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WHAT IS "PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT"?
Progressive Development is the term created by the Progress Agency to essentially mean spiritually oriented, sustainable development. It is based on our belief that life is an expression of One Universal Consciousness. Our desire for unity with this Supreme Consciousness begins as a thirst for limitlessness and ultimately culminates in absolute Love or absolute Unity with all of life. Yet, not recognizing this thirst as a spiritual longing, many try to fulfill it by pursuing finite objects through material accumulation, sense gratification or mental pleasure - none of which completely satisfy. History has proven that to build one's life work only on material pursuits (profit, wealth, power, etc.) is to propagate division, conflict and dysfunction. Seeing the world as merely matter, rather than as an expression of spirit, is a limited outlook that denies our full potential for growth and happiness. As a consequence, we are witnessing the worldwide rapid decay of our economic and political systems as well as the wholesale deterioration of the environment. This course is bringing both the individual and collective life of our society to a point of virtual destruction. In spite of all of our problems, let us now stop. Let us acknowledge that we all have had the personal experience that Love is the Highest Form of Happiness. It might be, however, that few of us have been able to fully utilize Love as the working tool for integrating the stressful demands of daily life. Let us remember, through our own experience, that Love gives us our greatest sense of personal well-being and our deepest fellowship with our community. Love is the means for synthesizing our many activities into a common movement. It is the fundamental requirement for true sustainability. Realizing Love is Spiritual Growth. In Reality, Spiritual Growth is not achieved in the abstract. Through the personal observances of prayer, meditation and deep inward reflection, Spiritual Growth is first felt in the heart. Next, practices of morality, diet and "right livelihood" carry Love into action. Finally, through the performance of service that honors the worth and contributes to the progress of every living being, spiritual growth is expanded. Therefore, the community realizes the Growth of Love as well. Progressive Development requires that we put spiritual values in the center of all our activities. Values which place profits higher than life, or which place religion and culture above Unity, cannot serve the best interest of all. Progressive Development promotes Spiritual Unity by encouraging those personal, interpersonal, cultural, political, economic and environmental expressions and behaviors which best serve the individual, the collective and the world as a whole. Herein lies the critical need for Balance. While maintaining respect for the diversity of life and the right for individual expression, specific actions are required today not only to create personal and social harmony, but also to stabilize our economy and the environment. We must save our basic life support systems (arable soil, potable water, clean air, ozone and forests) that face total destruction within our children's lifetime, while still providing basic necessities for a growing world population. |