A Servant’s Work

If the remnant of the inter-subjectively shared self-understanding that makes humane intercourse with one another possible is not to disintegrate, this potential must be mastered anew by every generation.
Jurgen Habermas, Postmetaphysical Thinking

As you start your week, think of it as a fresh start, a new beginning. And when you think this way, try to imagine that all the pain of yesterday is left behind. Listen beneath the surface, down by your roots. In a quiet time of reflection set a goal, make a decision, decide on a course of action; follow a dream. Don’t spend so much time waiting for a large voice from on high to speak to you that you stumble over the whispers that are right at your feet. Small voices often speak loudly.

Remembering what it means to be human and in being human, treating each other with dignity and sympathy, is another way of giving birth to ourselves. Morality and justice are living ideas that define our humanity. By way of love, we add to morality and justice both mercy and integrity—the foundations of our spiritual being that enable us to appreciate the uniqueness of other persons and their situations.

How do you want others to treat you? Does respect ring a bell? Do you want honesty, responsibility, and fair play from your friends and colleagues? Well, I certainly do! If these are the qualities we desire in others, then we have to live them each day and express them through our personal behaviors. A happy and joyous life is one that is complete, held together with the values that are dear to us. We are talking about our character here: our most inner talent exercised with courage and for others.

The gift of honest dialogue is the richest and most enduring gift we can give to others. It not only reveals our own moral worth but recognizes the moral worth of others as well. Dialogue can at times be truly magical, dissolving the boundaries between us and the world and opening up wellsprings of realization and resonant power. In those rare, deeply healing moments of dialogue in their most ideal form, we may experience the wholeness of who we are beyond our isolated ego. Dialogue is shared exploration towards greater understanding, connection, and possibility. It allows us to listen and speak to the wholeness of who we are deep within and beyond those who share our living space and community.

Understand that leadership capacity and spiritual maturity are ethical competencies definitive of the moral life. As our lives affect the lives of others, we need to take the lead in redefining the meaning of “community” and “service” as normal activities. We need to take the lead and affirm life’s riches and make loving and serving others the divine dance at the center of our lives. In this way we are helping recreate our communities as caring, loving, and joyous places to live and work.

The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. Matthew 23:11-12