The Larger View

The title of this post is taken from a hymn in the Unitarian hymnbook, Hymns for Living. The words are by John Andrew Storey, one of our best modern hymn writers, and they urge us to listen to, be open to, the wisdom of other faiths.

This week's quote has a similar message, I believe. The words of Richard Wagner "Der Blick über die Welt hinaus ist der einzige, der die Welt versteht." Which may be translated "The view beyond the world is the only one who understands the world."

Only the Divine can see the whole picture - we as imperfect mortals can only have a partial view. But, we can at least try to see, to understand, the point of view of the other, rather than becoming entrenched behind our own viewpoints, which can easily turn into prejudice, fear, distrust, and even hatred.

And this applies not only to people of other countries, other faiths, but also to our neighbours, the members of our local community. Whose views may often be very different from our own. Who are we to say that their views are invalid, wrong? Who are we to say that we have the only correct view?

I guess I'm saying that we ought to at least try to listen to the views of other people, before instantly leaping to judgement. Because if we had their life experiences, our views also might be different.

Or perhaps to realise that even people whose views are different from our own are still "unique, precious, children of God", as the Quakers have it.

I'm not saying that we should not stand up for our own beliefs, our own principles, nor that we should not defend the right of others to live in freedom and peace. Of course we should. But I also believe that at least attempting to understand the other point of view is better than instant condemnation.