>From: "Sauve, Suzanne" <SSAUVE@mus-nature.ca>
Suzanne wrote
>
>I don't agree that the word 'tolerance' has a sour ring to it, quite the
>contrary. It acknowledges the fact that we are different and the
>readiness to allow others to believe or act as they judge best.
>Approaching others with this attitude promotes unity and concord, which in
>turn are conducive to the maintenance of order in the world.
>
>There is a Baha'i quote that says: 'Ye are all the leaves of one tree and
>the drops of one ocean'. I like this concept because it acknowledges our
>individuality, but also makes it clear that we are ultimately very similar
>and all parts of greater whole - thus the need to be tolerant and to try
>to understand each other without judgement or prejudice.
I think that this is just the issue. Tolerance implies simply
understanding each other. It is not to attain a common understanding.
Accepting tolerance is accepting spaces between us. While I am not so
naive to believe that we can always come to common understanding I believe
we too often accept the excuse 'I can tolerate your belief.'
Aloha, Bill
--"William J. Hobler, Jr" <bhobler@worldnet.att.net>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>