Reflection one: on Reading and Lecture

Reflection one: On Reading and Lecture

My leadership spirit discovery journey starts with the book "The World's Religions" by Huston Smith where he gives me the general overview of the religion throughout the world and history. I am really impressed by his definition on the religion, he says, religion calls the soul to the highest adventure it can undertake, a projected journey across the jungles, peaks and desserts of the human spirit. The call is to confront reality, to master the self. Besides the already known Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism from my culture, I get to know the details of the wisdom traditions: Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and the primal religions. The history facts tell me the wisdom traditions of the world's major religions offer today's spiritual seekers maps to the territory, guides who can lead the way and salutary advice on making the most of the journey.

Hinduism will speak to those who intuit that the eternal is buried within us and that the path of renunciation holds great promise. Buddhism's empirical, scientific, therapeutic, psychological, dimensions have already made it very appealing to the world. With my life background, I am into the path that emphasizes social and civic harmony will be impressed with the ideals of Confucianism. Taoism, on the other hand, with its accent on matter, movement, and the mind, has won the hearts of those on a quest for creative quietude. Smith reveals that awe and respect for God are at the heart of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. They are just expressed differently--for the Muslim, through surrender; for the Jew, through meaning; and for the Christian, through love. In the last chapter of the book, the author covers the primal religions where spirituality includes stories, community, and love of nature. This book brings me fresh insights again and again when I re-read it. No matter which religion you hold, I believe they all have one thing in common that help you reach the balance and hold the hopes.

During the first module study, I fortunately found the most inspiring book "Lives of Moral Leadership" by Robert Coles. Yes, "We need heroes, people who can inspire us, help shape us morally, spur us on to purposeful action — and from time to time we are called on to be those heroes, leaders for others, either in a small, day-to-day way, or on the world's larger stage." quoted from this book. Coles tells how to be a moral leader and shows how the intervention of one person can change the course of history, as well as influence the day-to-day quality of life in our homes, schools, communities, and nation.

As usual the most exhilarating and uplifting stories of moral leadership came out of the lives of common folk who rose to a situation that they felt was wrong, and exhibited what can only be called greatness in their response to it. In this book, he vividly