Event Details

 

Facilitators: Dominic Ashmole (Dances of Universal Peace); Merav Israel (The Feldenkrais Method: Awareness Through Movement); Catherine Wright (An introduction to the practice of Movement Medicine); and Linda Wyman (An Introduction to the Alexander Technique).
Venue: Islay Room, Gillis Centre, 100 Strathearn Road, Edinburgh, EH9 1BB.
Date: Saturday 1 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Day Workshop: 10am-5pm.
Event Description: Join us for a joyful day of sharing spiritual dance and movement for health, wellbeing, healing and peace. We will all be together throughout the day, building community and celebrating diversity through spiritual dance and movement.

9.30am-10am: Arrival and Registration.

10am-11.20am: Linda Wyman: An Introduction to the Alexander Technique.

A simple and effective way of regaining natural balance and ease of movement improving physical and mental wellbeing. It is a learning process which teaches you how to best use your body helping you to increased energy and more efficiency in all you do.

Linda Wyman trained at Fellside Alexander School in Cumbria for three years and did her post graduate term at the Institute for the Research and Development of the Alexander Technique in New York in 1991. She currently teaches in Edinburgh and East Lothian. www.lindawyman.co.uk

11.20am-11.40am: Break.

11.40am-1pm: Merav Israel: The Feldenkrais Method: Awareness Through Movement.
 
Merav Israel is a certified Feldenkrais Method practitioner, somatic movement teacher, dancer and choreographer, www.lanua.org, www.tomovefeldenkrais.lanua.org
 
The Feldenkrais Method was developed by Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais – scientist, physicist, engineer and martial artist, who synthesized insights from physics, motor development, bio-mechanics, psychology, neurology and martial arts.
 
The method offers a process of learning through movement, sensing, thinking and imagining to free us from habitual patterns and allow new possibilities to emerge. Through this work we can improve mobility and increase energy and enjoyment in our activities.
 
The method has two strands: Group lessons called Awareness Through Movement and Functional Integration which are one-to-one lessons. The lessons consist of verbally directed movement sequences, which are comfortable and easy and which gradually evolve into movements of greater range and complexity. Through the learning process you will be able to find new ways of moving while increasing sensitivity and improving efficiency. This workshop will offer an introduction to the method and a practical experience. Please bring enough layers of warm clothes and a blanket/mat to lie on.
 
Merav has been studying movement and somatics for 20 years and integrating her experience and understanding in her work as dancer, dance maker and teacher. Though usually her teaching approach combines somatics, improvisation and contact improvisation in her own unique way and experience, in this workshop the focus will be on The Feldenkrais Method.

1pm-2pm: Lunch.

2pm-3.20pm:  Catherine Wright: An introduction to the practice of Movement Medicine.

Movement Medicine is a dance practice and an awareness practice.  It reconnects us with our hearts through our bodies.  You need no prior dance experience, only a desire to move your body and connect with your own wisdom and wildness. Movement Medicine offers tools and maps to help us dance deep into the experience of being embodied.  In this session we will dance with the elements.  We will dance with Earth, Water, Air and Fire, both around us and within us.    This practice keeps bringing us back to the dancer inside us.  We access the wisdom of our body, the depth of our heart and the creativity of our imagination.  
For more information visit www.schoolofmovementmedicine.com

Catherine Wright is an Interfatih Minister.  Dance has been one of her spiritual practices for 15 years.  She has been dancing and studying with Susannah and Ya’Acov Darling Khan for 12 years.  For the past four years she has been an apprentice Movement Medicine practitioner, teacher and facilitator.

3.20pm-3.40pm: Break.

 

3.40pm-5pm: Dominic Ashmole: Dances of Universal Peace.

