Free People
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The book Free People tackles the concept of ‘justice’ from a different perspective. Unlike current approaches to justice — ‘social justice,’ ‘procedural justice,’ ‘restorative justice,’ ‘retributive justice,’ and ‘distributive justice’ — it focuses on growing the generative capacity of the individual to withstand external conditions — of pain, inferiority, oppression, poverty — and grow from them into a deeper understanding of, and ultimately, union with, one’s antagonist.
Fig Spread
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When the figs are ripe, they are ripe, and there is no denying them. On Cape Cod we have this particular purple fig that starts producing gorgeous ripe fruit towards the end of August. We brought this fig from our house in Connecticut. The tree was a baby at the time.
Excerpt from Rumi’s poem “Moses and the Shepherd”
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… Ways of worshiping are not to be ranked as better
or worse than one another.
It’s all praise, and it’s all
right.
It’s not Me that’s glorified in acts of worship.
It’s the worshipers! I don’t hear the words
they say. I look at the humility.
The Art of Soulmaking
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Excerpt from the Book – The Path to Unconditional Freedom Dear Soulmaker, Building a soul is the work of a lifetime. It never stops. It is the work we are all here to do and it is the work that must be done, because without a fully functioning soul — in you, in me, in […]
From Guard to Guardians
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By Hesham Hauter A few months ago, I set out on a project to interview twenty Correctional Officers throughout the country. To take on this assignment, I had to educate myself on COs, cold call them, ask for interviews, and think up questions that would best bring out their humanity. I also had to learn […]
Informed by a Daffodil
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By Edward Espe Brown My friend Sharon told me a story about a friend of hers who had been a nurse for the homeless in Boston and then retired and moved up to Maine. After not working for a couple of years, she got a job distributing medications at a maximum-security prison. In the spring, […]
Elderberry Syrup
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By Louise Ayer My friend Priscilla and I have a great fondness for foraging. We love to pick the wild fruits, wine berries, black berries, wild grapes, beach plums, and elderberries. We will drive half an hour to an abandoned train track because Priscilla might have seen a cache of elderberries on a previous drive […]
Inside the Walls
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By Marissa Ward We sit at the smooth, white round table; Tanya, Marla, our group sponsor on the facility’s staff, and me. This is our first visit to Central California Women’s Facility — the prison in Chowchilla, California. There’s a moment of silence, and I notice the love and gratitude welling up inside of me. […]
Back to the Tenderloin
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By Caryn Roth We have begun to bring Love to Table back to the streets of the Tenderloin after the last year and a half delivering our farm-to-table meals through homeless shelters during the height of COVID. Two years ago, our then unknown, now dear friend Aref, generously opened his restaurant Z Zoul for us […]
Earth Video
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Video We created this video to show you our vision for the Earth Program and the people involved in making it possible.