Religion and Global Ethics

I took all day Tuesday off to attend a seminar on "Religion and Global Ethics" at Oklahoma City University. Those who attended this seminar were given reserved seats for Archbishop Tutu’s presentation Tuesday evening (see about two entries below).

The seminar was conducted by Tom Boyd, PhD, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University of Oklahoma. The following entry is based on Dr. Boyd’s presentation.

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What do you suppose is the dominant religion in the world? You might be tempted to say "Islam," as that has the largest number of members (as I recall). But there is another, largely unacknowledged religion, which is currently driving world affairs.

The dominant religion in the world is Economics. Or, if you prefer pseudo-Biblical language, Mammon. The basic tenet of this religion is to promote the greatest good for the greatest number (c.f. Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations), and all else will follow. While Rev. Smith was promoting an ideal, what we have seen is a dramatic use of power inequity. Thus, America dominates consumption of world resources, just as about 10% of the wealthiest Americans dominate world wealth.

The dominance of this religion is being insured by Globalization. By which, we mean the recognition that the world is a shrinking community. In this view, the world is both paradoxically large and small at once. Small, in the sense that economic systems are becoming increasingly interdependent at the same time that the rate communication is increasing exponentially. Large, in the sense that the communication stream makes us even more aware of the world’s complexities, especially regarding the differences between cultures.

We are, in other words, forced to confront the "otherness" of our world neighbors as if they were in our face. The way we faced this problem, to date, has been to live in a sort of tribal enclave; that is, we tend to live only with people of our own "tribe". The people I work with, go to church with, and so on, are likely to reflect the tribe I feel most a part of.

Now, within that tribe, the tendency is to see our way as "normal" and anything different as "wrong." This is called the sense of cultural primacy, which gives rise to an Adversarial Inclination; that is, we oppose those who are significantly different than our tribe. Thus, we can speak of other cultures as being "evil". This moral absolutism gives rise to conflicts, which leads to war.

Needless to say, the world’s religions are also susceptible to moral absolutism. However, if the world religions can enter into dialogue, their members may be able to oppose the dominant economic religion. What we have now are poles of religious tribalization or radical inclusion. If we can put more weight on the inclusive end of that pole, we may develop an inter-network of religiosity.

This dialogue must begin by finding the common ground where humanity meets. According to Dr. Boyd’s studies, there are two things shared by the world’s religions: mysticism and morality. Mysticism, in the sense there is some tradition of direct experience of the transcendent. Morality, in the sense that every religion has a strong moral ground (or code). What we must avoid, as we enter into dialogue, is getting distracted by the particulars.

Now, it just so happens that representatives of the world’s religions have already met twice, and will meet again this summer in Barcelona, Spain. The Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions began with a meeting at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago. A centennial meeting was held in 1993, at which time the attendees agreed they needed to meet more often than once every century. Thus, the up-coming meeting.

The 1993 meeting produced a document, Towards a Global Ethic: An Initial Declaration, from a draft by the imminent theologian Hans Kung. This document recognized that globalization without a global ethic would lead to global destruction; that religion has an ultimate (or transcendent) orientation which transcends culture; and that religion calls people to transformation. The document also proposed four bold commitments: 1) to a culture of non-violence; 2) to solidarity with economic justice; 3) to tolerance and truthfulness; and 4) to equal rights, with an emphasis on the partnership between men and women.

Today’s religious communities must understand that we live in a secular age, and that the job of overcoming Mammon is too big for religion unless all religions cooperate. Thus, each "tribal religion" must broaden its view beyond its particular metaphysic and moral code. We must strive for authenticity of prophecy and action; which is to say, we must walk the talk. People of good will must recognize the need to act in terrific modesty. Simply, this means we need each other. Likewise, we must remain clear about our convictions without violently asserting their absolute accuracy.

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Recommended reading:

• Cobb, Christ in a Pluralistic Age
• Eck, A New Religious America
• Dunn, Way of All the Earth