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N. Gingrich: Address to Rally of Hope I
Written by Newt Gingrich, Speaker, House of Representatives (1995-1999), USA
Sunday, August 9, 2020
Address to Rally of Hope I
August 9, 2020
First of all, I would like to welcome all of the distinguished heads of state, parliamentarians and other leaders who have come together for this Rally of Hope. What you are doing—the time you are spending, your involvement—is very important in a very troubled world. I think that what Mother Moon has done in carrying on the work of her husband and building a worldwide movement committed to the concept that we can find ways to talk with each other, we can find ways to work together, and we need to place more emphasis on peace and on seeking a better future than war, is very important.
This meeting is another step in the right direction. I participated in several and I know that the work that has been done by the Washington Times, really not just in America, but around the world is a key part of that, and the influence the Washington Times has built in the United States in carrying this message of hope, and this message that together we can find steps in the right direction, bringing North Korea and South Korea closer together, finding a way for Korea and Japan to have a better way to dialogue. I can tell you in the meetings I have been in, in both Korea and Japan, it’s been remarkable the number of people who have come out and who have been involved.
I can also tell you that Congressman Dan Burton who heads up the International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace is doing a remarkable job. I have known Dan for many years. He is deeply committed. He is hardworking. He is courageous. He has great contacts in Washington, and now, frankly, working through the Universal Peace Federation, he has great contacts around the world. And he really is committed to bringing people together.
Cooperation and determination
I think this meeting that you are now engaged in is an important step, frankly, in a time when the world is very troubled, between COVID, the economic difficulties, and all the things we are seeing. We need more effort to follow the path of Rev. Moon, to recognize that seeking peace, seeking understanding, and working together are the keys to a successful future. I think you taking your time to be involved in this meeting is really important.
I hope you have a very successful meeting; I hope to see a number of you later on this fall when we hope to have some meetings once we get past the pandemic and are able to once again get together in places like Washington, DC. And I can tell you, I would really look forward, along with Dan Burton, to helping a whole bunch of parliamentarians and government leaders to come together, to share ideas, and to develop a better path for the future.
So please allow me, as someone who is fascinated with this process, who has really enjoyed working with the Washington Times, in thinking through new ways to communicate with the American people and around the world, and who’s convinced that what Mother Moon is doing, in carrying on her husband’s work, the work that together they launched is truly a historic mission and one that’s worth your time and your effort. I hope you’ll tell your friends that there is hope for a better future.
We are in a period of such extraordinary change, having a worldwide pandemic, which is affecting every single country in the world, and having an economic crisis caused by the pandemic, which is affecting every country in the world. We are watching various problems evolve and emerge in ways that could lead to a much more violent future, or with leadership, with people talking with each other, could lead to some really interesting breakthroughs and some real opportunities for cooperation.
We will find a way
So, when I look at what is going around in the world, I think to myself this could be a beginning of a long decade or more, of difficulties, of feeling really psychologically let down, of depression, of despair. Or, with the help of people like yourselves, people who are willing to spend their time and their energy providing leadership, offering hope, we could come out of this cycle with a new burst of enthusiasm for a better future.
I, for one, am very big about space and the things that you are going to see happen in the very near future. For example, the United Arab Emirates just launched their first rocket into space, the Chinese are launching a rocket that is going to go to Mars, we are developing a program to permanently go back to the moon and we are inviting countries all over the world that will join us. Not that space will solve every single problem, but it does create a sense of hope, a sense of optimism.
If you look at the scale of research underway right now, I think at least three new vaccines are coming online in a matter of months, the fastest ever in history. You can see that there is a pharmaceutical industry out there which may, by the way, be right at the edge of a breakthrough, not just dealing with Covid-19, but also very close to a breakthrough on sickle cell anemia, and very close to a breakthrough on a number of other diseases. I can imagine a not very distant future where you have people more healthy, where the economy has come roaring back and you have people who want to get together in equalizing prosperity, and where we have a much bigger vision of how the world fits into a larger system and how we fit into a better world.
So, I am an optimist. Yes, we have challenges. Yes, there are difficulties. But I believe that we can in fact work together—all of you are the example of this—we can reach across national boundaries, we can reach across parties and differences, and we can find a way to create a dramatically better future for our children and our grandchildren. By doing it together, we actually create a better future for the entire human race. So count me in as an optimist, count me in as somebody who believes each one of us can make a big difference, and together, I think you are going to find that this meeting is one of the building blocks of creating that better future.
Hon. Newt Gingrich served as US Congressman from 1978 to 1999 and Speaker of the US House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999.
To go to the Dialogue and Alliance: Toward a Unified World of Peace, click here.