State of the Forum: Letter to Friends of Higher Purpose Forum — James Edgerly

At the risk of appearing to take our modest project a little too seriously, I am sending this new year report to the growing number of subscribers and supporters of the Higher Purpose Forum (HPF). With as few words as possible, I reconvey our purpose, summarize our 2023 accomplishments, and share our ambitions for 2024.

The profound words of truth and love revealed by Jesus 2,000 years ago bore fruit well beyond the creation of a church. Reverberating through the centuries and across continents, this higher & fuller expression of truth gradually elevated cultural norms and yielded new formulations of economics and governance.

History has shown that nothing is more powerful than new expressions of truth that are inspired by God and motivated by unselfish love. Religious historians refer to this force as “new light”. “New light” is the key ingredient during periods of cultural distortion such as we have now, enabling the emergence of new social consensus and progress forward.

Since first taught in the early 1950’s, the inspired ideas of Unificationism have uplifted millions of lives, inspired public service, and motivated ecumenism the world over. The Higher Purpose Forum was founded in 2019 as an independent project of Unificationism. Our purpose is to creatively and non-dogmatically apply these exciting, non-sectarian ideas to the challenging issues of our time.

Here is what the Higher Purpose Forum accomplished in 2023:

16 Presentation and Discussion Sessions (via Zoom). • Participation ranged from 30 to 160 people; 26 different speakers, including 6 faculty from HJ International Graduate School. • Topics included economic democracy; foreign policy in Ukraine, Taiwan, and Gaza; features of “great awakenings”, counterproposal on human origins; evidence of moral force in nature; and lessons from early Christianity.

Developed Three Priority Topic Areas • “Race and Providence in America” • “Economic Democracy” • “Principled Foreign Policy”

Partnered with HJ International Graduate School of Peace & Public Leadership • Our final 2 sessions were co-hosted with HJI (formerly Unification Theological Seminary). • HJI faculty spoke at 6 of our presentation meetings. • HPF has been invited to present on “Economic Democracy” at the HJI Peace & Public Leadership Conference in April 2024.

“Race & Providence in America” Presentations • Presentation locations included Boston & Burlington MA, Bridgeport CT, Chicago IL, and Barrytown NY

We will continue to upgrade and expand the Higher Purpose Forum program during 2024. Here are our priorities: • Launch a redesigned HPF website to disseminate video content • Initiate two new topic areas: “Unity of Science & Religion” and “My Family & World Peace” • Increase inclusion of the feminine perspective through organizational collaboration • Dramatically increase the number of “Race & Providence” (in person) presentation meetings • Develop & rollout “Economic Democracy” (in person) presentation meetings

Goodbye 2023! It was brutal year for me - a bone breaking skiing accident, a right- parotidectomy, and dengue fever! These unfortunate adventures caused repeated and protracted disruptions of the HPF schedule. Let’s hope 2024 proceeds smoothly and without the medical drama.

A sincere thank you to the many people who were so helpful with our efforts last year, including our HPF Steering Committee, members of the HJI Graduate School faculty & staff, Jeffery Kingsley, Christine Edwards, Zagery Oliver, Roger & Daniela Wetheral, Alan Jessen, our many talented speakers and respondents, and most importantly, all those who joined our sessions and contributed to the conversation.

How can you help? 1. Forward this letter to others and invite them to join us (sign up at HigherPurposeForum,org). 2. Contact us to discuss holding a “Race & Providence in America” seminar in your community (write info@ higherpurposeforum,org). 3. Be a regular participant in our presentation & discussion meetings (via Zoom).

Thank you for your interest and involvement in the Higher Purpose Forum.

Have an exciting & adventurous 2024!

Sincerely, James B. Edgerly Founder, Higher Purpose Forum

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