...ere to tell you, "IT'S ON! Life is ON!"

You have the divine as your guest. Make the appropriate greeting. Greet the divine every day, every day, every day. And why do all this? So you can go to heaven? If you do greet the divine every day, you will have heaven here on earth...now. That's why you should do it." Prem Rawat/Maharaji

Drear Friends,

Good Day!

I joined in Exchanges Connect Annual Video Contest this year about CLIMATE CHAnGE. The prize for the said contest will be joining in International Exchanges Program for 2 weeks. The winner will be chosen based on vote and rate made by the people who will watch the video.

Last night, I submitted my video for the said contest entitled "Let's raise our Hands and Participate in Saving the Life of Mother Earth. I am knocking in your good heart to please support me by voting and rating my video. I really want to join the International exchange program because participating in the said program will definitely not just experience but also enhance my knowledge about the U.S Culture.


Here are the instruction for voting and rating my video:

Videos are rated based on 4 categories: Originality, Creativity, Effectiveness, and Production Quality. Underneath each category, you will see a row of 5 stars. The highest rating you can give a video in a particular category is 5 stars. 1 star is the lowest rating. By rating it, you already voted for my video. In order to have a valid rate and vote , click the word "rate" after rating my video.

please click the link in order to vote and rate my video.

http://connectcontest.state.gov/contests/change-your-climate-change...


I hope I could count on your support. Thank you in advance. your vote and rate is very much appreciated.

More Power!


Sincerely,
Maria Evelyn Cerdeño
Philippines

WHEN…?
When I excluded ‘IF’ from my vocabulary my life became a matter of time. When …?
Religions are like political parties, are like countries. They all divide people. They all divide nations.
When it is possible to open borders and live a peaceful life /at last no war in Europe/ between 27 countries in the European Union, so it is possible with the rest of the world.
It is only a matter of time, when ...
When remaining 165 countries join the European Union, perhaps not under the same name, the world will become a peaceful place to dwell within for everyone.
The Berlin's Wall was a dividing symbol of the divided nation. The Wall has collapsed. The nation reunited. So it will happen with the wall in Jerusalem
One day, WHEN all the borders between countries collapse; eventually, all nations will unite as one family under one Creator.
In Peace Forever
Marek
Initiator of www.peace365.org