A leading sociologist and theorist of world affairs, José Casanova argues against the view that religion is best left to the private sphere. For José Casanova, religion must be included in the public square, especially as the lines between “public” and “private” become more and more complicated in our increasingly globalized world. In his talk “Religion, Globalization, & the Pursuit of Happiness,” José Casanova emphasizes this point about globalization, arguing that with the shrinking of our planet into a global village, we can no longer think of our own personal or national happiness without seriously worrying about the impact our decisions will have on the rest of the world. That’s how interconnected things have become: our country makes a decision (even an environmentally responsible one to grow more crops for bio-fuel) and it impacts people living thousands of miles away (José spoke of food-riots all around the globe in poorer countries in response to inflated food prices caused by the American crop-growing decision). We have entered an era where your happiness and my happiness are intertwined — more intertwined than ever. This realization must impact not only on the way we make personal decisions, and not only on the way we want our country to make policy and political decisions, but also on the way that we envision the interaction of religions.

Reflecting on the growth of our global village, José emphasizes a world in which religions extend trans-nationally across any regional boundaries and in which “inter-civilizational encounters” are par for the course. In such a world where national boundaries are increasingly porous, and where the line between “domestic” and “foreign” issues is increasingly blurred, José speaks of a “new interfaith ecological religious discourse,” a new era in which religions must get to know one another more than ever before, and must look out for the welfare of all people — and Mother Earth — more than ever before. In a globalized world, your happiness and my happiness (and Mother Earth’s happiness) are more and more deeply inter-connected, and José sees this as impacting on the way religions view (and must view) the world and one another. It would seem that in time, all religions will more and more fully enter into this “new interfaith ecological religious discourse.” The continuing growth of our global village demands it.

What do you think about this? Do you agree that it is increasingly irresponsible for any person, nation, or religious group to forge ahead in pursuit of happiness while ignoring the happiness of others? Do you think that the fact of globalization demands more and more that we all look out for one another, even if that proves a rather difficult and sometimes impossible task? Do you think that the globalized world makes it more and more likely that religious groups will in fact tend to become more and more aware of larger human issues (like human rights, environmental conservation, etc.)? Does globalization demand a change in the way religions view one another and their responsibility for all people and for Mother Earth? Does globalization ensure (slowly, over time) a change in the way religions view one another and their responsibility for all people and for Mother Earth?

To watch the video, you will need to download Adobe Flash Player.

In her January 15, 2008 Bridges to the Future talk at DU, “Not So Big: The First Step in True Sustainable Living,” Sarah Susanka emphasizes the “not so big” lifestyle and the importance of cutting through the clutter, pursuing your passions, and helping create meaning in your life. In this spirit, Susanka invites us to think of the remodel of the self on analogy with the remodel of a home, and urges us to consider how the positive changes we make in our own lives will reflect outward into larger positive changes in the world.

In an excerpt from her book, The Not So Big Life, Susanka reflects on these themes:

“This is the real key to a Not So Big Life. The creativity in crafting your life remodeling comes when you make all the preparations and then let go. This is how you improve the quality of what you have. You can’t manage what you want into existence, but you can be the instrument of its creation by getting all the tools in place and then letting things unfold as they will. This kind of creativity is something we are all capable of, but in order for it to happen we have to be completely engaged in what we are doing, with no planning, thinking, or worrying about the exact form of what we are making.”

Some questions for thought:

1) What do you think of Susanka’s analogy between remodeling homes and remodeling your life? What seems most helpful to you about this comparison?

2) In the above quote, Susanka talks about “getting all the tools in place and then letting things unfold as they will.” What are some of the tools that you would put in place? What about the idea of “letting go”?

3) Susanka suggests that when you follow your passion, things will fall into place and you will find positive new meaning in your life. Do you have examples of this to share? What passion might you like to more fully pursue in your own life? Do you have any concerns with this advice?

Please share your ideas! As part of our commitment to ongoing learning experiences, Bridges to the Future has created this new Blog feature to keep the conversation going community-wide… (Visit back in a few days to see the new Video Diary feature as well).

As part of our commitment to fostering in-depth conversations within the community around important ideas, Bridges to the Future is pleased to launch our new Blog. Our goal is to enable ongoing community-wide discussion of ideas and themes addressed as part of our Bridges to the Future lecture series which, this year, examines the Pursuit of Happiness.Our Blog also contains the new Bridges Video Diary, a video compilation of community-members speaking onto camera (at our new Bridges Luncheon series), sharing their ideas on Bridges themes.We hope that the Blog and Video Diary will spur new ideas and get people talking across the community about the Bridges to the Future lecture topics. This is your forum. Enjoy!