Activism Must Be Inspired By A Deep Rooted Sense of Love. Love is the Greatest and Most Powerful Catalyst for Change

“Sister Peace, of the Thcih Nhat Hahn Order of monastics, who previously worked in the office of the mayor of Washington, says action must be inspired by a deep-rooted sense of love.

“If we can be strong in ourselves, then we could offer a resistance that is nonviolent,” she said. “But that means that we ourselves are at a place where we can have that recognition and we can offer that to another. And that is a great, great source of love and having the other feel they’re being recognized and listened to and embraced.”

“Brother Phap Dung also points to the Buddhist teaching of interdependence: that people we perceive as our greatest enemies can be our greatest teachers, because they show aspects of ourselves that we find unpalatable and give us the chance to heal.”

Sid Montz is in Garden District.

August 30, 2020  · 

As part of its #LoveTakesAction series, the Huffington Post recently interviewed a nun and a monk at Thich Nhat Hanh’s Plum Village monastery in France, to ask what advice they would give to activists.

“Sister Peace, who previously worked in the office of the mayor of Washington, says action must be inspired by a deep-rooted sense of love.

“If we can be strong in ourselves, then we could offer a resistance that is nonviolent,” she said. “But that means that we ourselves are at a place where we can have that recognition and we can offer that to another. And that is a great, great source of love and having the other feel they’re being recognized and listened to and embraced.”

“Brother Phap Dung also points to the Buddhist teaching of interdependence: that people we perceive as our greatest enemies can be our greatest teachers, because they show aspects of ourselves that we find unpalatable and give us the chance to heal.”

1Causey Robin