This is not a political statement. It is not a statement of hate. It is a statement.
Today, we hear more news of misguided and hateful people claiming they have “avenged the Prophet” in killing innocent people in France. Their strategy is to divide us. As a Baha’i, I believe in and love Abraham, Krishna, Buddha, The Christ, The Prophet Mohammed, Baha’u’llah and all the Prophets and Manifestations of God. I believe that They are united. Thinking you have killed in Their name is pure ignorance, with horrible and impure action. Mohammed takes no joy in your actions. Neither does Jesus, The Christ take joy or pride in the fact that some Christians thought it appropriate to name a nuclear sub after Him, or kill millions in His name. Still, this is not a religious statement either.
Today, I am reminded, yet again, of why I do what I do. Well intended people have long suggested I re-brand from The Unity Guy™. I will not. Unity, at its core, is the solution.
Unity is not uniformity. It is not conformity. Its true strength is in diversity. Our differences and our sameness make us stronger. Those who would divide us see this and know this. The extremes have no wish for unity. It is true in geopolitics. It is true in religion. It is true in workplaces, schools and communities the world over. Those who seek to divide us, seek to confine us.
So, how do we move beyond this hideous block to a new level of prosperity?
We talk. We listen. We understand that there is one thing that unites us all… the high standard of humanity. It is our humanity that is our noble birthright. It is our inhumanity that blocks us from the kind of synergy that eradicates extremes of wealth and poverty, advances true justice and builds a level of prosperity yet unseen.
Is this pie in the sky? If it is, we had better start baking and climbing. It is the only real and practical strategy we truly have. Raising the flag of apathy will not change things. Raising the flag of bemoaning and despair will not either. Raising the flag of hatred and ignorance will add fuel to a fire already too large. Now, raising the flag of unity… the kind of unity that exists in nature… the kind of unity where difference is strength… there is the only truly sane strategy.
Several years back, I created a composition called The Secret Truth©. Check it out. Download it. It is FREE. I love functional competition; the kind that makes us strive to be better. But, this insane ignorance and hatred has nothing to do with that. It is about “us” versus “them” in the most dysfunctional of ways.
In the meantime, this post might lose me “friends”. It might gain me friends. It might lose me potential clients and might gain me some. That is not its purpose. Its singular purpose is to fiercely lay claim to the work of my life. Whether it is in workplaces or classrooms, in communities or companies… my purpose is to serve both the strategy and tactics for finding unity as the path out and through. It is not about kumbaya and holding hands. It is about working together to build peace, passion and prosperity.
At EPIC Engage™, our collective and growing body of work is all about moving forward together and stronger; about advancing together in thought, will and action. So, to those who today claimed that they “avenged The Prophet”; I do not believe you. To those who would raise the call of hate on either side, I do not believe you. To those who believe there is a better way to work together and create a world, locally and globally, that works and “gets it”, here I stand.
Peace, passion and prosperity.
Barry Lewis Green, aka The Unity Guy™
PS: An Anthem by Shinedown; let’s rock this!