There's a church a few streets away from my house that I drive by every day on the way to work and back. Sometimes I notice that the church has a banner hung up at the front of it, with some sort of slogan or message. Today it says "The first duty of love is to listen". This was apparently said by Paul Tillich, who according to Wikipedia, was "a German American Christian existentialist philosopher and theologian who is widely regarded as one of the most influential theologians of the twentieth century."
A couple of months ago I saw another sign at the same church, and having a lot on my mind, the quote really resonated with me and seemed to be where I needed it to be at just the right time. Unfortunately I can't remember what the quote was, which is a bit annoying! It was something to do with not despairing or losing hope, and I think God was in there somewhere. How annoying that something that was so poignant has completely slipped from my memory. It's true what Maya Angelou said though - you don't always remember the words, but you remember the feelings they gave you.
I digress. My point is that this was a sign outside a Methodist church, and I'm no Christian. I'm a Buddhist. But it made me think - I believe that all religions share much of the same fundamental values, regardless of how they are taught, the rituals and the people who practice them. I believe there is something to be taken away from all religions - that if you look closely enough at each one, you can find something, even if it's just something small, that is valuable and that will resonate with you. Have a go.
(Out of interest, I came across this webpage which has some very good quotes about despair - none of which is the one I'm thinking of. Still very interesting, though.)
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