Compassionate Citizens Foundation

Compassionate Citizens Empowering #BelovedCommunity

We envision 10,000+ empowered Compassionate Communities in the U.S. by 2028

Thy Kingdom Come...

The widely shared VISION: A world that works for ALL (#Sustainable #EquityForALL)

The MISSION: Heal our deep divisions (#UniteAmericans) to create an America that works for all.

We are building an informal network of mission aligned leaders from multiple movements:

1. #CaringCulture (e.g., #ListenFirst Coalition)

2. #WiserDemocracy (e.g., Bridge Alliance Network)

3. #CaringEconomy (e.g., New Economy Coalition)

We envision Bobby Austin's Repairing the Breach Institute as a catalyst that can unite the above movements, by initially focusing on uniting the Protestant, Catholic and secular efforts that embrace Public Kinship ("love of neighbor" + Compassionate Citizenship), as foremost among the principles of Asset Based Community Development (ABCD).

We believe that the ABCD movement holds the key to:

a. cultivating a culture of compassion (#CaringCulture)

b. healing political division (#CountryOverParty, #WiserDemocracy), and

c. expediting a sustainable Economics of Well-Being (#CaringEconomy)

Potentially catalytic organizations that embrace Public Kinship and ABCD (by whatever name) include:

https://weareweavers.org/about/ (secular)

https://parishcollective.org (Protestant)

https://ccda.org (Protestant)

https://www.abundantcommunity.com (secular, Protestant)

https://resources.depaul.edu/abcd-institute (secular, Catholic)

https://www.focolare.org/usa/ (Catholic)

[Pope Francis' Oct 3, 2020 encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, is a wonderful reflection of the Focolare movement's vision for a Spirituality, Economy and Politics of Communion, with which we are fully aligned. http://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20201003_enciclica-fratelli-tutti.html ]

To connect the ABCD movement with all of the movements that are relevant to an "America that works for ALL", we are also engaging with two "radically inclusive" organizations, with global missions: https://charterforcompassion.org, https://ecociv.org; and the following Christian-centric organizations in America, that capture the central MESSAGE ("love of neighbor" = maximizing the well-being of the "least of these"), and a pivotal MEDIUM that embraces that message for the #BelovedCommunity movement:

https://www.breachrepairers.org #PoorPeoplesCampaign, #EndPoverty

https://www.christianchurchestogether.org (Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox)

Goal: form (and fund) a collective impact initiative, to co-create and empower 10,000+ compassionate communities across America, inviting Christians and ALL Americans to work with us on two macro-movements that transcend theology and politics:

1. Care of Creation

2. Care for each other

to achieve

#Sustainable #EquityForALL

As regards our particular focus on uniting Christians, who constitute 65% of America, and who are as divided as America...

Inviting Christians to come together, across political and theological divisions, to pursue the Common Good (empowering #BelovedCommunity) is our expression of Missional Ecumenism, a movement to unite Christians who believe that "the love of Jesus might exceed all divisions".

See http://theinitiative.org

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We invite mission aligned faith and civic leaders across Illinois (and across America) to join us, and to invite their spheres of influence to participate in a unique initiative.

Compassionate Illinois (scheduled to be launched Jan 20) will be a Meetup-enabled experiment in empowering Compassionate Communities across Illinois.

[We take inspiration from Compassionate California, but our experiment goes well beyond, in recognition that the cultural , political and economic are deeply intertwined.]

Compassionate Illinois will (virtually, for now) engage #CompassionateCitizens in respectful dialogue across diversity, with an orientation to radical inclusion, and to maximizing the well being of the community, with special attention to the most vulnerable.

Meetups are a visible platform that will help unite "silos of compassion", in order to catalyze and empower the Compassionate Communities campaign at Charter for Compassion.

When we have proven what is possible in Will County and Chicago, using Meetup as a platform to "Empower #BelovedCommunity" (Compassionate Communities), via dialogues across difference, we will scale the model across Illinois, and across America.

LONG TERM ...

We believe that a critical mass of dialogues-across-difference will catalyze a #WiserDemocracy, which will expedite the path to #BelovedCommunity (and to #Sustainable #EquityForALL).

#WiserDemocracy (empowering our collective wisdom and compassion) entails healing our deep partisan divide, such that we can end the anti-democratic duopoly, and return to the founding father's vision of a "more perfect union", and of a government that is truly accountable to ALL citizens.

We believe that educating and empowering 30 million #CompassionateCitizens is critical mass to replace our anti-democratic, money controlled, two party system with a #WiserDemocracy.

Many of those are already supporting one or more of the 500+ organizations in these three hubs:

#ListenFirst Coalition (325+ orgs)

Cultivating a #CaringCulture

Bridge Alliance (100+ orgs).

Empowering a #WiserDemocracy.

New Economy Coalition (210+orgs).

Co-creating a #CaringEconomy.

We envision uniting those movements, with the help of 30,000+ civic/faith leaders; 10,000+ Meetup-empowered Compassionate Communities; and with significant funding from #CompassionateRealtors, and from other aligned social entrepreneurs and impact investors.

#BelovedCommunity Movement: summary

Co-creating a #CaringCulture. Empowering a #WiserDemocracy. Expediting a #CaringEconomy

We seek to catalyze the Compassionate Communities campaign at Charter for Compassion by using Meetups to engage #CompassionateCitizens in respectful dialogue across diversity, in order to maximize the well being of the worst off. While this entails reducing suffering (e.g., from Hunger, Homelessness, Hopelessness, Hate and/or Health issues), our long term vision entails SYSTEMS change.

We are effectively linking 3 macro-movements, with myriad sub-movements:

1. #CaringCulture -- Culturally and spiritually empowering citizens, by educating them about Asset Based Community Development. ABCD focuses on the unique assets and gifts of citizens, rather than deficits -- all have a role in co-creating Compassionate Communities.

2. #WiserDemocracy -- Politically empowering citizens, by educating them about the Deliberative Democracy movement, to hold all levels of government accountable to the collective wisdom and compassion of their constituents.

3. #CaringEconomy -- Economically empowering citizens, by educating them about the Triple Bottom Line, where consumers, workers and investors reflect their integrated values, as regards People, Planet and Profits (#Sustainable #EquityForALL).

We aim to initially fund the movement to empower #BelovedCommunity by pairing #CompassionateCitizens who are buying or selling a home with #CompassionateRealtors (who compete for value, while generously supporting the movement).

As we grow the #CaringEconomy, an increasing amount of human and financial resources for the movement will come from social entrepreneurs and impact investors, across all economic sectors.

Thank You

Whether you participate in respectful dialogue-across-diversity, volunteer your talents, or promote the movement through word of mouth or on social media, we thank you for doing your part to build a community, a country and a world that works for all.

Compassionate Citizens Empowering #BelovedCommunity

The VISION

A compassionate, inclusive World that Works for ALL

Thy Kingdom Come...

#BelovedCommunity Movement: summary

Co-creating a #CaringCulture. Empowering a #WiserDemocracy. Expediting a #CaringEconomy

Thank You

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Compassionate Citizens