Mother Teresa, "A Simple Path"

"There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more dying for a little love."

"A Simple Path" contains the words of Mother Theresa as well as many other sisters, brothers, fathers, and volunteers regarding prayer, faith, love, service and peace. More than a compilation of platitudes, Mother Teresa with the help of friends gives insight into the simplicity of life in the service of God and humanity. Prayer, faith, service, peace and love are all interconnected, each baring the fruits of another. Acts of love and charity as well as silence in prayer seem to be the foundation for any individual seeking a more holistic personhood, regardless of their faith or lack thereof. Through the words and experiences portrayed in this book, the simple and profound life to be found in loving service to those in need becomes approachable for anyone looking to fulfill themselves beyond the material level.

Links:
Missionaries of Charity Fathers
Missionaries of Charity Brothers

Citation Information:
Teresa, Mother (1995). A simple path. New York: Ballantine Books.

See Also:
Egan, E. (1985). Such a vision of the street: Mother Teresa-the spirit and the work. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday.

Teresa, Mother (1997). Mother Teresa: In my own words. New York: Gramercy Books.

Barbara Deming, "Prisons That Could Not Hold"

"If we seek a world in which men do the least possible violence to each other (which is to state just the negative of it), then we are committed not simply to avoid violence ourselves, but to try and destroy patterns of violence that already exist."

"Prisons That Could Not Hold" contains writings from two experiences separated by 20 years of experiences, but brought together through Barbara Deming's life as an nonviolent activist for human rights. The first part of the book contains the contemplative writings of Deming while fasting in a jail cell for 27 days in Albany, Georgia with several other like minded people for participating in the Canada-to-Cuba Peace Walk of 1964. Deming's experience in jail, while filled with dirty mattresses, drunken, angry and distressed inmates, and oppressive authority figures, is one of unity, freedom, and love. And not just love for her fellow marchers, but a love for all of humanity, including her immediate oppressors on the other side of her cell's bars. Her noncooperation was not driven by spite, but rather by love and compassion that would not allow her to complacently accept violence, whether through racism, discrimination, or war. The second part of the book describes her experiences during a march of women, from the Seneca Women's Peace Encampment to a missile base in New York, in the form of a letter to a friend. Here we see a bond of women, not to alienate the male gender, but to celebrate a bond that is often neglected in our patriarchal society. What becomes clear in her account is that through nonviolence and loving, cooperative community building, these women were not symbolically marching for peace, they were demonstrating their love and compassion for humanity and the knowledge that violence aided by war and massive death dealing weapons hold the key to humanity's demise.

Citation Information:
Deming, B. (1995). Prisons that could not hold. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press.

See Also:
Deming, B. (1971). Revolution & equilibrium. New York: Grossman.

Deming, B., & Meyerding, J. (1984). We are all part of one another: A Barbara Deming reader. Philadelphia, PA: New Society.

Dorothy Day, "Loaves and Fishes"

"We were trying to overcome hatred with love, to understand the forces that made men what they are, to learn something of their backgrounds, their education to change them, if possible, from lions into lambs. It was a practice in loving, a learning to love, a paying of the cost of love."

"Loaves and Fishes" is Dorothy Day's account of the origins and growth of the Catholic Worker; a movement, a way of life, and a radical newspaper which she helped found along with Peter Maurin, whose ideologies, teachings, and livelihood she recounts as integral to the Workers' inspiration. The community, or rather the "slipshod group of individuals" as Day described the Workers to a future associate, came together for various individual reasons but stayed together to bring works of mercy to all of those in need. Some would stay for only a short period of time, while others would stay for the duration of their lives, all of whom were given the opportunity to commit their lives to a cause greater than themselves and be surrounded by a community full of faith and love. Day recounts myriad stories from hospitality houses and communal farms in New York, time spent prison for her public refusal to participate in mandatory air raid drills, and her day to day experiences with fellow Workers, patrons, poets, and priests. This work is a document, told in the most humble of voices, of voluntary poverty, pacifism, and endless love for her fellow man, founded in an unshakable faith.

Citation Information:
Day, D. (1997). Loaves and fishes. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books.

Links:
The Catholic Worker

See Also:
Day, D. (1981). The long loneliness: The autobiography of Dorothy Day. San Francisco: Harper & Row.

Day, D., & Sicius, F. J. (2004). Peter Maurin: Apostle to the world. Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books.

Thich Nhat Hanh, “Being Peace”

"Peace work means, first of all, being peace."

"Being Peace" is a simple and approachable work with profound implications for living a peaceful, engaged, and compassionate existence. Thich Nhat Hanh begins with the proposition that “if we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can smile and blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society will benefit from our peace.” Through the sharing stories, poems, guidelines and deep insights, he exposes a path to individual peace through the practice of meditation and living mindfully in each moment. One only has to look to Thich Nhat Hanh’s own life to see a shining example of the right livelihood of which he speaks. By the end of the book, the reader can’t help but be inspired. Regardless of all of the external woes of the world and our own internal struggle for happiness, peace can begin with us in the present moment.

Citation Information:
Nhat Hanh, T. & Kotler, A. (2005). Being Peace. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press.

Links:
Plum Village Practice Center
Deer Park Monastery
The Mindfulness Bell Journal

See Also:
Nhat Hanh, T. Kotler, A., & Oda, M. (1992). Touching peace: Practicing the art of mindful living. Berkeley, Calif: Parallax Press.

Nhat Hanh, T. (1993). Love in action: Writings on nonviolent social change. Berkeley, CA: Parallax Press.

Mahatma Gandhi, "All Men Are Brothers"

"Love is the strongest force the world possesses and yet it is the humblest imaginable."

Originally published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), "All Men Are Brothers" is a compilation of Gandhi's writings that attempt to illuminate his lifelong experiment in seeking out truth and practicing it through nonviolence (or more specifically, ahimsa. The book contains Gandhi's autobiographical accounts and views regarding various temporal topics, all of which come under the auspices of Ghandi's philosophy and acts of ahimsa. One of the major strengths of this particular compilation is that it does not delve too deeply, providing an unfamiliar reader with a brief and broad foundation into Ghandi's life. What becomes clear from reading his excerpts and quotes is that Gandhi’s life was his message. Through discipline and faith in ahimsa, Gandhi was able to actively oppose oppressive forces while at the same time loving the humanity of the actors behind the oppression. Although much of his work was aimed at nonviolent resistance, his lifelong experiment in practicing ahimsa was also a constructive force for the loving community that he hoped one day to help build. "All Men Are Brothers" provides a brief glimpse into the life of an extraordinary man and acts as a call to action for those seeking community built on a foundation of love, truth, and nonviolence.

Citation Information:
Gandhi, M. K. (2005). All men are brothers: Life and thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi. New York: Continuum.

Links:
Complete Information on Gandhi
Tolstoy Farm

See Also:
Gandhi, M. K. (1957). An autobiography; The story of my experiments with truth. Boston: Beacon Press.

Gandhi, M. K. (1958). Collected works. Delhi: Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India.