Chapter Ill

CULTURE OF DIALocue .
PERSONAL TRANSFORMATION
1. Introduction:
t th t . .
We give here an overall presentation of the spiri es us m presenting this important part
called "Personal Transfonnation" and introduce tha eguidconcept of spiritual' · promoting the
.1 · P tht P 1ty m
Culture ofD 1a ogue. a o eace. The main ideas are:
The concept of "life in dialogue" .. .
inspiration for those who are inas ~pm tuah ty, which serves as basis and
.0 ~ e~periencing personal
transformation towards hann ony and e proc~ss
is founded on the four pillars: peace. This spmtuahty ofllfe-in-dialogue

• Dialogue with God

• Dialogue with the Self
• Dialogue with Others
• Dialogue with Creation

s to actively and creatively

Eve~_one i~ called to open u~ and commit themselve
idering their capacities and
P~I ctpa te m ~y effort of dtalogue and peace, cons
es of pluralism, globalization,
gmd ed by therr own fai~ s, in facing the challeng
that draw people further away
and contmuous degradation of values and ethics ·
from one another.

planning to change others, we

People have !o be challe~ged to reflect that before
e invites a person to renew
h~ve to l~ok mto changmg ou~selves. This experienc
icate a lifestyle that is guided by
• his/he_r ta1t~}1~d make a commitment to commun
s people back to God".
the spm t of dtalogue that starts from God and bring
the faith of a believer and
Life in dialogue is a spirituality that emerges from
aims to prom ote a culture of dialogue in society.
in God who is merciful,
Dial ogu e . becomes an experience of faith
in-dialogue is a spirituality
compassionate, forgiving and loving. This life-
because it is an experience of faith.
for Muslims, Christians and
Note: On the level offaith this spirituality is different
religions are encouraged to
other peoples of living faiths. People of different
g to their respective faiths.
undergo the same experience oflife-in-dialogue accordin
to have a unifying style of
The challenge of life-in-dialogue as a spirituality is
faith and to be enriched by a
dialogue in the context of the different expressions of
among groups of the same
dialogue among spiritualities of different religions and
dialogue" or "style oflife" to
faith tradition. We prefer to use the expression "style of
presented as a "way oflife".
make clear that we respect each religion that is usually

15
e -------------
A Patfz to Peace:JI fomzation manua( on <Diafogue anti Peac
 . . d' l tales around the four pillars ofrelationships: with God
This style oflife-m- ,a ogue ro . ,
with oneself, with others and with creatwn.

2. The Four Pillars ofDilllogue

2.1. DIALOGUE WITH GOD

In this pillar of dialogue one has to go back to one's !eligion and understand deeply
God's dialogue with humanity. The first way 1s t~ go back and ~ee ~od's
revelation, as an experience of God's mercy, compasSlO~ an~ love, by li~temng to
one's heart and allowing God t~ be Go~. Tberefo~e, findmg time ~o be ';1th_ God in
silence, meditation and prayer 1s very important m ~rder to sustam on~ s dialogue
or relationship with God and be able to see God also mothers and creation.

When, one experiences dialogue with God, and goes deep~r in ~ialogue, he/she
can reach the level of dialogue in God. The voice of conscience 1s a myiterious,
but real presence of God in us. Listening to His voice, one can experience the
deeper dialogue that one finds in silence, the proper habitat ofdialogue.

2.2. DIALOGUE WITH THE SELF

Entering into dialogue with ourselves becomes a spiritual encounter because:

A. It helps us to hear God's voice resounding in our conscience.

B. It will lead us to rediscover our beauty, goodness and truth. This
pillar of dialogue brings us back to values that will bring
wholeness to our being, a wholeness which has been broken by
preju~ices, wounds and pains brought about by our various life
expenences.
Hence, dialogue with oneself is an important element that will
help us experience internal harmony and enable us to live in
harmony with others and with creation. This level of relationship
will develop in us the dialogical attitude necessary to sustain a
dialogical style of life with God and with one's self, with others
and with creation. The following ar~ conditions needed to enhance
dialogue with self: authenticity; trust, silence and humility. This
four points or focus of the dialogue.w ith the self will become the
entry points of a· deeper dialogue, if one experiences th.em.and
searches forthemia the journey of a spiritual dialogue.

2.3. DIALOGUE WITH OTHERS

A _good relatio_nship wi!h others in the spirit of dialogue is \manifested by ~

attitude of se~mg Go_d m other people, thereby making every encounter w~ th
others _a meamngful dialogue. Those who are engaged in a dialogical style of hf~
a~e gu~ded by the following qualities that we can call the three "S" of dialogue.
Smcenty, Sensitivity, and Solidarity. ,

f /feOCr
16 Jl (['atfi. to (['eace: }l fonnation manua{ on (J)ta· (i0111ue
o
ana
 2.4 DIALO GUE WITH CREAT ION

Creation is a sign of God's constant dialogue w·th h · . .

"d d f 1 umamty.
rapt es truction
· h ·
o t e envrron ment the priority f thi ·1i In
f
a
•
s1tuat10n
•
of
. , o s pt ar o dialogue 1s to
cha11enge peop1e to corrumt to any positive action m· ord t d
. ·11 f · • er o save an to protect
nature. Th1s p1 ar o dialogue 1s becomin g the sign f th t·
·fy· f d. 1
um mg aspect O ta ogue when people of different religions °
e unes an can ea
d b
can be together for
a common good and for the common house that is mother earth.

