The Source this week resumes the Virtues Project, a weekly feature focused on building peaceful and caring communities through understanding and fostering the practice of virtues. The Source supports the Virtues Project and will publish one virtue developed by the project each week.
Unity is a powerful virtue, and it brings great strength. Unity is inclusiveness. It brings people together. We see our commonality without devaluing our differences. We experience our connectedness with all people and all life. Unity frees us from the divisiveness of prejudice and heals our fears.
We refuse to engage in conflict, seeking peace in all circumstances. Unity comes when we value every person, in our family or in our world. The joy of one is the joy of all. The hurt of one is the hurt of all. The honor of one is the honor of all.
Quote: “We know that we are the ones who are divided and we are the ones who must come back together to walk in the Sacred Way.”
Ojibway Prayer, “Oneworld Book Of Prayer,” page 152
The Practice of Unity
I am a lover of humanity.
I seek common ground.
I appreciate differences.
I resolve conflict peacefully.
I honor the value of each individual. I am a unifier.
I am thankful for the gift of Unity. It makes me an instrument of peace.
Questions for Discussion
– Share a time when you felt valued by your community. What was the experience like?
– How does interconnectedness strengthen our community?
– Who have we excluded, what has been the impact and how can we make amends to unify?
– What is a bias/prejudice you are holding about a person, group of people or community? What would help you to work through it?
The Virtues Project is provided by the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands in partnership with Virtues Matter.
Virtues Matter was started by a wife-husband team of social entrepreneurs seeking to positively uplift as many lives as possible. We aim to inspire and empower, to build capacity, strengthen relationships, and help everyone lead lives of passion and purpose.
Virtues Matter believes in a world where people are committed to kindness and respect, strive to be their best, and live with hope, courage, and in unity. We built the Virtues Cards mobile app, an interactive personal and team development tool, to help people identify and develop key virtues skills. We also offer dynamic workshops, online training, and customized programs to help people cultivate these positive qualities of character. To learn more, visit virtuesmatter.org.
