RSS FeedUbuntu - I am because we areJune 28 2007
This magical Bantu word speaks to the interconnectedness of all humanity. Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu speak often of Ubuntu and the underlying principal that only forgiveness can bring reconciliation. They speak about Ubuntu not only with their words, but also with their actions. The philosophy of Ubuntu is described beautifully in an article/sermon written by Rev. Victor H. Carpenter entitled Forgiveness-The Mandela Principle. He tells the following story:
Amy Biehl, you may recall was the 26 year old Fulbright Scholar from California who had come to Cape Town six years ago to help prepare that country for its first Democratic election. While working in an African township teaching the population how to cope with election procedures, she was set upon by a group of youths shouting political slogans. She was stabbed and stoned to death. No violent death is easy to justify, but the killing of Amy Biehl must rank as one of the most senseless of the politically linked murders in South Africa in the past half-century. The four perpetrators of the murder were apprehended, tried, imprisoned. With the establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, they applied to be granted amnesty on the basis that their crime had been politically motivated. On the day of their appearance before the T & R Commission, the mother and father of Amy Biehl were sitting two rows behind them in the hearing hall. Peter and Linda Biehl had refused to condemn those who had murdered their daughter Amy. To the amazement of many South Africans the Biehl's demonstrated a level of understanding and a willingness to reconcile with the murderers that almost defied belief. Amy's mother Linda said, “My daughter's legacy was to reach out to people. I'm not a political person, but if we don't reach out to people as people what hope do we have?” And Peter Biehl, her father said, “The choice is whether you become involved or sit on the sidelines. Amy is here among you because she cared and because she was participatory.” “Participatory” comes close to defining the highest good in African society. It is the core meaning of the word “ubuntu” and is enshrined in the Xhasa proverb: “a person is a person through persons.” “Ubuntu” affirms an organic wholeness of humanity: that one realizes one's full potential only through other people. “I think, therefore I am” is replaced by, “I participate, therefore I am.” Life together is the quintessence of an African understanding of what it means to be human. “Amy was participating.” Ubuntu. A person is a person through persons! Ubuntu. Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. Ubuntu.
Sometimes people are put in our lives to betray and hurt us so we can learn about our own capacity to forgive. Sometimes people are put in our lives to unleash great pain and suffering so we can learn about our own capacity for unconditional love. We find our humanity – we learn who we are – through our interactions with others. This is Ubuntu.
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