“At the heart of this offering is an invitation to be still. Such stillness, however, is not a barren field, devoid of substance. It is a silence replete with beauty. It is what Buddhism refers to as sunyata, the boundlessness that characterizes the truth of existence.” —Mirabai Starr, from the foreword In Silent Compassion: Finding God in Contemplation, Richard Rohr focuses on finding God in the depths of silence. Divine silence is more than the absence of noise; it has a life of its own. We are invited into its living presence to find the wholeness of being and peace it brings. This book will inspire you and show that the peace of contemplation is not something just for monks, mystics, and those divorced from the worries of the world, but rather for all people who can quiet their own mind to listen in the silence. What’s more, this silence can absorb paradoxes, contradictions, and the challenges of life, ultimately connecting us with the great chain of being. While different faiths use different languages and different words, silence can become a common place for all to experience God. In May 2013, the Festival of Faiths conference in Louisville, Kentucky, featured His Holiness the Dalai Lama in an event called “Sacred Silence: Pathway to Compassion.” Richard Rohr was selected as the Christian presence among a small group of “world renowned experts on contemplative practice and compassion.” Others represented Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism. Silent Compassion curates the Franciscan friar’s talks from that event as well as interviews that place his thoughts in the context of his larger work as founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation. This is an updated and expanded edition of Rohr’s original presentation on the subject.

Presenting an outline of the four necessary steps for meeting suffering with compassion, this insightful book shows how to build a capacity for compassion into the structures and practices of an organization. --

For many years there has been growing concern about the culture of fear that is penetrating maternity services throughout the world, and that the fear felt by maternity care workers is directly and indirectly being transferred to the women and families they serve. The Roar Behind the Silenceprovides information, inspiration and practical suggestions to support maternity care workers, policy makers, and maternity care funders across the world in their quest to deliver sensitive, compassionate and high quality maternity services."

In this book, Lama Zopa Rinpoche teaches on one of his favorite topics—compassion. He tells us that compassion for others is the best way to overcome any obstacles we encounter, in our Dharma practice, or occupation and life itself, and the best medicine for treating any illness we experience. However, these teachings are not limited to compassion. Rinpoche also explains emptiness, karma and many other essential Buddhist subjects. As ever, his teachings are clear, relevant, humorous and direct—a perfect guide to making our lives meaningful. This book is made possible by kind supporters of the Archive who, like you, appreciate how we make these teachings freely available in so many ways, including in our website for instant reading, listening or downloading, and as printed and electronic books. Our website offers immediate access to thousands of pages of teachings and hundreds of audio recordings by some of the greatest lamas of our time. Our photo gallery and our ever-popular books are also freely accessible there. Please help us increase our efforts to spread the Dharma for the happiness and benefit of all beings. You can find out more about becoming a supporter of the Archive and see all we have to offer by visiting our website. Thank you so much, and please enjoy this ebook.

Twenty years ago, not one nation on earth had legal same-sex marriage. Now, access to same-sex marriage is increasingly seen as a basic human right. In a matter of less than a generation, western cultures have experienced a moral revolution. Dr. R. Albert Mohler examines how this transformation occurred, revealing the underlying cultural shifts behind this revolution: the acceptance of divorce culture, liberation of sex from reproduction, the prevalence of heterosexual cohabitation, the normalization of homosexuality, and the rise of the transgender movement. He then offers a deep look at how the Bible and Christian moral tradition provide a comprehensive understanding upon which Christians can build their personal lives, their marriages, church ministry, and cultural engagement. Dr. Mohler helps Christians in their understanding of the underlying issues of this significant cultural shift and how to face the challenge of believing faithfully, living faithfully, and engaging the culture faithfully in light of this massive change.

Have you ever felt too progressive for conservatives, but too conservative for progressives? It's easy for faithful Christians to grow disillusioned with civic engagement or fall into tribal extremes. Representing the AND Campaign, the authors of this book lay out the biblical case for political engagement and help Christians navigate the complex world of politics with integrity.

Empathy dissolves the boundaries between self and others, and feelings of altruism towards others are activated. This process results in more compassionate and caring contexts, as well as helping others in times of suffering. This book provides evidence from neuroscience and quantum physics that it is empathy that connects humanity, and that this awareness can create a more just society. It extends interest in values-based management, exploring the intellectual, physical, ecological, spiritual and aesthetic well-being of organizations and society rather than the more common management principles of maximising profit and efficiency. This book challenges the existing paradigm of capitalism by providing scientific evidence and empirical data that empathy is the most important organizing mechanism. The book is unique in that it provides a comprehensive review of the transformational qualities of empathy in personal, organizational and local contexts. Integrating an understanding based upon scientific studies of why the fields of positive psychology and organizational scholarship are important, it examines the evidence from neuroscience and presents leading-edge studies from quantum physics with implications for the organizational field. Together the chapters in this book attempt to demonstrate how empathy helps in the reduction of human suffering and the creation of a more just society.

Based on a true story that hints at the presence of miraculous grace, The Silent Angel is a powerful account of human resilience and heroic faith set against the backdrop of the massacre of Christians during the Armenian Genocide. This tale opens up with a scene of carnage and devastation, from the ruins of a monstary to lifeless bodies—the doings of an army of young Turks. Silent Angel follows the story of five survivors: three women, a child, and a Greek monk. They are forced to wander through the deserted Valley of Moush in search of a new life and a better destiny than their Armenian brothers. During the most painful moment of their lives, they become guardians of a book of inestimable value, the Book of Moush, an ancient illuminated manuscript. Believing the book to be a talisman of sorts, they vow to bring the book to safety, even to defend it with their own lives. Antonia Arslan tells this story with intense compassion and clarity, taking the reader on a desperate search for truth and salvation. "There is a reason why it has come into their hands. It means that the angels who watched over it decided to give it not to wise priests, who touched it 'with immaculate hands' as the liturgy proclaims, but expressly to them, this small company of three women, a boy, and a man, fleeing toward the mountains, and united by chance among the ruins of the monastery." — From The Silent Angel

Introducing the Selected Works of Simone Weil

Haunted by silence, a mute teenage girl is mysteriously given back her voice...and it is divine. "Lyrical and enchanting, SILENT ECHO will resonate in your heart long after you turn the last page. I can’t wait for the sequel!” —Lorie Langdon, author of the DOON series. Rendered mute at birth, Portia Griffin has been silent for 16 years. Music is her constant companion, along with Felix, her deaf best friend who couldn’t care less whether or not she can speak. If only he were as nonchalant about her newfound interest in the musically gifted Max Hunter. But Portia’s silence is about to be broken with the abrupt discovery of her voice, unparalleled in its purity and the power it affords to control those around her. Able to persuade, seduce and destroy using only her voice, Portia embarks on a search for answers about who she really is, and what she is destined to do. Inspired by Homer’s ODYSSEY, SILENT ECHO is an epic story filled with fantasy, romance and original music. "SILENT ECHO is a gripping, original read, with a heroine you won't forget. Katniss Everdeen -- watch out for Portia Griffin." —Erica Wagner, author of SEIZURE