Today I had the opportunity to listen to my friend and mentor, Parker Palmer. During his presentation I decided to enter two postings from one of his handouts. The following is adapted from Parker J. Palmer, ‘Healing the Heart of Democracy: The Courage to Create a Politics Worthy of the Human Spirit’ (2011). Parker begins with a quotation from Terry Tempest Williams book, ‘The Open Space of Democracy’ and he then offers us ‘Five Habits of the Heart that Help Make Democracy Possible.’
Terry Tempest Williams writes: The human heart is the first home of democracy. It is where we embrace our questions. Can we be equitable? Can we be generous? Can we listen with our whole beings, not just our minds, and offer our attention rather than our opinions? And do we have enough resolve in our hearts to act courageously, relentlessly, without giving up – ever – trusting our fellow citizens to join with us in our determined pursuit of a living democracy?
Parker then continues: ‘Habits of the heart’ (a phrase coined by Alexis de Tocqueville) are deeply ingrained ways of seeing, being and responding to life that involve our minds, our emotions, our self-images, our concepts of meaning and purpose. I believe that these five interlocked habits are critical to sustaining a democracy.
Parker then offers us his ‘Five Habits of the Heart.’
1. An understanding that we are all in this together. Biologists, ecologists, economists, ethicists and leaders of the great wisdom traditions have all given voice to this theme. Despite our illusions of individualism and national superiority, we humans are a profoundly interconnected species – entwined with one another and with all forms of life, as the global economic and ecological crises reveal in vivid and frightening detail. We must embrace the simple fact that we are dependent upon and accountable to one another, and that includes the stranger, the ‘alien other.’ At the same time, we must save the notion of interdependence from the idealistic excesses that make it an impossible dream. Exhorting people to hold a continual awareness of global, national, or even local interconnectedness is a counsel of perfection that is achievable (if at all) only by the rare saint, one that can only result in self-delusion or defeat. Which leads to a second key habit of the heart. . .
2. An appreciation of the value of ‘otherness.’ It is true that we are all in this together. It is equally true that we spend most of our lives in ‘tribes’ or lifestyle enclaves – and that thinking of the world in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’ is one of the many limitations of the human mind. The good news is that ‘us’ and ‘them’ does not have to mean ‘us versus them.’ Instead, it can remind us of the ancient tradition of hospitality rightly understood is premised on the notion that the stranger has much to teach us. It actively invites ‘otherness’ into our lives to make them more expansive, including forms of otherness that seem utterly alien to us. Of course, we will not practice deep hospitality if we do not embrace the creative possibilities inherent in our differences. Which leads us to a third key habit of the heart. . . [to be continued tomorrow]
Searcher-Seeker 