Mr.
President, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,
It is with deep gratitude that I assume
the extraordinary honour to address this august Assembly. As a scholar
I have personally strived for decades to promote world peace through
dialogue among religions and civilizations despite all obstacles. It
gives me therefore great hope for the future that this Assembly has put
the “Dialogue among Civilizations” on its agenda. Which assembly
could be a more appropriate world forum to address common concerns of
all humankind?
Many people in today's problems and troubles are asking themselves:
will the 21st century really be better than the 20th century of violence
and wars? Will we really get a new world order, a better world order?
In the 20th century we missed 3 opportunities for a new world order:
•
1918 after World War I because of European “Realpolitik”,
• 1945 after World War II because of Stalinism,
• 1989 after the reunification of Germany and the Gulf war because
of a lack of vision.
Our group proposes such a vision of a new paradigm of international
relations which takes into consideration new actors on the global scene.
In our days the world religions have reappeared as actors in world politics.
To be sure: throughout history religions have far too often shown their
destructive face. They have inspired and legitimized hatred, enmity,
violence, even wars. But in many cases they have inspired and legitimized
understanding, reconciliation, cooperation and peace. Over the last decades
initiatives of interreligious dialogue and cooperation have grown all
over the world.
In this dialogue the world’s religions have rediscovered that their
own fundamental ethical teachings support and deepen those secular ethical
values which are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
At the 1993 Parliament of World’s Religions at Chicago more than 200
representatives of all world religions for the first time in history
expressed their consensus on a set of shared ethical values, standards
and attitudes, the basis for a global ethic, which have been taken up
in the Report of our group to the UN Secretary-General and this General
Assembly. What then is the basis for a global ethic, shared by people
of all great religions and ethical traditions?
First, the principle of humanity: “Every human being – man or
woman, white or coloured, rich or poor, young or old – must be treated
humanely«, more explicitly expressed in the “Golden Rule” of
reciprocity: “What you do not wish done to yourself, do not do
to others.”
These principles are unfolded in four central areas
of life and call every person, institution and nation to take their responsibility:
• for a culture of non-violence and reverence for all life,
• for a culture of solidarity and a just economic order,
• for a culture of tolerance and a life in truthfulness,
• for a culture of equal rights and partnership between men and
women.
Particularly in an age of globalization such a global ethic is absolutely
necessary. For a globalization of economy, technology and communication
also results in a globalization of problems which threaten to overwhelm
us all over the world: problems of ecology, nuclear technology, and genetic
engineering but also of globalized crime, and globalized terrorism. At
such a time it is a matter of urgency that the globalization of economy,
technology and communication be supported by a globalization of ethics.
In other words: Globalization requires a global ethic, not as an additional
burden but as a base and support for human beings, for civil society.
Mr. President, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,
There are some political analysts who predict a “clash of civilizations”
for the 21st century. This is however our alternative vision for the
future, not just an optimistic idea but a realistic vision of hope: The
religions and civilizations of the world in coalition with all people
of goodwill can contribute to avoid such a clash, provided they realize
the following insights:
• No peace among the nations without peace among the religions.
• No peace among the religions without dialogue between the religions.
• No dialogue between the religions without global ethical standards.
• No survival of our globe in peace and justice without a new paradigm
of international relations based on global ethical standards.
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