- Assembly Theme
- "Caring for Our Common Future―Advancing Shared Well-being "
- Three Messages
- 1. “No individual can attain true happiness without the happiness of the
whole world.”
2. “Taking major risks for peace and disarmament, instead of taking risks with arms”
3. “Mottainai” - 15 Appeals
- (1) Our Common Future
(2) Generosity from Humanity based on spirituality and sensitivity
(3) Gender mainstreaming
(4) Anti-disaster measures taken from the viewpoint of “Shared Well-being” and in consideration of the most vulnerable people
(5) Acceptance of one refugee family at each religious facility
(6) Global application of methods of amicable settlement unique to individual regions
(7) Communicating the experience of Hibakusha and victims of the nuclear accident to future generations
(8) Denial of the theory of nuclear deterrence, which severely hinders nuclear abolition
(9) Nuclear abolition from humanitarian viewpoints
(10) International solidarity tax for the attainment of the SDGs
(11) “Mottainai” spirit
(12) Dependence “Not on nuclear power but on renewable energy”
(13) One person plants one tree
(14) Awareness of life given to us by the Earth
(15) Development of human resources for religion-based amicable settlement and peace building - Activity Photos of RfP Japan
■ Assembly Theme
"Caring for Our Common Future―Advancing Shared Well-being"
■Three Messages
“No individual can attain true happinesswithout the happiness of the whole world.”
- Kenji Miyazawa,Nomin Geijutsu Gairon Koyo (The Summary for General Theory of Farmers' Arts), 1926
Awareness that all life is connected
Reflection and responsibility for pain and conflict existing in the world
Respect the wisdom of local people in reaching amicable settlements
We believe that Miyazawa’s quote reflects the spirit shared by all religions.
The Assembly Theme urges us to recognize that all things and all life are
connected and to care for the pains of others.
Religious leaders therefore need to regard conflicts in all countries and
regions as their own issue and to foster dialogue for amicable settlements.
In order to prevent conflicts or transform them into reconciliation, we
recommend that the know-how and methods, such as “Ho’oponopono” practiced
in Hawaii and “Moyainaoshi” practiced in Minamata, Kumamoto in Japan rooted
in regions where local people live together and promote harmony, be studied
and the essential elements be applied to a range of activities that lead
to amicable settlements.
“Taking major risks for peace and disarmament, instead of taking risks with arms”
- Rev. Nikkyo Niwano, Religions for Peace Honorary Moderator,
First Special Session on Disarmament (SSOD1) of the United Nations General
Assembly, 1978
Deepening and Advancing relations of trust to provide true security.
Disarmament based on humanitarianism.
No disarmament, No development
Military defense is based on the distrust of others. Military power was
expanded supposedly to increase security, but the result is nuclear weapons
that could totally destroy humankind have been developed.
This message implies that overcoming mutual distrust and building relations
of trust with each other is the only way to provide true security.
From the humanitarian viewpoint we need to accelerate the abolition of
nuclear weapons and foster disarmament, as raised by the Hibakusha, atomic
bomb survivors, and other people who have already been leading us towards
this goal.
To this end, the Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty should come into effect as soon
as possible. We also need to take an integral view to link the elimination
of nuclear weapons and disarmament with the eradication of poverty and
environmental protection, while raising public awareness and making recommendations
for disarmament through dialogues that encompass all these issues.
“Mottainai”
Beware the idea that humankind has control over the Earth.
Feel gratitude for everything.
Develop environmental literacy at both a universal and an individual
level.
The “Mottainai”(too good to waste) or “Katajikenai” (grateful) spirit is
important to protect the lives of not just humans but all animals and plants,
and to raise environmental literacy for the Earth.
Religions for Peace (RfP) Japan provides young people with environmental
education in two formats: a comprehensive education, in which cloud and
wind movements, rising of the sea level and global warming are visualized
on a digital globe, and specific activities in which individuals plant
trees and deepen their affection with nature in an area extending over
10,000 m2 that is located adjacent to the Forest of Neighbor Totoro (forest
named after a character in Hayao Miyazaki’s animation).
