The wonderful experience we had last summer in Barcelona has prompted us to organize an initiative. The event is actually a world wide spiritual forum. Our intentions are to create an aura of interest to ask questions about spirituality, bring the citizen to a greater understanding of religious diversity, and be it possible, to relive that spirit of dialogue and human brotherhood.
The Necessity of Interrelgious Dialogue. For future progress of humanity it is vital to encounter forms of harmony to complement spiritual diversity on a local and global scope. The universal dream of a world of peace seems unconceivable because barriers of time have separated some creeds from others. A conscious of peace is conscious of unity that is included for the first time in the spiritual dimension. Our internal unity of our similarities independent from their viniculture forms of Divinity. In a world in which religious diversity is increased and becomes more visible , there is a need to explore various routes of communication between different religious traditions . This measure is meant to promote different means of communication and confidence necessary to materialize the understanding, respect, and harmony between religious communities. In a world which searches for peace, religions contribute significantly in terms of creative answers and mobilization of wills. In a world that often presides over disorientation and lowered spirits, interreligious dialogue allows us to dig deep into the spiritual roots of oneself; in ones personal process and tradition. At the same time we are enriched by the exposure to diverse traditions. The world-wide spiritual forum of 2007 in Estella is not just an exchange of courtesy nor a superficial look at world traditions but a profound view into the wealth of religious life of humanity.
2. General Objective. We are conscious that external unity, a world of greater harmony and solidarity between different civilizations, cultures and religions to which we all aspire, is first developed in the internal sphere. We consider that the acceptance of different paths and religious traditions as legitimate forms of mutual enrichers to connect us with the fountain of life , with the origin of love; necessary conditions to establish proper harmonious relationships between humans. If men and women of different creeds and traditions don’t encounter the interior, there will be difficulties in constructing an external unity. Unity of all forms of human activity are derived from more or less disseminated consciences , that in the deepest sense, we are all united and children of the same origin. We believe Estella will provide a perfect atmosphere and opportunity for friendly exchange of enriching ideas from people of different spiritual connections coming from all walks of life. The motto, ¨ One Earth, One heart, One Spirit,¨ is a reflection of spiritual discovery and unity; unity from the heart which honors and respects diversity of spiritual forms.
One Forum, Different Spaces We would like to invite representatives, delegates or members of different religions or spiritual movements from our own community as well as many international ones. To the relief of our invites, our duty has been to acquire subsidies from the Community of Estella , the ¨Foral Community¨ , and independent organizations. The Facilitators and others will present their religious legacies, reflect in joint form about humanities complaints of pressing problems. Finally they will be invited to participate together in ecumenical ceremonies.
The Forum has three main ideas: 1. Occurrence to get to know creeds and religions 2. Creeds and Religions enrich each other mutually 3. Creeds and Religions celebrate together We believe that interactions are contents of life and participation., not just magisterial. We hope that the workshops of artistic ¨happenings¨ and unification ceremonies will be a considerate portion of the program. Another objective of the organization is to compose a conclusive document of common ideas and affinities, to underline and emphasize , sit at the round table and discuss issues throughout the forum. The idea is to extend ecumenical spirit and make it a reality that can be materialized in alliances through mutual collaboration and enrichment between these distinct groups. The framework of the forum will have separate thematic discovery zones and congregates. At the moment there is already the intention to organize one about ¨spiritual networks¨ and another of spiritual master Omraam Micheal Aivanhov. We’ve anticipated participation of components of traditions, creeds, beliefs and religions, which will share through conference , ceremony, and workshops outlining the main issues of today. The committee organizer will launch the program once their requests for participation are answered. We have asked the city of Estella to allow us to use all premises and spaces in order to be able to develop simultaneous activity. We have been in contact with the council of Tourism and Solidarity. We are also in contact with the Association for Interreligious Dialogue of UNESCO from Catalonia.
Accommodation. Estella offers a wide variety of logging. There are options for all types pocket books. 3 star hotels(Irache Hotel), camping, common houses, and due to the incredible kindness of Estrella´s citizens, many of them will offer their own homes as shelter. This makes it possible to sprout beautiful ties between the people of Estella and those who come from afar.
In an economic sense, we´ve tried to create a popular and reasonable forum for all budgets. The dining room will be filled with resources obtained from the organization. It will be run from our account making reasonable prices for our participants. The city of Estrella is located in the Navarra region of northern Spain, less than thirty miles from Pamplona and 200miles north east of Madrid. It is known as ¨Tierra Estella¨, a well known agricultural and tourist region. This large ancient city is loaded with art and history, which makes it one of the most emblematic stops on the trail of the ¨ Camino de Santiago¨. In fact its origins are situated on the brink of an ancestral spiritual footpath. Estella is also a point of contact for navaran and Basque cultures, which share different climates, and geography. Throughout history the town has been known as very welcoming and full of discovery. The spiritual leader Amma spent his beginnings in Estella before he transferred to the great city of Barcelona to promote his Darshan (refugee ceremony).
In the recent past the region of Estella has accommodated different groups and spiritual movements , many of which have initiated communitarian experiences . If you would like to participate or would like more information , contact us at:
Invitation to New Religious Traditions and Spiritualities. With regards t the correspondence we have maintained up until now, you know about the initiative for a spiritual forum. We are organizing the forum with the help of the Tourism and Solidarity Commission and city council of Estella. It will be held in Navarra ( June 28th-1 July th 2007).
After a prolonged separation due to varying religious creeds, we feel the time for reunion and dialogue has arrived; not only on an international level but also on the local scope. We are convinced that in spite of inherited distrusts of the past, we have so much to learn from others and an important message of harmony and peace to transfer to civil society. Our participants , with their diverse religious affiliations , will explore these communities and movements and how we can transfer a feeling of hope to public opinion. From the beginning we have had the desire to see represented in the forum the widest spectrum of creeds and religions. The objective being that they recognize themselves, mutually enrich, and reflect together on the problems that afflict society. Unlike the past, where religions have played conflicting roles, we are convinced that religious traditions and new spiritual movements could play an important role of ending this crisis to which the human being has been succumb in the beginning of this third millennium. We hope that the forum is economically accessible to citizens of Estella and all the others who wish to grace us with their prescience. We hope that the forum is interactive for the different formats we’ve designed (meetings, colloquial conferences, workshops, artistic ecumenical ceremonies, ¨happenings¨,etc.) and that although the representatives will have a protagonist intervention, they will also consider the word and participation of other participants. If we obtain official subsidies and help from independent organizations, we can count on the presence of famous European religious leaders. We hope the forum will be full of life and something that you ¨experience¨ , not just attend, so that the authentic spirit of human brotherhood becomes present in all areas. We’ve chosen Estella to contribute this urgent interreligious dialogue to our society. This city has a long tradition of being a great meeting place. We want to continue projecting this message, with this pioneer forum, in our country. We are forming a council group with open views on the different religious options. They have a two part job. On one hand to organize a program, and on the other make sure that all religious options will be represented equally , under the same conditions and that they will all have equal space. A technical secretary is being trained whose responsibility will rest in the Alalba Foundation. Along these lines, we animate you to join in the important process of organizing this great event. We consider you presence very key in this important spiritual forum. You are cordially invited. We are awaiting your feedback. Our warmest greetings.
CONTACTS Alalba -Foundation for the promotion and development of spiritual networks Madrid.
