Houston – America at Our Best

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Children rescued in Houston after Hurricane Harvey. Credit: Harris County Sheriff’s Office/Twitter

Dear Friends,

As I watched the flooding in Houston and saw elderly nursing home patients sitting waist-deep in water, I felt the same, overwhelming sadness that people across the nation were feeling. But amid that sadness, I was also lifted up by the example of volunteers and rescue teams who readily risked their lives to save others.
This is what America should be. It is who we are at our best.
And it is what our different faiths call on us to do. That’s why I wanted to share some wisdom from across the world’s faiths and beliefs. It reminds us of our shared and highest ideals.

And it reminds us that, when we help one another, we create the nation for which we are searching.

Joyce S. Dubensky
CEO, Tanenbaum

SHARED VISIONS | GOOD DEEDS

Baha’i
By faith is meant, first, conscious knowledge, and second, the practice of good deeds.  ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Baha’i World Faith, p. 383
Buddhism
Whoever, by a good deed, covers the evil done, such a one illumines this world like the moon freed from clouds.  Dhammapada 173
Christianity
Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.  Galatians 6:9
Hinduism
The wise see knowledge and action as one; they see truly.  Bhagavad Gita 5.4, 5
Islam
(And) lo! those who believe and do good works are the best of created beings.  Qur’an, 98.7 (Pickthall)
Judaism
I call heaven and earth to witness: whether Jew or Gentile, whether man or woman, whether servant or freeman, they are all equal in this: that the Holy Spirit rests upon them in accordance with their deeds!  Midrash, Seder Eliyahu Rabbah 10
Native American Wisdom
It is no longer good enough to cry peace, we must act peace, live peace and live in peace.  Shenandoah
Sikhism
Without good deeds heaven is not attained.  Sri Guru Granth Sahib
Taoism
Anything evil refrain ye from doing; all good deeds do!  Yin Chih Wên, The Tract of the Quiet Way

No More Charlottesvilles!

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Photo Credit: Michael Nigro

Friends,

At Saturday’s white nationalist “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, counter-protestors put their lives at risk and stood up to hate. After they chanted, “…No KKK! No fascist USA,” a white supremacist responded, “Too late f — —kers.” My response?

Well sir, I—and the millions like me who stand for respect and inclusion—are here to tell you that you are gravely mistaken. When it comes to fighting for what is right: 

It is NEVER too late.

In fact, I’ll go one step further. I see yesterday as a beginning. No longer can anyone deny that U.S. terrorism is a disease that infects people across race and religion. Plowing a car into an innocent group of people for political ends is terrorism. It is the same heinous act everywhere, whether in Charlottesville by a white man known as a Nazi sympathizer or in London by an ISIS supporter born in the country he attacked.

Charlottesville was terrorism. Plain and simple. And everyone, including our national leaders, must acknowledge and treat it as such.

Together, let’s show those who say it’s too late—that actually—we’re just getting started.

Joyce S. Dubensky
CEO

P.S. People from many backgrounds are responsible for terrorism. Look here to better understand it.

P.P.S. White Supremacy is a phenomenon that exists among our fellow citizens. Understand its complexity and how it perpetuates hate here.