By providing such education, we can feel that all people are connected
in the borderless global environment, and all living creatures are crew
members of spaceship “Earth.” We are given life by the Earth, which is
more than just something to be protected.
We recommend a sense of oneness that “all living beings are connected”
be widely communicated across the world.
■15 Appeals
(1) Our Common Future
The theme for the Assembly is “Caring for Our Common Future” and “Caring”
can be expressed as the idea that: “Caring” begins from the soul-stirring
sorrow of others, and once you turn your mind to others, your own sorrow
and pains are also healed.
“Our Common Future” means not only the future that you will share with
people who have the same values and way of thinking as you but also the
future that you will share even with others who are unacceptable to you.
While the idea of unity that self and others are connected is being widely
recognized and deeply cultivated, the value, “No individual can attain
happiness without the happiness of the whole world,” will become even more
important in future societies. We believe this value is shared by all religions.
(2) Generosity from Humanity based on spirituality and sensitivity
In contemporary society, dependence on artificial intelligence (AI) has
been increasing in line with the rapid progress of science and technology.
However, AI will never have the human ability to feel divine existence
and will never think humbly that all living things on the Earth live by
the grace of divine power.
We insist on the importance of communicating the significance of spirituality
and sensitivity to people across the world as well as on an increased need
for people to make direct dialogue with each other, while showing respect
to their mutual humanity. Religious leaders can play an essential role
to this end.
(3) Gender mainstreaming
All issues to be addressed for peace, such as disarmament, climate change,
refugees, poverty and disasters, have different impacts on men and women,
but insufficient consideration is given to such gender-related differences
in the initiatives implemented to solve these issues.
In fact, women are the most severely affected by these issues. In recognition
of this fact, we call for gender mainstreaming, specifically to process,
to formulate, to implement and to evaluate policies in consideration of
gender issues, toward achieving gender equality in all fields.
(4) Anti-disaster measures taken from the viewpoint of “Shared Well-being”
and in consideration of the most vulnerable people
RfP Japan upheld the following three policies in its effort to contribute
to recovery and re-establishment from the Great East Japan Earthquake:
offering memorial and repose-of-soul services for the lost lives; expressing
solidarity with the lives of people confronting with present difficulties;
and sharing responsibilities for the lives of future generations.
These policies were formulated from the viewpoint of the past, present
and future of humankind. We believe that they provided important guidelines
for activities to support, on the community, regional and national levels,
both the physical and mental recovery of people affected by the disasters.
We recommend that for recovery from natural disasters and other contingencies,
activities be planned based on these three policies. In the event of a
disaster or a conflict, people who are the most vulnerable in society would
be seriously affected by the incident.
It is necessary for religious leaders to build networks beyond boundaries
of their sects to accept people who need special care, such as people with
disabilities, foreign nationals and children. Religious leaders are expected
to accept all these people, even including those who believe in religions
other than their own.
(5) Acceptance of one refugee family at each religious facility
Religious leaders should play a core role to foster four actions, “acceptance,
protection, support and social inclusion” for refugees and internally displaced
people, who had to leave their home countries and hometowns due to conflicts
and disasters. Religious leaders need to build a system in collaboration
with the national and local governments, civil society, and educational
institutions, by which various religious communities can cooperate and
accept these people. As a first step, we recommend that each religious
facility accept one refugee family.
(6) Global application of methods of amicable settlement unique to individual
regions
We recommend that the Ho’oponopono practice of Hawaii, Moyainaoshi of Minamata,
Kumamoto and other regional reconciliation methods be studied and their
essential elements be extracted for application to various activities conducted
for the purpose of reaching amicable settlements.
Only religious leaders can promote this to foster dialogue that leads to
political settlement. For example, as a third party, the leaders could
invite the parties of a regional conflict to make dialogue, thereby helping
them prevent the occurrence of further conflicts and reach amicable settlement.
