For the last seven years, Lucy Harper has been trying to get Americans to think about their country differently. She has been teaching classes and workshops to instill the idea that America is not a political prize to be fought over, but an idea to be fought FOR. What started her on this journey was becoming part of the Idea of America Network. This organization’s goal is to create a network of Americans who can help their communities look at the country through the lens of values. Ms. Harper says, “When you talk about values and America, everyone knows life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but the values that really drive the United States are all about balance: freedom and equality, law and ethics, common wealth and private wealth, unity and diversity. How citizens find the balance between these essential but conflicting values determines the nation’s character and direction.” She has now written a play which has many historical characters debating these points. To quote her: “It’s about seeing this as a country of good people. There’s plenty of evidence to the contrary, but we jolly well better see [the good in] people, ... giving people the room to grow – including ourselves.”
[I got this information from an editorial in The Christian Science Monitor, May 30, 2022]
“Your influence for good depends upon the weight you throw into the right scale. The good you do and embody gives you the only power obtainable … Whatever holds human thought in line with unselfish love, receives directly the divine power.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 192
“Values are relative, but they are powerful because they are mental judgments.” A Course in Miracles - T-7.VII.4:3
No comments:
Post a Comment