404 Global Ethics for Leadership
gious teachings as a foundation for a common approach include the
Earth Charter^309 , formulated at the turn of the millennium in 2000, and
the Common Word^310 , a continuing exchange between Muslim and
Christian scholars and religious leaders looking to the common values
that are shared by the respective religious traditions as a way to bridge
divides and differences.
The common values approach, when it focuses on bridging divides
among religious teachings and practice and when employed as a way to
mobilize common action, can be a meaningful impetus. Apart from the
many approaches that build on common desires for peace, efforts along
these lines that draw on common religious teachings to mobilize com-
munities to work together to protect the environment offer a potent and
contemporary example. Nagging questions, however, arise when asser-
tions about the areas of agreement paper over not only simple differ-
ences in understanding but also the complexities that are involved. As an
example, the simple principle “thou shalt not kill” masks millennia of
debate over the circumstances in which killing is justified or not. Even
discussions around corruption, grounded in truth telling and admonitions
to refrain from stealing, encounter layers of differing interpretations and
emphases that in practice make it difficult to mobilize common religious
efforts to address an issue that seems to represent core common religious
values.^311
31.3 The Golden Rule Common to all Religions
The third idea that ties religious teachings to broad interreligious
values is that at their core religious values are distilled in the Golden
309
310 http://earthcharter.org/
311 http://www.acommonword.com/^
Katherine Marshall. "Ancient and Contemporary Wisdom and Practice on
Governance as Religious Leaders Engage in International Develop-