 

The Dances of Universal Peace are a powerful group spiritual practice originating in Sufism. We sing or chant sacred phrases while dancing in a circle. By opening our voices and hearts, dancing together and honouring sacred traditions of many different peoples and times, we may experience feelings of connectedness, joy, playfulness, healing and strength. Dominic Ashmole has been leading Dances of Universal Peace since 2007. Under the guidance of his teacher, Philip O’Donohoe, he became a certified leader in November 2010.

 

NB: Dominic is replacing Susan for the final session of the day.

 

 

 

Speaker: Prof Robert Segal is Sixth Century Chair in Religious Studies at the University of Aberdeen.
Title: The Myth of Gaia.
Chair: Dr Louise S Milne, School of Art, Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh.
Forum on Religion, Violence and Ecology.
Forum Panellists: Nancy Adams, is member of the Scottish Palestinian Forum and a student of Mediation and Conflict Resolution; Brian Larkin, Coordinator, Edinburgh Peace and Justice Centre; Eurig Scandrett is an educator and activist who, after an initial career as an environmental scientist, spent 15 years in community education and campaigning on environmental, peace, gender and trades union issues.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 1 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description: The myth of Gaia is the revival of the ancient Greek concept of the earth as a goddess. The Greek myth of creation, called the THEOGONY, makes Gaia one of the original personalities in the emergence of the physical world. The contemporary depiction of Gaia plays on the notion of the earth as a personality, one able to renew itself. When James Lovelock wrote his first book on the topic, GAIA, in 1979, he unhesitatingly marvelled at the capacity of the earth to save itself--as if it were a thinking personality, which is to say a god. He has since backed off from his personification of the earth, but the personification remains among those who "worship" Gaia. What has come to supplement admiration for the ability of the earth to sustain itself has been the advocacy, by Lovelock and others, of our responsibility for helping the earth. The two sides of the myth are, then, the ability of the earth to sustain itself and the dependence of the earth on help from humans.

Robert Segal is Sixth Century Chair in Religious Studies at the University of Aberdeen, where he has taught since 2006. Previously, he was Professor of Theories of Religion at Lancaster University. Prior to coming to Lancaster in 1994, he taught at several universities in his native United States, including Reed College, Stanford University, the University of Pittsburgh, and Tulane University. He writes and teaches on theories of religion and of theories of myth. He has written or edited THE POIMANDRES AS MYTH, THE GNOSTIC JUNG, JUNG ON MYTHOLOGY, THE MYTH AND RITUAL THEORY, THEORIZING ABOUT MYTH, MYTH: A VERY SHORT INTRODUCTION, and the BLACKWELL COMPANION TO THE STUDY OF RELIGION.

 

 

Facilitator: Alice Fateah Saunders.
Venue: Islay Room, Gillis Centre, 100 Strathearn Road, Edinburgh, EH9 1BB.
Date: Sunday 2 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Day Workshop: 10am-5pm.
Event Description: Murshid Samuel L Lewsi, Sufi mystic of the last century, was clear in stating that achieving peace between people is an active process rather than a passive acceptance. One might call it a “doing” rather than just “being”.

But what are the qualities needed in our own hearts that make us a peaceful person, capable of taking necessary action to achieve peace with others? How might we achieve those inner qualities?

The Dances of Universal Peace – as envisioned by Samuel Lewis - are one means by which some of those inner qualities can be awakened.
 
During the day we will use many of these Dances, and also focus on other Sufi practices concerning breath, repetition of sacred words, the movement of our bodies in walking, and spend quiet time sitting in meditation. Readings from various Sufi mystics will accompany our journey.

Fateah Alice Saunders has been following a Sufi path for 20 years and previously trained for several years in psychotherapy and counseling skills. She leads Sufi sessions and Dances of Universal Peace in Edinburgh, further afield in Scotland and elsewhere.

The day will be supported with music from Gavin and Clare.

