We love TED Talks at ORBITER. Especially when they begin as promisingly as this one:
“These are the times, said Thomas Paine, that try men’s souls. And they’re trying ours now.
“This is a fateful moment in the history of the West. We’ve seen divisive elections, and divisive societies. We’ve seen the growth of extremism in politics and religion. All it fueled by anxiety, uncertainty, and fear of a world that’s changing almost faster than we can bear, and the sure knowledge that it’s going to change faster still.
“I have a friend in Washington, and I asked him what was it like being in America during the recent presidential election? He said to me, “Well, it was like the man sitting on the deck of the Titanic with a glass of whiskey in his hand, and he’s saying, ‘I know I asked for ice, but this is ridiculous.’
“So, is there something we can do, each of us, to be able to face the future without fear? I think there is.”
That’s Rabbi Jonathan Sacks in a recent TED Talk, and you’re going to want to listen to the rest of it to hear his proposed strategy. Hint: It depends on our willingness to dialogue.
Sacks, author of more than 30 books, served as the Chief Rabbi of the U.K. and Commonwealth for 22 years. He serves in the British House of Lords and won the 2016 Templeton Prize.
Also be sure to check out Sacks’ interview with NPR on the TED Radio Hour.