Two years ago, after that harrowing day when a mob violently invaded the U.S Capitol, I wrote a letter to them. There was and still is so much that was wrong with that scene and what led up to it. And yet I identified with the rioters' outrage that something was terribly unfair in our … Continue reading A Love Letter of Sorts to the January 6th Insurrectionists from a Biden Voter
Envisioning the Beloved Community
By John Bell, 2022 The Beloved Community is a notion often associated with Martin Luther King, Jr. He put a strong public spotlight on an idea that has been held deep in the hearts of humans for millennia. People everywhere have had the yearning to live in a peaceful, just, and sustainable world. Indigenous people, … Continue reading Envisioning the Beloved Community
A New Year’s Bouquet of Songs, 2022
Dear friends, These darker days of winter are mirrored in some dark days for our country, the Earth, and it's awesome array of beings. In Buddhism, there is a teaching that says the ten thousand joys and the ten thousand sorrows exist side by side, and we are asked to embrace it all. For me, you … Continue reading A New Year’s Bouquet of Songs, 2022
We Have a Relationship Problem with the Earth
By John Bell Recently I was asked to be the opening speaker for a six part course called "Climate Justice" for my local Unitarian Universalist community. The course is focused on climate science and how local, state, federal, and global efforts are addressing the ecological crisis. However, I was asked to put these external, technological, … Continue reading We Have a Relationship Problem with the Earth
Freedom and Energy from Healing Our White Racism
By John Bell In the U.S., we are reeling from yet another round of white people killing Black people. Hateful. Horrendous. Heartbreaking. Again. In a recent post on Medium, Corinne Shutack put together a helpful list of 75 things White People Can Do for Racial Justice. As a white man, I am grateful for her effort … Continue reading Freedom and Energy from Healing Our White Racism
Developing a Mindful Approach to Earth Justice Work
Dear friends, https://www.kosmosjournal.org/kj_article/developing-a-mindful-approach-to-earth-justice-work/ For the past couple of years, I have been involved with a group of mindfulness practitioners concerned with the intersection of climate change and racial and social justice, often called Earth Justice. I just published an article in Kosmos Journal for Global Transformation which describes a six-part holistic framework that our group … Continue reading Developing a Mindful Approach to Earth Justice Work
“Are You Ready to Fight?”
What does "fighting" your political opponents mean?
Alida’s Unraveling
REFLECTIONS ON OUR MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM By John Bell “I’ll throw your baby out the window!” This is what Alida said about our new born when I invited her to come stay with us in the midst of her first of many psychotic breaks. Fortunately, my wife Dorothy was more level-headed and said “Absolutely not! … Continue reading Alida’s Unraveling
The Working Poor & the Middle Class: Friendly Advice for Presidential Candidates
Dear Candidate, I am happy that you have announced your campaign for the Presidency. I admire your long and effective public service. You talk compellingly about the middle class. However, except for two of the candidates, it is rare for you to refer to working class or low-income or poor people, and make their issues … Continue reading The Working Poor & the Middle Class: Friendly Advice for Presidential Candidates
Mafia Hit Man Transforms
by John Bell For years in the 1970s I taught ongoing peer counseling classes in my home in Harlem. A woman we will call Ellen (the names of the two characters have been changed to honor confidentiality and safety.) had been in one of these classes for about a year. The class was a multi-racial … Continue reading Mafia Hit Man Transforms
Begin Within 