(7) Communicating the experience of Hibakusha and victims of the nuclear
accident to future generations
The testimonies of Hibakusha of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, victims of the
nuclear accident in Fukushima, patients of the Minamata disease in Kumamoto,
and victims of various natural disasters have provided invaluable lessons
for the future happiness of humankind. It is necessary to value these lessons
and communicate them to future generations.
(8) Denial of the theory of nuclear deterrence, which severely hinders
nuclear abolition
The theory of nuclear deterrence implies a military balance of power between
countries, and this theory is the largest hindrance to nuclear abolition.
The importance of the idea, “Taking major risks for peace and disarmament,
instead of taking risks with arms” should be re-recognized as one that
rejects the theory of nuclear deterrence.
It is also important to raise public awareness and make recommendations
through comprehensive dialogue on the topic of total human development
that will link nuclear abolition and disarmament with the eradication of
poverty and environmental protection.
(9) Nuclear abolition from humanitarian viewpoints
From the viewpoint of humanitarian initiatives, such as the Hibakusha Appeal,
International Signature Campaign and the proposal for Northeast Asia Nuclear
Weapon-Free Zone, to bring about nuclear abolition should be accelerated.
T
hese initiatives are expected to hasten the adoption of the Nuclear Weapon
Ban Treaty by all nations.
(10) International solidarity tax for the attainment of the SDGs
It is said that rich people, who account for 0.14% of the world’s population,
own 81.3% of the world’s financial assets, while one child dies of poverty
or hunger every six seconds globally.
Religious leaders should face this unreasonable truth and take actions
to protect the dignity of people across the globe. We recommend that an
international solidarity tax be imposed on the international community
in order to share responsibility and secure the funds for the attainment
of the SDGs.
(11) “Mottainai” spirit
“Mottainai” and “Katajikenai” spirit consists of 3 important values which
represents humbleness, appreciation and meaningfulness.
Humankind deeply depends on other life on the earth to obtain food and
use natural resources to let us live.
We have to humbly acknowledge humankind would never be lived without them,
appreciate the great nature we are given, and make the most meaningful
of their life which we depend on. We recommend that the “Mottainai” spirit
be spread so that no life will be wasted.
(12) Dependence “Not on nuclear power but on renewable energy”
Religions for Peace and other international multi-religious networks have
insisted on the importance of increasing the use of renewable energy to
100% of energy use by 2050.
It is necessary to deepen public recognition about the risk of using nuclear
energy, over which humans could lose control, in addition to raising the
public awareness of the fact that a horrendous amount of CO2 is emitted
from thermal power plants.
(13) One person plants one tree
Based on the Paris Agreement concluded at the COP21 as a promise of the
international community, we need to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.
To this end we recommend that each person plants one tree to create forests
that absorb CO2.
For the natural environment to recover, it is also important for activities
to be conducted on environmental improvement that consider links between
natural ecosystems, rather than taking separate measures on for example,
forests and oceans: It is said that “Forests are Lovers of the Sea.”
(14) Awareness of life given to us by the Earth
RfP Japan provides young people with an environmental education by using
a digital globe. By visualizing cloud and wind movements, rises in the
sea level and global warming, we can teach the young that there are no
national boundaries for the global environment, that they are living together
with people of other countries, and that all living things are the crew
of the spaceship “Earth”.
Global environmental literacy can be fostered by such measures to help
people recognize that the Earth is not just something to be protected but
that they are actually given life by the Earth. In addition, actions should
be taken to reduce ocean plastic waste because pollution by wasted plastics
seriously threatens the life of seabirds and marine life.
(15) Development of human resources for religion-based amicable settlement
and peace building
It is urgently necessary to develop human resources able to lead people
to peace and to amicable settlements.
We strongly recommend that an education and environment based on religious
traditions be provided to develop human resources who can proactively engage
in peace building, nuclear abolition, global environmental protection,
eradication of poverty, and humanitarian assistance for peace.