MSVU at the Heart of our Compassionate City
Stephanie Jeans // March 2, 2012
Growing up, I was exposed to many different types of people and religions, but spirituality still remains a foreign concept to me. While I’ve always respected and understood why some are drawn to it, organized religion was never something I could relate to. When I first discovered the Mount had a Spiritual Life Office, I was intrigued. I wasn’t even sure I knew what spirituality meant. Could there really be an entire department dedicated to it?
The answer, of course, is yes.
The Spiritual Life Offices are a vital part of the Mount community. In charge of nurturing the university’s cultural environment, the department creates and grows awareness, understanding, and respect for all types of people and religions. There are countless services available: spiritual guidance, social justice resources, and cultural/religious event planning.
At the heart of the department, there’s Kim MacAulay. A soft-spoken, passionate woman, Kim believes that if there’s one thing that grows diversity, it’s compassion. And that’s just what she’s trying to do at the Mount. Recently, I was lucky enough to have a conversation with Kim about her work.
“Spirituality can mean many different things to people. For me, compassion is the framework of spirituality. Without it, there isn’t much to work with,” she explains. “It’s about learning to be open, and putting forward the effort to understand other people. The Mount already has a warm, welcoming community, and at the Spiritual Life Office, we want to help this atmosphere flourish.”
This year, the office has an exciting initiative to announce, which Kim hopes will help foster even more compassion on campus. Year-round, The Spiritual Life Office will present a group of events entitled the “Heart and Spirit of Our Communities.” The series, which includes several different types of events, is designed to help facilitate conversations about compassion and promote openness. The events are offered in a variety of creative formats. There will be films, socials, smaller, more intimate ‘café’ discussions – plenty of opportunities for students to build relationships.
“The Mount is the type of place where you know everyone – you know someone’s face, you know someone’s name. That’s what makes our school such a great place, and that’s the idea behind this series,” says Kim. “We’re trying to give students the opportunity to get to know themselves and others better. It’s about taking the time to learn about each other in all of our diversity. By focusing on this, I think that we can make the Mount community stronger than it already is.”
But the series isn’t just a social opportunity – it’s a chance to learn about other cultures. By exposing students to other ways of life, the hope is that empathy and compassion will grow on campus. Throughout the year, there will be several guests and films which will showcase different walks of life. Recent café guest, African Nova Scotian Shantay Grant, describes being compassionate in a unique way. In her mind, each person’s reality is unique to that individual, and she explains that there is great value in getting to know everyone’s personal reality. By engaging in these series’, students learn to better understand empathy, and truly encompass what it feels like to walk in someone else’s shoes.
“I had the idea for the Heart and Spirit series after hearing about the Compassionate Cities Campaign. The initiative certifies cities and regions that are working to establish a culture of compassion. The organization was started by a woman named Karen Armstrong, who actually won a TED award for her work,” says Kim. “I thought that her ideas were so inspiring. She created a ‘Charter of Compassion’, which focuses on activating the golden rule through all different walks of people. This is the framework behind being a passionate city, and I’d love for Halifax to get this distinction.”
The Heart and Spirit series will conclude with a conference in 2013, which will help Halifax move forward as a Compassionate City. Several HRM organizations and Mount departments have been invited to the conference, which will be held at the university. Not only will the event allow spiritual discussion, but a 10-year strategy will be formed. It will outline just how the HRM and the Mount can work together to achieve the Compassionate Cities Distinction. The conference will enable a broad range of people to receive the tools and information to create a presentation to the HRM council.
I know I’ve mentioned how “unspiritual” I am, but I have to say: Kim’s passion is contagious. After speaking with her, I can’t help but get behind her unique cause. We live in a fast-paced world, and it can, at times, be a cold one as well. At the end of our inspiring conversation, I ask Kim one final question: What is the key message she wants students to take away from the campaign?
“Compassion is all about the little things. I’m always learning how to be open to my own heart, and the hearts of others. It’s all about having a caring attitude. It’s easy to be nice to the people you like,” she laughs. “But it’s so important to have a curiosity, an empathy, and an interest in everyone. Think about it this way: when an ambulance drives by, think of where it is going, and send a good message to whoever is in need. Start small.”
That’s a type of spirituality I can put my faith in.
For more information on the Heart and Spirit series, or the Spiritual Life Office, go here. The next café will take place on March 4th, and will be a celebration of Women. I encourage everyone to stop by and start the compassionate conversation.