 

 

 

Speaker: Prof Nigel Osborne, Former Reid Professor of Music and Co-Director of the Institute for Music in Human and Social Development (IMHSD), Music, University of Edinburgh.
Title: TBC.
Chair: Dr Katie Overy, Director, Institute for Music in Human and Social Development (IMHSD), University of Edinburgh.
Forum on Conflict, the Arts and Therapy.
Forum Panellists: Hugh Donald leads the work of Place for Hope, an ecumenical organisation offering the means of peace building and reconciliation  to address conflict  within churches and community. Formerly a lawyer, Hugh is an experienced mediator, facilitator and coach; Dr Amy Hardie, Head of Research, Scottish Documentary Institute; Samir Mehanovic is a BAFTA award winning film director who has also directed for the BBC.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Sunday 2 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description:

Nigel Osborne has pioneered the use of music in therapy and rehabilitation for children who are victims of conflict.  Much of his work was carried out in the Balkans during and following the wars in that region during the 1990s, and he has also worked in the Caucasus, Africa and the Middle East.

 

 

Facilitator: Sr Fionntulach.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 8 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Day Workshop: 10am-5pm.
Event Description: What, if anything, changes in us? Or are we already perfect inside somewhere? How does inner change happen? What is the difference between most psychology/therapy and spiritual transformation? Can we measure our change? Or is the whole notion of spiritual transformation just a part of the illusion, as some people today suggest?

These are some of the many questions I brought with me into the tradition I belong to when I found it almost thirty years ago. Some of them may strike a chord in you too. In our day together I want to talk about spiritual transformation as it is approached in the Céile Dé tradition; an ancient Celtic Christian esoteric path that, thirty years later, still keeps me on my toes and challenges the assumptions of my ‘False Self’ every day, thank God.

In our day together, we will explore some of the ancient teachings, terms, and practices that give us a map, a compass and the means to begin the walk towards our Spiritual True North which, paradoxically, has always been hidden in the very core of us…

Sr. Fionntulach belongs to the Céili Dé (The Servants or Spouses of God), a Celtic Christian spiritual Order based in Scotland. Since 2004 she has been Head of the Order.

 

Today, she is a teacher of the tradition and an Anam Chara (‘Soul Friend’ or Spiritual Guide). Her life is divided between leading a contemplative life, serving her community and giving teachings to the growing number of people, both in Europe and in the USA, who feel called to walk the Céile Dé Path in these times.

Sister Fionn, as most people call her, describes the tradition as “a glorious blend of Celtic reverence for Nature, disciplined practice, great beauty and Christ-consciousness - the transformative power of Love.”

For more information, see - www.ceilede.co.uk

 

 

Speaker: Donald Smith is Director of the Scottish International Storytelling Festival, and a development worker for the traditional and community arts in Scotland.
Title: Freedom and Faith.
Chair: Lari Don is a children’s writer, storyteller and occasional political activist, who is passionate about the power of stories and hopeful about the future of Scotland. www.laridon.co.uk
Forum on Spirituality, Politics and Culture.
Forum Panellists: Dr Mairi McFadyen, Teaching and Research, Department of Celtic and Scottish Studies, the University of Edinburgh; Eleanor Yule, filmmaker.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 8 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description: Religion and politics in Scotland are longstanding bedfellows. But dramatic changes in both over recent decades have created a new landscape. What are the opportunities and pitfalls of our new situation, and is it a Scottish question or a global one? This talk looks at culture, spirituality and social change, and discovers an emergent  Scotland that is both secular and spiritually resonant. 

Donald Smith is Director of the Scottish International Storytelling Festival, and a development worker for the traditional and community arts in Scotland. He has written a series of plays, novels, and performance poems on Scottish themes, as well several non-fiction works on religion and culture. He teaches and lectures widely beyond the academy, and is currently a Visiting Professor at Edinburgh Napier University. His book ‘Freedom and Faith’ is recently published by Saint Andrew Press.