3. Stages of the Spiritu ality of Life-in-Dialogue:

In this module, we will present the stages of spiritual awareness which one who enters
into an experien ce of the spiritual ity oflife-in -dialogu e, has to consider and internalize.
T~e~e st~ges of the spiritual ity of dialogue can be considered as the normal stages of any
spmtuahty. .

3.1. FIRST STAGE: GOD TAKES THE INITIAT IVE OF DIALOGUE:

This stage requires an attitude of "surrender to God" and "accepting the will of
God." This call usually becomes clearer through the events in one's life,
particula rly painful experien ces. Often this stage is internalized gradually and
through "purific ation" of the self to accep_t and internalize the call of God with a
great passion. In this stage one can experience:

• Sufferin g from inside the person;

• Challen ge from outside;
• Choice to withdraw or to continue following God's call.

3.2. SECOND STAGE: OUR RESPON SE-LIFE -IN-DIA LOGUE

This stage often leads to:

A. Temptation blocking dialogu~ with/in God. This step is ~ot eas(

because one is still attracted to interests that may compete with one s
desire to surrende r to God and to give priority to the dialogue with
God. The temptation that hinders one's willingness to enter into
genuine dialogue can take many forms.

B. Purification towards dialogue with t~e self. _Purification is a way ~o

enter into dialogue with the self. T~e d1~cult1es that one ~ncoun~e!s m
his/her dialogue with others? mclud~ g those of mterrehg1ous
dialogue , are results oflack of dialogue with the self;

c. Listening and dialogue with. ot~e~s. Liste~~ is ~n atti~de that

should always be considered m hvmg the ~pmtuah ty of dialogue.
Through listening with the heart one can see m the other the presence
of God whether the other is a Christian, a Muslim, or one who belongs

)l Pat fi to m . {o __ fm
-reace: A formation manua{ on (J)ia igue an.a •ceace 17
 her is a friend or an ene my ; whether
. · · whether th e Ot
toanyoth~rre1ig1o
rs opp o rturu·t·ies or
n,. . or whe the r the oth er oue a-.
the other is poor or nch ,
brings problems to us. · · -
. .
.h tion Thi s style of dia log ue is old and
D. Sharing and di~logue wit crea . .
.new at the same time:
. . eople who pra ctic e trad itio nal religion
Old because md ige ~o: s pea t respect for
cre atio n since time
immemonal. ey 0
f
have alw~ysThafforkne w ow to enter into
dia log ue wit h creation.
Creation is their religious partner.

New because fior a long time people hav e abu sed and misused
nature espec1a· lly with the advent of tech no1ogy, an d
. • today.
Alarmed by the irreversibl e des t~c tion wr~ ug ht on the
· ment we are starting to red isco ver
envrron , . . the
. importa. nce of _
. 1
dtao gue wit h crea tion . Dia logue m this cas e 1s respectmg and
.
understanding the laws of nature and hste . h
nm ~ to t e ~es sag es that
come from it. This is a form of contempla
tive-active encounter
with creation.
3.3 .TH IRD STA GE :OU RSP IRI TAN DM ISS
JON -ON TH EP ATH TO PE A(! E
God is more interested than we are to start
again the dialogue wit h all, including
our enemies, because they are His friends.

Note:

1) Reflect and/or share personal and/or group exp

eriences in the journey of
spirituality, focusing on how each experience
has undergone the three
stages described above.

2) Reflect and/or share on specific points - of

the Bib le if you are a Christian
or the Qur ' an if you are a Muslim - identify
ing these stages of spirituality
with some specific teachings. (We propos
e in a special way to the
C~ stia ns and the Muslims the Story of Jos
eph, Son of Jacob (from the
B1_ble: Genesis from chapters 37 to 50a nd from
the Qu r'an Surah12)). In
•this_story we can see the struggle and the fide
lity of Joseph/Yusuf who was
P~f ied b~ God for a great mission. The
sam e story is presented in the
Bible and m the qur 'an wit h different deta
sto~ and a beautif ils, but basically it is the same
ul example of a per son wh o mad e a spiritua
movmg towards a personal transformation l journey
as it is des crib ed in this module
~nd the re~ult w!s a new way to help people
and society, moving witb a
co_~passionate heart even with his own bro
thers wh o were the cause _of
all his suff~rin_gs. The effect was a great
contribution for the social
transformation m the spirit of the Culture ofD
ialo gue .

18
JI Patli to Peace: JI fonnation manua{ on (})iafogu ,Jlftilce
ea
1
 Su gg est ed group activities:

1. Call some in the group to sha

re their understanding on how
personal transformation can the
contribute to Peace. Cite also
personal ex ample or the expe some
rience of others that we admire
2. Propose a workshop or write .
a reflection to explain why (in
understanding) you do no your
t see relevant progress in
transformation of society (aft the
er listening to this presentation
)

n (J)iafogue and <Peace

19
JI. <J>a tfi to Pea ce: _fl_ fon11ation
mamia[ 0