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26 June 1999
Commencement Address
Dr Edmond Israel
Member of the Board of Regents, Sacred Heart University
Honorary Chairman Cedel International
Chairman Board of Governors of the Asia-Europe Foundation
Sacred Heart University
Dear President, your Excellencies, Faculty Members, Alumni, Students, Distinguished Guests,
Never before, since the emergence of modern man, ‘Homo sapiens’, from the darkness of prehistoric times, so many fast strides in the acquisition of knowledge, in the progress of science have been made than in the course of this century, more particularly during the last half of the XXth century. Without being exhaustive, let me outline some of the fundamental scientific achievements which should lead to this New Thinking For a New World.
In Physics the special and general theory of relativity as well as quanta mechanics are monuments of human thinking, milestones in man's eternal quest to grasp Fundamental Reality, to approach God. In Biology, the discovery by Watson and Crick of the double helix DNA, brought new insights into the functioning and workings of the biological phenomenon as it deploys on our planet in accordance with the program encoded in the genes.
In 1969 took place, for the first time in the history of Mankind, the landing by human beings, Amstrong and Aldrich, on earth's satellite, the Moon. Thus, men could contemplate planet Earth from another planet, the Moon. The sheer beauty of the blue planet emerging from the darkness of the surrounding cosmos, a symbol of the unity of all Mankind, was a particularly moving and stirring experience. The challenging dream of President John Kennedy has become a reality.
Furthermore, computers and telecommunications have completely changed our way of life, our way of communicating, our way of working, our way of making scientific discoveries. In theoretical physics and in astrophysics, discoveries with philosophical and even theological implications have been made and continue to be made, giving us new insights into the very fabric of matter as well as the origin and dimension of the Universe. Through the Hubble telescope, we can do time travelling, we travel back into the past, right to the origin of the Universe, the so-called Big Bang.
Yet, you will quite legitimately ask yourselves: But did this bring about a change in the way human beings act, think, or behave? Did this progress of Science avert wars, mass killings, torture and genocide? Well, recent history and contemporary events, such as Kosovo, tell us that this is not the case. So what do we have to do? Deny progress? Remain static? Halt scientific research?
Even if we wanted to do that, and I think we never should, it would be impossible. Progress of knowledge is a law of nature. Let me recall here what a distinguished American scientist, Nobel prize laureate, the physicist Steven Weinberg, wrote in his book ‘The dream of a final theory’: I quote "Science might have provided the means, but never the motives to kill". Unquote
To eliminate the motives to kill is the most fundamental challenge confronting today mankind. In his groundbreaking new book entitled "Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge", the American biologist Edward O. Wilson, argues for the fundamental unity of all knowledge and the need to search for consilience, the proof that everything in our world is organised in terms of a small number of fundamental natural laws that comprise the principles underlying every branch of learning.
Drawing on the physical sciences and biology, anthropology, psychology, religion, philosophy, and the arts, Professor Wilson shows why the goals of the original Enlightenment are surging back to life, why they are reappearing on the very frontiers of science and humanistic scholarship, and how they are beginning to sketch themselves as the blueprint of our world as it most profoundly, elegantly, and excitingly is.
Mankind at large is hardly assimilating intellectually and emotionally the fundamental changes affecting all strata of human society.
Too often the response to the progress of science is defensive. It appears indeed as if mankind had constantly to ward off all kinds of dangers and perils, to protect its future from the evils arising out of the progress of science, while the prospects offered to mankind appear to be completely disregarded. Isn’t it paradoxical that those who use abundantly technology, a spin off of basic science, at the same time resist and deny the value of science?
Most people continue to think and react in antiquated conceptualisations based on paradigms belonging irreversibly to the past. Thus, a most fundamental gap, between the reflection of a new world image, emerging through scientific research, and the mentalities embedded in the past, continues to widen instead of narrowing.
