United Nations And The New Age - Way of Life Literature

the world. Mrs. Roosevelt called the vision a “SpiritualUnited Nations.” Many world leaders got behind it,including Indian President Nehru, Egyptian PresidentAnwar Sadat, Pope John XXIII, United Nations GeneralSecretary U Thant, the Dalai Lama, and liberal Protestantmissionary Albert Schweitzer, who denied the deity ofChrist. The TOU was given impetus when it was featuredin the December 1962 issue of Life magazine. It held itsfirst Spiritual Summit in Calcutta in 1968, with Catholic-Buddhist mystic Thomas Merton in attendance. Merton’swritings have been a major influence in the spread ofcontemplative practices among evangelicals.The Temple of Understanding is closely affiliated withthe United Nations. It is accredited as a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) and has consultativestatus with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).The TOU’s fifth Spiritual Summit was held in New YorkCity (at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine) and was thefirst UN interfaith conference. Mother Teresa, whoprivately called herself the “saint of darkness” because ofthe dark nature of her contemplative practices, was oneof the representatives of the Roman Catholic Church.The Temple of Understanding hosted the UN’s 50thanniversary celebration in 1995. Its literature says thatthe Temple sponsors monthly roundtables at the UNheadquarters.67