Jenan Taylor
9 June 2023
Religious, academic, political and business leaders will have the chance to ponder how they approach peacebuilding at an upcoming forum at Trinity College.
Organisers from Meditation Australia and Monash University said the inaugural Meditation and Peacebuilding: Learnings and Opportunities meeting aimed to explore contemplative practices that might contribute to growing and fostering harmony.
Meditation Australia executive officer Karen Stone said many communities were seeking peaceful resolutions to the troubles they were facing.
Ms Stone said the forum would be the beginning of a conversation about the importance of meditation as a tool for amity globally, locally and personally.
“We hope to encourage participants to see the positive role meditation could play in calming their thoughts, which then would flow out into their lives,” she said.
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Ms Stone said speakers would include Monash Centre for Consciousness and Contemplation Studies Professor Craig Hassed, and Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture’s Bishop Philip Huggins.
In a recent Living Water blog, Bishop Huggins wrote that deep listening and thoughtful dialogue was a requirement of this age.
Ms Stone said guests would be encouraged to reflect on the material being presented, discuss it with one another and contribute to the conversation throughout the event.
She said organisers expected the discussions would be rich and engaging as a broad spectrum of people from faith, politics, media, academia and business were registered to attend.
The gathering will begin with meditation in Trinity Chapel, and also feature classical music.
It will take place on Friday 16 June from 2pm to 3pm, and will be livestreamed globally, as well.
For further information see here.
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