 

 

Facilitator: Dr Michael Williams is a professional storyteller, story coach & mentor and a narrative consultant.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Sunday 9 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 3.15pm-3.30pm. Afternoon Workshop: 3.30pm-6pm.
Event Description:  As soon as we have an experience, our brains are busy digesting the event and processing it so that it can be stored as memory and shared as a relevant and meaningful narrative in the future. Yet often we struggle to make sense of our experiences, we find it difficult to express or find meaning in them. We know we have a story to tell, but we find it difficult to weave our words and images into a coherent and creative narrative.

This workshop invites you to explore a personal experience and transform it into a compelling story using a mythical framework and some basic storytelling skills and techniques. No previous experience of storytelling necessary. Simply bring an open mind, open heart and a willingness to enjoy yourself and others.

Michael Williams is a professional storyteller, story coach & mentor and a narrative consultant to business and other organisations. His clients have included the Aberdeen Leadership Forum, the Scottish Government, the Church of Scotland, VisitScotland, Edinburgh University, the National Museum and others. He also works with small groups and individuals, helping them create and craft stories and improve their communication skills.
   
In 2009 Michael travelled to the Middle East where he and his colleagues used storytelling skills to encourage dialogue and mutual understanding between Arabs and Jews, Israelis and Palestinians. The following year he was appointed Storyteller-in-Residence in Charlottetown Canada where he helped young people transform their stories into video and coached adults in storytelling. In 2012 he co-founded the Aberdeen Leadership Forum inspiring  corporate and community leaders to share their stories of leadership and innovation.

 

Currently, Michael is facilitating a project with Action for ME (Scotland), enabling those suffering from myalgic encephalomyeletis and chronic fatigue syndrome to tell their stories through film, sharing what it's like to live with this crippling illness. In short, Michael helps people create the stories that can change their world.

 

 

 

Speaker: Dr Lesley Orr, feminist historian, theologian, writer and activist.
Title: Waging A War Against Women? - Armed Conflict, Rape and Sexual Violence.
Chair: Lynn Jamieson is a Co-Director of the Centre for Research on Families and Relationships www.crfr.ac.uk and a Professor in Sociology at the University of Edinburgh. She has had a long interest in gender and violence. Her portfolio of research includes studies of rape and sexual assault trials in Scotland.
Forum on Armed Conflict, Rape and Sexual Violence.
Forum Panellists: Megan Bastick works as Gender and Security Fellow with the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), an international foundation; Cath Campbell, Rape Crisis Scotland; A refugee woman from Refugee Women’s Strategy Group.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Sunday 9 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description:  In April 2013, Foreign Ministers of the G8 issued a ‘landmark’ Declaration on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, committing the world’s richest nations to challenge the culture of impunity around ‘one of the greatest and most persistent injustices in the world’ (William Hague). But millions of women and children in Syria, the Sudan, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and other conflict zones continue to endure rape and sexual violence, and suffer the consequences. What does it mean to describe rape as a weapon of war? Why a culture of impunity? What does it have to do with the wider politics and practice of gender? And is it possible to prevent sexual violence in conflict? This forum will wrestle with these challenges for international law, human rights and gender justice in a violent world.

Dr Lesley Orr is a feminist historian and activist, engaged in research, education and writing. She has worked at the Universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh, in the voluntary sector and with the Scottish Government’s Strategy to Address Violence Against Women. She has been active for many years in movements challenging gender based inequality, abuse and violence, and discrimination against LBGTQ people in faith communities and wider society. She was consultant for the World Council of Churches project: ‘Overcoming Violence Against Women’ (2000-2005) and is a member of the ecumenical Iona Community.

 

 

Facilitator: Charlie Irvine, course leader on Strathclyde Law School’s MSc in Mediation and Conflict Resolution.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 15 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Day Workshop: 10am-5pm
Event Description: Conflict is a pervasive reality at home and around the world, often with devastating effects.  Mediation is one response associated with efforts to end violent conflict and build peace.  Charlie Irvine, Course Leader on Strathclyde University’s MSc in Mediation and Conflict Resolution, presents this one-day workshop on mediation and peacemaking. 

