Women and Girls Call: Owning Our Feminine Authority

Owning Our Feminine Authority

Report from October 14, 2016

Audio link for the call: https://soundcloud.com/charterforcompassion/the-role-of-compassion-in-owning-our-feminine-authority.

The call celebrates the anniversary of the Inaugural Women’s Assembly at the Parliament and a year of inspirational action for women’s dignity and human rights. (Call Info and Bios with additional links to Speakers’ websites)

514 people registered for the call!

The call was promoted to nearly 200,000 people via social media platforms.

**Please take this Post Call Survey:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeNtrElZCG6sPJdwx47nk51u_U5y8DDp3W5BQUWwMIupg_irw/viewform

Sponsors for this call are:

sarah

SARAH: www.Sarah4Hope.org

Million Mamas Movement: www.millionmamasmovement.org

Mindfulness4Mothers: www.mindfulness4mothers.com

hopeinlife2

Hope In Life Foundation: www.HopeInLifeFoundation.org

**If you are interested in sponsoring future calls, please contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Hosts:

The Charter for Compassion International’s Women and Girls Sector: http://www.charterforcompassion.org/partners/women-and-girls

The Parliament of the World’s Religions: https://parliamentofreligions.org/

Sistrum Spirit: http://www.sistrumspirit.com/home.html

Facilitators/Coordinators:

Sherri Pula is the technical support/facilitator for the Maestro call.

Marilyn Turkovich is the Director of the Charter for Compassion International (CCI). Marilyn Turkovich started with the Charter for Compassion International (CCI) in 2013 as the education director and since that time has moved into a number of different roles with CCI. Marilyn's background has been primarily in higher education and most specifically in directing teacher training programs for the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, and chairing Columbia College-Chicago's master's program in multicultural and global education. She has done a considerable amount of curriculum writing through the years, much of it related to international and cultural topics. She worked with Independent Broadcasting Associates on a series for airing on National Public Radio, BBC and the Australian Broadcasting organizations. There was a period of time in the 1990s when she worked in organizational development and specialized in instructional design work, strategic planning and leadership development. She also wrote and developed training on race and social justice initiatives.

Sande Hart is the mother of 2 young adults and lives in Southern California. Sande's passionate about stretching the edges of feminine leadership, and weaving relationships for regenerative solutions. She serves as Lead of the CCI Women and Girls sector, the co-founder of Compassionate California, Founder and President of the women's interfaith organization S.A.R.A.H., Chief Compassion Officer of Compassionate California, and CCI Compassion Games International Team Coach. Sande is also past-President of the United Religions Initiative for North America.

Molly Horan brings a fierce love for social justice to her work directing communications initiatives of the Parliament. Coming to the interfaith world in 2012 to launch and coordinate the Parliament's Faiths Against Hate campaign, her service at the Parliament is dedicated to growing the movement through uplifting hearts and minds. Molly completed studies in Journalism, Sociology and Irish Studies and graduated Summa Cum Laude from DePaul University.

Speakers and Bios:

Dr. Larry Greenfield, Executive Director of the Parliament, is also the executive minister of the American Baptist Churches of Metro Chicago, a regional judicatory of the American Baptist Churches U.S.A, and the theologian-in-residence for the Community Renewal Society, a progressive, faith-based organization in Chicago that works to eliminate race and class barriers and advocates for social and economic justice. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago Divinity School, where he subsequently taught and served as dean of students. Later he served as president of Colgate Rochester Divinity School in Rochester, New York.

Phyllis Curott is a pioneering spiritual teacher and one of America’s first public Wiccan High Priestesses, an attorney and best-selling author. She is Vice Chair Emerita of the Parliament of the World’s Religions, creator of the Inaugural Women’s Assembly, drafter of the Declaration for the Dignity and Human Rights of Women, adopted by the 2015 Parliament, and co-founder of Sistrum Spirit, a groundbreaking advocacy project for the Divine Feminine. Inducted into the Martin Luther King Jr. Collegium of Clergy and Scholars, Phyllis was honored by Jane Magazine as one of the Ten Gutsiest Women of the Year and by Time as one of America’s “leading voices.” New York Magazine described her teaching on the Divine Feminine as the “next big idea.” She received her BA in philosophy from Brown University and her Juris Doctor from NYU.

Marianne Williamson is an internationally acclaimed spiritual author and lecturer. Marianne has been a popular guest on television programs such as Oprah, Larry King Live, Good Morning America, Charlie Rose & Bill Maher. Seven of her twelve published books have been New York Times Best Sellers. Four of these have been #1. The mega best seller A Return to Love is considered a must-read of The New Spirituality. A paragraph from that book, beginning “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure...” is considered an anthem for a contemporary generation of seekers. Marianne’s other books include The Law of Divine Compensation, The Age of Miracles, Everyday Grace, A Woman’s Worth, Illuminata, Healing the Soul of America, A Course in Weight Loss, The Gift of Change, A Year of Miracles, and her newest book, Tears to Triumph: The Spiritual Journey from Suffering to Enlightenment, available now. More...

Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell is chair of the Board of Trustees and the Global Compassion Council. She is an ordained minister with standing in two Christian denominations, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the American Baptist Church. She was ordained at age 50 and has given national and international leadership to both ecumenical and interfaith work. Dr. Campbell is truly a woman of "firsts." She was the first woman to be Associate Executive Director of the Greater Cleveland Council of Churches; the first woman to be Executive Director of the U.S. office of the World Council of Churches; the first ordained woman to be General Secretary of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA; and the first woman Director of Religion at the historic Chautauqua Institution, a center for religion, education, the arts, and recreation. More ...

The Reverend Dr. Barbara Lewis King, affectionately called “Dr. Barbara,” is the Founder-Spiritual Leader and CEO of the Hillside International Truth Center, Inc., in Atlanta, Georgia. She began this nondenominational, ecumenical ministry in 1971 with twelve members in her living room. Since then the ministry has grown to more than 10,000 members and supporters around the world. Through her leadership The Barbara King School of Ministry, The Barbara Lewis King Scholarship Foundation, The Hillside Learning Center and over 30 ministries and auxiliaries have been created. Her ministry extends beyond Atlanta and the Unites States to outreach efforts abroad including: building a secondary school in Ghana named in her honor, helping nuns at Sisters of the Boa Morte rebuild their a community in Brazil, and teaching Truth Principles and focusing on life coaching to women and children in the Soweto Township in South Africa. More...

Grandmother Flordemayo, a wise woman of the earth, Flordemayo has been a Curandera Espiritu, a healer of divine spirit, her entire life. And through her keen vision she is able to sense other realms of light, sound and color. As a seer, she is able to see the effects of existing imbalances on the physical, emotional and spiritual levels within a person's energy system. Flordemayo is a founding member and President of the Institute of Natural and Traditional Knowledge, based in Estancia, New Mexico. She has been widely recognized for her healing ability and wisdom, including being the recipient of the Martin de la Cruz Award for Alternative Healing. This prestigious honor is given by the International Congress of Traditional Medicine. Working with respected spiritual leader, Don Alejandro Cirilo Perez Oxlaj, who is head of the Quiche Maya Council of Elders, Flordemayo has been recognized as a 'Priestess' by the Maya. Flordemayo was born and grew up in the big highlands of Central America in a family of traditional healers. She now travels around the globe to share her healing abilities and to foster more spiritual understanding among people. Since 2004, Flordemayo has been a founding member of the Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers, a group of traditional female elders drawn from around the world. More...

Mallika Chopra is Founder & CEO of Intent.com, “My intent is to connect with others by sharing and listening to each other’s stories.” Maliki learned about the power of intention at a young age from her father, Deepak Chopra. He then taught them to ask for love, hope, purpose, passion, inspiration and so many other positive qualities in their lives every day. Starting every day with an intent proved to be an anchoring device that led to connection, happiness and personal fulfillment. Mallika is mom to Tara and Leela and has written two books inspired by them — 100 Promises To My Baby and 100 Questions From My Child. Both books represent her intention to be a conscious parent. Mallika is amazed and honored to host dozens of writers on www.intentblog.com and a thriving community of people sharing their dreams and supporting one another on www.intent.com. More...

Agenda:

Welcome: Marilyn Turkovich

Introduction to the collaboration & technical support for the call: Sande Hart and Sherri Pula

Parliament of the World’s Religions- ongoing commitment: Molly Horan and Dr. Larry Greenfield

Framing the Women’s Assembly: Phyllis Curott

Speaker Presentations

Marianne Williamson
Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell
Bishop Dr. Barbara Lewis King
Grandmother Flordemayo
Mallika Chopra

Survey responses from people inspired by the 2015 Women’s Assembly: Molly Horan

Questions from the audience to speakers: Sande Hart and Speakers

Information about follow-up to the call- next steps: Sande Hart

Closing: Sande Hart and Everyone

Welcome:

Marilyn Turkovich: Good day everyone. I am Marilyn Turkovich, Director of the Charter for Compassion International. We are co-hosting this call with the Parliament of the World’s Religions and Sistrum Spirit.

We are grateful to the over 450 people who have signed up for the call today. We invite you to participate in future Charter-sponsored calls as well. Our next Charter call is the “Global Reads” call on Saturday, October 22, 2016, with essayist, naturalist, and environmentalist, Kathleen Dean Moore (http://www.charterforcompassion.org/index.php/let-s-have-a-global-read).

I will now turn the call over to Sande Hart. She is the Lead for the Charter for Compassion International’s Women and Girls Sector.

Introduction to the collaboration & technical support for the call:

Sande Hart: Thank you Marilyn and thank you everyone for being here on the call today. In the spirit of feminine leadership, we want to open our circle with an indigenous blessing by Grandmother Flordemayo.

