Towards a Culture of Encounter Inclusive of the World’s Religious Traditions
By Philip McDonagh, Kishan Manocha, Lucia Vázquez Mendoza, and John Neary
In our globalised 21st century, we have reached a point of inflection in the human story. One way or another, our policy responses will depend on the lens through which we see reality. How do we see the relationship between the citizen and the state? How do we measure the economy? Is building community compatible with individuals advancing their own self-interests? Should we protect the vulnerable? Are we global citizens? What position do we take on questions concerning human origins, human destiny, and our place within nature? In thinking about politics, how do we answer the basic questions: who, where, how, why, and when? (Melissa Lane. (2014). Greek and Roman Political Ideas. London: Pelican.)
In the crisis of 2020, public authorities have made significant moral judgements. Saving lives is more important than economic growth. Higher levels of public spending and state intervention can serve the common good. A coherent public health strategy requires international cooperation. We, the public, have made sacrifices for the sake of the community. Many ordinary citizens, including, of course, healthcare professionals, have displayed the courage of soldiers in wartime. The volunteers coming forward in huge numbers are not 'incentivised' by money. In many parts of the world, we have glimpsed new horizons, even in the literal sense, as pollution has lifted, and blue skies and distant mountain tops have become visible for the first time in many years.
The UN Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by consensus by more than 190 states in 2015, represent, in embryo, a vision of the global citizenship of nation states and a medium-term common plan for humanity that takes into account the ‘density’ of interactions across borders and the interconnectedness of issues. The Global Compact for Migration, adopted in 2018, rests in part on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development framed by the sustainable development goals (SDGs). Similar values underpin the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the work of the World Health Organization (WHO) in bringing COVID-19 under control.
Our actions during the pandemic, added to the thinking that has gone into multilateral diplomacy over the past decade, signify that many people are ready to convert the present point of inflection, crisis, into an opportunity - a springboard to a global project that can empower the ‘better angels of our nature’ in the perspective of 2030 or 2050. As an Indian writer and activist puts it: ‘The world is literally gasping for breath. We all need a new kind of oxygen - a new design for living.’ (Valmik Thapar. (2020). ‘Press Restart: A Moment of Rebuilding Is on Us. Best Minds Must Contribute’, Indian Express, 13 April 2020.)
We propose introducing or reintroducing to the world of multilateral diplomacy the explicit questions: What do we believe in? What is our ‘design for living’? To answer these questions means drawing on dimensions of our lives that do not originate in the public sphere: ‘The formal political structures of our time are incapable of confronting this crisis on their own.’ (Amitav Ghosh. (2016). The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable. Chicago, IL and London The University of Chicago Press.)
As the catalyst for a civilisational transformation, we propose a culture of encounter inclusive of the world’s religious traditions, to be enabled by international organisations. We see this as a long-term cross-cultural enterprise with roots in civil society. It is an enterprise fully congruent with the UN’s new emphasis on mobilising civil society to sustain peace.
The encounter between religion and human values, on the one hand, and global political realities, on the other, has transformative potential within a future life-giving multilateral diplomacy. The hope that religious and secular leaders will work together and play their role in advancing civilisation is present in many religions and has been expressed with great clarity in the Baha’i Writings:
Our hope is that the world’s religious leaders and the world’s rulers will unitedly arise for the reformation of this age and the rehabilitation of its fortunes. Let them, after meditating on its needs, take counsel together and, through anxious and full deliberation, administer to a diseased and sorely afflicted world the remedy it requires.
It is true that at the national and international levels, there are a number of existing channels for dialogue between government representatives and the religious communities. However, for the time being, this is a niche area: compartmentalised consultations lacking in political energy are not a likely pathway to a ‘civilisational’ transformation. It is appropriate, therefore, to explore in more depth how the active engagement of religious communities and others who adopt ‘conscience-based’ positions or ‘life-stances’ can contribute to peace building.
Adapted from “On the Significance of Religion for Global Diplomacy”, published by Routledge Classics Books