December 8, 2025

Dear Friends,

We began a one-year observance of our twenty-fifth anniversary on September 8, 2025. It will conclude on September 8, 2026. 

As part of our observance, we began, on September 21, 2025, a year of reflections on the heart of the Interfaith Peace Project – the Interpath Principles. The reflections are being sent to you on the eighth and twenty-first of each month. If you would like to view the previous reflections, you can find them on our blog at: interfaithpeaceproject.org.

If you have anything that you would like to share, please contact:

Thomas P. Bonacci, C.P.
[email protected]
925-787-9279

THE INTERFAITH PEACE PROJECT
A Legacy of Peace-Making for Twenty-Five Years
September 8, 2001 – September 8, 2026

INCLUSIVITY PART TWO

We strive to be open-minded and open-hearted
as we realize our need for one another.

The practice of inclusivity recognizes the dignity and preciousness of every human person. No one is rejected, even those who reject other people. This exceptional virtue of radical openness and welcoming requires inward conversion of mind, heart, and soul.

Every person interested in the art of inclusivity must discover their own preciousness, not to be puffed up with pride, but to be humble with graciousness, self-giving care, and dedication. 

Those who engage in the courageous practice of inclusivity must never take their cues from those who practice resentment, exclusion, or hostility towards others.  

We live in a time of reactivity. We might jump to conclusions without sufficient or factual information. Ideas do not suffer rejection, people do. That is why the inward conversion of mind, heart, and soul is so essential to our well-being as individuals and society. There is more.

The introspection required in the practice of the art of radical openness and welcoming requires that we discover ourselves as individuals worthy of respect, understanding, and love. These virtues are natural to the human person. Hatred, fear, and resentment are learned habits of thinking and acting when the quest for crude power, conceited status, and selfish greed dominate culture, civic and political life, and our personal imagination.

Those who quest for inclusivity do not simply stand in opposition to the forces of oppression and suppression but exemplify what it means to be a person deeply in touch with their dignity and self-respect for the well-being and the sake of other human persons.

The Board of Directors and the Advisory Board of the Interfaith Peace Project summarize the Second Interpath Principle of Inclusivity with these critical words, “We believe every human being deserves to be recognized and treated as a full member of our Human Family. We are inclusive of all people and work toward achieving equality for women, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with disabilities, racial equality, and anyone who needs justice that befits their dignity as human persons. Our advocacy involves listening to those who seek justice as we walk with them on the pathways of what is right, true, good, and just. We also strive to support those who ally themselves with those seeking justice.”

Blessings to you, Beloved Community, for striving to recognize, accept, and welcome everyone who comes into your life. You offer them your self-respect for their sake. How very generous of you to so lovingly contribute to the well-being of the world.