One of my most personal events occurred today, having three distinguished faith leaders try to bring our communities closer during divisive times.
A CITY OF LONDON DIALOGUE – TREASURING OUR COSMOPOLITAN HERITAGE
FRIDAY 17 NOVEMBER 14.45 – 16.15
78 Bishopsgate, London EC2N 4AG
The Rt Hon The Lord Mayor of London, Alderman Professor Michael Mainelli, introduces a conversation bringing Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives on the faith heritage of the City of London and asks us to consider the challenges and opportunities of contemporary civic interactions. Themes explored will include heritage and culture, integration, and reconciliation in a polarised world. Panel: Senior Rabbi Joseph Dweck (Jewish) Chief Imām Dr Sayed Razawi (Muslim) Revd Dr Alan McCormack (Christian).
My opening remarks went thusly:
“Ladies and Gentlemen, Thank you for joining me here at St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace. I’m so glad to convene this gathering in Inter Faith Week…which also happens to be my first week as the 695th Lord Mayor of London.
For those unfamiliar with the role, it’s one of the world’s oldest continuously elected civic offices and, over the course of the year, I’ll act as an international representative for the Square Mile and the UK’s thriving financial and professional services sector.
From its earliest beginnings, the City has been a place that has welcomed new people – myself included! – and celebrated difference. And, today, London remains the most religiously diverse region in the country. This difference of religious perspectives enriches the City in so many ways…not only contributing to our status as an international global financial hub, but also making the Square Mile a great place to live and work.
Current events…particularly the horrific situation in the Middle East…have left so many of us in the City feeling helpless. Today is an opportunity to explore themes of heritage, culture, integration, and reconciliation in an open and accepting environment. These conversations may be challenging, but sitting in silence is not an option.
In centuries past, academics, artists and intellectuals met in London’s Coffee Houses to discuss big ideas and solve the issues of the day. My mayoral theme, “Connect To Prosper” will promote the City as a place where thought leaders can come together to tackle global challenges…reviving the Coffee House tradition on which London was built. In those “penny universities”, all were welcome. To quote one historian, “whether a man was dressed in a ragged coat and found himself seated between a belted earl and a gaitered bishop it made no difference…he was able to engage them in conversation and know that he would be answered civilly”.
That idea…of civility between those with differing views, or “disagreeing agreeably”…is a theme that came through in the speeches at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet – the traditional feast at the start of a new mayoralty – at Guildhall on Monday. To quote the Prime Minister, “when conflicts overseas create division at home, it’s more important than ever that we preserve the values we hold dear – tolerance, free speech, the rule of law, respect for our history.” And, to quote the Archbishop of Canterbury, “if we rediscover some of that original coffee house culture and have conversations that build community, common understanding, curiosity and civility, we might rise to this new era and its challenges together.” To echo him, I really do hope that we do rediscover some of that Coffee House culture today.
Now, today’s event brings together leaders from just three groups. But we are planning a larger meeting at the mayoral residence, Mansion House, which will include a much wider range of religious perspectives, later in my mayoralty.
Thank you in advance to our panel…Senior Rabbi Joseph Dweck…Chief Imām Dr Sayed Razawi…and Reverend Dr Alan McCormack. And thank you to St Ethelburga’s for hosting us. To quote a great US President, John F Kennedy, “tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs…rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.” Thank you for your tolerance and joining us here today.”
My extemporaneous closing remarks went roughly like this:
“Long ago I wanted to use the lessons in the Bible, those of the Abrahamic tradition, to inform businesspeople of what they can learn from the religions of the book. Despite being an agnostic scientist and economist, I looked to the Old Testament as an operating manual for a community circa sixth century BC. Things to do – strike fair deals, share risks; things not to do – enter into deliberately unjust transactions. In particular, Deuteronomy, where we learn that we should know our counter-parties. We set up Long Finance in 2005, asking the question, “when would we know our financial system is working?”. We still don’t, but we have been able to have a few long lessons drawing upon the Islamic, Christian, and Hebrew interpretations.
The Chinese have a proverb – 抛 砖 引 玉, pāo zhuān yǐn yù, literally “to toss a brick to attract the jade”. In essence, I tossed out a brick to have today’s dialogue, “Treasuring Our Cosmopolitan Heritage”, to see what jade I might get in return. What nuggets of jade may I have attracted? First and foremost has been the importance of tolerance towards our fellow man. The Selfish Gene motif says that we compete and we cooperate, down the very core, the very DNA of our being. Thus we should be mutually tolerant.
I hadn’t anticipated that today we would become overshadowed by last month’s tragedies in the Near East. I was once called upon to deliver the Toast to the Host Country at a Caledonian Club Burns Evening. Long after the essential jibes about the English, none of which our Scottish hosts wished to utter, and fortunately much laughter, I turned to a serious point. “The English are a tolerant people – and for that we love them. They are tolerant to all foreigners, having us in their land, allowing us to make fun of them and to share their sense of humour and fair play.”
Sadly, despite its importance, ‘tolerance’ isn’t the most dynamic or engaging noun, yet it is fundamental to this afternoon. Rabbi Dweck implored us to do a science experiment – “look into the eyes of fellow human and you will see the light of God”. Our common heritage derives from finding commonality.
And how do we go about finding commonality? We do this through dialogue and education. Theologian Timothy Radcliffe thinks “universities should be places where we learn to talk to strangers – “to talk and listen to, and to learn from one another.”[Fr Timothy Radcliffe, OP, “Talking to Strangers”, address given at Yale University, 8 October 1996]
Orson Scott Card is a science fiction author who wrote a book about a hyper-intelligent innocent boy learning warfare. The boy, AE Wiggin, says, “In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him.” [Orson Scott Card’s, “Ender’s Game” (1985), page 240] And at the time you truly love your enemy, perhaps you shall stay your hand. Both Timothy Radcliffe and Orson Scott Card would understand today’s thoughts. We need to learn constantly about each other, and through that thirst for learning about one another we become tolerant.
We heard today that “you should be the driver, not the driven”. You are not guided by anything so much as being the person who must decide what guides you. You are guided by what you choose to guide you. Too often we learn, as did Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, that there is no place like home. We travel in eternal circling back to learn what really matters, what stars should guide us, to return time and time again to the need to look in the eyes of a fellow human being, even the one in the mirror, and see the light of God. As the City of London motto states, “Domine Dirige Nos”, “God, Guide Us”. We need to choose who guides us in our commonality. Walt Kelly’s Pogo may have hit the brick with the jade, “We have met the enemy and he is us”.
Again, thanks to our speakers, thanks to Saint Ethelburga’s, and thanks to all of you for treasuring our cosmopolitan and common heritage”
