SANTIAGO, Chile — For those working to address the challenges facing their societies, there is often a sense that something essential is missing that is difficult to name. In Chile, a group of social actors has, over the past year, come to describe that missing dimension as spirituality.
“What has emerged from this sustained reflection,” said Allan Aravena of the Bahá’í Office of External Affairs of Chile, “is an appreciation of spirituality as something lived rather than merely contemplated. It is expressed in the quality of our relationships, in the capacity to act with truthfulness and justice, and in the decisions that shape the lives of people around us. It is, in that sense, an ethic that takes form in action.”
The conversation was prompted by the publication of Social Transformation: Building a New Vision Together, released early last year by the Office of External Affairs. Drawing on years of conversation between members of the Office, academics, civil society representatives, government officials, and members of the indigenous Mapuche community, the publication articulates a vision of social change grounded in the oneness of humanity and the spiritual dimensions of human identity.
Rather than allowing the publication to stand as a single event, the Office continued the exploration with participants, including a family court judge, a sociologist working with young people in the justice system, and a municipal official.
Friendship as a setting for inquiry
What began as a response to an open invitation has grown into an ongoing discussion, often on the grounds of the Bahá’í House of Worship in Santiago, sustained by bonds of friendship among participants. Initially strangers, they describe the gatherings as a kind of refuge, a space for unhurried conversation where challenges are explored together and hopes tended to with care.
“All of us sensed that something important had begun,” said Mr. Aravena. Through these conversations, Mr. Aravena explains, “they discovered the human and spiritual dimension they had been searching for and now see how vital it is.”
Pamela Acuña, head of the Solidarity and Social Cohesion Unit in the Municipality of Peñalolén, described the group’s journey as “a friendship with purpose, a space for generous sharing, for human learning, for renewed hope.” Ms. Acuña added that the conversations have deepened her conviction that spirituality, far from being abstract, can ground genuinely humane public policies.
Rethinking the relationship between inner and collective change
A recurring theme in the discussions has been “unity in diversity,” understood as a compass that has guided participants as they listen, consult, and act together in the face of difficulty. Another has been the relationship between personal and collective change: the recognition that spiritual qualities such as truthfulness, justice, and solidarity take shape in individual lives but become more meaningful as they find expression in action alongside others.
“What we are seeing, is that the patient work of cultivating relationships, of listening with care, of consulting as equals, is not separate from addressing the serious challenges facing our society.”
Allan Aravena, member of the Bahá’í Office of External Affairs of Chile
For Mónica Jeldres, a family court judge, the gatherings opened a reflective space rarely available in daily professional life. Coming together, she said, helped colleagues from diverse fields “engage in substantial dialogues about spirituality as a driver of social transformation.”
She emphasized that spirituality entails contemplation that must lead to action and contribute to policies and practices that strengthen social fabric. “How can we improve, if not in service and in action for others?” she asked.
“True spirituality is far from being an escape,” she continued. “Only when this spiritual force becomes a collective force can we truly say we are building, from the deepest wounds, a society that deserves the name ‘human.’ We need work that reconnects us and a spiritual praxis that transforms our pain for the world into healing action.”
This insight, Mr. Aravena noted, has been central to what the group has been exploring together. “What we are seeing,” he said, “is that the patient work of cultivating relationships, of listening with care, of consulting as equals, is not separate from addressing the serious challenges facing our society. It is one of the means through which that effort becomes possible. The spiritual and the practical are not two realms, but one.”
From conversation to wider engagement
As their discussions advanced, the group’s attention turned to how the conversation might expand its reach. Two initiatives took shape.
The first is a podcast series, Spirituality and Social Transformation: Paths Toward a Meaningful World, in which social actors explore how spiritual principles relate to education, justice, environmental stewardship, and other areas of public concern.
“The thread running through the podcast,” Mr. Aravena said, “is to move past strictly technical approaches. We are not speaking of education or justice only in technical terms. We are asking how spirituality bears on them.”
Germán Díaz, a sociologist and regional director of a youth social reintegration service, is among those shaping the podcast. He described the series as an invitation of a particular kind. “We hope it becomes a moment to pause,” he said. “Not another stream of quickly consumed information, but an invitation to listen inwardly, to ask questions we do not always give ourselves space to ask, and to do so together.”
The second initiative was a gathering held earlier this year, titled “Unity in Diversity: Spirituality as a Force for Social Transformation,” which brought some 40 participants together to consider how spirituality might strengthen public life. Many described the event as the natural culmination of a year of steady discussions and shared insights.
The participants noted that their efforts draw inspiration from the Bahá’í House of Worship in Santiago, a spot that holds a special place in the country’s collective consciousness.
“The House of Worship has become a national point of reference,” said Mr. Aravena. “People associate it with serenity, and those involved in this process feel that the work is sustained by that same atmosphere: the conviction that striving for the well‑being of society is an expression of the human spirit.”
“We do not see this initiative as something with an expiration date,” Mr. Aravena said. “Over time, we hope it becomes a movement, one that draws more and more social actors into a shared exploration of the place of spirituality in building a better society.”
