Well, Gurney -

Government leaders speak from a political perspective, and business leaders speak from a profit perspective - and most speak primarily for the priorities of their own country or company. I think this world needs religious leaders to speak from an ethical perspective. Yes, some have failed, but some religious leaders have made spectacular contributions. The Dalai Lama is universally respected, as is Archbishop Desmond Tutu. I think John Paul II did well in opposing Marcos in the Philippines and Communism in Eastern Europe, and the US-UK war in Iraq. The U.S. civil rights movement might never have had such success without Martin Luther King, Jr., and other religious leaders. Mother Theresa didn't do too bad, either.

Business and political leaders speak for power - that's what they're supposed to do, I suppose. If religious leaders do what they are supposed to do, they speak for ethics, for peace, and for justice for the oppressed. For the large part, I think modern religious leaders have divorced themselves from the politics of power, and that has made them credible witnesses for justice.

Oh, and then there are the fundamentalists, but that's another story...

-Joe Offer-