President Obama has yet to put forth the specifics of his faith-based policies. But as they develop, he should not shrink from using them on the international stage. He should not let divisive topics dominate the conversation--topics like reproductive health or religious conflicts. The main purpose needs to be service and the religious drive to "perfect the world" - embodied in the Jewish tradition of Tikkum Olam. The reason for engaging faith-inspired organizations, after all, is that they have so much to give.
The array of potential for good is enormous. Name a pressing topic (climate change, sanitation, tuberculosis, well management, microcredit) and there are faith groups working on it. In Uganda, schools and hospitals founded by an array of Christian entities are celebrating their centenary anniversaries - a testimony to the deep roots of religious work in Africa. The courage of faith leaders who speak out against abuse of power and for human rights is often inspirational - monks in Burma, priests and nuns in Zimbabwe, and Jewish groups who refuse to let the complexities of Darfur's challenge obscure the horrors taking place there. Every time I visit orphan programs or soup kitchens for the homeless and elderly run by very different religious groups, I am awed by the human capacity for good.
That's not to say that all goes smoothly; shoddy work and slippery financial practices happen among faith groups too, intolerance creeps in all too often, and human capacities for tension, squabbling, and self-aggrandizement are too common. Partnering with faith-inspired organizations is rarely easy, partly because they are NOT contractors at the beck and call of public authorities, but complex institutions with an array of objectives. But the complexities should never be allowed to drown out the central message: that a vast array of people and institutions are deeply committed to making a better world. Working together, working through the many issues and different perspectives, offers huge potential for good. And for presenting the best faces of America to a world that is ready for hope and change.
This Friday, April 17, in New York, Georgetown University is hosting a Global Forum addressing the leading issues on the global agenda. The Forum, an annual Georgetown tradition, offers an exciting line up: President Clinton, Mohamed Yunus, Wendy Kopp, and Greg Mortenson are among the best known speakers. The Forum starts with the economic crisis, highlights the theme of bold new partnerships among public and private, corporate and civil society.
One panel (which I will chair) focuses on the faith factor. It will grapple with the issues but above all look to the potential that faith-inspired leaders and organizations offer for change.
Tim Shriver urged in a recent column that we "take another chance at life because whether we be Jew or Christian, believer or non-believer, from east or west, we are pulled toward a hope that cannot be dashed, driven by a love that cannot be ended, strengthened by a source we cannot name."
That's what the faith-inspired approach to hope and change should be about.
Visit www.GeorgetownGlobalForum.com for information on the Global Forum; participate in the live webcast (available at the site). Georgetown is also on Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, Facebook, and Fora.TV:
Twitter: http://twitter.com/georgetown
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/people/georgetownglobalforum/
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/georgetownglobal (the recorded webcast will be cut into videos and placed here)
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Georgetown-University/8825331245
Flora.TV: http://fora.tv/partner/georgetown
