20 January 2021
Just a thought
Love and Listening:
The first duty of love is to listen. Paul Tillich.
The concept of ‘Creative Listening’ acknowledges that the seemingly simple act of listening can be very difficult to practise. So often we hear the words of others while formulating our own thoughts for a response. We need to listen with an empty mind, and to pause before responding, to allow the words of the other person to inform (and reform) our own thoughts. If applied to personal relationships this can be transforming. If adopted by governments and world leaders this could be revolutionary. It is in the waiting and the stillness that the impetus to act creatively is given the space to be born.
- Ruth Harvey, a member of the Iona Community