The workshop will provide an overview of mediation’s key features, including:

1) Understanding conflict
2) Our own “conflict style”
3) Effective communication
4) Negotiation
5) Problem-solving

Participants will learn what mediators do, and have the opportunity to consider applying these approaches in their own situations. Mediation is a practical activity, best learned by doing, and so the day is built around skills practice and discussion.

There will also be opportunities to consider deeper questions raised by this form of non-violent conflict resolution: what is the place of justice? How do mediators deal with “bad guys”? Should conflict be resolved? Resolution v transformation. What are mediation’s values?

Charlie is a freelance mediator and trainer, former Chair of the Scottish Mediation Network and Course Leader on Strathclyde University’s MSc in Mediation and Conflict Resolution.  Recent research includes an evaluation of community dialogue in responding to sectarianism in Scotland. He has written extensively on mediation and conflict, and his articles can be accessed at http://ssrn.com/author=873941 

 

 

 

Speaker: Dr Fahri Karakas is a London-based Lecturer in Business and Leadership at University of East Anglia.
Title: Bridging East and West: The Role of Positive Spirituality, Creative Inspiration, and Cross-Cultural Leadership for Peace.
Chair: David Lorimer, Programme Director, the Scientific and Medical Network.
Forum on Positive Spirituality, Creative Inspiration, and Cross-Cultural Leadership for Peace.
Forum Panellists:  Dr Neil Douglas-Klotz;  Rev Ali Newell, Associate Chaplain, University of Edinburgh; Prof Dabir Tehrani, Honorary Professor at Heriot-Watt University since April 1984.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 15 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description:  Dr Karakas will share his experience, reflections, and research on cross-cultural and interfaith peace-building in this talk. The session will focus on the new global mind-sets and heart-sets for citizens of the interconnected world; weaving together latest research on spirituality, creativity, and leadership. Building on global human virtues and shared positive values, the talk will embark on the possibility of exploring and building an inspiring human ethos crossing ethnic, cultural, religious boundaries. In particular, several social innovation initiatives aimed at fostering a sense of global peace and hope will be discussed; including Noah's Pudding events, the Pangea Day, United Religions Initiative, and Charter for Compassion.
 
Dr Fahri Karakas is a London-based Lecturer in Business and Leadership at University of East Anglia, Norwich Business School. His research - published in several leading international journals - focuses on benevolent leadership, creative competences, spirituality at work, social innovation, positive management education, and design thinking.

 

 

Venue: The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 20a Inverleith Row, Edinburgh, EH3 5LR.
Date:  Sunday 16 March 2014.
Time: 9.30am-11am, meet at West Gate entrance to the John Hope Gateway, Arboretum Place, at 9.30am.
(Introduction to mindful walking at 9.45am and walk begins at 10am). No access from East Gate.
Event Description: This silent walking meditation is an open event. It will be led by the lay members of the Edinburgh Sangha of the Community of Interbeing, who follow the practice and teachings of Zen Buddhist Master, Thich Nhat Hanh. The walk begins at the John Hope Gateway of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Before the walk begins there will be a brief introduction to mindful walking as meditation practice. This is not a protest or a campaigning event, so please do not use any banners. Children are welcome when accompanied by adults. Please remember to wrap up warmly.

 

‘We walk just for walking. We walk with freedom and solidity, no longer in a hurry. Let us enjoy every step we make.’ Thich Nhat Hanh.

 

 

Facilitator: Dr Michael Williams is a professional storyteller, story coach & mentor and a narrative consultant.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Sunday 16 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 3.15pm-3.30pm. Afternoon Workshop: 3.30pm-6pm.
Event Description:  Based on his recent work with the Aberdeen Leadership Forum, professional storyteller and coach Michael Williams invites you to explore your leadership qualities through the framework of story. Integrate your personal narrative with that of your community, your family, your workplace or an organisation to which you belong to create a powerful narrative of leadership.