Grandmother Flordemayo: “Beloved Creator, Beloved Mother, Giver of Life, awaken us, touch our hearts Beloved Mother, awaken us, so that we may become your warriors of the sacred light, the sacred feminine, Beloved Creator. Bless us. Give us the strength, Beloved, as we know we are the children of the moment, that the spirit where you have awakened us and allowed us to become those warriors of the spirit of the feminine, Beloved Creator. Remind us that we work with the light, the love of all creation, Beloved Mother. Allow us to be those seeds of all beginning, Beloved Mother, on this sacred day in which you have brought us together. Let it be so. Let it be so. Thank you Beloved Mother.”

Sande: Thank you so much. On behalf of the Charter for Compassion Women and Girls Global Task Force, our ambassadors, and our partner organizations, I extend a heartfelt thank you to our speakers and we express our gratitude to our dear friends at the Parliament of the World’s Religions and Sistrum Spirit for partnering with us to bring you this call.

The Charter’s Women and Girls Sector is one of eleven sectors of the Charter for Compassion International that serves to support, promote, and elevate all organizations small and large that share our vision of a world where all girls and women reach their fullest potential for global transformation, holding compassion as our driving force. We are the womb of the Charter. Our common thread is the Charter for Compassion and we all share a common vision for a balanced, kind, and just society. We were inspired to host this call on the 1-year anniversary of the Parliament’s paradigm-shattering Inaugural Women’s Assembly. The Assembly issued a primordial, fierce, and power-infused call-to-action whose time is come and here we are.

In the spirit of feminine leadership, our Charter Partners, Marie Roker-Jones of “Raising Great Men,” Sommer Joy Albertsen of the “Compassion Games International,” and Sonali Fiske (whose workshop “Unlocking Your Feminine Authority” inspired our theme today) will be live- tweeting and on Facebook during this call. We are using the following social media hashtags: #FeminineAuthority; #WomenRise; #FaithInWomen.

Dr. Lesa Walker of Compassionate Austin is taking notes today. The notes and audio link for the call will be sent to all registrants and also posted on the all of our websites.

It is clear that feminine leadership is a driving force for this call.

Thank you to our sponsoring organizations: SARAH (www.Sarah4Hope.org); Million Mamas Movement (www.millionmamasmovement.org); Mindfulness4Mothers (www.mindfulness4mothers.com); and, Hope In Life Foundation (www.HopeInLifeFoundation.org).

Thanks to everyone for calling in.

I’d like to introduce Molly Horan. [See the bio at the beginning of the notes.] I know Molly and I’m lucky to work so closely with her and Phyllis Curott on this call.

Sherri Pula is providing technical support for us today. She is the mastermind who is making this Maestro call possible.

Sherri Pula: Hello everyone. I want to mention a few technical things. If you have any problems with the audio clarity, hang up and call back in. You can also reach out to the Maestro conference support. If you are not yet on the social webinar, please go back to the link in the reminder email you received. Click on “Open the visual interface.” That will allow you to join the social webinar. There are a couple of ways to submit questions during this call: 1) use the chat button in the lower left corner of the screen where you can post comments either to the host or to everyone on the call; and 2) email Sande at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. We welcome your questions.

Sande: Thanks so much Sherri. Now we’ll turn it over to Molly.

Parliament of the World’s Religions- ongoing commitment:

Molly Horan: Good morning to everyone. Special thanks to you, Sande, for your flattering words. I admire you and everyone at the Charter. We at the Parliament of the World’s Religions are incredibly grateful to be on the call and celebrate the anniversary of the Inaugural Women’s Assembly. I want to say “Happy Anniversary” to our Chairwoman Emeritus of the Parliament’s Women’s Task Force, Phyllis Curott, who will be speaking with us shortly, and also congratulate her on the launch of our partner organization, Sistrum Spirit. I want to thank members of the Parliament’s Board of Trustees who’ve joined the call today, as well as our Board Chair, Rev. Dr. Rob Sellers, who is among you.

The Parliament is a proud and committed partner of the Charter for Compassion International. The Parliament embodies the principles of the interfaith movement. The first world Parliament in 1893 was held in Chicago and is where the interfaith movement was born. When planning the 6^th Parliament in 2015, we wanted to advance what happened in 1893, when women spoke out. So, we developed the Inaugural Women’s Assembly. 10,000 people from 75 countries attended the 2015 Parliament. The themes of the Parliament focused on six critical issues: War, hate and violence; climate change and the environment; income inequality; emerging leaders; human rights and dignity of women; and, indigenous peoples. Here we are today to mark 1^st anniversary of the Women’s Assembly to raise faith in women and raise our compassion.

I’d like to welcome and introduce the Executive Director of the Parliament of the World’s Religions, Dr. Larry Greenfield. [See the bio at the beginning of the notes.] We are privileged to meet with such a true ally for women.