Therefore, I believe that we have to bridge a gap and that the bridging of this gap is a foremost task and challenge confronting mankind at the turn of this century. It consists in adapting our mentalities to this new world image unfolding on our planet, which, in the wake of telecommunications, has become a global village with multicultural dimensions. We have to eliminate in our thinking hatred and ethnic pride leading to disaster and death. At the same time we have to reconfirm and to reinterpret the ethical values which are at the center of the religions and philosophical messages. Let me now spell out briefly an approach aiming at bridging this gap.
Scientists from all parts of the world conducting fundamental research and blending this research with philosophical thinking should be invited to break out of their inner circle and communicate in clear language, understandable to the populations at large, the short and long term aims and targets of their activities and thinking as well as the tremendous opportunities offered to mankind.
In the context of this communication program on a world-wide scale, including of course the ethical problems to be addressed by religious leaders, the media, television, radio as well as the written press, have to be enlisted. Such a communication is quite naturally of a universal character and targeted to the variety of cultures of which mankind is composed of.
Changing mentalities through adaptation to an increasing complex human socio-structure is an ongoing process. In our schools, a widening spectrum of adolescents, if properly guided and inspired by their educational environment, will be interested to turn toward those disciplines offering the best opportunities during the next century. In parallel, they will find out that the future holds for them in store untold opportunities and they will also discover a new sense of fulfilment in their existence.
Thus, Science has fundamentally a social function. First through its technological spin offs improving the conditions of the human existence and prolonging the human life span. Then, in conjunction with ethics, Science dispels ignorance and preconceived ideas embedded in the past, brings enlightenment and thus peace. People will be driven by new goals and ideals. To quote freely the American sociologist Alvin Toffler: In his book, "Powershift":
"Power and influence will shift from the accumulation of wealth by individuals and deadly weapons by nations, to steadily increasing knowledge, the real source of power of the future, the very core and essence of human evolution." Unquote.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let me come down now for a moment from the lofty heights of Science and Philosophy and turn to specifics, a brief excursion into the reality of today. Changing mentalities in this new world is of fundamental importance and yet we have also to devise fast solutions for day to day problems. Permit me to spell out how Luxembourg attempts to cope with the challenges of this new world.
As you probably are aware of, Luxembourg is a tiny country with a territory of 2850 km2, counting 440,000 inhabitants. 35% to 40% of our population are foreigners, a fact Luxembourg considers to be an opportunity and advantage for its economic and socio-political development over the years. Out of the workforce of about 200,000 people, more than 60,000 cross daily the borders of France, Germany and Belgium to work in Luxembourg.
Our economy was during the first half of this century monolithic, based primarily on one single sector, Steel and Iron.
After the last world war, the necessity arose very quickly to diversify our economy in line with the evolution on a worldwide scale. The sectors of Media and Telecommunication were developed. They grew steadily in importance, reaching far beyond the boundaries of our country, C.L.T. beams its radio and television programs to an increasing number of European countries while our planet is circled by nine telecommunications satellites of S.E.S. – ASTRA, which recently has become a shareholder of Asia-Sat.
Another major component of our economy is represented by the sector of financial services.
The fundamental strength of a successful international financial center lies in innovative thinking, in fast adaptation to continuously moving market conditions, in a good and efficient banking control but particularly also in the multilingual and multicultural dimension of Luxembourg. The observance of the highest ethical standards in the conduct of business is not only a moral obligation but an absolute prerequisite for continued success in banking as well as in other professional activities.
A further and last example: 29 years ago, was founded in Luxembourg Cedel International, a clearing and settlement organisation for securities. This company, in the wake of the expansion of the international securities markets and in particular of the Euro bond market, grew steadily over the years. For instance its turnover exceeded in 1998, USD 17 trillion while as of 31 December 1998 more than USD 1.7 trillion of securities were under custody and administration at Cedel International. At the beginning Cedel employed 12 people and now Cedel International and its subsidiaries employ more than 850, out of which more than 750 are based at the headquarters in Luxembourg and the others are in London, New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Dubai and soon São Paulo. Parallel to its very advanced technology, Cedel International employs a highly skilled staff composed in Luxembourg of 32 different nationalities. These people integrate in an exemplary fashion so that, very fast, they form, in spite of cultural differences, a homogenous group.
