On February 12, 2009, we will be celebrating the 200th birthdays of Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln. Both men are heroes of mine because each had an idea that many people objected to, but which they believed in strongly.  And they not only put their ideas forward, despite ardent opposition, but did it in a calm, thoughtful, rational way that eventually convinced people that their ideas were correct.

Darwin was an English naturalist who, after years of research, including a five-year voyage on the HMS Beagle, conceived of the concept of natural selection, the process by which certain traits that are favorable to the survival and eventual reproduction of the organism become more common in successive generations while traits that are less favorable to survival and eventual reproduction become less common.  Darwin proposed his theory in 1838, but did not get around to publishing it until 1858, by which time another English naturalist, Alfred Russel Wallace, had the same idea, so their papers were published together.  Darwin’s theory, set out in several books including the famous On the Origin of Species, was so clearly explained and backed by such extensive evidence, that it is considered today to be one of the foundations of modern science.  This is so despite the constant strong opposition to natural selection by certain religious institutions and the sometimes-successful efforts of “creationists” to mandate the teaching of their idea that biological diversity is the result of actions of a deity, rather than a natural process.

The Emancipation Proclamation consists of two Executive Orders issued by President Lincoln on September 22, 1862, and January 1, 1863.   It declared the freedom of all slaves in any state of the Confederate States of America that did not return to Union control by January 1, 1863.  Many Americans, even those who lived in the North, opposed the idea that slaves should be freed.  Also, many anti-slavery advocates attacked the Emancipation Proclamation because it freed only the slaves over which the Union had no power and did not affect the Border States.  The Proclamation turned out to be a great practical success as it provided incentive for slaves to escape to the North, thereby depriving the Confederacy of support for their armies and giving the Union many potential new soldiers.  This effect snowballed as more of the Confederacy was conquered and more slaves were freed, eventually providing the Union armies with 200,000 additional soldiers.  The Emancipation Proclamation was eventually written into law by the adoption of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.

Although Felix Adler, the founder of Ethical Culture, is obviously not as famous as Darwin and Lincoln, I predict that someday his ideas will be as widely admired and accepted.  I believe people are gradually recognizing that it is simply not sustainable for individuals and nations to overly focus on their own needs at the expense of the billions of people in the world who endure extreme poverty.  The effects of poverty – hunger, lack of education, rampant disease and early death – could be ameliorated if all those with the ability to help would recognize that the poor also have worth and would act to bring out their best by giving them the assistance they need. Adler recognized that all people are interdependent, no matter their differences, and that the way to live an ethical life is to apply ethical principles to create a more humane world.   I’m optimistic that the new administration in Washington realizes this and will put Adler’s ideas into practice (even if they don’t give Adler the credit he deserves).