We have been meditating for several months on the foundational question of our era: What does it mean to be a human being? We have chosen to explore answers to that basic question by way of addressing the “10 C’s” as I laid them out several years ago in The A.W.E. Project: Reinventing Education, Reinventing the Human.
The 10 C’s were considered in the following order:
Critical Thinking/Consciousness
Cosmology/Ecology
Courage
Chaos
Character/Moral Development (and the chakras)
Contemplation/Meditation
Creativity
Compassion
Community
The tenth is coming up shortly.
Clearly these nine values are integral to the future of a democracy and the future of our planet. They spell out what we might mean by the common good. And therefore justice. And therefore those who are chosen to make just laws so that community might flourish. All this is on our minds at this election time.
I share with you the following prayer composed by Rabbi David Seidenberg.
Prayer for the Election, 2020
Behold, I am intending
through my vote and my prayer
to seek peace for this country,
as it is written (Jer. 29:7):
“Seek the peace of the city
where I cause you to roam
and pray for her to YHVH (Hashem/Adonai/Eternal One/God),
for in her peace you all will have peace.”
May it be Your will, YHVH, that votes
be counted faithfully
and may You count my vote
as if I had fulfilled this verse
with all my power.
May You give a listening heart
to whomever we elect
and may it be good in Your eyes
to raise for us a good government
to bring healing, justice and peace
to all living in this land
and to all the world, and upon Jerusalem,
a government that will honor the image of God
in all humanity and in Creation,
for rulership is Yours.
Just as I have participated in the election
so may I merit to do good works
and to repair the world through all my efforts,
and through the act of… [fill in your pledge]
which I pledge to do today
on behalf of all living creatures
in remembrance of the covenant of Noah’s waters,
to protect and to not destroy
the earth and her plenitude.
Tear out tyranny and despotism,
ruin those who cheat and deceive,
upend and overthrow those who oppress the vulnerable,
make the reign of the arrogant disappear from the land, and
pulverize the plans of those who attack democracy.
Obstruct them, humble them, and bring on their downfall, soon, in our days.
Give to all the peoples of this country
the strength and will to pursue righteousness
and to seek peace as unified force
to uproot racism and violence
and to make healing, good life and peace flourish
here and throughout the world
and fulfill for us the verse (Ps. 90:17):
“May the pleasure of Adonai our God
be upon us, and establish
the work of our hands for us,
and make the work of our hands endure.”
See http://neohasid.org/resources/votingprayer/
See Matthew Fox, The A.W.E. Project: Reinventing Education, Reinventing the Human.
Banner Image: “Temple of a million years of Rameses II – Ozymandias statue, Luxor, Egypt” which inspired Percy Bysshe Shelley’s poem, ending: And on the pedestal these words appear: / ‘My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: / Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!’ / Nothing beside remains. Round the decay / Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare / The lone and level sands stretch far away.” Photo by Steve F-E-Cameron (Merlin-UK) on Wikimedia Commons.
How do you see the “10 C’s” speaking to our choices this Election Day and post-election day, 2020? How does Rabbi David’s prayer speak to you this election day also?
The A.W.E. Project: Reinventing Education, Reinventing the Human
The A.W.E. Project reminds us that awe is the appropriate response to the unfathomable wonder that is creation… A.W.E. is also the acronym for Fox’s proposed style of learning – an approach to balance the three R’s. This approach to learning, eldering, and mentoring is intelligent enough to honor the teachings of the Ancestors, to nurture Wisdom in addition to imparting knowledge, and to Educate through Fox’s 10 C’s. The 10 C’s are the core of the A.W.E. philosophy and process of education, and include: compassion, contemplation, and creativity. The A.W.E. Project does for the vast subject of “learning” what Fox’s Reinvention of Work did for vocation and Original Blessing did for theology. Included in the book is a dvd of the 10 C’s put to 10 video raps created and performed by Professor Pitt.
“An awe-based vision of educational renewal.” — Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice.
Upcoming Events
WEBINAR: Cultivate a Resilient Heart in Times of Suffering – ONLINE. Thursday, November 5, 8:30 PM- 9:45 PM Eastern (GMT/UTC-4). Register HERE.
