COP 21 and The Search for Common Ground
In his work, The Search for Common Ground, writer, philosopher, and mystic Howard Thurman probes biology, psychology, religion, and even political philosophy trying to understand the origins of community. One of his most intriguing insights may be found in a chapter titled “The Search in the Prophet’s Dream.” He writes,
“Community as it is experienced in the far-flung hopes of men in all ages finds its greatest fulfillment in a picture of what the collective life of man would be like if it functioned in keeping with man’s high destiny.”
I struggle to find a better picture of community than COP21 — 190 countries coming to an agreement in hopes of saving the common planet they inhabit from the results of climate change.To be fair, there are many who are unhappy with the agreement. Some feel that it doesn’t go far enough; they say that it is non-binding and does not adequately address the concerns of the global south and poorer countries that will be adversely affected by climate change. They are probably right. Meanwhile others deny the need for such an agreement altogether. They say climate change isn’t real, they argue about how this will affect the economy, they worry about state sovereignty. They most certainly are wrong. So the agreement is not perfect, and not all the world is rejoicing, but as one of the attendees of the conference said, “You can’t even get 190 countries to agree on what time it is, so this is amazing.” I am not a policy analyst or an expert on global climate change. I am a person of faith. And as a person of faith I share in the awe of a dream realized. It is the hope of many religions that the world should find peace through the restoration of harmony. I believe there is no better place to start that restoration than with care for the common ground that we inhabit. So in this quiet season I invite you to reflect on this global agreement as a hint of our common destiny. And if it be your custom, to reflect on Howard Thurman’s "Prayer for a Friendly World":Our Father, fresh from the world, with the smell of life upon us, we make an act of prayer in the silence of this place. Our minds are troubled because the anxieties of our hearts are deep and searching. We are stifled by the odor of death which envelopes our earth, where in so many places brother fights against brother. The panic of fear, the torture of insecurity, the ache of hunger, all have fed and rekindled ancient hatreds and long-forgotten memories of old struggles, when the world was young and Thy children were but dimly aware of Thy Presence in the midst. For all this, we seek forgiveness. There is no one of us without guilt and, before Thee, we confess our sins: we are proud and arrogant; we are selfish and greedy; we have harbored in our hearts and minds much that makes for bitterness, hatred and revenge.While we wait in Thy Presence, search our spirits and grant to our minds the guidance and the wisdom that will teach us the way to take, without which there can be no peace and no confidence anywhere. Teach us how to put at the disposal of Thy Purposes of Peace the fruits of our industry, the products of our minds, the vast wealth of our land and the resources of our spirit. Grant unto us the courage to follow the illumination of this hour to the end that we shall not lead death to any man’s door; but rather may we strengthen the hands of all in high places, and in common tasks seek to build a friendly world, of friendly men & women, beneath a friendly sky. This is the simple desire of our hearts which we share with Thee in thanksgiving and confidence.
Demarius J. Walker joins GIPL this year as a Road Fellow through the Episcopal Service Corps.