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America’s Noble Destiny Bridging Our Political Divide is Key by Mary Magline


Stephen Dinan Outlines S


tephen Dinan, founder and CEO of The Shift Network,


is a champion of the transpartisan movement that seeks to transcend America’s current political climate to realize greater unity and understanding. His new book, Sacred America, Sacred World: Fulfilling Our Mission in Service to All, offers innovative, practical solutions for engaging citizens in an emerging whole. Dinan has forwarded thinking in


his work with the Institute of Noetic Sciences, where he helped shape the Shift in Action and One Minute Shift programs, and with the Esalen Center for Theory & Research, a think tank he helped create to ex- plore human potential frontiers. He is also an active member of the Evo-


lutionary Leadership and Transformational Leadership councils.


What political prob- lem tops the list if we’re to make prog- ress on anything? We all know that


American politics suffers from extreme polariza- tion. Just as the middle class has faded away from our economy, the


bipartisan “middle” has dropped out of our political process. In the last two decades, moderates have become far less prominent, giving way to ideologues on both sides of the aisle. As a result, Congress is virtually un- able to legislate, because politicians on the left and right insist they have all the answers. They often refuse to work with the president if he is from the other party. This childish behavior


is a far cry from the bipartisan ap- proach to solving problems that once made this country great. Our country is falling apart and we need to renew ourselves by finding a sacred vision of national unity. The fast-growing transpartisan


movement offers an answer that can be aided by perspectives of transpersonal psychology and a visionary spiritual di- mension drawn from wisdom traditions of the East and West.


How is transpartisan


best defined? Transpartisan means that Americans can rise above damaging divisions. It provides hope that if we supply the right inten- tion, we can hold to a vision that honors the ideals of a wide range of viewpoints. No one can be 100 percent right or 100 percent wrong, and we transcend limiting conservative and liberal categories by using dialogue and maturity in embrac- ing the truths of all parties, while leaving behind their excesses and errors. We can belong to any party and claim an important piece of the truth; a singular truth we stand for, such as liberty or social justice or eco- nomic growth, but it represents only a personal selection from a larger set of sacred American principles. To at- tain insight into these principles, we must move to an enlightened vision that honors all political perspectives, seeing each as a valuable, yet incom- plete contribution toward the emerg- ing whole.


Why have you called for a sacred America? “Sacred” is a word that binds us together in the mystery of life and links us into a single human family in which ultimately no one is our enemy. A sacred world- view leads to a life filled with respect and reverence. It informs and enables us as we reach for our highest destiny as a country, not built on a desire to be num- ber one, but a humble sense of calling, animated by a spirit of service to all. America is being called to explore new frontiers politically, economically and spiritually, in service to our own citizens and the world. We are to em- brace a path away from the waste and tragedy of war and toward universal


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