The Compassionate Journey

a path of reconciliation

by Brian and Lisa Berman

In May 2007, a weeklong Compassionate Listening delegation in Berlin, Germany was held for those who were ready to work with the wounds of WWII and the Holocaust. We, Brian and Lisa Berman were assisted by Eve Rennebarth, the filmmaker of Embracing Story. Together, we created a pathway for healing and for building peace and reconciliation.

“The horrors and atrocities cannot be erased. The big question is, do I want to go to my grave carrying all these emotions?” stated one delegate. This is the big question for each of us. Members of the delegation came from the USA, Great Britain, and from Germany and brought with them their fears, denial, hate, trauma, guilt, shame and most importantly their willingness to heal. 

In our opening circle everyone shared why they were here and what they hoped and dreamed would come out of the Compassionate Journey. Our eldest participant was 80, born in Berlin. This was her first return to her homeland since leaving in the late 30’s. One of her intentions was to experience and learn Compassionate Listening so that she could be a better listener to her children and grand-children. She was also seeking the recovery of memories. With the help of a participant living in Berlin, she found the location where her father’s atelier had been. When we visited the memorial site where the deportation to the concentration camps took place, she expressed with deep emotion how easily this could have been her family’s journey.

An American participant carried a deep hatred for what the Germans had done to the Jewish people and he had been carrying this hatred for most of his 60+years of life. On the third day he expressed that his hatred had diminished and a strong skepticism had emerged. On the forth day he informed our group that even the skepticism had diminished and his curiosity was emerging. On the fifth day he shared that the person that he had known his entire life was no longer his operating identity. His demeanor was light-hearted and freed.

We listened to survivors of the Holocaust, and we listened to those who were in the Nazi Party. We were struck by their commitment to educate the youth of today, that it never happens again. We felt blessed that they are still alive and teaching us through their lives, for one day this generation will be gone and who will carry this message forward to our impressionable youth?

“Now the Jewish Holocaust survivor and the once fanatic Hitler Youth leader, are standing face to face, shaking their hands – a moment which nobody in the group will ever forget.” Eve Renebarth

One participant wrote afterwards, “…I experienced a richly supportive backdrop to retrace my steps from fear and revulsion toward openness and co-existence, while loosening a few knots of apprehension along the way. I learned and practiced Compassionate Listening as a way of opening new heart-space for others' narratives as well; no matter how many I've heard in the past, it is only a matter of time before my perceived saturation gives way to a longing to hear more, each story a springboard to deeper understanding.”

After the program ended one participant wrote this to us, which captures the great spirit of the Compassionate Journey.

Bless this state of grace!

I’m deeply touched at the end of these seven days. Life after this will be a new adventure. I feel like I just got off a ladder ten stories up the shaft of awareness. I am exhausted, but exhilarated. This practice of compassion and compassionate listening is very humbling; I feel challenged in a way I’ve never felt before, with a strong sense of connectedness with every one of the participants after what we shared as a group and exchanged as individuals and by curious extension, I feel a new kind of connectedness with all beings around me. Wherever I go, I meet strangers whose lives appear tenderly fragile, whose faces hold the potential for injury or enlightenment. I release judgment, the inner quarrels, the treadmill of tiring mental acrobatics. To be present with heartfelt intent and show my light ˆ that’s what’s on now.

I felt seen and loved, held and cherished in that space.

Ah, to carry this forward regardless!…. Alexa, Berlin.

We are so grateful for all those who participated in the Compassionate Journey as well as all those who helped pioneer this work in our Jewish German Reconciliation Project. May reconciliation and healing blossom in all of our hearts. 

We have scheduled the dates for our next Compassionate Journey, May 13–20, 2008 and we hope that some of you will join us. Link:

http://www.bermanhealingarts.com/CompassionateJourney.htm

Past participant testimonials:

http://www.bermanhealingarts.com/4_jewish/CJ07Testimonials_000.htm

A slide show of the 2007 program is available for viewing at this link: http://www.bermanhealingarts.com/4_jewish/CompassionateJourney2007.mov

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e-mail: info@BermanHealingArts.com

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