Dr. Larry Greenfield: I feel exhilarated this morning. I am aware of my being welcomed. Thank you for including me and the Parliament. I was a little sobered with the business section of the New York Times. There was an article about the pay- divide in business. Also, the electoral campaign… I am sobered by what I am experiencing today in the media and in more subtle ways every day. My perspective today is shaped by what happened in the Parliament a year ago and also by having a mother who was a true champion of feminism. She claimed the authority of compassion with little kids and older people and people in need. Early in my life I learned something about compassion… that it is not a weakness, but a strength. I grew up in a religious tradition, in a church, where there were a lot of women leaders. My tradition as a Baptist is to uphold the human rights of women. I agree with my colleague and fellow-Baptist, President Jimmy Carter, who spoke at the Parliament in 2009 in Melbourne, Australia. He paved the way for the Parliament to take a stand on women’s issues and to develop the Women’s Assembly. I credit my predecessor Dr. Mary Nelson and Chair of the Women’s Task Force Phyllis Curott for establishing and sustaining the feminine authority movement. Kathe Schaff and Kay Lindahl brought us the words- “reclaiming the heart of our humanity”. We are given the challenge to live into our values.

Now, I want to introduce Phyllis Curott. It has been my privilege to serve with her at the Parliament. I am honored to be her friend and colleague. [See the bio at the beginning of the notes.]

Framing the Women’s Assembly:

Phyllis: Thank you Larry. That is very kind. We are in circle together. I am grateful to Sande and Molly, to you, to all the folks who are technically making this call possible, to the vast number of participants, and the remarkable women speakers. We have been asked to think about how we were inspired by the Women’s Assembly and how we carried those inspirations forward and how are we practicing compassion. This is a lot to talk about. I’m been reflecting on all these things and how they connect. We are living very powerfully the energy of the Parliament experience. It is glorious when thousands of men and women are brought together like that. You cannot be what you cannot see. We wanted to bring together women, and the men who support them, so they could bear witness to one another to see what feminine wisdom, capacity, gifts, and leadership can be. We believed that energy from that experience would be powerful, sacred, holy, and world-transforming. That is exactly what happened at the Women’s Assembly. It was like a boulder had been rolled off a great and ancient fountain and the energy was suddenly released. The energy was released simply by honoring women- giving them a venerable stage at the Parliament. I’ve also been thinking about compassion- how I saw that expressed. It was not just how women extend respect to one another and to men. It came to me in one specific way- forgiveness. Professor Elizabeth Ursic, the next Chair of Women’s Task Force– said it well. The most public place where sexism is tolerated is in religious institutions. There was a great fear of allowing women to speak freely, understanding that they will share injustices. But, we have a moral obligation to do that. It was brought to us by Jimmy Carter. It is the global human rights struggle of our time. 51% of the human race is women. Too often it is the religious institutions where women are given little or no rights. The Assembly was an historic opportunity to say to all the world that the justification for the discrimination of women and girls on the grounds of religion or tradition as if prescribed by a higher authority is unacceptable. So we drafted the Declaration for the Dignity and the Human Rights of Women (https://parliamentofreligions.org/civicrm/petition/sign?sid=2) which was ratified by the Women’s Plenary and the Parliament. So, I go back to the issue of forgiveness. Forgiveness and compassion are linked. At the Assembly, when given the freedom to speak, women sometimes shared a critique, but without exception, they spoke of their devotion to their faith and their determination to bring love, forgiveness, healing, and wholeness back to their faith. They were practicing and embodying the Golden Rule and the spiritual power of compassion. To me, this was practicing the spiritual authority that we need now in our world. We need the spiritual leadership and wisdom of women. I am thankful to the Parliament. I was deeply inspired by the Women’s Assembly to create Sistrum Spirit which is a catalyst for awakening global awareness to this re-emerging feminine spirit and to elevate the work of women and men who are serving this energy. We are creating a mini-documentary series. Those on the call will get a link to a free, private documentary screening. We are holding our spiritual authority and supporting one another and bringing a new vision into being. I am grateful to have been one of the agents serving it and to continue in partnership with all of you.

Speaker Presentations:

Phyllis: It is now my honor to introduce Marianne Williamson. She “burned down the house” at the Women’s Assembly. [See bio at the beginning of the notes.]