Using basic storytelling techniques, mythical thinking, and active dialogue, participants will have an opportunity to improve their communication skills, bolster their confidence, and deepen their understanding of their leadership qualities. Be the leader you want to be. Take control of your story and inspire others.

 

 

 

Facilitator: Sharadha Bain is a spiritual healer, and Ian Bain has served on the teaching faculty for the four-year training in Nondual Kabbalistic Healing with A Society of Souls.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date:  Sunday 16 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6pm-6.30pm. Workshop: 6.30pm-9.30pm.
Event Description: “Kabbalah is, above all, a means of joining with the Divine.
It is a path of profound transformation,
the fruit of which is to awaken into Life in such a way
that our former lives seem like sleep in comparison.
It brings about the ultimate healing of the human soul.”
Jinen Jason Shulman in
‘Kabbalistic Healing: A Path to an Awakened Soul’

Nondual Kabbalistic Healing is a revolutionary path of personal healing and spiritual awakening.

It unites mystical Kabbalah with the nondual teachings of Advaita and Buddhism; it also seamlessly weaves together contemporary psychotherapeutic understanding with the timeless wisdom of the world’s spiritual traditions.

Above all, it is a path that reveals the unbroken unity of Reality and in doing so, brings us to wholeness moment-by-moment through kindness and love.

In this workshop, we will discover the Kabbalistic map of the Four Universes and explore what these ancient teachings tell us about our true nature. You will also be guided through the Healing of Immanence, a foundational healing on this path, which many people experience as life-changing and a turning point on their spiritual journey.

No prior knowledge of Kabbalah or nonduality is required to participate.

Nondual Kabbalistic Healing was created by Jinen Jason Shulman, one of the foremost spiritual teachers of our time. A unique combination of contemporary kabbalah master and Dharma lineage holder in the zen tradition, he is the founder of A Society of Souls (ASOS), a school dedicated to nondual healing and awakening. More information about Jason, the programmes he has developed, his books and music, can be found at www.societyofsouls.com

Sharadha Bain is a spiritual healer, teacher and writer based in Edinburgh. She comes from one of India’s oldest Hindu communities and grew up immersed in the path of Vedanta and Advaita. She has built on this with studies in the field of healing and personal growth and since 1990, has studied with numerous teachers in the Middle East, India, Europe and the United States. She is a certified Jin Shin Jyutsu practitioner; a Brennan Healing Science practitioner; and a graduate of the three-year training in psychodynamics from the Center for Intentional Living. For the last 12 years, she has been studying and practising Nondual Kabbalistic Healing with A Society of Souls.

Ian Bain has served on the teaching faculty for the four-year training in Nondual Kabbalistic Healing with A Society of Souls. Previously, he was a Fleet Street journalist and public relations consultant.

 

 

 

Speaker: Rev Prof John Swinton, Professor in Practical Theology and Pastoral Care, School of Divinity, History and Philosophy, King's College, University of Aberdeen.
Title: Is spirituality good for your well-being?: A reflection on the role of “spirituality” in the practices of health care.
Chair: Steve Tilley.  From 1993 Dr Stephen Tilley taught Nursing students at the University of Edinburgh to look critically at the evolving discourses on spirituality and health care. Having personal and professional interests in spirituality and mental health, he watches with interest the gathering of spirituality, recovery and well-being round common themes of 'meaning, purpose and fulfilment.'
Forum on Spirituality, Mental Health and Wellbeing.
Forum Panellists: Edie Irwin, is a Tara Rokpa Therapist and Trainer who has been working with Tara Rokpa Therapy for over 30 years; Jim Pym is a Quaker, with strong links to Buddhism and Advaita; Dr Brion Sweeney is a Tara Rokpa Therapist and Trainer who has been working with Tara Rokpa Therapy for over 30 years.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Thursday 20 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description:  The talk will explore the relatively recent movement within healthcare, towards incorporating “spirituality” into the ways in which we understand health and well-being. Whilst there is much talk and a good deal of literature claiming that ‘spirituality’ is helpful in enhancing human well-being and assisting a movement towards health, the actual meaning of the term ‘spirituality’ remains unclear. If we don’t know what spirituality is, how can we claim that it is good for our health and well-being? The talk will look at some of the reasons why the term spirituality has become opaque and slippery and will offer a perspective that suggests that while some of what we say about spirituality may be “made up,” that is, not relating directly to a “thing” called spirituality, a focus on the areas that are brought to light by reflecting on what people consider to be the spiritual dimensions of human beings brings to light vital practical aspects that do have the potential for transformation and improved health and well-being. Spirituality may be “made up,” but it is nonetheless real in its effects.

