Interfaith Summit Addresses Environmental Concerns

On July 16, Northwest Interfaith Community Outreach sponsored its fifth annual Interfaith Leadership Summit at Camp Brotherhood near Arlington, Washington. Northwest Dharma Association board member Bill Hirsch attended.

More than 150 participants representing Hindu, Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Buddhist traditions heard authors David Korten and Anodea Judith speak on the subject of “changing our relationship with our planet and with our fellow beings.”

Korten, author of When Corporations Rule the World, gave an inspiring presentation on the theme of his latest book, The Great Turning – From Empire to Earth Community. He asked, “Is survival a sufficient motivation to change the way we interact with our world?” His answer, unfortunately, is: not if we expect God to solve the problem or to snatch true believers from a dying planet.

Korten says that in order to change the course of human history we first have to change the stories, the myths, which guide our beliefs – a massive challenge for leaders and teachers of all the world’s religious traditions.

Anodea Judith’s book, Waking the Global Heart: Humanity’s Rite of Passage from the Love of Power to the Power of Love, takes a slightly different approach to the same theme. Our problem, she argues, is that we grew and developed thanks to the nurturing of Mother Earth, but now we forget and dishonor her.

She agrees that we must change the myths we live by from the exhortations to acquire and consume as promulgated by corporations and government, to a return to nurturing and respecting the earth. Judith sees western civilization as an adolescent, fueled by the growth hormone of oil, ready to mature into a caring adult.

After the presentations, the group split up into breakout sessions, discussing and developing strategies for dealing with problems ranging from global warming to immigration, economic disparities and racism.

While the challenges facing the present generation and its children can seem overwhelming, participants left the Interfaith Summit hopeful that religious leaders can play a significant role in effecting changes that will secure a brighter future for our world and its inhabitants.