Sister Joan Chittester and how to save the world

I just had a great time listening to one of my favorite speakers, Sister Joan Chittester, a Benedictine Nun. People who have read some of what I write will think this is a very odd thing. Don't I have an intense dislike for christians, muslims, practising jews, hindus, etc? Well, no, I don't. I have a very strong distaste for all religions, but the people are fine, so long as they are good people.

Joan Chittester is an amazing woman. She has an incredibly agile mind and bubbling sense of humor. She has to be among the smartest women alive today. Certainly she is one of the best speakers. The listener can't fail to be uplifted by her message, even if it carries an important warning of danger. She, like so many good people at the moment, argues strongly for social justice. Unfortunately her appeal is purely to the same emotions that the equally religious fundamentalists use in their drive toward extinction of our species.

It is interesting to contrast her talk with the one that preceded hers. The second-last lecture in a series by historian Ronald Wright giving an account of how each of the big civilisations in the past fell. Each time they damaged their local ecology's ability to support them, while the rich became insulated from the problems of the day, increasing the gap between the rich and the poor till the system broke. It is essentially the same message Joan Chittester gave, but Ronald Wright gave facts to back up the danger instead of simply appeal to emotion.

I just hope some world leaders were listening to both programs and taking notes (especially our idiot prime minister).