Listening in a Spiritual Way

Donna Halper, Ph.D.

Director (Media Ecology) Global Listening Centre.
Associate Professor (Communication and Media Studies)
at Lesley University, Cambridge, MA, US.

“One of the most important prayers in the Jewish religion is called the Sh’ma”– it’s a prayer about listening to God, who speaks to us in so many ways. In other words, spirituality begins with the willingness to put aside our desire to talk first; we are asked to humble ourselves before the Deity and listen. But no matter what religion or culture you come from, whether you believe in a god or not, there is something very powerful about the ability to listen. Many of us think we are listening, but in reality, we are hearing. That’s very different from listening. And that’s why the work of the Global Listening Centre is so important, especially in the world today, where too many people prefer to marginalize anyone who looks different or believes in a different way. The Global Listening Centre serves as a reminder that to be a good communicator, to be a good human being, it all starts with showing respect to “the other,” by being a good listener.”