John Swinton is Professor in Practical Theology and Pastoral Care in the School of Divinity, Religious Studies and Philosophy at the University of Aberdeen and an honorary Professor of Nursing at the University's Centre for Advanced Studies in Nursing. He has a background in mental health nursing and healthcare chaplaincy and has researched and published extensively within the areas of ageing, dementia, mental health and illness, spirituality and human well-being and the theology and spirituality of disability. He is the Director of Aberdeen University's Centre for Spirituality, Health and Disability (www.abdn.ac.uk/cshad), and Co-Director of the University's Kairos Forum (www.abdn.ac.uk/kairos-forum). His publications include: Dementia: Living in the Memories of God (2012). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans/London SCM Press; Spirituality in Mental Health Care: Rediscovering a "forgotten" dimension. (2001) Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London. Living Gently in a Violent World: The Prophetic Witness of Weakness (2008) (with Stanley Hauerwas and Jean Vanier) IVP.

 

 

Facilitator: Dr Neil Douglas-Klotz directs the Edinburgh Institute for Advanced Learning (www.eial.org) in Edinburgh.
Venue: Skye Room, Gillis Centre, 100 Strathearn Road, Edinburgh, EH9 1BB.
Dates: Saturday 22 March - Sunday 23 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Retreat Days: 10am-5pm.
Event Description: During this two-day retreat, we will use teachings and practices suggested by the words of Jesus in his native Aramaic language to deepen in our own sense of resurrection and renewal. Resurrection can occur whenever we forget the small self, allowing it to dissolve "like the dew drop into the shiny sea." Opening to the divine we can then allow ourselves to become channels for blessing and healing. This was the practice of Yeshua, whose spirituality we will explore through a mixture of teaching, silent meditation, walking meditation, chant and sacred movement.

The main thread will be the prayer of Yeshua (the “Lord’s Prayer”), which we will meditate with, chant and use in a cycle of Dances of Universal Peace. The background for this is in my first book Prayers of the Cosmos (HarperCollins 1990). In addition, I will draw teachings and spiritual practice from my later work on Jesus’s teachings, as found in Blessings of the Cosmos and I Am: The Secret Teachings of the Aramaic Jesus. I will also share some of my recent unpublished work-in-progress on the Jesus traditions in early Islam.

Dr Neil Douglas-Klotz directs the Edinburgh Institute for Advanced Learning (www.eial.org) in Edinburgh, Scotland and co-founded the Edinburgh International Festival of Middle Eastern Spirituality and Peace, now in its eleventh year. He is the past chair of the Mysticism Group of the American Academy of Religion and has published several books on Middle Eastern spirituality and peace, including Prayers of the Cosmos (1990), Desert Wisdom (1995, revised 2010), The Hidden Gospel (1999), The Genesis Meditations (2003), The Sufi Book of Life (2005), Blessings of the Cosmos (2006) and The Tent of Abraham (2006, with Sr. Joan Chittister and Rabbi Arthur Waskow). His most recent work on the Aramaic Jesus is "I Am: The Hidden Teaching of the Aramaic Jesus," a recorded course from Sounds True. In 2005 he was awarded the Kessler-Keener Foundation Peacemaker of the Year award for his work in Middle Eastern peacemaking. Information about his work internationally can be found at the website of the Abwoon Resource Center, www.abwoon.com

