| OneLife News: Spring/Summer 2011 |
Click HERE to download a full-color 6 page PDF of this issue of the newsletter.
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Notes from the Director
The most authentic thing about us
is our capacity to create,
to overcome, to endure,
to transform, to love and to be
greater than our suffering.
~ Ben Okri
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Through the arts our spirituality and our humanity can breathe into one another, giving birth to love, healing, hope, action. This is the intention behind our annual Transformative Visions event. With all that is going on in the world right now, we deeply need the voice and vision of our artist-prophets. This issue of our newsletter highlights the artwork, music, and poetry from this year's event. We invite you to surf the pages of our website: a "virtual" art exhibition, videos of each spoken word performance, and extended selections from the Richard Howell Quintet's jazz concert. There is much to be found on our YouTube page as well. Tune in and be inspired!
RECENT ACTIVITIES
The first half of 2011 has been busy! In January we celebrated the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday with a presentation on The Living Wisdom of Howard Thurman, highlighting the importance of Thurman’s contributions to Dr. King and the Freedom Movement. Also in January, I taught an Intersession intensive at Starr King School for the Ministry, on Women, Spirituality and Social Change, and OneLife hosted our 22nd Spirit, Sound & Silence healing retreat. In February we co-sponsored Hands on the Freedom Plow, a program in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). In March was Transformative Visions. In April we hosted another retreat, and completed a ten-week course on Dr. Thurman at the East Bay Church. And in May, I traveled to Inner Light Ministries in Santa Cruz, where I delivered the sermon at Sunday worship and presented a weekend workshop addressing Thurman's teachings on mysticism and social action.
RECRUITING NEW BOARD MEMBERS
After nearly seven years of service, OneLife is entering an exciting time of transition and opportunity. We are seeking your involvement as together we chart our direction going forward. (Please read my article below to learn more.) Central to this initiative is the expansion of our board leadership group.
We are delighted to announce the first new addition to our board, Crystallee Crain. Crystallee is a young woman with a keen mind, a compassionate heart, and a solid commitment to justice. She has been part of the OneLife family for some time, and we look forward to her contributions in this new role. Visit the Board Profiles page of our website to read her bio. Welcome Crystallee!
SPIRIT, SOUND & SILENCE
On Saturday, August 6th we will be back at Holy Redeemer Center for our next Spirit,
Sound & Silence retreat. Come enjoy a day of healing and renewal.
In addition to our sliding scale admission policy, we have full
and partial scholarships available for those in need. Please click HERE for retreat details.
VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION
Volunteers make OneLife possible. It's that simple. Every year, on Memorial Day, we host a special celebration brunch honoring the beautiful souls who share their time and talents with us in so many ways. This year more than 50 people earned a certificate of appreciation for their contributions. In the days and weeks ahead we will feature some of them via our Facebook page. If you are not already linked with us on Facebook, please 'like' our page to join the online conversation.
There are many ways to get involved. To learn more visit the Volunteers Welcome page.
In peace and gratitude,
Liza
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| Shaman's Heart by Abba Yahudah |
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| Transformative Visions:
Art - Jazz - Spoken Word
For the fourth year, OneLife commemorated the Season for Nonviolence by presenting Transformative Visions, our signature community arts event lifting up a message of peace, justice, and possibility. Transformative Visions engages the arts as activism and ministry to address issues like violence, poverty, racism, and the environment, but instead of simply describing the problems, we seek to provide a vision of hope and a resource for healing. The event is intended to both challenge and inspire, offering a spiritually-rooted response to the critical concerns of the present day.
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In these times of local and global violence and upheaval, economic
crisis, and social division, it's important to come together and affirm
that each of us carries a creative vision. Within each of us is the
power to transform ourselves, our communities, and our world.
This year 23 visual artists exhibited work in a wide range of styles and
media. Our stellar spoken word lineup featured a mix of new and
returning poets: Aimee Suzara, Chas Jackson, Ghetto Prophet, Lex,
Paradise, and Queen Jahneen.
We were delighted to welcome back the magnificent Richard Howell Quintet - with Richard Howell on sax and vocals, Fred Harris on piano, E.W.
Wainwright on drums, Gary Brown on upright bass, and Destiny Muhammad on
harp and vocals. They were joined by special guests Khalil Shaheed and
Yazir on trumpet.
Please visit our YouTube page for videos of each spoken word
performer and extended clips of RHQ's alchemical "jazz in the moment."
Our heartfelt gratitude goes to all who made this event possible: the
FAITHS program of the San Francisco Foundation for partial
underwriting, Studio One (our host venue) and it's marvelous staff, our many amazing
volunteers, food donors, the fabulous artists and performers, Cristwell Muhammad for technical direction, Destiny Muhammad our musical director, Greg Williams on sound, guest curator Cicely Sweed, Xiomara Castro for flyer design, and
everyone who attended. Thank you!
We are exploring different production strategies for the future. Please contact us if you'd like to get involved.
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| A Time of Transition
By Liza J. Rankow, PhD
Recently I attended a lecture on moral courage by my friend and colleague Dr. Charles Garfield, who over 35 years ago founded the Shanti Project in San Francisco. In the early days of the AIDS epidemic, when there were far more questions than answers, he responded to the urgent need of the times by choosing to redirect the focus of the volunteer-based organization from caring for people with terminal cancer to serving people with AIDS. In his talk, Charlie left us with three questions that I have continued to sit with: What is my responsibility to the world? How do I participate in the events of the day? How do I manifest spiritual wisdom in action?
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Seven years ago this summer, OneLife Institute was founded. We celebrate our "official" anniversary on the date of our public consecration ceremony, October 16th. As we approach our next "seven" we are entering an exciting time of organizational transition and opportunity. We are seeking dynamic individuals who believe in the OneLife vision to join us in our mission – working at the intersection of spirituality and social action to create a more just, compassionate, and sustainable world.
We are expanding our board leadership group to better guide us on the path forward. We are recruiting dedicated volunteers who can support our work in hands-on ways. We are looking for collaborators who can work with us on joint projects to advance shared objectives. And we are welcoming the the financial and other helpful resources upon which to build.
From the beginning we have kept our infrastructure small and lean so that all of our resources could be invested in the work itself. This strategy has served us well, but has relied on my full-time (mostly volunteer) handling of operations and programs. As we grow to meet the increasing demand, it’s time for more people to step up in new ways. While I will remain involved in selected programs and services, I am looking forward to engaging other projects, especially a book that I have been putting off writing for far too long - based on my class on women, spirituality, and social action.
At this time of individual and collective transition, Charlie’s questions offer a helpful lens through which to consider matters of responsibility, priority, calling, and commitment. I am eager to see who will respond to OneLife’s leadership outreach initiative, and excited about what will emerge as we journey together.
How are you called to respond to the need of these times? If you feel that OneLife may be part of your answer, please contact us.
(To download a 2-page PDF with basic information about OneLife and our leadership outreach initiative click here.)
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All articles copyright to individual author or artist,
remaining newsletter content (c) 2011 OneLife Institute.
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