Each month, the Compassion Consortium presents 12 new Reflections, at www.compassionconsortium.org/monthly-reflections. These consist of quotations from a wide range of people, some recent and some from the past, that offer thoughts and reflections relating to the mission and Tenets of Agreement of the Consortium. Following is an additional Reflection that I would like to share with you:
No man is an island, entire of itself. Every man is a piece of the continent,
a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as any manner of thy friends or of thine own were.
Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.
Until Victoria enlightened me this week, I thought that the phrase “No man is an island” came from Shakespeare, or maybe the Bible; and “For whom the bell tolls” originated with Hemingway. I had no idea that both of these iconic phrases were expressed in a sermon by John Donne, the Dean of St. Paul’s Cathedral in 1642. I feel so stupid.
Anyway, please share any reflections that are special for you, and we can include them in our monthly Reflections section on the Compassion Consortium website.
Lastly, at our April 24 spiritual service, not only will there be an important message from The Mad Vegan Prophet, but there will also be a visit by a Magic Dragon named Puff.
We hope to see you there.
Rev. William