 

 

 

Speaker: Scilla Elworthy PhD, founded the Oxford Research Group in 1982.
Title: What is Inner Power, and how do we use it?
Chair: Brian Smith, former Bishop of Edinburgh in the Scottish Episcopal Church.
Forum on Inner Power, Transformation and Leadership.
Forum Panellists: Prof Indra Nath Choudhuri, Scottish Centre of Tagore Studies (ScoTs); Dr Thomas Clough Daffern, Director, International Institute of Peace Studies and Global Philosophy. John Drummond, managing director of Integrity Works and a Principal of Integrity Works Inc, three years ago he co-founded the Constitutional Commission with Canon Kenyon Wright.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 22 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6.30pm-7pm. Discussion/Forum: 7pm-9pm.
Event Description: Drawing on half a century of helping prevent violence, Scilla Elworthy will show how Inner Power works by describing the most effective use of spiritual work in defusing conflict. She will tell the stories of those who use it best - how Aung San Suu Kyi prevented student protesters being shot; how Dekha Ibrahim Abdi helped stop the riots after Kenyan elections in 2007; what Nelson Mandela and his colleagues learned on Robben Island; how the Truce 20/20 youngsters defuse fights on the streets of Newham, in east London; how US soldiers were able to avoid being lynched in the streets of Iraq – and draw  conclusions for our daily lives.

Scilla Elworthy PhD founded the Oxford Research Group in 1982 to develop effective dialogue between nuclear weapons policy-makers worldwide and their critics, work which included a series of dialogues between Chinese, Russian and western nuclear scientists and military, and which formed the basis for later treaties. She founded Peace Direct in 2002 to fund, promote and learn from local peace-builders in conflict areas, leading to the acceptance by the UN of the value and cost effectiveness of ‘locally-led’ initiatives. Peace Direct was voted ‘Best New Charity’ in 2005. Scilla was awarded the Niwano Peace Prize in 2003; she has been three times nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. She was adviser to Peter Gabriel, Desmond Tutu and Richard Branson in setting up ‘The Elders’; she is chair of the Civil Society sector of the Hanwang Forum in China; director of the Institute for Transformational Futures, a Councillor of the World Future Council, author of numerous books, patron of Gender Rights and Equality Action Trust, Voice of a Woman, Oxford Research Group; and a member of the steering Committee of PAX, a service to help prevent wars and genocides.

 

 

Facilitator: Alette Willis, PhD, is a researcher in Counselling and Psychotherapy at the University of Edinburgh.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date:  Sunday 23 March 2014.
Time: Registration: 6pm-6.30pm. Workshop: 6.30pm-9.30pm.
Event Description:  Once upon a time, people thought that counselling and psychotherapy would replace religious attendance and spiritual practice, but what has come to pass is something quite different.   Alette Willis has worked with counsellors across Scotland, collecting stories of what religion and spirituality mean to them and to their practice.  The picture that emerges is an ever evolving one of intersection and complementarity.  Many people report being drawn to counselling through their religious or spiritual values.  Many of the secular counselling services that are around today were originally set up and funded by churches many decades ago. Join Alette to explore your own story of counselling, psychotherapy, religion and spirituality in relation to oral history material from people key to the history of this field in Scotland, as well as in relation to contemporary practitioners from a range of backgrounds.  Discuss what it means to be a counsellor with a strong faith or spirituality in Scotland today.  We will work creatively and respectfully using readers’ theatre, reflective journaling, open discussion and found poetry techniques.

Alette Willis, PhD, is a researcher in Counselling and Psychotherapy at the University of Edinburgh.  You can find out more about the project she worked on at: www.counsellingandspirituality.co.uk.  In her spare time, she is a storyteller and a published author of fiction for children and adults.