Marianne Williamson: Thank you. It is an honor to be here. It is important for us to not spend too much time with congratulatory rituals. We need to get to the work! This is urgent in nature. This has to do with expressing in the world the values we hold. We can get soft on this. We have 2 Billion people who live on $2/day and 12,000 children starving in the world. The planet is moving to environmental implosion if we are not careful. We are living with threats of something close to fascist take-over and building our nuclear arsenals. All these things are a repudiation of compassion. We need to get to work! These things would not be held in place if women would stand up. If the moneyed nations of the world wanted to do so, we could eradicate global poverty. It would take $100 Billion spent over the next 10 years to do it (just a small portion of the U.S. military budget). Women need to stop patting each other on the back. We need to remember the work of religion- to take care of God’s people. When we can vote and spend $, we can assert our power. The war we have to fight is in ourselves. The Donald Trump accusers did not speak up at the time. I understand this. It is my generation. I remember in the 1970’s that women did not act or speak up to confront these kind of issues. However, we have moved forward. We need to use our voices. It has been shown that if a woman speaks up and is being invalidated/minimized, that if one other woman who is present speaks up to support her, that the whole dynamic of interaction changes. Also, we need to change the focus from ourselves to our children and to the Earth. We need to take a stand and assert our leadership. With 12,000 children starving in the world and the Earth under assault and increasing resources being allocated to killing instead of nurturing, we need to lift our voices and be on the watch. We are not honoring women unless we are out there working, getting the dirt under our fingernails, and kicking ass to make it happen! That’s my belief.

Phyllis: Thank you Marianne. Now I’d like to introduce Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell. [See bio at the beginning of the notes.]

Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell: Thank you so much. I am honored to follow such a noted person and her rightful challenge to us. I want to give my thanks and appreciation for the call-to-action she has made and the seriousness with which she takes the time in which we live.

Regarding particular demands of the times, I would like to discuss a painful issue, more specific to America. I have a daughter who was the Mayor of Cleveland. I have experienced personally the joys and challenges of people in public office. I think sometimes we don’t understand the gift they give to us. Once you are in office, for those who take it seriously, it is one of the most rewarding and most challenging of the fields people can choose. I have a reverence and soft place for those in public office. I realize that this is a very American look at the role of women. This is meant as a way of speaking for one candidate over another. When I think about what is happening in United States, I get short-of-breath. I witness the evil that is present in the midst of our time in history, as we vote for the possibility of the first woman as the President of the country. I want to speak about the pain that many women go through for just being a woman- we don’t all experience and see it. In our election, we are being faced with the way women can be treated. The voices of pain and wrong-spiritedness are one thing, but the thing that is important is that women can live beyond and live through life’s difficulties. This is a worldwide issue. It is the issue of women’s rights and possibilities. Not women’s adoration. We, like men, make mistakes and need direction, and have the ability to give direction. I am a great grandmother. I want hold my great granddaughter and hug her and help her to know who she is and the privileges she has and the risks of being a woman and most importantly the gift of being a young girl and then, a woman. I offer today to the women a special challenge. We see the dangers and challenges. Those very challenges can be for us matters of strengthening. It is the suffering of woman that makes us who are and give us the strength to love and care and look past the faults. I would like us to stop and reflect on what’s happening in America. I want to call our attention to the importance of our gathering together and talking with each other. We must not avoid the challenges that women face and the blessings that are ours. I believe the combination of these is the gift. We are called to be who we can be, no matter what we face, to give our energy and our capacity to love. It is a difficult time for American women as they watch what’s happening and it is also a time of resolve. I don’t just want to protect my great granddaughter. I want her to know she is blessed with an enormous gift. Let us see the courage it takes to live in the midst of challenge. Blessings to all on this call.

Phyllis: Thank you so much. Now I introduce Bishop Dr. Barbara King Lewis. [See bio at the beginning of the notes.]

Bishop Dr. Barbara Lewis King: Hello beautiful people. I am excited to be with you today. What inspired me the most about the Assembly? I came into the Assembly with spirit of Sojourner Truth and her speech, “Ain’t I a woman?” (http://www.sojournertruth.org/Library/Speeches/AintIAWoman.htm). When I came to the conference, I came to say “we all are one.” I am 86 years young and I thought I knew everything about women. I realized even after a ministry of 45 years, I had not done all I could do. When I left the 2015 Parliament, I stepped outside of the box. I came home with a broad spirit. One day, my driver and I saw a young woman walking with three small children. She was trying to get back to her hotel and could not pay for transportation. We took her to the hotel. We have followed through with her since then. I looked at the program and learned about a woman from Mississippi and the group of women she had brought together. Sometimes, when you start as one person to do what you can, it makes a difference. I, as one person, can begin this movement. I looked in my closet and pulled clothes out and started giving them away to those in need. Because I started this on my own, as a Minister, we now have “Circulation Day” at our church where everyone brings something and takes something. Also, I am promoting voting in my ministry. Give of yourself. I grew up in Houston. I realize you have to begin with yourself. You have to love yourself to give to others. The Women’s Assembly taught us how much we can do as one person. I am going to be very political. We need a woman as President of the United States. We come with compassion, love, and move the world into understanding and live in peace. Also, follow your dream. It’s time to release the ideas. Don’t throw away your ideas. Only you can give your ideas. This is an exciting day for me- when we come together in this type of forum- all 500 of us. I am happy. With her speech, “Ain’t I a woman?”, Sojourner Truth started something. You are a woman. We are the feminine side of God. We can create good. Thank you for this program. And, I thank myself for opening me up to the real conditions. I can still give my best and stand for peace and love. I can still stand for justice and for woman knowing that we are the salt of the Earth. Blessing to all of you. God is listening to what we are doing. Touch somebody’s life. That same touch will come back to you.

