Charter for Compassion

Of course Jesus wasn’t born on December 25^th, but the symbolism of the date shouldn’t be lost on us. The celebration of Christmas is tied to the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Or, alternatively, the longest night of the year, when darkness envelops the earth, when there is more darkness then light, when darkness threatens to conquer light. On this darkest of all days, we celebrate Light coming into the world to conquer darkness, to take back the day.

And how can we as individuals inject light into the world? How can we combat darkness? To paraphrase the Dalai Lama: “Find hope in the darkest of days—practice compassion.” It will bring others happiness—and you too.

Along these lines, I want to help spread the word about the Charter for Compassion, the project of one of my favorite authors on world religions, Karen Armstrong. It brings together all the world’s great religions in a dialogue on compassion. Check it out, sign the charter, spread the word, and most of all, practice compassion.

Charter for Compassion

And, just for a more global perspective, I might add that only half the world is experiencing this darkest of all days right now. Our sisters and brothers in the southern hemisphere are experiencing the summer solstice—the longest day of the year, when light is in fact conquering darkness. If Christianity had originally found it roots in the southern hemisphere, we’d probably be celebrating Christmas on June 25^th. So mark your calendars now. When June 25^th gets here, and we’re bathed in light, let’s share that with some of our fellow beings that suffer under the weight of darkness.