Stressing that “the way to peace is through justice, not victory,” author and Boston Globe columnist James Carroll called on religious leaders to re-examine their values last night in front of 200 Boston University community members at the George Sherman Union’s Metcalf Hall.
Carroll’s lecture, titled “In Search of a Common Humanity,” focused on what he said is the tendency of religions to divide rather than unite. Carroll stressed the need for self-criticism in religion, calling on every faith to “re-examine its fundamental assumptions.”
Carroll explored some of today’s most prominent religious disputes, focusing on Islamic conflicts in Ethiopia, Kashmir and Cyprus.
“Is Islam dealing with an eternal jihad?” he asked during the lecture, co-sponsored by the Luce Program in Scripture and the Literary Arts and the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center.
Carroll challenged what she called an “us versus them” mentality of Islamic and Western leaders. He called the tension between the West and Islam “dangerous” and “inevitably problematic.”
“The most important message of tonight is that religion is ambiguous, and that a self-critical impulse is necessary,” said Peter Hawkins, director of the Luce Program, which aims to raise the profile of the Bible in academic studies at BU.
Carroll dedicated his remarks to the memory of Howard Gotlieb, with whom he had a close friendship, recalling his friend at the beginning of his lecture.
“Howard welcomed me as a priest and then as a writer,” he said.
His audience laughed when Carroll remembered, “Howard called me ‘collectable.'”
In an interview with The Daily Free Press, Carroll said the main message of his lecture was that “the way to peace is through justice, not victory.”
Gotlieb Center Director Vita Paladino said she expected a higher student turnout but was pleased with Carroll’s lecture.
“My goal was to get someone to speak about religious tolerance, and Carroll is a wonderful writer who writes provocative essays,” she said. “He is a role model for journalism and religion students.”
After his lecture, Carroll was asked by an audience member to define the word “jihad.” He first asked if any Muslims in the audience could comment on the basic definition of the word and then compared it to the word “crusade,” pointing to violence.
“He is an absolutely magnificent speaker,” School of Nursing professor emeritus Gladys Scipien said. “I walked away with the message that we need to speak to people of different religions to understand them — it can’t just be war.”