Tag Archives: John Dear
Peace and Advocacy for the Poor
Contemplative Activists Peace and Advocacy for the Poor Monday, July 13, 2020 Dorothy Day (1897–1980) gives us a clear example of a contemplative activist. In her case, she began with activism, converted to Catholicism around age 30, and eventually lived out her two callings in a powerful and effective way. My friend John Dear, himself… Continue Reading Peace and Advocacy for the Poor
Peacemakers: Weekly Summary
Peacemakers Summary: Sunday, September 15—Friday, September 20, 2019 Much of Christianity seems to have forgotten Jesus’ teachings on nonviolence. We’ve relegated visions of a peaceful kingdom to a far distant heaven, hardly believing Jesus could have meant we should turn the other cheek here and now. (Sunday) Nonviolence is not ineffective, passive, weak, utopian, naïve,… Continue Reading Peacemakers: Weekly Summary
Meditating on the Sermon on the Mount
Peacemakers Meditating on the Sermon on the Mount Thursday, September 19, 2019 You have heard it said, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” —Matthew 5:43-44 In addition to the Bhagavad Gita, Mahatma Gandhi considered the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew… Continue Reading Meditating on the Sermon on the Mount
Remembering Who We Already Are
Nonviolence Remembering Who We Already Are Monday, August 19, 2019 My longtime friend, Catholic priest and peace activist John Dear, teaches that nonviolence requires three simultaneous attributes: being nonviolent toward ourselves; being nonviolent to others, including creation; and joining the global grassroots movement of nonviolence. John and the Franciscan organization Pace e Bene lead an… Continue Reading Remembering Who We Already Are
An Alternative Community
Community An Alternative Community Friday, May 11, 2018 One of the core principles at the Center for Action and Contemplation is “The best criticism of the bad is the practice of the better.” [1] Nonviolent activist and author John Dear shares the story of a woman and her family who are doing just that. A… Continue Reading An Alternative Community
The Natural World: Week 1 Summary
The Natural World: Week 1 Summary: Sunday, March 4-Friday, March 9, 2018 If I can somehow let my “roots and tendrils” reconnect me with the “givens” of life—not the ideas about life, but the givens, the natural world, what is—I experience extraordinary grounding, reconnection, healing, and even revelation. (Sunday) Soul is the blueprint inside of… Continue Reading The Natural World: Week 1 Summary
Living Peacefully on Earth
The Natural World: Week 1 Living Peacefully on Earth Friday, March 9, 2018 To live nonviolently—both toward humans and nature—requires that we recognize God’s image in each living thing. We cannot be violent toward someone or something when we see the divine in them. My friend and nonviolent activist John Dear recently published a new… Continue Reading Living Peacefully on Earth
Children of God
Sermon on the Mount: Week 2 Children of God Wednesday, February 7, 2018 We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount. . . . Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than… Continue Reading Children of God
Blessed Are the Peacemakers
Sermon on the Mount: Week 2 Blessed Are the Peacemakers Tuesday, February 6, 2018 Blessed are the peacemakers: they shall be recognized as children of God. —Matthew 5:9 In Jesus’ teaching and in his life, we see modeled nonviolent, peaceful action. He encourages us to likewise “turn the other cheek” and not return vengeance with… Continue Reading Blessed Are the Peacemakers
Blessed Are Those Who Hunger for Justice
Sermon on the Mount: Week 1 Blessed Are Those Who Hunger for Justice Friday, February 2, 2018 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice: they shall have their fill. —Matthew 5:6 This Beatitude is surely both spiritual and social. Most Bibles to this day soften this Beatitude: “hunger and thirst for what is… Continue Reading Blessed Are Those Who Hunger for Justice
