Desmond Tutu spoke about ubuntu which is the South African ‘belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity’. Tutu hopes for world peace and is currently working towards that goal with the Tutu Peace Centre.

Tutu is a very charismatic speaker. He made a few points that I really agreed with. He has a very optimistic view on the progress being made towards social justice. Instead of dwelling on the bad in the world, Tutu tries to emphasize the good. I also felt that his thoughts about the truth of all religions were right on. When Tutu was asked what Christians can learn from other religions, Tutu replied “God is not a Christian”. After much shocked applause, he went on to explain what he meant by this. Tutu firmly believes that God does not have a ‘Christians-only’ policy and that people of different religions should not be segregated on Earth or in Heaven. Tutu has great respect for those who devote their life to prayer and he particularly admires the fourteenth Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso. Tutu shared a theoretical conversation between the Dalai Lama and God at the gates of Heaven:

The Dalai Lama: “Can I come in?”
God: “Dalai Lama, you know, you — you are the cat’s whiskers, but, ahh, sorry – no. Better luck next time.”

(Did you catch that great pun by ‘God’ referring to the Tibetan Buddhist belief in reincarnation? Desmond is a sharp fellow!)

The entire experience was wonderful and I’m very glad to have been able to attend. As this was a UCSB Arts and Lectures event, Tutu brought up the role of students in social change. The 1976 student protest in Soweto against the use of Afrikaans in black schools began a massive uprising in South Africa. In addition to the direct action, Tutu reminded the audience that the end of apartheid would not have been possible without the help of foreign countries and their citizens, particularly the students who urged their governments to become involved. These words of encouragement made the lecture not only spiritually uplifting but politicaly uplifting as well.