Moore particpates in Saint Francis program

Because September has been designated Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month, Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford, Connecticut is hosting programs "to honor those who have been diagnosed with the disease." Thomas Moore is participating in one of these programs.

Nourishment for the Soul:
Reconnecting with the Soul After a Serious Illness
September 30, 2006: 9 a.m.–12:30 p.m., Gengras Auditorium
The hospital has organized the Fourth Annual Day of Celebration for women who have experienced gynecologic cancer, and those who have supported them. Thomas Moore will share ways "to add spirituality, depth and meaning to modern day life by nurturing the soul and caring for the spirit..." Attendees will be led in guided meditation, yoga stretches and listen to inspiring music. Light breakfast and refreshments are included.
Registration is required.

Second Annual Chamber Music Concert
"Celebrating Hope and Healing"
September 30, 2006: 2–4 p.m., Chawla Auditorium
Suggested Donation: $20 per person
In recognition of Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month, a concert is planned to benefit the Program for Integrative Healing at Saint Francis. The music program will be followed by a wine and cheese reception.

For more information, call Saint Francis Hospital: 877-783-7262.

Join Moore in Minnesota in October 2006

The Center for Spirituality and Healing at the University of Minnesota is promoting Healing Through Illness: Celebrating Art & Life with Author Thomas Moore, Artist Jila Nikpay & Others as a free multimedia event providing "new perspectives on how illness can be transformative and life affirming. The evening is for anyone facing illness or loss and for those seeking intellectual and creative interpretations to help them work through health challenges."

"The event includes an artistic program created by Jila Nikpay as part of the Heroines Project with music, film and performances from local, Minnesota artists. Her book Heroines features twenty-one Minnesota women who have been transformed by breast cancer – emotionally, physically and spiritually. The evening’s keynote speaker, author Thomas Moore, will expand upon his essay "How to Be Healed By Your Illness" included in Nikpay’s Heroines. Book signing and reception follow."

October 17, 7 p.m. Free and open to the public.
Click for more information. To register, call 612.624.9459.

This evening is featured on Barque: Thomas Moore in earlier posts.

Commemorating our dances with aggression

In his Spirituality & Health column for September, Thomas Moore looks at "Spiritual Wars," a timely reflection as we commemorate the fifth anniversary of the loss of life from the collapse of the World Trade Center. In his exploration, Moore suggests,

"The ancient Greeks honored a god, an archetypal force, if you will, that they called Ares. The Romans used the more familiar name Mars. In their psalm of praise to this deep necessity they begged the god ... to "restrain that shrill voice in my heart that provokes me to enter the chilling din of battle." They called on the god of warfare to still the urge to fight.

There is a mysterious and perverse tendency in human beings to be gross and literal in responding to any impulse. You need substance in your life, so you pile up possessions. You want to absorb the life around you, so you eat too much. You need some Dionysian joy, and you drink too much alcohol.

It's the same with violence and warfare. We have many subtle adversaries to deal with in the course of our lives: ignorance, prejudice, jealousy, ambition, arrogance. To come out of these battles with our souls intact takes courage, boldness, perseverance, and skill — the virtues of Mars ...

... Currently, America seems to be picking fights, wanting blood, finding glory in having an enemy with a foreign face. But all of this literalism, this acting-out of what should be spiritual struggle over narcissistic passions, shows how far we have to go before we truly discover the meaning of spirituality..."

A fuller excerpt from Moore’s column is available at Brian Donohue’s blog, Daily Revolution in his post for August 18, 2006. James Hillman’s book, A Terrible Love of War (2004) explores related themes. Kathleen Jenks, with the Pacifica Graduate Institute offers her notes and reactions to Hillman's presentation of his, then, work-in-progress at a 2002 conference.

In his new foreword to Satish Kumar’s reissued The Buddha and the Terrorist, Moore writes, “Terrorism is a sacrilege, and our task is to respond by restoring the holiness of life's power." Read about this foreword in an earlier post at Barque: Thomas Moore.