There’s a lot of talk of gratitude with thanksgiving and Christmas approaching. Gratitude is a good thing! There’s plenty of scientific and spiritual support for the benefits of gratitude.
However, I’m going to take a slightly unusual approach and talk about the relationship between gratitude and self-control.
Self-control is also timely, with New Year’s resolution around the corner. We’ll talk a little more about self-control before explaining how gratitude influences self-control.
But before we do that – a little thought exercise.
Kia ora tatou katoa. Nga mihi nga mihi nui. Nga mihi ki a koe, Ted. Thanks for the introduction. And te whare e tu nei. Tena koe. I acknowledged the house in which we are standing or sitting. Ted has kindly mentioned the book, Histories of Hate. And so I have had a long connection in studying the far right. And so earlier this year, as Ted has indicated, the Prime Minister and Cabinet appointed me as a co-director of He Whenua Taurikura. He Whenua, land, Taurikura, peace, so land of peace. And what we’re tasked with doing is bringing together the best research and knowledge that we can to avoid ever having to encounter an event like the March 2019 again. We’re just getting underway. We had a hui here in Auckland two weeks ago, in which we brought together communities, government departments and experts and we looked at the research that is available, but also the gaps that exist. Coincidentally, this book, Histories of Hate, was written before this appointment. But Paul Morris, who some of you might know who’s involved with religious diversity initiatives in New Zealand and is a member of the Jewish community, he and I wrote the chapter on what’s happening in countries like New Zealand at the moment. And so I just want to share some thoughts of what we’re seeing.
A supernova explodes in some far-flung corner of the universe. Billions of years later, driving to work, your memories are recharged listening to jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong performing What a Wonderful World.
Billions of years later, driving to work, your memories are recharged listening to jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong performing What a Wonderful World.
As I continue this reflection I want to offer a quotation from one of my mentors, Bernard Eugene Meland. He wrote it in 1931 just home from post graduate studies in Germany and still formulating his ‘mystical naturalism’. Subsequently, it has helped shaped much of my thinking and living religiously within a naturalistic framework.
Nikki was going to speak to us today specifically on the wider community reaction to the Chinese community as a result of Covid-19. Events have overtaken that and this talk now covers broader issues around Covid-19.
Therefore, because death stirs people
To seek answers to important spiritual questions,
It becomes the greatest servant of humanity
Rather than its most feared enemy.
Lord Krishna to Arjuna, in Bhagavad Gita
While we all “know” that death is inevitable, it usually a topic that we would prefer not to think about. When I posted on Neighbourly that I was seeking a co-facilitator to host Death Cafes with, people responded that discussing death seemed morbid and somehow sick.
Craig became a journalist following his experiences being cast out as a gay teenager. Craig discusses the role journalists play in bringing justice to social issues, despite the bad rap they sometimes receive.