Phyllis: Thank you so much. I have the hard part- to not cry and be overwhelmed by the beauty, power and challenge from all of you.

Now I introduce Grandmother Flordemayo. [See bio at the beginning of the notes.]

Grandmother says to us, “It has been prophesized… that the women will have the power to move and to be leaders and to bring people into the light.”

Grandmother Flordemayo: Thank you Phyllis. Thank you Beloved Mother. I am honored to be here and am so touched. As we walk our paths, we are constantly reminded through our visions and dreams of that which is given to us. We have a calling and devotion in our hearts. As we journey, we look around in the four directions, looking for that one-on-one dialog with the Holy Mother, asking her to guide us and protect us. It is with these words that I now stand here in this tiny little town in New Mexico with a population of 700. I was told by the Beloved Mother to bring people to this place. I was reminded by the spirit of the feminine- we are the seed-carriers of the generations to come. We need to walk our talk and expand in our power, regardless of who will try to take us down. We need to do the work through the prayer and do the action of the prayer. My action here in this moment at my age is to be the keeper of this land- these 40 acres in New Mexico that I take care of. In these 40 acres, through the volunteers and guidance of others, we have been able to erect small temples that represent the spirit of the water, air, Earth, and fire. We remind people that we are children of these sacred elements. We cannot go further in our prayer without thanking these four elements for giving us life. In these temples, I open the doors/the gate. We are reminded that this is a moment of transformation. We are women and we are men. We come into the land- in each of the four directions. It is that land of transformation-whether it is a tiny room in our apartment- as long as the door is open and we can come and share heart to heart and we can give and share with our little ones. We give our little ones a little bundle of seeds, that this is life, that we, as children, are the keepers and the holders of this sacred food given to us by Mother Earth. We take a vow to take care of these elements, these seeds. I will remind the children to hold these seeds for future generations. We are to listen to what plants, trees, water, air tell us to guide us through the future. What is real is what we can hold in our hands and feel in our hearts. We can speak to the Beloved Mother and know that she dwells in our hearts and homes and community and that she is there with us, guiding us, empowering us, and reminding us that we are not alone. We listen to the beautiful sound and humming and nurturing of the Beloved Mother [humming by Grandmother Flordemayo…]. The sound of the heart, the vibration of the heart. We dwell in her heart and feed from her breast. Thank you for the beauty you show to us on a daily basis. I thank you for all the beautiful visions and dreams and for knowing that you dwell in this little land and house. You awaken us in every cell of our being that we are cosmic beings. That we need to be an example of what we are feeling and seeing amongst us- to pray to the water, Earth, air, and fire and to send the message out into the four directions. There is no separation in the light. [humming…] Much blessings. Love and light to everybody.

Phyllis: Thank you Grandmother Flordemayo. Let’s take a moment to remain in that sacred heart.

Now I introduce Mallika Chopra. [See bio at the beginning of the notes.]

Mallika says, “My intent is to connect with others by sharing and listening to each other’s stories.”

There seems to be a magical flow among our speakers today. We are now concluding our presentations with a mother’s wisdom.

Mallika Chopra: When I was at the Assembly, I had a message to share. Now I will speak from the heart. Today, I’ve heard a great grandmother and grandmother speak. I am overwhelmed thinking of legacy. I am younger and come from a family with a very well-known father. As a woman, I’ve struggled to find my own voice. At the Women’s Assembly, when I was on stage with such amazing women, I felt a boost of confidence. What flowed from me was the story of my own grandmother. I once did a TEDX talk at Berkeley about my legacy and talked about my father, grandfather, and great grandfather. At the Women’s Assembly, I felt the energy and soul of the women who had come before me. I thought of my mother, my extended family, and the entire global community. My mother is the heart. Both of my grandmothers were strong, passionate, fiercely protective mothers, and wardens of their communities. They were also best friends. I grew up with both of them. I want to share another story of my grandmother. My grandfather was a well-known doctor in India. He was the first Western-trained doctor out of India. He was stationed in particular city in India. He was a sort of miracle-man. People would come from hundreds of miles. People would spend days/weeks walking to see him. It was my grandmother who would welcome them into the community. She would feed them, give them shoes, buy them medicines, and arrange transportation back. She was the compassion. She connected with people on a real level and took action. My grandmother became the mother of the community. When my grandfather was stationed at another location, he and my grandmother had to move. My father and uncle always like to share this story. At the train station, on departure, there were thousands of people there to say good-bye to two people (my grandfather and grandmother) who had really healed them. They expressed their gratitude. When I hear the grandmother and great grandmother who spoke before me, I realize that we each come from a legacy of women who have shaped who we are and where we are today. Yesterday, I was hearing Michelle Obama speak. As women, we have to stand up and speak up when things hurt, when words hurt. It is we, as mothers, who play this role. I would like us to take a minute for a short quiet reflection and intention-setting. I see intent as seeds. They represent our deepest desires as citizens of Mother Earth. We plant these seeds, put dirt on them, water them, let the sun and winds come, and trust that the universe will help take care of them so they blossom. If we set some intentions and put all these seeds out there, it can be very powerful. Okay, so if you can now sit comfortably and close your eyes. Let’s all take a deep breath in and out. Again, in and out. As you continue breathing, shift your attention to your heart. Let’s take a moment to feel gratitude for those who have come before us and how they have shaped and provided opportunity for us. Let’s take another breath in and out. Now, wherever you are in the world, I’d love for you to set an intention for our planet moving forward. What is your intention to bring, the qualities you want to bring to your life, your community, and your world. Think of that intention. With a breath in and out, let’s release those intentions into the world. Breathe in and out. Now you can open your eyes. I want to honor all those intentions. It begins with us setting our intention and articulating it. I am humbled and honored to connect with all of you.

