The ethos of responsability

The Earth's limits for supporting the voracity of world growth and its related consumerism are rapidly exhausting themselves. Governmental guidelines and the calls of world organizations which study the state of the Earth are not enough for authentic radical change. A real molecular revolution starting from the consciences of the anxious sons and daughters of our planet is becoming urgent. The ethos of searching, which dominates in the world, is not able alone to offer the tools for a leap forward in quality. It has become demoralized because it hasn't been able to avoid the genocide of Latin American indigenous people, the fascist Nazi holocaust, the Soviet gulags, the weapons of mass destruction, the recent preemptive wars, and the devastation caused by the capitalist mode of production with its growing generation of poverty and exclusion. It was able to impose itself not by arguments but by force. This conviction rises in the most awakened consciences: either global civilization stops being predominantly Western or it will cease to exist. We are obliged to develop an ethos of limitless responsibility for all that exists and lives as a condition for the survival of humanity and its natural habitat.

Responsibility is the capacity to give effective answers (responsum in Latin, from which comes responsibility) to the problems that come to us from the complex current situation. And we will only achieve this with an ethos that loves, cares, and takes responsibility. Responsibility arises when we realize the consequences that our actions have on others and on nature. Hans Jonas, the philosopher of the "principle of responsibility", formulated the categorical imperative thus: "Work in such a way that the consequences of your actions are not destructive to nature, to life, or to the Earth." The imperative is especially valid for biotechnology and for those operations that intervene directly in the genetic code of human beings, other living things, and genetically-modified seed. The universe has worked 15 billion years and genetics 3.8 million to order the information that guarantees life and its equilibrium. In one generation, we want to control these extremely complex processes without measuring the consequences of our action. For this reason the ethos of responsibility imposes caution and precaution as basic ethical behavior.

This ethos assumes some priority tasks. In relation to society, it moves forward from an axis of competition, which uses calculative reasoning, to an axis of cooperation, which uses cordial reasoning. In relation to the economy, it is in our interest to go from the accumulation of wealth to the production of a sufficient and decent living for all. In relation to nature, it is urgent to celebrate the synergistic alliance between the rational management of what we need and the conservation of natural capital. In relation to the spiritual atmosphere of our societies, it is important to move from individualism and assertiveness to the building of the common good and a spirit of cooperation.

Responsibility reveals the ethical character of a person. He sees himself as co-responsible, along with the guiding forces of nature, for the future of life and humanity. When we assume our role responsibly, even contrary winds help bring the saving Ark to port.

Free translation from the Spanish provided by AnneFullerton@mybluelight.com. Done in Arlington, VA in cooperation with Refugio del Rio Grande, Texas.