The Power of Vision
Ideals Can Only Be Achieved Peacefully
Aquatic landscape showing biodiversity with colony of beautiful pink flamingos in their habitatThe word "Utopia" originates from the Greek language and literally means a "place that does not exist" or as pun a "good place."In fact, it is a fantastic or an imaginary ideal place or vision of an ideal world, a world close to perfection where all people enjoy prosperity, equality and peace. In fact, the ancient Greeks, with Aristophanes and Plato, (student of Socrates) were pioneers who introduced this vision of an ideal state as feasible to the world. However, the human quest for an "Earthly Paradise"accompanied people for ever more with Saint Augustine and his work in reference to "God’s State"or "De Civitate Dei", a vision later adopted by the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire Charlemagne. The English statesman Thomas More in his work"Utopia" underlines the significance of a perfect imaginary ideal world. Jesus Christ openly spoke that his purpose was to build the Kingdom of God on Earth and in our days a Korean scholar and spiritual leader Rev Sun Myung Moon proclaimed the Chonil Guk, an idealistic version of a unified, prosperous and peaceful world. Another visionary of the 21th century is the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader who is an advocate of nonviolent resistance and the author of Compassionate Life and the Wisdom of Forgiveness. Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948 AD) was an extraordinary Indian spiritual figure, who introduced a non-violent revolution that led to the independence of his country from British colonial rule. Even though he didn’t have a Christian background he would apply Christian values and ethics in attaining peaceful grand goals. Those are some of the memorable personalities who proved to be visionaries who dreamed of or had utopias of a better and peaceful world. I wish I could have included more, but there will be more opportunities for that.
Ancient Greek comedy playwright Aristophanes (450 BC-388 BC) in his comedy “Birds” demonstrates the desire of two middle-aged Athenians who are in search of a more ideal world. They are fed up with their life in Athens, her bellicose statesmen, the political corruption, the falsehood of oracles and the injustice of the system. According to the story, the two men persuade the world’s birds to build a new city in the sky which were to gain authority over all communication networks between the earth and gods. This would allow them to take control over men and the gods and establish their lordship high above the clouds for eternity. This story shows the failure of the human race to establish a harmonious world of peace and prosperity for all humans. On the other hand the great Greek philosopher Plato (428-388 BC) in his work The Republic, one of the most significant and influential books ever written, stresses the importance of being just in relation to attaining true happiness. He criticized Athenian democracy for having mistaken anarchy for freedom and claimed that excessive freedom jeopardized the essence of democracy. Plato also argued that in that system everyone can come to power and rule despite the fact that he might be a person lacking integrity and moral values, while being motivated by selfish desire and motivation. He maintained that it would be wiser if people with good character and integrity would come to power and rule and that humans should choose to do good things because otherwise, they would end up unhappy. Bad immoral people should never be allowed to rise to power in a society because that would lead to failure and disaster.
Saint Augustine (354 – 28 August 430) was a scholar and theologian with a vision for a better world, a world with values like spirituality and faith in God that goes beyond ephemeral earthly pleasures and sensual satisfaction and in quest for God’s love. In his memorable work the “City of God” he compares the essence of stability and eternity as well as an ultimate consolation in contrast to earthly temporary pleasures and hedonistic lifestyle. He used the city or Rome as a decadent immoral and pleasure-seeking place in contrast to his imaginary ideal place of the “City of God.” However, there was a figure in later days, the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire Charlemagne (Charles the Great), who totally adopted and believed in the realization of Saint Augustine’s “City of God.” As a matter of fact, he made efforts to apply some of the principles and doctrines of Christian faith in his statesmanship and is considered the man who had the vision of a unified Europe. During his reign he achieved to unite much of what is today Western Europe, and contributed to spreading Christianity throughout his empire. It became a period of increased literacy and cultural activity as well as the development of science and education.
It was Sir Thomas More (1478 – 1535 AD) the English humanist statesman who had the vision of an ideal perfect state. His most known fictional work is “Utopia” which was published in 1516 AD and illustrates an ideal state on an imaginary island in the ocean that has been cut off from Europe for a very long time. He supports the idea of a largely classless society similar to a Christian communism (vs. Marxism-Leninism). The state is supposed to supply all the necessary tools so that people can sustain a happy, prosperous lifestyle and live up to the Christian values of brotherhood, love, charity, altruism, goodness, self-control, peace etc. and above all emphasizing the pursuit of God’s will.
Jesus Christ, the Messiah or second Adam, proclaimed God’s Kingdom on Earth as his primary mission. Why would Jesus compromise what was to be his main mission? Wouldn't that be an admitted failure? Can the Messiah or even God himself fail? It's now clearly understood why he pledged of his Second Coming. However, due to the faithlessness and opposition of the chosen people this was postponed until the Second Coming, Revelation 21:1-6 NIV, as he promised. Jesus was not meant to die on the cross because he came to restore Adam’s failure who disobeyed God’s commandment that led to the Fall of Man and the Original Sin. His crucifixion, despite the immense value of his sacrificial love, leaves much more to be desired in terms of his Second Coming. In fact, Jesus Christ’ unparalleled impact on human history brought a revolution of heart because he taught humankind the priority of God’s will, the love to our fellow man and even the love to the enemy.
Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948 AD), Indian pacifist, politician and writer, was one of the most influential, most respected spiritual leaders of the 20th century who is honoured by his fellow Indians as their father, because he was actively involved in their liberation from British rule. He believed in the doctrine of nonviolent resistance to reach independence for his homeland and could inspire the whole world through his concept of modern civil disobedience across the planet. His morality-bound approach of non-violent resistance against the British colonial oppression of his people in their struggle for freedom has been unprecedented and will be remembered for its effectiveness. Some of his quotes:
"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."
"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
"An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.
Documentary about Gandhi:
Mahatma Gandhi – dying for freedom | DW Documentary
The Korean evangelist and pacifist Rev Sun Myung Moon, often accused of being a self-proclaimed Messiah, can persuade any truth-seeker that his ideal and vision for an ideal world is not just an elusive dream, but has a realistic approach and magnitude. Despite persecutions and polemic, his movement has expanded throughout the world and has been a catalyst for embracing all religions and cultures. His international and intercultural marriages have created an effective impact in uniting a divided world, even though this is an unparalleled effort on a limited scale. His teachings are a matter of case study for those who want to understand the world of cause and effect, the principles of creation, the concept of duality, the fall of man, the mission of Jesus Christ and God’s intent to restore the world. His explanation about the human fall and root of sin is extraordinary, even though subtly encoded for the profound reader, all included in his basic teachings.
Some of his quotes:
The Divine Principle. – DIVINE PRINCIPLE TYLER HENDRICKS - YouTube
Part 1 - Reverend Moon live interview from the 1972 in the USA with Al Capp - YouTube
Part 2 - Reverend Moon live interview from the 1972 in the USA with Al Capp
https://www.tparents.org/Moon-Talks/sunmyungmoon77/SunMyungMoon-770000.htm
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