Phyllis: Thank you Mallika.

Survey responses from people inspired by the 2015 Women’s Assembly:

Molly: Thank you as well Phyllis. This is Molly Horan at the Parliament. I would like to offer a few comments. It has been incredible to hear first from a guy- and then from all the women speakers. My intention is to stay where I am and push forward to help the women of the Parliament. I have to honor a few women myself. I think about my own mother and grandmother. I recognize the feminism they imparted to me. I think they would feel great pride to know of our efforts. I am pleased to report about the thousands of lives that have been shifted by what we did at the Women’s Assembly. We did a survey about the Women’s Assembly a few weeks ago. The 2015 Parliament was held in Salt Lake City, the capital of the world’s Latter Day Saints community. They were incredibly hospitable and participated in the Women’s Assembly. One woman shared that in her Mormon tradition there are limited examples of feminine authority. She was inspired and empowered to find that authority and grace that she has been looking for most of her life. Another person responded on the survey that she felt that the Assembly was divinely orchestrated. She was humbled by the powerful women. She thought about what she could do. She gathered women of faith in a sacred circle format and reviewed clips of the Parliament. What happened last year at the Assembly is empowering people globally. An example is that Marianne Williamson’s speech has reached 3 Million viewers. I get notifications at the Parliament every single day. We have footage of the Assembly on the Parliament website. This is especially helpful for those who were not able to attend. Also, we speak about what women are doing now. Women are becoming reconnected with spiritual tradition and are organizing and taking leadership roles. Sandy Windley in Tacoma, Washington, who works for Associated Ministries, says that they are replicating the Women’s Assembly in Washington state in the Spring. They hope for 500 attendees and we want to support their efforts. Women say they were most inspired by the diversity at the Parliament. This helps us recommit to expand the constituencies of the Parliament. There was a women’s sacred walk at the Parliament which has been replicated in Uganda. A participant from Claremont, California, Julie Steinbeck, is taking action globally. She is advocating for women’s education in the Philippines, working on women’s literacy, addressing domestic violence in India, and working on women’s leadership development in Bolivia. Also, I want to bring everyone’s attention to the Parliament’s Declaration for the Dignity and the Human Rights of Women. The Declaration calls for change in a number of areas. Please read it: https://parliamentofreligions.org/civicrm/petition/sign?sid=2. It is on the Parliament and Charter for Compassion International websites.

Thanks and now to Sande who will open it up for your questions.

Questions from the audience to speakers:

Sande: Thank you Molly for the update. It is amazing to see what the Assembly inspired.

We have been receiving questions from our audience.

Questions will be posted on Twitter and Facebook as well. We will be having a Twitter chat just after the call and you will be sent an email about how to participate. We want to keep this conversation alive.

Question #1: from Kelly Edwards – in Australia- As mothers of the next generations of leaders, how can we be better role models of mutual support and kindness instead of fear?

Barbara: As a mother of children, it is important to live what you teach. We need to talk to the children. When we think and feel an idea, it manifests in the outer world. Always talk with them about the issues that they face. Live what you teach. Everything you do is real to the child. As a mother, I am the one they see the most of.

Mallika: I absolutely reiterate that. It is in role-modeling and the conversations we have. I have my own meditation practice. When my mother was meditating, she invited my brother and me to join her. I do this with my children. It helps model to children how to relate to the world.

Sande: Question #2: from Sommer Albertsen- If you were to propose a theme for the next Parliament to make the ultimate difference for the world, what would that be?

Barbara: Standing in the power.

