spiritual insights on religion, social justice and comparative theology
The great Sufi mystic Rumi was in the throes of a dervish ceremony called a sema; a ritual dance ceremony that he created. A fellow Muslim came to him, knocked on his door and told him it was “time for evening prayer.” Rumi without missing a beat or twirl said, “We are praying.” Every major religion has … Continue reading A Dervish of Prayer by William Klein
My 90 year old friend Phil recently passed away. He was as artful in making meaning of his life as Michelangelo was with brushes. His tools were his wits, smarts and willingness to transform heartache into substantive lessons to empower himself and others. He was buried with a pin that read, PMA, “Positive Mental Attitude.” … Continue reading PMA by William Klein
The great oral historian and author Studs Terkel captured the spirit of labor in his work. He committed his life’s work to documenting the experiences of everyday Americans getting up and going to work for a better life. An homage to work, his recordings are preserved in the Smithsonian Institute for posterity. Stories of adversity, working through … Continue reading Salute to Laborers
We all want to escape something. For some it’s the job; for others it’s school; still others it’s a relationship that troubles them; others it’s a nagging problem rooted in our malaise in life and others it’s responsibility. At the heart of each heartbeat of discontent is understanding waiting to take root and change us. … Continue reading Escapism by William Klein
Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast in the history of the sport, recently pulled out of competitions choosing her mental well-being over Olympic gold. She is being praised for her choice and rightly so. A recent article in the New York Times opinion piece written by skiing world champion Zoe Ruhl noted that it was … Continue reading Winning At All Costs by William Klein
The act of birth itself is traumatic. We enter from a womb of comfort and security into a bold, daunting and dissonant, chaotic, hurried fluorescent lit world – bloodied and wet, sticky, being handed from one to another and relying on multiple sensibilities to hold a frantic awareness calmly, serenely with understanding and poignant culpability. … Continue reading Coping With Trauma by William Klein
The Police wrote a song titled “Rehumanize Yourself.” It was a song written about “people becoming disconnected from their humanity when placed in certain circumstances.” The song was inspired by a real incident. Lead singer and songwriter Sting heard about some skinheads kicking a man to death outside his house. “Policeman put on his uniform/Had … Continue reading Rehumanize Yourself by William Klein
There’s an old maxim, “The answer is in the question.” Confucius said, “The one who asks a question is a fool for a minute. The one who never asks a question is a fool for life.” Sometimes the soil of our being gets hard from spiritual dryness. We need to till the ground, pull the weeds of … Continue reading Tilling The Soil Of Being by William Klein
The US Catholic Bishops’ decision to deny President Biden and other politicians the Eucharist based on their pro-choice policies is problematic. On one hand it’s important that they assert the Church’s position on abortion. On the other hand, denying a practicing Catholic this Holy Sacrament is troublesome, because it has often been said, “Silence is consent.” It … Continue reading Eucharistic Condemnation by William Klein
As I drove through the streets of LA on a recent visit, I noticed more makeshift housing on the hills and side of the road. I'd seen this on skid row, but it was never visible on the streets of LA. I couldn’t get over the number of tent cities. There are people literally living in … Continue reading Tent Cities by William Klein
