Parliament of Worlds Religion 2009 Melbourne Australia

Author(s): Parliament of the World’s Religions
Publisher: USA Parliament of the Worlds Religions

Page 150

PROGRAM
Friday, December 4, 2009
9:30-11:00am INTRARELIGIOUS SESSION
tivate a sense of belonging for all is to have policies and programs that enable all Australians to access opportunities. But Australia cannot be complacent in the face of social unrest and new challenges. Murray Davies, Chair, Faith Communities Forum, Victoria; Member & Treasurer, Baha'i Council for Victoria, and Co-Chair, Communities Relations Committee, Melbourne Parliament of the World's Religions The Hon Laurie Ferguson MP. Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs and Settlement Services, has had a longstanding commitment to reluyees and immigrants within a social justice framework. He was appointed to his present position in 2007 after a long and distinguished career in the New South Wales (NSW) Parliament from 1984 to 1990 and the Australian Parliament, since 1990. In his current role he engages with community and faith groups across Australia and has overseen several major national initiatives, including the Diverse Australia Program, the appointment of the Australian Multicultural Advisory Council (AMAC) and the launch of the national strategic settlement framework for refugees and new settlers beginning new lives in Australia
Introduction to Big Mind Big Heart Philip Oude-Vrielink Room 214 Interactive Workshop This workshop session is an introduction to the Big Mind Big Heart method, an interactive workshop using a dialogue method that enables us to communicate and connect with different aspects of ourselves, both psychological and spiritual. Big Mind Big Heart is a facilitated process developed by American Zen Master Genpo Roshi to convey Eastern teachings to Western audiences, Blending Western psychology and science with the Eastern traditions passed down from ancient times, it has been developed for the express purpose of helping us to better understand the mind and the nature of human life. This method allows for direct experience and insight into our true nature, a process that can be personally transformative. In recognising aspects of our own humanity and the community of our own selves, we create the possibility to be in community and relate more effectively with the humanity of others. The Big Mind Big Heart process helps us to connect with aspects of ourselves that spontaneously and naturally scck a world more congruent with love. Philip Oude-Vrielink is a student of Genpo Roshi, the originator of the Big Mind Big Heart process. He is an endorsed Big Mind Big Heart workshop facilitator living in Melbourne, Australia Committed to furthering human dignity, he is passionate about helping people to know and empower themselves through discovering a source of wisdom, love and power in their own lives.
Sri Aurobindo, a Prophet for the 21st Century Hilary Anderson, Moderator Joseph Subbiondo Rudolf Schmitz-Perrin Joseph Prabhu Room 101 Panel Discussion The Indian sage Sri Aurobindo (1872-1950) has been acknowledged around the world for his vision of spiritual evolution and the development of consciousness that goes with it. UNESCO paid respect to the depth and scope of his teachings by founding the town of Auroville, which is meant to function as a centre which models this new consciousness, finding similarities with the vision of Teilhard de Chardin, the influential Jesuit and scientist. This panel, drawn from different continents and embodying diverse perspectives, examines the nature, scope and implications of Aurobindo's life and thought. In a planetary age like ours, where religions, cultures and spiritualities are brought closer together, the consciousness of religions needs to move beyond tribalism and self-concern to a more global vision, where people and cultures can encounter one another on a dimension that acknowledges and celebrates truth and harmony while at the same time respecting differences. The panel will also look at the experience of Auroville and its potential for serving as a beacon for the transformation of consciousness. Hilary Anderson, PhD, is Professor Emerita at the California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco, where she has served as faculty. dean and founding board member. Hilary is a lecturer, therapist, and synthesiser of East-West mythic patterns with Integral psychological approaches, emphasising the Divine Feminine and oracular imagery in ritual and celebrations. In 1992, she founded Universal Way Foundation, Los Angeles, to promote cross-cultural regard for all spiritual pathways. Her publications include numerous articles on Integral Studies and oracular symbolism Joseph Subbiondo is the President of the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIS). CIIS is a university founded in response to Sri Aurobindo's integral vision and committed to the study and practice of multiple spiritual and faith traditions. Mr Subbiondo has published extensively on the history of linguistics, especially regarding the works of John Wilkins and the seventeenth-century philosophical language movement. He presents and publishes on integrative models, spirituality, and interfaith dialogue in higher education, Rudolf Schmitz-Perrin, PhD, ThD, MA, is a psychotherapist and former Chair of Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of Strasbourg in France. He was a long-term visiting professor at universities in Spain. Rome and Jerusalem and is currently at Northern Arizona University Since 2006, he has been instrumental in creating the University of Human Unity in Auroville, Southern India. He has published and lectured internationally in the fields of medieval philosophy, studies on mysticism. phenomenology and contemporary psychoanalysis Joseph Prabhu is a Professor of Philosophy at California State University, Los Angeles and the President of the Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy. He is the author of Human Rights in CrossCultural Perspective' and 'Liberating Gandhi: Community, Empire and a Culture of Peace' lforthcomingl. He is a Program Task Force Chair and Trustee of the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions.
146 PWR - Parliament of the World's Religions Jain Education Intemational