How can we better open hearts?

“Jesus have mercy" is the ancient and contemporary “Prayer of the Heart”.

“Mercy, give us of your compassionate heart”, we pray to the graceful One, whose Name is so beautiful and powerful and means "the One who saves, who heals”.

In the mystery of our prayer, when we speak the Holy Name, there is presence, just as was promised.

Thus we strive to speak the Holy Name of Jesus with all reverence and love.

What does this mean for us as we gather afresh?

On any broad reading of reality, it is plain that we must find ways to communicate that touch peoples' hearts and open them up to love and understand each other better.

The image of looking at the moon and our beautiful earth of God’s creation, says it all.

One human family all together, spinning in space, along with peeling mandarins and listening to bird- songs in the early morning.

Down on the ground, there is such a work of healing and reconciliation needed for the human family to flourish well together.

Collective “soul wounds” from unreconciled historic matters; new “soul wounds” in individual lives which get in the way of meeting today’s tasks.

So, for example, as has been said, how can people find space to think about the Earth, even in the face of overwhelming evidence about a climate - crisis, when they feel so absorbed by their own problems?

People sort of know they should wake up and be more attentive but instead keep busy to forget, pushing action into later....

And those who shout out “wake up”…be it as climate; peace or refugee activists may not have yet dealt with their own anger and ego, so that the projections might just add to the dysfunctional noise.

...Enough about the context, except to say that I can identify myself on both sides....

Back to the question, at this extraordinarily dangerous time for the one human family: How do we better touch people’s hearts and open them up to one another in ways that bring healing and peace?

Can we imagine auspicing inclusive, interreligious times of silent meditation and prayer in visible open spaces - just for this purpose?

People praying and meditating together quietly, accompanied by wordless music and a generous welcome.

As the old song goes, "what the world needs now is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing that there is just too little of..."

Abundant blessings,

Bishop Philip Huggins
NCCA President