There are various issues that affect the world; these issues are so pressing that they threaten humanity in itself; Mother Teresa, Simon Weil and Martin Luther King, devoted their lives to addressing these issues that threaten to consume society, most notably, poverty, terrorism, ecological crisis and human rights. These figures devoted their lives to serving others and advocating for globalization; they changed the course of history and made the world a better place to live in. This paper seeks to identify how these figures and their philosophical ideas relate to the issues of globalization, terrorism and ecological crisis. The paper also seeks to explain how applying these ideas assist in formulating solutions that face the world today.
Martin Luther King was a major civil rights activist; advocating for the rights of African-Americans due to the racial prejudice that had been rampant in the United States. He advocated for equal rights to resources, voting, jobs and social treatment. Martin Luther King later perfected the art of non-violent persuasion in his campaigns. This is very important in the world today; terrorists act out of hatred due to prejudicial stereotypes against them or due to the feeling of being wronged; Martin Luther King’s principle of desegregation enables people to handle issues in a peaceful and harmonious manner.
Mother Teresa devoted her life to loving others; she was generous, compassionate and her actions were not driven by profit, but rather, by the desire to help others. This concept is very applicable to globalization today. Globalization involves fostering multi-cultural society where all people can work together in harmony. This concept of unconditional love also applies to terrorism; if people were concerned about one another, people would not have to fight and kill one another. This concept of giving and caring without expecting profit also applies to ecological crisis; organizations should not only conduct business to maximize profit, they should also do so in an environmental friendly manner to preserve the environment.
Simone Weil was a rights and obligations activist; she believed that rights should go hand in hand with obligation. Human beings should not ask for rights if they cannot meet their social obligations. Obligations involve respecting the rights of others; terrorists should learn from these, along with other groups that pollute the environment. People have a moral obligation to protect others and the environment in general.
Works Cited
Cover, Phillip, and Donna Mollenkopf. The inner work of Lent: a journey with Helen Keller, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Simone Weil, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mother Teresa, Jesus of Nazareth. Phoenix, Md.: Inner Work Books, 2004. Print.
Rifkin, Ira. Spiritual innovators: seventy-five extraordinary people who changed the world in the past century. Woodstock, Vt.: SkyLight Paths Pub., 2002. Print.
