Peace In Action: Thank you Charles for this beautiful letter and for allowing me to share it with the Trail of Dreams World Peace Walk global family: 

     Following breakfast I started a conversation with Isabel, an Indigenous woman from Cordoba, Argentina. As we began talking, Isabel shared with me her concerns about the challenges her family faced because her brother is a member of the local Anglican church and has been taught that his ancestral tradition is false and he must abandon it.

     Not only has this created a great division within the family, it has disrupted their livelihood because their agricultural practices are based on honoring the Pachamana, Mother Earth, and these practices are part of what the brother now feels are forbidden by his Christian religion. People are hungry because of a religion, Isabel told me.

     Is it possible, she asked, for two traditions - the Anglican and an Indigenous cosmovision - to co-exist? Does one have to destroy the other? I attempted to say, no, one doesn't have to destroy the other; and, yes, it is possible for the two to co-exist, but that doesn't mean a particular priest or bishop will believe that it is possible. And what a local bishop or priest believes will determine what is taught in a particular church.

     Once again, I found myself faced with violence done in the name of the religion I love, and I found myself wondering what I could do; wondering what URI could do. Then the conversation moved from the surface of an important problem to the painful depths of a legacy of violent oppression.

     Isabel spoke about the Indigenous relationship to the Earth, saying words I have heard many times before. But as she talked my understanding shifted. I heard and felt her deep connection with the Earth as with a living being. A mother who provides air and water and food, all her children need to live. A mother, like the human mother who has given birth to each of us, who feeds us and sustains. The Earth as a mother's body; as her heart and spirit.

     Can you imagine, I felt her saying, treating your mother's body the way humans treat our Mother Earth? Taking and taking and taking. Poisoning the air and water. Destroying the forests. Digging in her veins for oil and metals. And always, always, always casting her broken body aside as something of no importance.

     And all this for greed. It might be easier to accept our Mother Earth's suffering if it meant that all the people had enough to eat and homes to live in and healthy medicines to cure their illnesses. But our Mother Earth suffers, and still countless people die of hunger each day. They have no homes. Illnesses abound because we have poisoned our Mother and the medicines doctors give often cause as many problems as they solve.

     A tear formed in the corner of her eye. Then another. And another. I reached out and put my hand on her shoulder. She began weeping - tears that expressed the deep pain and suffering of seeing the one you love as much as life the victim of heartless violence. We believe the Earth is sacred. We don't believe you can own the land, or sell it, she sobbed. We don't believe you can own the air or the water. But others do. They buy and sell the Earth. They sell the water for money. We don't have money. You must have water to live. What do you do when others own water and sell it for money and you cannot buy it? Love, she said again and again, yes, but also concrete actions. Love and concrete actions.

     Listening, I felt the double violence Isabel had suffered - violence as her people are robbed of their culture, its values and practices; and violence as her people must watch those who destroy their culture also destroy their Mother Earth. And I heard a challenge in her words - love and concrete action. They reminded me of Lee Collano's challenge after we had visited the Internally Displaced Persons camp in Gulu, Uganda - now that we know of this suffering, what are we called to do?

     At the end of the day, we gathered on a cliff high above the Parana River in Paraguay. Directly in front of us, the Iguacu River merged into the Parana. On the left bank of the Iguacu is Brazil. On the right is Argentina. Two rivers. Three countries. One watershed and one Earth. There we stood - the community of URI Latin America, with some guests from North America - in wonder at Earth's beauty and the incongruity of human borders. In the hush inspired by this scene made even more beautiful by the soft light of the late afternoon, Beytullah, a Muslim from Turkey who has lived in Buenos Aires for seven years, began chanting a prayer. In a voice strong yet soft, pure, beautiful - Allahu Akbar - God is Great.

     Jews, Buddhists, Indigenous, Christians, Muslims, Brahma Kumaris and others listened in stillness. There was stillness after Beytullah finished his prayer. Then a soft voice said, please sing that again.

Rev. Canon Charles P. Gibbs is the Executive Director of United Religions Initiative, www.uri.org

The Love Chain    

     Recently in my meditation I was reflecting on my whole experience in healing. For the past year I have been giving Mama Natalie energy treatments on a regular basis, and I felt bad during this time because I was unable to give them to her while in the midst of my healing experience. As I thought about this, Divine Spirit reminded me that the only thing I had to do was to show her love and let that love flow through my body to her, and that was the only energy treatment she needed. 
     Previously my guides had showed me the power of love in healing. Love is what has brought me this far. Unconditional love is the best healing balm there is. This is the same love that the Trail of Dreams World Peace Walkers walk with. Love that sees no color, creed, nationality, or religion. Just heart to heart ... one human family. This is the love that we know will change the world "one step at a time". As we walk, we connect a chain that we send out and people all over the planet connect to. I call it the Love Chain.
      As I do my meditation and my chants I picture a chain of golden light connecting to people all around the world. And, as I see this chain I am reminded of the chant that I put in my book "To God be the Glory". "Loving Mother who I am help me take a holy stand, to love myself as I love you and know that we are one. Loving Mother who I am help me take this holy stand, to recognize all I see as you and know I love them too." So that as we walk we walk with the knowing that we are one with all humankind and the only bond we have is Divine Love.
     Allow the Love Chain to bring you heart to heart with someone that is not a family member or a close friend but someone that you and others may see as unlovable  and repeat the mantra "Divine Love that I am help me take a holy stand to recognize all I see as you and know I love them too," and watch that love chain glow and flow from one heart to another connecting us all as one human family.