Cedel International recently announced a merger with Deutsche Börse Clearing to form the European Clearing House, new Cedel International. At the same time Société des Bourses Françaises (SBF Group) and SICOVAM have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to join the new venture. This is an outstanding example of visionary management as well as of the recognition of Luxembourg's privileged position on the European financial scene.
Worthwhile to mention is also the rencent introduction by Cedel International of an innovation, called "Management of Knowledge" or "Shared Knowledge". This constitutes a slate of informations updated constantly relating to the structure, to the management as well as to the operational field of the company, accessible by Intranet to the whole staff allowing it to be as knowledgeable, as professional and as productive as possible in a fast changing global environment. So far, some concrete examples of adaptation to this New World in the making.
I said at the beginning of my speech that we have to bridge the gap between the use of technology and the progress of knowledge. This calls for a fundamental paradigm shift in parallel with the change of our perception of the world image. By adjusting to this, we can construct a better world, a world based on knowledge and peaceful competition. Shimon Perez, the former Prime Minister of Israel, has said recently in a remarkable speech, I quote him freely, "Mankind undergoes in our time a second genesis, Peace can not and should not be left only to the political leaders, it must be built by each one of us in our way of thinking or acting and then we shall have an abundant harvest which Shimon Perez calls, The "Peace Dividend".
To conclude, Ladies and Gentlemen, permit me to unfold my own vision for the 21st century and also the definition I would propose in this context for the 21st century. I think that the 21st century will be planetary because the problems of environment and demographic evolution will have to be addressed globally. These are basic and fundamental factors for the future of Mankind in this already at present global village of ours. The coming century, and in particular, the last half will be known as the century of a network of satellite communications as well as interplanetary exploration by either unmanned or manned spacecraft. Further planets of our solar system will be explored and, in the centuries ahead, man will pursue his eternal quest in the exploration of the Universe, probing other worlds beyond our solar system.
While competing we will have to cooperate, to share our knowledge and insights. In the future, the strength of nations, regions and continents will not be based on military destructive weapons but on intellectual power and creativity. In order to survive, Mankind must definitely throw into the trashpan of history narrow thinking, fundamentalist and integrist ideologies leading nowhere except to cataclysmic catastrophies. Mankind will also have to throw into the same trashpan illconceived conservatism, conserving what should not be conserved and rejecting what should be preserved. Even in our time we can witness to what extent misapplied conservatism can create havoc bringing nations to the brink of perdition. On the contrary, Mankind will have to uphold and apply the eternal values of ethics and here the role of the religions are of prime importance.
That's why I wish to highlight with intensity and profound conviction the constructive cooperation between Science and Religion initiated and conducted for quite a number of years under the guidance and authority of President Dr Tony Cernera by the Sacred Heart University. New thinking for a new world means for both religions and science to renew and reshape their thinking, dismantling the preconceived ideas they held too often in the past towards each other, rendering a constructive dialogue practically impossible. Both Science and Religion have to make tabula rasa in many respects. They have to cast off antiquated misconceptions embedded in old thinking, aware that time is unidirectional and not reversible. Scientists and religious leaders have to make a new start to construct together a new world.
May I end my reflection by quoting, translating from French into English, a wonderful thought expressed by John Liam Walsh, Professor of Theology and Vice Rector of the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. I quote freely: Theology can only exist in close contact with the other sciences and a further quote: "One of the prototypes appearing in human dreams is the unity, the communion of all things, the human and cosmic harmony." Unquote.
As I am a dreamer and an optimist by nature I believe that this will be the course followed by Mankind in the future. Therefore my definition and my vision of the 21st century is "The century of planetary thinking".
I thank you for your attention.
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