speaking
engagements
Whether it is one-on-one, a small group, or a large audience, I find great fulfillment in connecting and engaging with people. I have traveled throughout the world and experienced many different cultures and ethnicities, as well as religious, spiritual, and philosophical beliefs. However, I also encountered a profound bond in our shared humanity and collective hopes for a world without strife, division, hatred, violence, suffering, and injustice. I am convinced that whatever differences we might have in our way of relating to God or the divine, we can all toil together in building a world that works for everyone. My greatest joy is inspiring people to find, within their own religious or spiritual tradition, a motivation for compassion, cooperation, and solidarity across the entire spectrum of our human family.
We live in a time when people are divided; a political party against another political party; cultures, nationalities, and ethnicities at odds with each other; this religion against that religion. It doesn't have to be this way. There was a time when my own Christian beliefs were a source of division. Eventually, I learned that the life and teachings of Jesus lived not meant to create a religion to compete with the others, but a challenge and invitation for all people to recognize love as the right path of knowing God, and the ultimate fulfillment of all religious teachings.
History has shown that religion can either be a restorative force in the world for unity and solidarity, or a toxic force, spreading division and discord. While it's true that fundamentalist religious ideologies have damaged many people and communities in the world, I believe the wounds of religion can be healed, and we can learn new and more hopeful ways of being human together.