Larry: We are starting to think about the program for the 2017 Parliament and we would be grateful for suggestions for the overall theme as well as for the follow-up to the Assembly. We have a Board meeting about 1 week from now. In our conversations, there is an assumption that we are searching for signs of hope. Where do we identify these signs and build on them. What are the signs of compassion represented in the women’s movement that give women and men a sign of hope to build on? We welcome your suggestions.

Sande: How do people send their ideas/suggestion to you?

Molly: You can send suggestions to me. My email is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Also, you can respond to the Parliament survey. I will post the link.

For me, one of the signs of hope is the revival of the divine feminine. Another is the ability of the Parliament and the Charter for Compassion International to work together, and also, what Phyllis is doing with Sistrum Spirit. Those are signs of hope. Also, it is what’s happening in the emerging generation. Young people are really committed to service and are very interested in results. Another possible theme is “all faiths on deck” regarding the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We need all people to be responding to the issues.

Larry: I welcome your input and you can email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Sande: Question #3: This question is for Grandmother Flordemayo: The indigenous have always held the Earth as sacred. We have six years to save the Earth. We as women, if we stand up together, can create change. Can you give us guidance Grandmother?

Marilyn- I believe Grandmother Flordemayo had to leave the call a little early. However, more questions are coming through the chat.

Sande: Do any of the other speakers want to respond to the question?

Phyllis: I am practicing a contemporary revival of indigenous tradition. A reverence for Mother Earth is critical. We need spiritual tradition and we need to look in our faith communities to revive such reverence. We created Sistrum Spirit to summon the community- to elevate the actions, the prayers, and the activism, with focus on women’s work to honor and protect Mother Earth. We want to make women’s work more present, visible, and dynamic. I think Grandmother Flordemayo would call us to daily prayer- to live in a sustainable and prayerful way to align with our intent. Think locally and act locally and pray cosmically. Our actions in our daily lives are expressions of our connectedness to the Earth. A simple prayer, like breath, expands our capacity to engage with one another and protect Mother Earth.

Sande: Question #4: from the Twitter feed: Share a memory in your life when you have been proud of being a woman or have witnessed a woman being in their power.

Larry: When I was a kid at camp, there was a woman pastor- Jeannie Sherman. She had a radiant authority. I said to myself, I want to be like Reverend Jeannie. In my 75 years of life, I think of Jeannie often, in her ability to be funny, serious, and radiant in her femininity.

Barbara: I remember when I received my call to the ministry at 13 years old. Out of my soul came: “I see what I want to do.” As the Minister spoke, I could visualize myself standing in the pulpit. A couple of years later, we had a Women’s Day at the church. We decided that I could speak at age 15 at the evening service. My topic was, “What is in your hand?” I looked for verses throughout the Bible. The church filled up to hear the “little missionary”. When I got through, I cried and I was feeling such joy. However, the Minister told me that the Baptists don’t ordain ministers and that I could not be a minister. Later, I met the first woman Minister in Chicago. Her question to me was, “What’s stopping you?” That was the most precious moment of my life. From that moment on, for 45 years, I have had my ministry. I started on my own. I remember that 15 year-old girl standing there giving her first sermon.

Sande: I am brought back to my 7 year-old self. At that age, I became aware of being one of a few Jewish girls in a Protestant community. I was the walking billboard of my faith. I can see myself realizing that I carried the weight of my religion. That image has stayed with me my entire life. It is not just my religion that I represent; it is the best version of myself. That brings me back to every moment that I catch myself feeling my feminine power and authority.

Information about follow-up to the call- next steps:

Sande: On behalf of the Charter for Compassion International, I want to extend a warm thank you to everyone on the call. Questions and comments will be posted on the Twitter chat following the call. You will receive an email immediately after the close of the call with information about how to participate in the Twitter chat, along with a post-call survey. The recording and the notes for this call will be sent out to you in the next few days, probably Monday at the latest.

Closing:

Sande: I have such gratitude for our speakers. Thank you again. When we left the room of the Women’s Assembly last year, I knew the world would not be the same. All our speakers today carried on that energy, inspiring us and infusing all our hearts. Wisdom and truth have been spoken. Now it is up to us to go forward and speak truth. Let’s commit to make compassion a clear and luminous force in our polarized world.

Now we will turn on everyone’s mic, so we can all say good-bye to each other.

Resources:

Audio link for the call: https://soundcloud.com/charterforcompassion/the-role-of-compassion-in-owning-our-feminine-authority.

Call Info and Bios with additional links to Speakers’ websites

Hosts:

The Charter for Compassion International’s Women and Girls Sector: http://www.charterforcompassion.org/partners/women-and-girls

The Parliament of the World’s Religions: https://parliamentofreligions.org/

Sistrum Spirit: http://www.sistrumspirit.com/home.html)

Sponsors:

SARAH: www.Sarah4Hope.org

Million Mamas Movement: www.millionmamasmovement.org

Mindfulness4Mothers: www.mindfulness4mothers.com