One of Rotary’s six areas of focus is peace and conflict resolution. In fact, peace and conflict resolution is the Rotary Theme for February. Yet exactly what does peace and conflict resolution mean to most of us Rotarians?
Intuitively, many of us will make the leap to the need for world peace. We think about places like Syria, Afghanistan and the middle east in general as the places were people that live the Rotary 4 Way Test could really make an impact. While I don’t think anyone would argue with us, in reality very few of us will ever have the opportunity to be personally engaged in such a project.
So, what about the rest of us? I suppose I could say that my contributions to The Rotary Foundation help to fund global peace scholarships. And, I could follow the academic adventures of our peace fellow scholarship recipient Eva Gulin. Yet, am I truly engaged in peace and conflict resolution by watching someone else learn about it from the sidelines?
I could go to the Heart of Peace Concert sponsored by the UT Arlington Rotaract Club and the Arlington Great Southwest and Fort Worth East Rotary Clubs on February 13, 2016. Now, that is getting me closer to being personally engaged. I can actually participate in an event with other Rotarians that expresses our heartfelt desire for world peace. But, am I truly engaged in peace?
A very recent event told me where I need to start my peace engagement. Right here at home. I consider myself to be a pretty peace loving guy. Recently, Rotary International President Ravi Ravindran announced on Facebook the Jubilee of Rotarians in Rome on April 30th. The event includes an audience with Pope Francis and includes a celebration of the Mass. As I read through comments from fellow Rotarians, I ran across one that said “what gives, I thought Rotary was supposed to be a non-political, non-religious organization”. When I read that, being the Catholic that I am and defender of the faith, I felt compelled to respond with a comment of my own. I wrote a very nice comment explaining my view that the Jubilee Year of Mercy and Rotary’s peace and conflict initiatives were aligned because both required a call for us to return to a world where we respect each other, give and receive mercy rather than nurse misunderstandings and hate.
Of course the “what gives” commenter wrote another comment justifying his assertion that I won’t share with you here, but suffice to say was in my view point a bit snarky. As I was mentally formulating a response, it hit me…”mutual respect and understanding”. Who was not being understanding? Me. Who was not being respectful (at least in my mind)? Me. I was not allowing myself to see the issue from his perspective. I did not respect the fact that he was coming from a totally different place on the issue. It was then that I realized that what I love about Rotary is that we can have fellowship with each other in spite of all our differences. It was then that I decided to celebrate our differences instead of responding with a snarky comment of my own. BTW, RI President Ravi also responded that “Rotary is most certainly non-political and non-religious. Pope Francis is a humanitarian figure and as such, I consider it a great honor for us to be invited to participate, regardless of creed”.
How does the song go? Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.
So, how does a Rotarian become engaged in peace and conflict resolution? Besides starting with your own attitude, you might want to consider what my friend and fellow Rotarian does. He is part of an Interfaith Group that includes Jews, Muslims, Christians, Bihia and others that get together and celebrate their differences by seeking peace and understanding.
I would be interested in seeing your comments on the subject of Rotarians seeking engagement in peace and conflict resolution.
John Pokorny, Lewisville Morning Rotary
The opinions and comments expressed here are mine and not necessarily those of Rotary International or those of Rotary International District 5790 or in fact, my own Rotary club.
This post is our districts 1st foray into the world of blogging. We encourage readers to sign up to receive blog postings. We invite meaningful critiques and would like to know your opinion of what kind of content is appropriate.
You may respond with your comments regarding this blog or volunteer to provide blog content by e-mailing me at pokornyja@gmail.com.
You can also leave a comment in the comments section of the blog at the link shown above.