Memories of an April event in
1988. I was a journalist participant at the conference.
It was a unique event in
human history. 165 religious and temporal leaders and a handful for media
participants came together in one place to begin a process of dialogue and
action. The challenge was to question established ideas and actions and come up
with radically revised solutions to critical global problems. It was called the Global Forum of Spiritual
and Parliamentary Leaders on Human Survival.
Amegan Aveglu was there.
He wore no shoes. A deep blue
robe draped his ebony frame. He walked barefoot everywhere, as if feeling,
almost coaxing the root aura of his distant outdoor parish to touch him through
the concrete and granite. None would have expected it to be different for he is
the High Priest of Togo's sacred forest.
The other participants and organizers as well, were also
feeling, searching, grasping for gossamer goodwill, the tingling energy, that
became known as the spirit of Oxford.
Vladimir Andreyev, Deputy Chief of International Departments of the
Presidium of the Supreme Soviet was one of three USSR participants. Congressman James Scheuer and Charles Rose attended,
as did members of governments from five continents. On the spiritual side there were Rabbi's,
Priests, Nuns, Imam's, Monks, Mufti's, Swami's, Doctors of Divinity and Shamans
from all over the world. No one was looking
for a global politic or expecting a unified theology, all were hoping for a
process that would begin a universal experience.
Inaugural presentations and welcoming comments were given
by Sir George Sinclair, chairman of the British Advisory Group, a good natured,
intelligent aristocrat who encouraged and expected the best in everyone; the co-chairpersons
for the conference, The very Reverend James Parks Morton, Dean of the Cathedral
of St. John the Divine in New York City. He was an inspirational, easy going,
brilliant and comfortable pillow of a clergyman and Sat Paul Mittal, a member
of India's upper house, the Rajya Sabha. He was more formal in a cautious, but
proper way, steady in his words and manner and a resonate partner for his
spiritual counterpart.
The conclave had its celebrities too; Mother Teresa of
Calcutta; The XIV Dalai Lama; The Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie;
Franz Cardinal Koenig of Austria; Dr. Inamullah Khan; Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz;
and scientists Carl Sagan and James Lovelock, all were participants and some
were speakers.
The manifestation of
the Global Forum is a modern proof of the Hermetic maxim - energy follows
thought. The conference was first conceived in 1972. It was the idea of
Japanese visionary Akio Matsumura.
Through the sheer force of his positive personality and a profound belief
in the truth of the idea, Matsumura shepherded the thought into form. He believes that throughout history wars have
been caused by two reasons: the
ambitiousness of spiritual leaders and the ambitiousness of political leaders.
He says, "these two groups failed to create peace; worse they create
war. Now they come together to ponder
how to succeed".
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